Service advisors are like your shop’s front line when it comes to translating customer complaints to others at the shop. They’re face-to-face with customers and what they say matters. So, what are some traits of a good service advisor? We find out in this Tire Review Continental Tire Garage Studio video.
The one trait shared by all great service advisors is that they let the customer talk. They don’t try to solve the customer’s concerns or explain what the problem might be or even how a car works. Instead, they ask questions and record the customer’s concerns.
Letting the customer talk about their vehicle issues can be challenging, especially for technicians who’ve transitioned into the role and go into problem-solving mode to quickly come up with a diagnosis. Great service advisors focus 100% on the customer’s complaint and ask “when” and “where” questions that could help a technician replicate the problem.
What your service advisor says matters. When a service advisor starts to say, “It could be this or that or insert part name here,” this opens you up for the follow-up question, “How much will that cost?” This sets an expectation with the customer that a repair should cost only that much.
The next most valuable trait of a great service advisor is they repeat the customer’s concern back to them. This establishes trust with the customer because you just reflected their words back at them. This makes them feel like they are being taken seriously.
The last trait of a great service advisor is that they write down all the details of a conversation with the technician. These notes do not have to use complete sentences with proper grammar or even be seen by the customer. Instead, you can use bullet points to document the details. Remember, repair orders are not an essay, and your service advisors are not being graded.
Being a successful service advisor starts by following three simple steps: listen to the customer, repeat what they said back to them and write down and document each step of the repair order.
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