Melissa Steinken

Benefitting from Area Partnerships

October 4, 2018

A California shop has been in business for more than 20 years and a large part of their brand’s success has stemmed from partnering with other businesses.

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Snap Shop: Miracle Workers Auto Collision Center

October 1, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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A virtual tour of Miracle Workers Auto Collision Center.

Building a Winning Culture Across Multiple Locations

September 27, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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Tom Tylka opened his body shop in the 1980s and since has grown to operate five locations that operation like a franchise—without the corporate feel. Here's how he built his ideal shop culture across several locations.

Reducing Cash Flow Delays

September 25, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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A company executive at Snapsheet shares advice on how to reduce cash flow delay.

A Desire to Learn

September 20, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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Michael Soto, 2018 FenderBender Awards nominee and pioneer for his career, traveled from Puerto Rico to the U.S. to start a career with more opportunities. Here have been his keys for becoming a top technician at his shop.

FenderBender Management Conference Day One Recap

September 18, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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Here is a recap of the 2018 FenderBender Management Conference events on Day One.

How to Best Present Repairs to Insurers

September 13, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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Clint Marlow, Allstate claims representative, shares how shops can best present their repair case to insurers and bypass some lengthy conversations.

4 Crucial Elements for Effective Pay-Per-Click Campaigns

September 12, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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Pay-per-click ad campaigns are nuanced, and the advertisements’ quality scores have a big impact on the effectiveness of the campaign. Here are four things to keep in mind for your digital advertisements.

8 Overlooked Ways to Increase Touch Time

September 10, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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Leroy Rush, Sherwin-Williams business development manager, and other collision industry veterans share how to eliminate wasted time during the repair process and increase the hours worked on each vehicle.

The 2018 FenderBender Awards: Craig Dale

September 6, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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A man behind the scenes, Heppner Auto Body's facilities maintenance manager has been a driving force behind the six-shop Minneapolis operation's long-term success. That's why Craig Dale is the 2018 FenderBender Award winner in the Wild Card category.

The Levels of Vehicle Autonomy and Safety

September 5, 2018

Melissa Steinken and Travis Bean

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David Aylor, director for active safety testing for IIHS, sat down with FenderBender to discuss the various classifications of autonomous vehicles and what features collision repair shops need to know about.

The 2018 FenderBender Awards: Travis Fitchie

September 5, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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Travis Fitchie, a 20-year-old shop up-and-comer who turned a shop into a $1 million business, is the 2018 FenderBender Award winner in the Manager category.

Snap Shop: Campus Body Salon

August 27, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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Take a virtual tour of Campus Body Salon, a shop that became heavily customer-focused after moving away from DRPs.

3 Keys to Effective Mentorship

August 22, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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Jerod Guerin created a work family through his leading style. Here are his three keys for effectively mentoring staff members.

How to Verbally De-escalate Workplace Conflict

August 21, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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Jan Fox, author, speaker and founder of Fox Talks, shares her approach to using words to avoid dangerous situations in the workplace.

6 CSI Mistakes to Avoid in Your Shop

August 20, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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There are several factors that could be negatively impacting your shop’s CSI score. Here’s a list of six mistakes to avoid in order to gain 100 percent satisfaction across the board.

Creating a Multi-Year Shop Investment Plan

August 16, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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In order to successfully revamp his shop without incurring significant debt, Tim Kilkeary put into motion a five-year capital reinvestment plan in order to update the facility and the shop’s equipment.

3 Simple Steps to a Pay-Per-Click Campaign

August 15, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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Representatives from Moving Targets share the simple steps a shop owner can take to set up a pay-per-click campaign.

Create Confident Conversations with Customers

5 Steps for Inspiring Confidence in Your Customers

August 13, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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You and your staff's soft skills are incredibly important when interacting with customers. Here are five steps for engaging customers in rapport and establishing lifetime clients.

How Your Paint Department Affects Self-Driving Technology

August 10, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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LiDAR technology on self-driving vehicles requires a certain amount of light reflected back to their sensors in order to detect surrounding objects. And your paint department can compromise that light. Here’s how LiDAR technology and paint interact on autonomous vehicles.

Q&A: Inside Jeff Peevy’s Upcoming Role as CIC Chairman

August 10, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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Jeff Peevy was announced as the next CIC chairman during CIC in Atlanta, Ga. Peevy shares his thoughts on his leadership term and the process behind choosing a CIC chairman.

How to Help an Employee Through a Loss

August 9, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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A shop leader should not assume an employee going through a major loss is going to shy away from wanting to talk about it. Psychologist Lisa Kaplin shares tips for how to help an employee through a loss in a thoughtful and appropriate manner.

CIC Covers OSHA, Mobile Estimates on Day 1 in Atlanta

August 8, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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The Collision Industry Conference (CIC) kicked off the first day in Atlanta with an announcement of the next chairman and a discussion of several key issues facing the industry.

BASF: How to Implement a Customer-First Strategy

August 8, 2018

Melissa Steinken

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Troy Neuerburg, BASF's new director of refinish sales, shares his tips for shop owners to implement a customer-first strategy.

Q&A: ABRA’s ‘People Expert’ on Growing through Leaders

August 7, 2018

Melissa Steinken and Travis Bean

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ABRA Auto Body & Glass has made moves to becoming not only the repairer of choice but the employer of choice. FenderBender sat down with Carmen Thiede, chief people officer for ABRA, and dived further into how the company goes about finding, retaining and developing leaders.

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