At Tekmetric, we’ve been busy creating the most requested feature by users: true two-way texting. We’re excited to announce that this November, you and your guests will be able to communicate with each other in a seamless, hassle-free way.
Send and Receive Texts Directly in Tekmetric
Once your shop sets up two-way texting within Tekmetric, your team and customers will be able to have instant, harmonious digital conversations.
On your end, the Tekmessage interface will have a similar look and feel to social media messaging services (such as Facebook Messenger).
Your customers, however, will see the conversations as regular text messages on their phones.
To use Tekmessage, simply click the messaging icon in the top right corner of your shop’s header within Tekmetric. Doing so will open the Tekmessage sidebar, where you’ll be able to see a full list of conversations with guests, send and receive texts, and search conversations.
Make Life Easier for Your Customers
With Tekmessage, your customers will no longer have to deal with clunky web browser links.
Previous shop management messaging services required customers to open a link from a text in order to send a message to the shop.
Now, with Tekmessage, customers can simply send a text message without having to open a web browser. And your service writers will instantly be able to see messages and respond without ever having to leave Tekmetric.
Note: Digital vehicle inspections and estimates will still be sent as a clickable link because they include data-rich content such as graphs, checklists, etc.
All you have to do is message your customers using the Tekmessage integration, and they’ll receive a text. When they text back, it’ll show up in Tekmessage. Badda-bing. Badda-boom.
Sync Your Shop’s Original Phone Number to Tekmessage
With Tekmessage, you’ll be able to streamline how new customers communicate with your shop by choosing the phone number your shop sends messages from within Tekmetric.
You can use your shop’s existing phone number—the one you have been advertising on your website and Google My Business profile—to make it easier than ever for new customers to reach you and for service writers to add their new customers' information to Tekmetric.
Or, you can choose a different phone number based on the available phone numbers in your area. Either way, when you text customers via Tekmessage, the number that they will see on their phones will be the one you chose during setup.
And if you're a multi-shop owner, you can set up a separate Tekmessage number for each individual shop.
Centralize Customer Communication
Think of Tekmessage as your new customer communication command center. From the Tekmessage sidebar, you’ll be able to:
Search existing contacts by name and number
Send texts to customers and numbers not yet in the system
Receive and respond to texts from new and existing customers
Create and view upcoming appointments
Create and view active repair orders
Quickly view customer profiles
Mark messages as read and unread
See which employee sent a response and what time they sent that response
The answer to that question depends on a number of factors, and getting the right categorization for each part is crucial for maintaining healthy profit margins while minimizing the risk of rush orders and frustrated customers.
Inventory and Stock Management to Minimize Complexity
When you and your team are replacing parts during repairs, it’s important to consider what parts you have on hand versus what parts you’ll need to order.
If you don’t, you risk overstocking and sinking money into too many units of a particular type of part, or understocking and making a customer wait while you hope that the expedited shipping for a part pulls through.
By having the right inventory and stock management processes in place, you can make it easier for your service advisors and technicians to avoid frustrations.
Here are some best practices for inventory and stock management at your auto repair shop.
The reality is that now is a better time than ever to set your auto repair shop up for success, and even start laying the foundation for multi-shop growth. Especially for shop owners willing to take the time to embrace a new toolset: a modern shop management system.
In our latest Auto Repair Industry Index we took a look at recent industry trends across the country, compiled data from industry resources, and compared it to our Tekmetric data. What we found was really promising!
With a cloud-based SMS, shops can leverage amazing features like Default Inspections and Smart Jobs to not only simplify their workflows and smooth out their operations to run like a well-oiled machine but also set their business up for future growth and success.
Safeguarding the physical and digital confidential assets of your business is of utmost importance for any repair shop owner. However, figuring out the right steps to initiate this process can be challenging.
The Importance of Security
Shop owners must always know who is coming in and out of their shops, this can be monitored by alarms and security camera systems throughout and around the building to insure the physical protection of the digital systems within the shop.
For those who are working in the shop, they should be trained on the protection of proprietary data within the shop by implementing password management, data integrity, and regular system backups.
Finding the Right Tools for the Job
Choosing a shop management system such as Tekmetric can help you manage your shop more efficiently, automate your processes and improve your overall customer communications while keeping your data secure and protected.
Shop management systems have proven to be beneficial for protecting data in the case of natural disasters or fires. When you are looking for a shop management system to protect your data be sure to choose the system that is transparent regarding their systems data backup process and insurance in the event of a breach.
Switching to the Cloud
Deciding to make the switch to cloud-based systems for data storage and accessibility such as Tekmetric can give shop employees and owners peace of mind knowing that their digital confidential assets are safe and secure.
Training and empowering employees on how to protect digital information is equally as important as physically protecting your shop with security alarms, cameras and locks.
By implementing the right processes and tools, shop owners and their employees can be confident that their shop's data is secure, accessible and protected from unexpected crises.
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
