Windshield Repair Forum

Don,

I can't tell you how many times I felt like giving up on my repair business, but like all the other old timers here, I'm sure glad I didn't. Yes, my blood pressure still rises a bit when the phone doesn't ring for awhile, but little by little it will get better if you just keep your face in front of your potential customers. I know that after a few days, or a few weeks of beating the pavement with no results it can be difficult to get yourself out the door in the morning, but I find that consistency is the key to success.

You mentioned that the 15-20 businesses you visited all said they already have someone doing their repairs. I just want you to know that is not at all unusual, but if you are hitting 15-20 businesses a day (that's only 2 per hour), I think you will eventually find a few that are not happy with the service they are getting and will give you a shot. In the spirit of consistency you should set up a schedule so you call on the same companies on the same day, at the same time, every month. Granted this takes time, but I cannot tell you how many fleets I picked up this way. I am not much of a salesman but find that people admire tenacity, so I get customers by showing them they can count on me. Sometimes I think I got work because customers felt sorry for me, but other times I just happened to show up when their regular guy had not. You have to be at the right place at the right time, and the only way to do that is to keep up your routine.

Very few people fail in this business if they spend a full 8 hour day working their system, whatever that system might be, although some of us had to work 10+ hours a day in the beginning. Beginning...heck, many of us still work 10+ hours a day, but then again, for some of us windshield repair has become more of an addiction than a necessity.

Once you get your foot in the door, do the very best you can to prove that you are more reliable than the competition, and care more about the quality of your work. When you do that your competitors will face the same challenges that you faced, and will have to wait for you to slip up.

Another technique that I had great success with was to offer to do a free repair for fleet customers to show them the quality of your work. As long as you are confident that you do better repairs than your competition, it is pretty darn easy to show the customer why they should give you a chance to earn their business. What I found was that many customers were so impressed with my repairs that they ended up paying me for the job and often allowed me to check the rest of their vehicles.

When things were really slow I would pull out all the stops and send my wife in with a plate of home made cookies. That may sound silly, but good looks is not one of the things the good Lord has blessed me with, so I wouldn't do to well in a beauty shop, and guys don't give other guys the time of day. But everyone likes cookies and guys will always make time to talk to a pretty girl. Just ask any female windshield repair technician. I had to quit doing that though, my wife was starting to like the attention a little too much! Just kidding, we really did work that angle quite successfully.

I know it's tough, but hang in there, you are doing many things right and it will get better.

Brent,

Funny that you mentioned female techs. We used to have quite a few that posted here but haven't seen them here for some time. Not sure why? Maybe because they don't need us anymore!

A good female tech is the best choice if your looking to acqiure and take over used car dealership accounts. Don't ask why because you already know the answer to that!

If I could get my other (who's already cute and pretty) to just lose 10lbs and sell I'd have it made!!! On the flip side, if for some reason she stumbles across this post.....I'm probably dead!

I have always hired female wsr techs for the same odvious reasons. My wife is also our sales rep with homemade brownies and cookies in little gift bags from uline with some scratch pads, pens and biz cards.

StarQuest if she does stumble across your post you may have to "T A K E H E R O U T TO E A T " tonight......

Brent,

I notice you are with delta..Should I join up for insurance work? no one on the site seems to like it very much?
In the 70's I was with New York life...million dollar producer, when it mattered, never did i go weeks without income...so I know how to sell, just that this is getting pretty bad.
I will not go around and knock on doors cold calling for that reason....never had to at New York Life and don't intend to here.
I am in the process of calling many companies, get the HR person, send over a flyer (email) of my services, so all the employees can have access to my services..If that doesnt work I will probably quite.
Thx for your support and help
Have a good day
Don

Don
If you are not willing to g out and sell why waste more time? what do you think they will just wander up and hand you the money? and calling the HR guy at some company who has a job to do and somehow thinking that will bring buisness your way is pretty naive.
The way to make money is go out and introduce yourself and offer to fix the damage that is there now! some go after fleets and dealerships others cold call buisness parks and office lots each work thats the problem with this buisness people come into it from markets like insurance or real estate where you had an office they come to or corp clients this is a whole different bucket of fish
Let me say i am not being hyper critical here just pointing out the facts of life "If you dont want to go out and sell Go home and look at the want ads"

Don,

I'll probably catch a great deal of grief for this, but I did a great deal of insurance work and sometimes it was the difference between mac and cheese or steak for me. The majority of our customers also do insurance work, and some do nothing but insurance work. Many technicians on this forum choose not to offer insurance billing because they don't need the extra work, but for those that just starting out I think insurance work helps to get the ball rolling. I agree that insurance companies should pay a little better, but $50 per repair is certainly better than nothing when you are getting started. You can always cut back or quit billing insurance companies later if you choose to do so, but I wouldn't rule it out until you have tried it. Keep in mind though, just because you offer insurance billing does not mean insurance companies will send you business, it simply gives you one additional marketing tool, as does accepting credit cards, which many technicians also decline to do.

I have to agree with GlassStarz, this is very much a people business, and a handshake is remembered far longer than a postage stamp. I have a number of friends in the insurance industry, and they all had to go out and knock on doors until they got a customer base established, in fact, the most successful ones still have many evening appointments with clients, so I think New York Life is pretty special to say the least. None of that really matters though as we are talking about the windshield repair business, and some of those offering you advice know exactly what it takes to be successful.

I had a nice yellow pages ad and a decent location on the corner of a busy street, so I did get more jobs than most without having to cold call, but I got very few jobs by making phone calls or mailing flyers. When things were slow I always hit the streets again and was generally able to drum up some new business when I needed to.

As far as I know, only the tent and car wash guys get away without pounding on doors once in awhile, but even they have to solicit property owners to secure a great location.

Again, I think you are taking many of the right steps, but it could be very difficult to build a customer base without knocking on doors. At least that is my humble opinion, but I certainly could be wrong. Hopefully someone else will chime in and say they have figured out how to eliminate the dreaded cold call in this business, but unfortunately I am not that guy. Sorry I can't be of more help.

this thread goes way back and is full of helpful suggestions and tips ..but as you get to the end starquest and Brent have summed it up...you cannot succeed without some type of cold calling whether it be at car lots,new car dealers,fleets ins,or whatever it will take you to do it period..so start knocking!!!:eusa_clap

StarQuest;26365 wrote:Jerry,

Try writing some positives on here once in a while! It will make you feel much better about yourself!!! Being in Michigan, I could complain daily about how bad the economy is here but I choose not too! In your area of Texas, the economy is booming! Everybody I know in my area is moving down there because the jobs, money and opportunities are better than here.

I've heard people say,, Yankee go Home ,, does this mean the Northeners are not wanted in the South , like Texas ? Another thing I hear constantly ,, Texans are Texans , not Americans '' How true is this all , I wonder me being Dutch , living in Texas and Costa Rica soon.

cazador;26492 wrote:I've heard people say,, Yankee go Home ,, does this mean the Northeners are not wanted in the South , like Texas ? Another thing I hear constantly ,, Texans are Texans , not Americans '' How true is this all , I wonder me being Dutch , living in Texas and Costa Rica soon.

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Naw that is just some good natured ribbing. We do that because they talk funny. We have people from everywhere around here. Some, we could really do without but it's still a free country. Law breakers are unwelcome.:frown:
If we go up there, then we are the ones who talk funny.:eusa_ange