When Suzy Hopkins joined her husband’s body shop, Jackson’s Body Shop in Clarksville Tenn., one of her first tasks was to kick the customer service level up a notch. To do so, she made several customer-focused improvements, including:
• Creating a Web Site. Before Suzy joined Jackson’s, the shop lacked even a basic web site. Using Vistaprint (an easy, low-cost way to create an online presence), Suzy created a web site (jacksonsclarksville.net) that includes shop information, customer testimonials, a picture gallery of vehicles and a page where customers can view the progress of their vehicle repair.
• Getting Social Media-Savvy. Suzy created a Facebook page for the shop, where she posts photos and details about weekly contests. Jackson’s gives small gifts like Subway gift cards or movie passes for correctly answering a question about the shop.
• Providing Loaner Cars. Jackson’s has a small fleet of cars available to customers. Before, the shop provided some old loaner cars, but Suzy upgraded the fleet. She researched, test-drove, and ultimately leased three 2010 Honda Civics for the shop.
• Offering Goody Bags. As an added thank you, Suzy puts a goody bag—filled with simple, useful items like a car air freshener, a Jackson’s pen and pad of paper, and a thank-you car—in each vehicle before customers come for pick up.
• Giving Customers Estimating Packets. Jackson’s pairs its estimates with a packet of information about the shop and its services in order to help people make an informed repair decision.
