CIECA plays a vital role in the Collision Industry by developing  IT standards, codes, and best practices that make it possible for the Collision Industry to save money.

To most of the industry, developing electronic data exchange standards and codes is not exciting work.  Most would equate it to watching paint dry. To those that volunteer their time at CIECA, the work is rewarding and beneficial to the entire industry.  As a direct result of CIECA and the CIECA standards, the…

http://http://www.bedfordtimesregister.com/news/simple_article/5184927…

ST. GEORGE, Utah – May 2, 2012 –LogMyCalls, the smarter call tracking, recording and customer intelligence solution from ContactPoint, emerges from Beta today.

LogMyCalls beta period began in January. During Beta,…

Are you having trouble reaching a desired CSI rating? How are you approaching the issue? Some shop operators tell me they call all their customers to remind them about the survey reiterating they need a "10". I guess that is one way, others tell me they give customers coupons for completing the survey. That would work to keep your numbers up and negate the effects of a poor survey. My question is; What are you doing to make the customer want to complete the survey and give you that "10". Do…

Every single part of a motor vehicle is safety critical is some way or other. The vehicle repair industry (both repairers as well as Insurance Companies) have struggled with lack of definition for many years. An attempt to define parts as safety critical was famously, in the UK, part of the original BSi PAS 125 document.

So what?

http://www.autoindustryinsider.com/?p=4410

Was your website developed by a friend of a friend, or is it a couple of years old? Ever wonder if it was still performing its magic or if it ever did? If you can answer yes to either of those questions I want to introduce you to two of my friends, Crystal Stangeland and Chris Sheehy.…

Experts from I-CAR will explain how to properly perform spot welding techniques that simulate what is done at the factory. During the free April 26 webcast participants will learn how spot welding, in conjunction with adhesives (weld bonding), can help protect against corrosion. http://abrn.com/SpotWelding

If customers aren't made to feel welcome, they won't want to trust your company with their vehicle. http://bit.ly/H8Z95x

Over the past few years Yelp has experienced exponential growth and is one of the fastest-growing customer research and review tools on the market. It is becoming particularly relevant in the collision repair market in recent months due to the expansion of their mobile application. Here are some tips for shaping your Yelp strategy and leveraging the tool to gain new business.

Shape your Yelp participation model around your already successful repair and service delivery model of…

Greetings, Shop Owner

I am an exceptional auto body repair professional with numerous years of industry experience and knowledge. Personal abilities include multiple skill sets and talents that are highly desired attributes to a collision repair business that’s striving to enhance production output and streamline operations efficiency.

I am searching for an employment opportunity within a well established collision repair organization whose leadership…

Mike Anderson says repairers need insurance companies help to stop rekeying estimates into their management systems. http://bit.ly/GMva5Z

One of the greatest challenges is the "policing" of the quality of aftermarket parts and any modifications required to make them fit. Unfortunately, that has historically been placed on the repairers' shoulders and is hidden from the consumer. That is not acceptable any longer. http://bit.ly/zawOK8

According to avariety of analysts, yes, it will.

In 2008, the year that average gasoline prices hit records above $4 during the summer, the U.S. average didn't climb above $3.50 until April…

The new issue of ABRN How2 is available and it offers an instructional video on block sanding, a video on NABC's Recycled Rides donation in Palm Springs, Calif., additional industry videos, blogs, Top Shop profile articles and more. http://bit.ly/x4Klio

Feb 2012

Buddha without a soul

Mr. Oba, a lifelong Toyota Sensei and student of Mr. Ohno was quoted as saying – Lean is like Buddha missing a soul (paraphrasing). At first blush, this probably doesn't mean much to most. But after deeper inspection one would realize what he was referring to, was and is the core problem of “lean” as it has become widely referred to today. This is especially true for us in the collision repair industry. Let me…

Motor Age: What are one or two key areas that owners should focus on first when marketing their shop?

First, shops actually need to market. Many don’t. They rely on word-of-mouth and a yellow pages listing. That worked in the past; it won’t in the future.

Second, shops can’t afford to spend advertising money and just assume it’s working. They have to know.…

I-CAR and ABRN will present a free webinar, "Best Practices for High Strength Steel Repairs" at noon EST Feb. 28. The one-hour webinar will discuss vehicle construction, how to identify the characteristics of certain steels, where they are commonly located, and to what extent they can be repaired. www.abrn.com/highstrengthsteel

We are almost to the end of January and I hope everybody has had a chance to reel in their 2011 numbers.  While those numbers are fres h in your mind I encourage you to look them over and pick three that you feel you can improve on.  Then unlike the New Year’s resolutions you made just under a month ago,…

Diamond Standard Brand Parts LLC announced a program of extending product liability protection to approved collision centers free of charge to address the major issues they face and to enhance their ability to make decisions on parts. http://bit.ly/Akhcfv