Car shop MSC's- Listen Up!
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cabazon.. it is early here and I'm sick, 'charge him???' He only has a permit, so I don't know if they'll allow that.
If we don't accept cheap car shops, they will be forced to raise the prices offered, or learn to negotiate with the MSPs.
I occasionally take a car shop when money is really tight, but not for $17. If it isn't at least $25-$30 I am not into it. Why? Because they are very labor intensive. You have to write such detailed reports that the hourly return rate is really not so great. The upside is that if you are looking for a new car, it is fun to be paid for it. Also, it is always good to balance out the reimbursement type jobs (which means upfront cash outlay) with a few fee only jobs.
Same with the bank jobs. I have made $30 for one and it was okay. Now they are out there hawking them for $12-$17. Keep it. I have better things to do.
Same with the bank jobs. I have made $30 for one and it was okay. Now they are out there hawking them for $12-$17. Keep it. I have better things to do.
It's not only doing the shop that's bad, it also the incessant sales calls and emails that follow for months!!
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I could agree with you, but then we'd both be wrong.
I could agree with you, but then we'd both be wrong.
The problem is that there are plenty of people here taking these shops for $20 or even $17 and unwilling to realize that they are not only doing themselves and everyone else a huge disservice, they're sending a message that far less than minimum wage is acceptable.
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Seriously, nobody cares that you're offended.
Seriously, nobody cares that you're offended.
Who wants to arrive in a Lamborghini and test drive a Chevrolet?
Last week someone local was offering $100 to test drive a Cadillac. Boy, the money is tempting, but I just HATE to pull in to a dealership...
I completely stopped them. The salespeople are either so darn pushy or they just hate their job. I even thought about becoming a sales person because I sure do have a lot more enthusiasm than the majority of them.
When I was out looking for a new truck - I had to tow a large utility trailer to festivals, the salesmen went directly to my hubby, even walked away with him and left me behind.
Hey, stupid............I'm the one with the money !
When I was out looking for a new truck - I had to tow a large utility trailer to festivals, the salesmen went directly to my hubby, even walked away with him and left me behind.
Hey, stupid............I'm the one with the money !
I did ONE car shop where I actually enjoyed the experience. I was thoroughly impressed by the sales dude and really wanted to buy a car from him. It wasn't even a high-end brand, either. When the time comes to replace my wife's car I'm going to him.
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Seriously, nobody cares that you're offended.
Seriously, nobody cares that you're offended.
Done few shops when begged to do so for big bucks....$150 for luxury cars.....still not worth it really.....and as others have stated....they still have you on file a year later. A bit embarrassing to say the least. And to boot....the MSC guy assures me that the dealerships agree to get rid of their files on prospective customers every 4 to 6 months..........here it does not happen.
And ........if a car can be worth (or rather selling for) close to $100 grand,,,,,,,,,,,,maybe a couple of hundred bucks could be afforded to the shoppers to tell the story about what the salesman and the dealership is really like. And........drop the foolish sounding scenarios........let the shopper create his or her own (have it approved by the scheduler) and go with that...... My rant for today.....
And ........if a car can be worth (or rather selling for) close to $100 grand,,,,,,,,,,,,maybe a couple of hundred bucks could be afforded to the shoppers to tell the story about what the salesman and the dealership is really like. And........drop the foolish sounding scenarios........let the shopper create his or her own (have it approved by the scheduler) and go with that...... My rant for today.....
Ron, I really like that suggestion about shoppers being able to create their own realistic scenarios to use with the scheduler's approval. I realize this, perhaps, complicates things a bit, but, I think, it would enable us to do a better job for the client.
(heart)
(heart)
I intend to live forever. So far, so good.
I just started doing car shops, because it is nice to not have to pay anything up front (other than gas for travel) and I really like them. It is fun to drive a new car, even for just a few miles, and I like pretending that I can afford to buy a new car. I was unaware that I was hurting myself or any other shoppers, because $17 seemed like good money for the effort.
Maybe it's an easier (and faster) shop than the one & only car shop I did, but the shop & reporting time made it so $17 would be *way* below minimum wage ~ especially if you take out gas expenses. I think the one I did was $25, if I recall correctly; and that was still barely minimum wage by the time it was all said & done.
Practitioner of the Nerdly Arts.
I have done Auto shops for a couple of different companies. I did one at $17 that was actually pretty easy and between the on-site and reporting I was still done well under an hour. I had another one for $50 and that one took me long enough that I was questioning whether or not it was worth it.
Yes. What happened to the $25 bank shops? The only one I find now are $12 or so and is more work than before.
I do enjoy car shops and test driving cars but not for less than $20 for sure if I can tack on another.
I once had to drive a little far to do a $30 car shop so I figured I'd make it worth my while and did THREE in the same area. The visits were all enjoyable but I did reports for the rest of the day and turned in the last one just half hour before deadline. I was brain dead for two days. No more of that. Way too stressful.
I do enjoy car shops and test driving cars but not for less than $20 for sure if I can tack on another.
I once had to drive a little far to do a $30 car shop so I figured I'd make it worth my while and did THREE in the same area. The visits were all enjoyable but I did reports for the rest of the day and turned in the last one just half hour before deadline. I was brain dead for two days. No more of that. Way too stressful.
TownCountry
What helps to cut down report time is to have a "master report" saved in your word processor. Have one for each MSC, and save them as "BestMark Auto" "Intellishop Auto"....etc. At the top, have the MSC report preferences listed as tips. "Avoid quotes," "Use quotes," etc...
Open this, type your report. In each narrative section, I have things saved on my Master, in red.... like "Did/did not offer test drive." "Specs. "Financing." "Special offers." "Enthusiasm." "Asked for sale." Etc....
As I'm typing my report in the word processor, when I finish covering one "red" area and hit the next, I work it into my report.
Taking the time to do this once, for each of my MSCs, means that I'm not re-reading the entire report form a hundred times while typing it, making sure I have covered everything. Doing it in the word processor means I automatically know, when all of the red is gone, that I have covered everything thoroughly.
When you're done, you just copy and paste it over into your narrative sections on your report.
What helps to cut down report time is to have a "master report" saved in your word processor. Have one for each MSC, and save them as "BestMark Auto" "Intellishop Auto"....etc. At the top, have the MSC report preferences listed as tips. "Avoid quotes," "Use quotes," etc...
Open this, type your report. In each narrative section, I have things saved on my Master, in red.... like "Did/did not offer test drive." "Specs. "Financing." "Special offers." "Enthusiasm." "Asked for sale." Etc....
As I'm typing my report in the word processor, when I finish covering one "red" area and hit the next, I work it into my report.
Taking the time to do this once, for each of my MSCs, means that I'm not re-reading the entire report form a hundred times while typing it, making sure I have covered everything. Doing it in the word processor means I automatically know, when all of the red is gone, that I have covered everything thoroughly.
When you're done, you just copy and paste it over into your narrative sections on your report.
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Plan the work. Work the plan.
Plan the work. Work the plan.
Wow BBird, you're way better organized than I am. I write every reports from scratch. I need to learn short cuts ;-)
Thanks for your valuable advice.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/25/2014 04:53PM by towncountry.
Thanks for your valuable advice.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/25/2014 04:53PM by towncountry.
It takes, at most, 10 minutes to create each Master list, and that's for the more complicated ones. You are mostly copying a report from the report form, to your word processor, then adding your marks to hit, in red, in each narrative section.
But, it saves me about 20-30 minutes each report.... so even by the first one, I have made back my time investment, plus saved additional time.
If you are doing many of the same types of reports over and over again, for example, picking up a decent amount of Intellishop or Bestmark auto shops... it is well worth it to create a master.
It also pretty much eliminates the possibility of accidentally leaving out a key detail, and reduces the chances you'll be contacted by an editor for clarification.
No need to make it harder than it has to be. When given the option, work smart, not hard. Think of it like a driving route with multiple stops. You plan from Point A, to B, to C, and so on.... By hitting all of your marks in the correct order, there's no need to double back except at the end, for your final overview. Constantly doubling back costs time, and time is money in this business.
But, it saves me about 20-30 minutes each report.... so even by the first one, I have made back my time investment, plus saved additional time.
If you are doing many of the same types of reports over and over again, for example, picking up a decent amount of Intellishop or Bestmark auto shops... it is well worth it to create a master.
It also pretty much eliminates the possibility of accidentally leaving out a key detail, and reduces the chances you'll be contacted by an editor for clarification.
No need to make it harder than it has to be. When given the option, work smart, not hard. Think of it like a driving route with multiple stops. You plan from Point A, to B, to C, and so on.... By hitting all of your marks in the correct order, there's no need to double back except at the end, for your final overview. Constantly doubling back costs time, and time is money in this business.
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Plan the work. Work the plan.
Plan the work. Work the plan.
towncountry, when you signed up with the company, you signed an ICA that contained a confidentiality agreement. Revealing the names of the clients violates your ICA and the guidelines of our forum. Please edit your post to remove the company and client information that you dislosed.
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