With the latest Collision Industry Council meeting in Indianapolis this week, we wanted to let you know that PSG has taken an active role in helping the industry

strategize on how to address the technician shortage in the industry. Nick Schoolcraft now sits on the CIC Talent Pool Committee, comprised of industry professionals dedicated to solving this challenge which impacts so many of our clients.

What’s Your Differentiator?

According to a recent employee engagement study, 86% of customers are willing to pay more for better customer experiences. So much so that by 2020, customer experience is set to overtake price and product as a key brand differentiator.

As many of you have heard us say, to have engaged customers you must first have engaged employees. As the only customer experience experts in the collision repair industry, we wanted to share some important facts regarding the value of engaging your team and developing a strong culture.

Is your team ready to deliver a differentiated experience?

Much like marketing, developing an engaged culture in a collision repair facility takes a deep level of knowledge and understanding. You can’t just tell your employee to be nicer to your customers. Nor can you order them to become more emotionally vested in their work. Building a culture takes careful planning and execution. If you want to create a great work environment and drive performance, you have to understand your employees’ functional and emotional needs.

Some shop leaders mistakenly assume that if there aren’t any problems, their staff is content. But remember, satisfied employees aren’t necessarily engaged. The behavior of the people in your company is a make-or-break factor in great customer experiences. And when it comes to delivering a great experience, human interaction is about as powerful as it gets.

FACTS! A great culture delivers:

• Employees who go above & beyond to satisfy the customer
• Employees who stay longer
• More profitability for the business
• Lower absenteeism
• Higher Customer Engagement & Satisfaction Score

The relationship between employee engagement and company performance is proven. Businesses that rank in the top 10% of employee engagement can exceed their competition by as much as 147% in both sales and profitability.

Employee Engagement as a Competitive Advantage

A great culture embodies great services. For shops who are worried about increasing their “prominence” online, research has proven that the best thing a business can do to cultivate a loyal following is to simply provide great service. A great experience creates natural brand advocates. But remember, developing your employee engagement isn’t a one-time event but a way of conducting business every day.