For a high-performing vehicle, trust Main Street Garage with your car, truck, or van. We are a full-service preventive maintenance and auto repair center that offers the following services: Oil Changes, Brake Services, Tires, Engine Maintenance and Repairs, Transmission Repairs, 4×4 and AWD Services, A/C and Heating Services, and Check Engine Light Diagnostics. To learn more about the services we offer, please contact us by phone at (810) 984-1545 or stop by the shop at 725 Huron Ave Port Huron, MI 48060.
Archive for October, 2017
Stop by Main Street Garage for Stellar Customer Service and Auto Repairs in Port Huron!
October 30th, 2017Manyo Motors in Milwaukee, WI Genuinely Cares for It’s Customers!
October 26th, 2017Top Notch service is what you receive at Manyo Motors located at 4035 N Green Bay Ave, Milwaukee, WI 53209! Not only do Dave and his team go the extra mile…LITERALLY…for their customers, but you receive honest, quality auto repair and maintenance services at a fair price. You will appreciate the direct and down to earth service you experience, as well as the free shuttle service to and from River West, so call 414-312-8611 today!
Your Friends in the Tire Business | Professional Tire & Radiator Service in Columbia SC!
October 25th, 2017Always providing exceptional service and great prices, Professional Tire & Radiator Service is located at 3525 Main Street, Columbia, SC 29203. Not only do they offer Preventive Maintenance services from general repair for Domestic & Import vehicles to Alignments and Transmission services, but they also have a Full Service Radiator Repair Shop. Need tires? As an independent tire dealer, they can find any tire at affordable prices! Call 803-256-3355 for your quote or appointment today.
2018 Automotive Trends
October 25th, 2017Enough About The Future of Vehicles – What’s Going on Now?
There’s a lot of hype out there right now about the future of the automotive market. Some analysts claim that fully automated cars, with no steering wheel, are less than five years away from being on US roads. Despite the slow uptake of electric cars, many expect they’ll become prominent – also years from now. Finally, 48-volt electric systems are poised to make many cars ‘hybrid-lite’, even without a lithium battery.
While you might spot a car here or there with these technologies in the coming years, they’re still rare – and it’ll be decades before they’re the norm. The automotive market isn’t standing still while these transitions take place. What’s happening right now, and how does it impact independent shops? Here are three trends that will probably impact your shop in the next three years, if they aren’t already.
- Imports are taking a larger share of the market than ever
Foreign nameplates now make up 49% of the automobiles being sold in the US today. This is having several impacts on independents. The biggest impact is that it’s leading to more service work going to dealers. While there are independent shops that specialize in imports, most shops do more work on domestics in part due to the cost of software required to diagnose and service foreign nameplates. Dealer service revenue is growing, but all of that growth can be tracked back to foreign nameplate growth.
- Telematics are encouraging customers to visit dealerships for service
Telematics, or the sharing of data from car to auto shop, poses a major threat to independent shops – so much so that it’s one of the top lobbying goals for the Auto Care Association right now. Currently, between 30% and 40% of cars sold have telematics systems, but this will grow rapidly.
Already, cars with telematics can transfer information about a vehicle to the dealership, such as the need for oil changes and tune-ups, and dealers can email the owner and ask to schedule an appointment. The new Kia UVO system takes it one step further, allowing service to be scheduled directly from the car’s touchscreen. Unless independents have access to this information, dealerships will be able to reach customers at their point of need, while independent shops will have to rely on customers contacting them – a major disadvantage.
- Pressure in the parts supply market should benefit repair shops.
Not all of the 2018 automotive trends are bad for independent shops. Parts suppliers are facing a tough time right now – and their stock prices reflect it. Their do-it-yourself customers are increasingly buying parts online, because it’s cheaper and easier. That means that the do-it-for-me market, the auto repair shop market, is more important than ever. Parts distributors understand that the two most important factors to shops are the price of the part and how long it takes to get to their shop – but they want to be able to provide more than that to shops. They want for you to appreciate them for more than being 10 cents cheaper or 10 seconds faster.
Part of this is being able to provide discounts on services like our own – we’re partnered with several parts distributors and are able to drop our setup fees substantially for customers who are also partnered with those suppliers. Many also offer everything from extended warranty programs to credit programs for customers who buy a large percentage of their products from them. You can expect for your parts suppliers to be looking for ways to offer more value to your shop over the coming months and years.
If you are a repair shop owner, it’s always a good idea to assess the current market and where you think it may go over the next few years before making any mid-term or long-term plans. These 2018 automotive trends can help you at least get a start on it.
To learn more about how Repair Shop Websites can help your shop succeed, call us at 866.665.1605 or email us at Team_RSW@RepairShopWebsites.com.
Cooper Tire and Auto Service | We Keep You Rolling!
October 20th, 2017Cooper Tire and Auto Service is the primer spot in Muncie Indiana, for all things auto repair. Their ASE certified technicians will work hard to make sure you are satisfied with the auto repair. They can repair and diagnose almost any problem that your vehicle is having. Their services include alignment, brakes, engine maintenance, transmission services and of course TIRES! Come on by the shop at 1111 S Tillotson Ave or call 765-284-9941 today!
Google My Business Is Incredibly Important for Auto Repair Shops
October 20th, 2017Being found online is one of the most effective ways to increase your car count and/or to improve your ARO by attracting the right type of customers. Unfortunately, there’s not just one thing you need to do to be found when potential customers search for auto repair, there’s multiple things. However, one thing you definitely want to be sure you do is to claim and build out your Google My Business profile.
Google My Business is the business profile that shows up on the right side of the screen on a desktop or laptop computer when you do a search for a business. It also appears within the search results on a smartphone and on Google Maps. Here’s an example:
Claiming and managing your Google My Business profile is free, and it has been proven to affect your search results. Businesses with fully-completed Google My Business profiles will most often search better than their competitors that have not completed their Google My Business profiles.
So what do you need to do to maximize your profile:
- If you haven’t already, claim your business at https://www.google.com/business/.
- Fill out as many of the fields as you can on the profile – address, hours, phone number and website are particularly important. You want to be sure they match your listings on other digital properties like Facebook and Yelp, if applicable.
- Choose the category that best fits your business. If you offer all auto repair services then Auto Repair Shop is great. If you specialize in something, you may want to see if you fit in a specialized category, for example Engine Rebuilding Service or Transmission Shop. This is important because what you specifically search well for will be affected by your category.
- Add as many photos as you can. And keep adding them over time. Google likes this because it shows you are an active business owner.
- Encourage your customers to review your shop on Google. Those reviews will be included directly on your Google My Business profile, as you can see in the above example. Respond to those reviews. Thank those who give positive reviews. Handle negative reviews diplomatically.
- If you’ve got time, start to use Posts. Posts are a new feature Google rolled out for Google My Business in June. You can now post something on your profile for a week. You may want to post info about a special you are having, an event you may be hosting at your store or even congratulations to a pee-wee softball team you are sponsoring that got a big win. You can access posts on your Google My Business account.
A strong Google My Business profile will help your website rise in the search rankings. It will also help you pop up in the map area when potential customers search for auto repair in your area. If you have not yet claimed your Google My Business profile, or are not using it to its fullest potential, today is the time to start.
To learn more about how Repair Shop Websites can help you increase your car count with a great searching website, call us at 1-866-665-1605 or email us at Team_RSW@RepairShopWebsites.com.
Ryan’s Auto Care | Complete Auto Repair!
October 19th, 2017Located on the east side of Lansing Michigan is a auto repair shop with stellar service and quality work! Ryan’s Auto Care is the perfect spot for you to take your vehicle for all your maintenance and repair needs! They work on all domestic and import cars with maintenance, tires, transmissions, oil changes and much more. Come on by the shop at 609 May St or call the shop at 517-332-1391.
Allstate Transmission of Dallas | Trused Auto Repair in Dallas, Texas!
October 19th, 2017Big or small, Allstate Transmission of Dallas does it all! Perfectly located in Dallas, Texas, they are the shop to go to for all things auto repair. From manual to automatic they specialize in transmissions, brakes, alignment, engine services and much more! Come on by 2522 S Buckner Blvd or call them at 214-388-2194 today!
Repair Shop Websites Webinar: Automotive Industry Trends, and How to Profit From Them
October 17th, 2017Are you not seeing the margins you’d like? Are you attracting enough young customers? Do you have a plan to deal with the changes happening in the automotive repair industry?
Check out our webinar recording on the latest Automotive Industry Trends, and How to Profit From Them. This 20 minute webinar covered the most important changes happening in the automotive market, discussed how they affect independent automotive shops like your own, and provides insight on how you can get the best results going forward.
You’ll learn all about:
- What factors are squeezing independent shop margins, and what your shop can do about them
- Why part distributors are likely to be a source of greater assistance in the coming years
- What to do to attract younger customers – and what to avoid
If you want to learn how to increase your profit margins by overcoming the changes in automotive technology and consumer behavior, watch it now!
Your One Stop Shop for Gas & Repair in Little Rock, AR!
October 17th, 2017If you’re looking for professional and knowledgeable auto service from a group that will treat you like family, look no further! Jett’s Gas & Service is a well established service station, located at 3101 W Markham St, Little Rock, AR 72205 that provides exceptional repair and maintenance services to all who visit them. Call the friendly staff today at 501-664-4485 to get answers to your automotive questions, or schedule an appointment for service. Or simply stop by to fill up!