In the tire and auto service industry, profit margins are relatively small and business is still highly driven by on-demand services. That means one day can be busy and the next day can be slow. 

The next great innovation in tire and automotive service doesn’t have to be expensive. But it must be well thought-out and it must make your customer experience better than what your competitors provide.

In 2022, professional training is a critical must. As an industry, we don’t train nearly enough. To retain good employees, they need to know that they are being paid fairly and have been given the tools to do the job right. 

If you make a decision to act on a problem and in a few weeks it appears that wasn’t the best option, you can make a new decision. The market will forgive and forget. 

Two of the most frustrating things to hear in our industry are “I’m too busy to go out looking for techs” and “Well, it’s been slow, so I don’t think I can afford another tech right now.” As an industry, we need to go out looking for people who aren’t looking for us.

It can be very tempting during a difficult period to come out financially on the plus side and think, “I’ve worked especially hard, so I deserve to reward myself.” Yet here I am going to advise you to hold off.

The year 2021 is drawing to a close. For independent tire dealers across the country, it has largely been a profitable - but difficult - year. With just a few weeks remaining, it’s time to take stock of the last 12 months and start looking at the next 12 months.

With the proliferation of tiers of tire brands, you are likely to survive those instances in which your preferred brands are not available. Automotive parts and lubricants, on the other hand, are another story.

The delta variant is the dominant strain across most of the United States, and it’s hitting stores very differently than the first wave. Dennis McCarron has a reminder: You need to remain vigilant and do what you must to continue to protect both your employees and your business’ bottom line.

Once your team arrives, your doors are unlocked and customers start streaming into your showroom, the service manager becomes the most critical aspect of a well-run store. Are you giving your service managers the tools and support they need?

Imagine running a tire dealership and not knowing what is in stock or what sales have been for the month - tirelessly writing up invoices as customers come in and hoping that at the end of the day you’ve made some profit. Sounds ridiculous, right? 

A few years ago, I wrote about an impending “wage war.” The primary driver at the time was a shrinking talent pool at the beginning of the pipeline and an aging skilled workforce. (At the time, the average age of a master certified technician was 55.) When you combine those two factors, it creates a wage imbalance.

If you get 30 tire dealers in a room and bring up point-of-sale (POS) systems, prepare for 45 different opinions and a very long, passionate conversation. This month’s column is not going to endorse any particular POS system. Instead, it will help you learn to drive your POS system like the race car that it is and understand what role it plays at your dealership.

It’s now the second quarter of the new year. As you take your first real deep breath from the grip of COVID-19 and how it has affected your business, I would like to remind you that you are not alone.

Anyone who has worked in the tire and automotive repair business for even a week will be familiar with metrics -  important financial and operational milestones or ratios used to evaluate how efficiently and profitably a store is run.  

It is safe to say that 2020 was a stressful year. Nearly every facet of your business was pushed to the limit, and while 2021 seems to be shaping up as an improvement over last year, the first half is not without its challenges. In this MTD exclusive, Dennis McCarron explains why finding a stress relief valve for your employees is critical.

In this column, I often talk about processes and their importance. Sticking to a routine is important in how you and your employees:

This column is about consumer finance options. And it may ruffle some feathers. I think that offering options to consumers so they can make the best decision for their vehicle, their budget and their situation is great. What I see as a massive opportunity for our industry is in how we offer that option.