Why this shop owner doesn’t just do an oil change

If a customer calls Jeremy O’Neal in search of a quick oil change, he will politely ask them to move on.

It’s not that the shop owner and coach with AdvisorFix won’t do an oil change — he’s just not interested in only doing an oil change. He’s interested in larger-picture vehicle maintenance that includes oil changes as part of keeping his customers’ vehicles healthy and running for a long time.

So when the customer calls with the simple request, he will tell them that he helps them maintain their investment in the vehicle and will complete a whole vehicle inspection. But to properly service the vehicle, it will need to be in his shop for four hours. And then gives them options for what time to come in.

“The customer who wants a quick oil change is not my target market for my business,” he said at the Worldpac Supplier and Training Expo in Nashville. “I love repairs.”

The way he sees it, his customers — and yours — should be adhering to a repair and maintenance schedule that has been created specifically for them. So when they come in for their next service, there’s a series of items that need to be completed. And an oil change can be on that list.

It’s the same reason why he won’t expand into mobile services. During his session, he played a commercial from Ford that touted its mobile vans that can do an oil change, battery service, health checks and more wherever the customer is located. It’s a strategy that baffles O’Neal. He’s sure the company has done its homework and found people want this service. But that doesn’t mean it’s good business.

Doing the small stuff means you’re missing out on the big stuff, he said during the session, The Essential Laws of The Profitable Shop Manager. And oftentimes, a vehicle’s issue can’t be figured out in the owner’s driveway. That’s why he wants his customers to bring their vehicles into his shop for a proper, full inspection.

“They’ll start on a car, can’t figure it out and leave it undone. I’m dead serious. Happens all the time,” he said about mobile service providers in his area.

Image credit: Depositphotos.com