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Service Drive Revolution with Chris Collins: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Chris Collins
Service Drive Revolution, hosted by Chris "Bulldog" Collins since 2013 with 360+ episodes, helps Service Advisors, Service Managers, dealership leaders, and independent shop owners build more profitable Service Departments. Service Advisor Training. Service Manager Coaching & Automotive Fixed Ops drawing on 25+ years of experience, Chris shares practical systems for customer communication, technician hiring, retention, leadership, and Service Drive performance. Learn how to improve Effective Labor Rate (ELR), Hours Per Repair Order (HPRO), Customer Satisfaction Index (CSI), and customer-pay sales. Explore episodes, interviews & actionable training clips. Chris Collins Inc. offers dealership coaching, books like Millionaire Service Advisor, and SDR Academy: 700+ on-demand videos courses & live classes with Q&A from Automotive Fixed Ops professionals.
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- 3 days ago50 min
5 Things Advisors Say That Customers REALLY Hate | Service Drive Revolution #382
What are your Service Advisors saying every day that quietly destroys customer trust? In Service Drive Revolution #382, Chris, Hogi & Adam reveal five common phrases customers hate hearing—and explain what those phrases communicate about your Service Department. The list includes "Do you have an appointment?", "I'll call when I know something," "Our policy is…," "We're short-handed today" and the dreaded "Could not duplicate." Each phrase creates uncertainty, shifts responsibility or makes the customer feel like an inconvenience. The team explains why customer perception matters more than an Advisor's intention, how specific communication closes the mental loops that create anxiety and why Advisors must verify difficult concerns before sending a vehicle into the shop. Chris and Hogi also recap Top Dog 2026, discuss the automotive industry's current transformation and explain why software and AI cannot compensate for weak systems, indifferent employees or a poor customer experience. 🔥 KEY TAKEAWAYS Stop Asking About Appointments First: "Do you have an appointment?" turns a human welcome into a qualification process. Give a Specific Communication Time: Replace "I'll call when I know something" with a clear time for the next update—even if there is no new information. Never Hide Behind Policy: "Our policy is…" tells customers the dealership values its rules more than solving their problem. Own Staffing Problems: Customers should not be asked to absorb the consequences of poor scheduling, systems or staffing. Verify the Customer's Concern: Before writing "Could not duplicate," drive with the customer, document the conditions and confirm exactly what they experience. Perception Is the Outcome: The Advisor may be technically correct, but the customer's interpretation determines trust, retention and CSI. Use Technology to Support People: AI can remove repetitive tasks, but customers still want a capable human when their vehicle, transportation or livelihood is at risk. FAQ Q: What should an Advisor say instead of "Do you have an appointment?" A: Welcome the customer, show genuine enthusiasm and ask what brought them into the Service Department. Q: How should Advisors promise a status update? A: Give an exact time for the next call or message. Update the customer at that time even if the diagnosis is not complete. Q: What should an Advisor say instead of "Our policy is…"? A: Explain the reason behind the process, acknowledge the customer's concern and offer the clearest available solution. Q: How should an Advisor handle a short-staffed day? A: Take ownership, establish a realistic promise time and explain what the department can do without asking the customer for sympathy. Q: How can dealerships reduce "Could not duplicate" results? A: Ask better diagnostic questions, verify the symptom with the customer and document when, where and how the concern occurs. Q: Can AI replace human interaction in the Service Drive? A: AI can support scheduling and routine communication, but important problems still require empathy, judgment and a trusted human relationship. 0:05 Five Things Customers Hate Hearing 0:31 Recruiting Customer Collectors 2:09 Top Dog 2026 Recap 3:03 Seahawks, Chiefs and Taylor Swift 10:40 Favorite Top Dog Speakers 13:05 The Top Dog Experience 14:32 The Office, Christian Hand and Closing Night 16:09 How Competition Creates Better Performance 17:21 Chris' Top Dog Presentation 19:42 The Automotive Industry Is Transforming 20:55 Customer Experience Is the Opportunity 22:25 Software Cannot Replace Great People 24:03 Indifference and the Bystander Effect 27:02 The Kitty Genovese Story 28:58 Self-Checkout, Carvana and Automation 29:28 Less Interaction vs. Better Interaction 30:35 Start With the Customer and Work Backward 31:55 When Customers Demand a Real Person 33:27 The Industry's Haves and Have-Nots 34:12 Five Phrases Customers Hate 34:27 #5: "Do You Have an Appointment?" 37:25 #4: "I'll Call When I Know Something" 39:30 #3: "Our Policy Is…" 40:18 #2: "We're Short-Handed Today" 41:55 #1: "Could Not Duplicate" 43:38 Verify the Concern With the Customer 46:02 Customer Perception and Advisor Psychology 47:25 The Danger of Customer Test Drives 49:01 Final Thoughts 🛑 Service Drive Revolution OnDemand Training: https://chriscollinsinc.com/ondemand/ 🛑 Book your Profit Gap Analysis Now: https://calendly.com/byron-webster/30min 🛑 Best-selling books
- 1 weeks ago52 min
Top Dog 2026 Coaches Roundtable Service Drive Revolution #381
What happens when Fixed Ops leaders stop thinking only about Service—and start looking at the entire dealership? In this special Service Drive Revolution #381 Coaches Roundtable, Chris, Hogi & Adam are joined by Chris Collins, Inc. coaches Vicki, James and Brian ahead of Top Dog 2026. The team explores this year's theme, "Transcending the Service Drive," and explains why Service Managers must understand sales, marketing, leadership and the complete customer journey. Customers see one dealership—not isolated departments—and every internal wall creates friction in their experience. The coaches also discuss the future of Service Advisors as customer portfolio managers, the human advantage over AI, how Fixed Ops leaders become General Managers and why exceptional CSI begins with genuine relationships. Plus: The "hospitality bug," coaching Advisors to connect, the Harris Effect, raising performance standards, accountability—and a few detours into Star Trek, aliens and competitive mind games. 🔥 KEY TAKEAWAYS Transcend the Drive: Service leaders must understand how Fixed Ops influences vehicle sales, retention, marketing and the dealership's total profitability. Customers See One Business: Departmental silos damage the experience because customers do not separate Sales, Service and Parts. Advisors May Become Portfolio Managers: The Advisor already owns the strongest customer relationship and can influence service, retention, trades and future vehicle purchases. Human Connection Is the Advantage: If Advisors remain transactional, kiosks and AI can replace much of what they do. Hire the Hospitality Bug: Technical knowledge can be taught. Genuine curiosity, attentiveness and the desire to serve are harder to create. Every CSI Score Belongs to the Advisor: Exceptional Advisors take ownership of the entire experience—even when another employee makes the mistake. Performance Starts With a Decision: Elite results appear impossible until someone proves they are possible and raises the standard for everyone. FAQ Q: What does "Transcending the Service Drive" mean? A: It means thinking beyond Service and understanding how Fixed Ops affects every department, the customer relationship and the dealership's future. Q: Could Service Advisors eventually sell vehicles? A: Yes. Advisors already have trust, service history and insight into when a customer's vehicle may be ready for replacement. Q: Can AI replace Service Advisors? A: AI and kiosks can handle transactions. Advisors protect their value by creating relationships, understanding customers and providing human judgment. Q: What is the "hospitality bug"? A: It is the natural desire to notice people, make them comfortable and create a personal connection instead of treating them like another repair order. Q: How can a Service Department achieve consistent CSI? A: Set clear standards, practice customer interactions, inspect the details, hold everyone accountable and make every customer feel known. Q: How can a Service Manager prepare to become a General Manager? A: Learn Sales, Parts, marketing and dealership financials while developing someone capable of taking over the Service Department. 0:05 Welcome to the Coaches Roundtable 0:54 Top Dog 2026 Preview 1:46 Transcending the Service Drive 2:26 James' Star Trek Obsession 7:03 Aliens, Conventions and William Shatner 9:41 Why Top Dog Feels Different 10:21 The Advisor Competition Gets Serious 12:35 Thinking Beyond Fixed Ops 12:54 Using AI as a Service Manager 13:32 Breaking Down Departmental Walls 14:27 Customers See One Dealership 15:09 The Future of Customer Portfolio Managers 15:43 Human Relationships vs. AI 16:35 Sales Dates Customers—Service Marries Them 16:49 Why Kiosks Cannot Replace Great Advisors 18:09 Advisors Influence the Customer's Next Vehicle 19:51 Pairing Service Advisors With Salespeople 20:43 Service Managers Becoming General Managers 23:04 Leaders Must Think Bigger 25:08 Hiring for the Hospitality Bug 26:25 The Best Advisor Interview Question 27:10 Why CSI Belongs to the Advisor 28:26 How Harris Achieved Perfect CSI 29:30 You Train People How to Treat You 31:20 The Harris Effect 32:17 Raise the Standard—and Performance Follows 33:28 Winning Begins With a Decision 34:31 Questions That Build Customer Relationships 35:39 Customers Give You Clues 39:00 Connection Requires Practice and Role-Play 42:36 The Greeter Sets the Tone 44:07 Service Managers Must Meet Customers 47:12 Accountability From a Great Coach 49:04 Wom
- 2 weeks ago50 min
Consistent CSI In The Service Drive | Service Drive Revolution #380
Why can't your Service Department recruit Technicians—and what will happen to Fixed Ops when customers no longer think of cars as something they drive? In Service Drive Revolution #380, Chris, Hogi & Adam tackle three major changes facing automotive dealerships: the Technician shortage, the rise of AI search and the rapidly evolving relationship between people & their vehicles. Chris explains why becoming visible in ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity & other AI platforms requires more than traditional SEO. Businesses need authentic content, credible media, enthusiastic customers, strong reviews, community engagement and consistent third-party validation. For local dealers willing to tell real stories, AEO creates an opportunity to compete with larger dealer groups. The team also examines how autonomous driving could transform vehicles from driving machines into mobile offices—and what that change means. Then, Hogi breaks down why most Technician recruiting fails: generic ads, an undesirable shop environment and managers who give up after trying one tactic. Recruiting great Technicians is difficult, but that difficulty can become a competitive advantage. 🔥 KEY TAKEAWAYS - Embrace the Difficulty: There are fewer qualified Technicians than open positions. Stop searching for a hack and build recruiting into the operation. - Tell a Better Story: A Technician ad should explain why someone would want to work for you—not repeat a generic job description. - Build a Desirable Shop: Hours per RO, customer-pay work, Advisor performance, dispatch, cleanliness and the break room all communicate how Technicians are valued. - Follow the Rule of Five: Strong recruiters use several channels simultaneously, measure results and continually adjust. - Never Stop Recruiting: "We tried that" is not a strategy. Successful managers keep improving until they produce the outcome. - Authenticity Wins Online: Real people, community stories, leadership and genuine enthusiasm outperform generic dealership advertising. - AI Visibility Requires Authority: Content, reviews, press, collaboration and outside validation help AI platforms understand and recommend a business. FAQ Q: What are the three main reasons dealerships cannot recruit Technicians? A: They resist the difficulty, tell an unconvincing story and give up after one or two recruiting attempts. Q: What should a Technician recruiting ad include? A: Explain the available work, earning opportunity, Advisor support, shop culture, equipment and the real reasons a strong Technician should join the team. Q: What do Technicians want from a Service Department? A: Consistent work, efficient dispatch, capable Advisors, fair treatment, a professional environment and the opportunity to produce. Q: What is the Rule of Five in Technician recruiting? A: Use at least five active recruiting methods instead of depending on a single job board or advertisement. Q: What is AEO? A: Answer Engine Optimization is the work of making a business understandable, credible and recommendable within AI-generated answers. Q: Can smaller dealerships compete in AI search? A: Yes. Authentic local stories, community involvement, expertise and third-party validation may give independent dealers an advantage over generic corporate content. Chapters: 0:04 Welcome to SDR #380 0:28 Why Dealerships Can't Recruit Technicians 1:27 What Chris Learned at an AEO Conference 3:06 How Customers Are Searching With AI 4:21 The Rising Barrier to Online Visibility 7:03 Why Collaboration and Community Matter 8:08 Dealers Are Failing to Tell Their Stories 10:01 Employees vs. Dealership Social Media 12:01 Authenticity, Taste and Better Content 13:46 Becoming a Community Dealership Again 15:02 How AI Recognizes Authenticity 16:58 A New Opportunity for Smaller Dealers 18:45 How Autonomous Driving Changes the Car 21:45 When Driving Starts Feeling Like Wasted Time 23:04 Could Self-Driving Expand Your Commute? 26:08 Cars Without Steering Wheels or Pedals 29:44 Why Fixed Ops Must Embrace New Technology 31:15 Performance Cars vs. Daily Transportation 31:31 Global Markets Are Driving Vehicle Design 36:04 Three Reasons You Can't Recruit Technicians 36:46 Embrace the Difficulty 38:19 Tell a Better Story in Your Recruiting Ads 40:29 Build a Shop Great Technicians Want 43:43 Stop Giving Up After One Attempt 44:04 The Rule of Five for Technician Recruiting 46:34 The John Wick Recruiting Mindset 47:42 Turn Your Market Into an Advantage 48:21 Consistent CSI Inside SDR Academy 🛑 Service Drive Revolution OnDemand Training: https://chriscollinsinc.com/ondemand/ 🛑 Boo
- 3 weeks ago1h 0m
How To Drive More Traffic To Your Service Drive | Service Drive Revolution #379
Does your Service Department really need more traffic—or are you paying to acquire customers your existing process will lose? In Service Drive Revolution #378, Chris "Bulldog" Collins, Hogi and Adam break down how dealerships and independent repair shops can increase repair-order traffic without relying on ineffective blanket coupons or expensive advertising. The team explains why retention should come before acquisition, especially when many dealerships lose customers after the warranty period. They cover appointment reminders, declined-work follow-up, lost-customer campaigns, social media storytelling, local events, AEO visibility and the strategic role of a properly managed Service BDC. Chris also explains why Service Departments should stop posting generic vehicle content and start telling stories about customers, lifestyles and vehicle ownership. Plus: How to track marketing with dedicated op codes, why BDC employees should be compensated for customers who actually show up and why a great customer experience remains the most powerful traffic strategy. 🔥 KEY TAKEAWAYS Retention Before Acquisition: Keeping an existing customer is easier and less expensive than purchasing another one through advertising. Fix the Experience First: More traffic only exposes a broken phone process, long appointment delays, weak communication or poor customer experience. Use Multiple Reminder Channels: Schedule the next visit before the customer leaves, then use stickers, email, direct mail and phone calls. Recover Lost Opportunities: Call customers with declined work, missed appointments and overdue maintenance. Tell Stories on Social Media: Lifestyle, personality, expertise and real customer stories outperform generic vehicle photos and promotional posts. Prepare for AI Search: AEO helps dealerships and repair shops become visible when customers ask ChatGPT and other AI platforms for recommendations. Use Events to Build Relationships: Car-care clinics and partnerships with complementary local businesses create traffic, loyalty and vehicle-sales opportunities. Turn the BDC Into a Force Multiplier: Compensate BDC representatives for completed shows—not appointments—and use them for outbound campaigns and no-show recovery. Track Every Campaign: Dedicated op codes reveal whether incentives and promotions generated incremental traffic or merely discounted existing customers. Stop Blanket Discounting: A coupon redeemed by someone who already needed a tow did not create the repair order. FAQ Q: How can a dealership increase Service Department traffic? A: Start with retention, reminders, declined-work calls, lost-customer campaigns, social media, local events, AI visibility and a properly managed Service BDC. Q: Why is customer retention better than advertising? A: Acquiring a new service customer can be expensive. If the experience remains poor, the dealership pays for a customer who visits once and leaves again. Q: What customers should a Service BDC contact? A: No-shows, customers with declined work, overdue maintenance customers, lost customers and owners who have not used prepaid services. Q: Should BDC employees be paid for appointments? A: Chris recommends rewarding completed shows. An appointment has little value if the customer never arrives. Q: How should a Service Department use social media? A: Share useful expertise, customer stories, vehicle lifestyles and the people behind the department—not only promotions and delivery photos. Q: What is AEO? A: Answer Engine Optimization helps a business become understandable, verifiable and recommendable when customers search through AI platforms. Q: Why don't generic service coupons work? A: Many are redeemed by customers who were already coming in, meaning the dealership discounts work without generating incremental traffic. Q: What is the best way to increase repair-order count? A: Make service easy, answer the phone, reduce appointment delays, communicate consistently and give customers an experience worth returning to. 0:00 How to Drive More Service Traffic 2:50 Repair-Order Disclaimers and Vehicle Damage 4:53 Why Customer Relationships Beat Being Right 8:02 What Top Dealerships Do Differently 10:01 The Energy of a High-Performing Service Drive 12:15 Broken Windows and Broken Businesses 14:17 Top Dog 2026 Preview 22:14 SDR Academy and Consistent CSI 23:14 Why Service Traffic Is Declining 25:22 Retention vs. Customer Acquisition 26:24 Appointment and Maintenance Reminders 28:02 Declined Work and Lost-Customer Calls 29:04 Social M
- Oct 5, 202649 min
Best Service Advisor Training Has... | SDR Live #378
In this episode of Service Drive Revolution, Chris "Bulldog" Collins, Hogi, and Adam expose why traditional sales-heavy coaching fails, and prove why our proven approach defines the gold standard for Service Advisor Training. Discover why treating advisors like high-pressure retail salespeople alienates customers, and learn how true Service Advisor Training focuses on consumer psychology, building lifelong trust, and treating your desk as a business inside of a business. The team also breaks down the brutal realities of making the jump from advisor to manager, major industry shifts like Amazon's entry into new car sales, and what it really takes to master fixed operations leadership. 🔥 KEY TAKEAWAYS - True Service Advisor Training proves that service advisors are not traditional salespeople; their real power lies in building trust, making friends, and collecting long-term "key throwers". - Conventional, sales-heavy Service Advisor Training that forces heavy-handed closing techniques and objection-handling creates an adversarial relationship that drives customers away. - The absolute best Service Advisor Training must be backed by an operational system designed to support advisors without overwhelming shop capacity and workflow. - Moving from an advisor to a service manager is not an easier path, it demands entirely different leadership skills, high mental bandwidth, and a toolbox built for team motivation. - New managers must avoid the trap of working harder themselves instead of coaching, inspiring, and scaling performance across their entire team. - The ultimate measures of a successful service department under top-tier Service Advisor Training are sustained profitability and a world-class customer experience. FAQ Q: What makes our approach the gold standard for Service Advisor Training? A: Our Service Advisor Training focuses on customer psychology, long-term retention, and building a business inside of a business, rather than pushing aggressive, outdated sales tactics. Q: Why do most third-party Service Advisor Training programs fail? A: Most programs fail because they are designed by generic sales trainers who have never written an RO, and they are implemented without adjusting the underlying shop workflow or capacity. Q: Is transitioning from a service advisor to a service manager a good career move? A: It is a massive shift that requires deep leadership and operational oversight. Effective Service Advisor Training helps bridge the gap, but management brings heavy responsibilities as a mentor, therapist, and problem-solver. Q: What are the primary focus areas of elite Service Advisor Training? A: Elite Service Advisor Training prioritizes seamless start-to-finish customer care, transparent communication, and symbiotic technician relations to maximize net profit and customer trust. #ServiceAdvisorTraining #ServiceDriveRevolution #FixedOps #ServiceManager #AutomotiveManagement #ChrisBulldogCollins 📞 GOT A QUESTION OF YOUR OWN? Call 833-3-ASK-SDR—we answer on the show! 🛑 SDR Live Academy Online Training For Huge Results: https://chriscollinsinc.com/op/sdr-live-weekly/?=sdrpod 🛑 Book your Profit Gap Analysis Now: https://calendly.com/byron-webster/30min 🛑 Best Selling books on making Fixed Ops a money printer: https://chriscollinsinc.com/shop/ 🛑 Got a question? Call us at 1-833-3-ASK-SDR 🛑 Want to work with the best? https://chriscollinsinc.com/careers/ 🛑 Chris' Top-Selling Leadership Book I AM LEADER: https://iamleader.com
- Sep 21, 202657 min
You Don't Need Advisor Training | SDR #377
In this episode of Service Drive Revolution, Chris "Bulldog" Collins, Hogi and Adam explain why training advisors before fixing the operating system can make a service drive worse. If advisors sell more work but the shop cannot complete it, repair orders stall, promise times slip, customers become frustrated and advisors quickly stop presenting additional work. Why won't service advisor training fix an underperforming dealership service department? Because weak sales, poor communication, low CSI and declining profitability are often symptoms of broken processes, insufficient shop capacity and inconsistent workflow—not a lack of sales technique. The team breaks down what dealership owners, general managers, fixed operations directors and service managers should examine first: appointment spacing, advisor-to-technician ratios, shop loading, declined work, customer communication, technician efficiency, compensation, financial visibility and one standardized process from appointment through vehicle delivery. 🔥 KEY TAKEAWAYS • Diagnose the system before blaming or retraining the service advisors. • Many "declined" services were never clearly presented, were not understood or were offered after the customer arrived to collect the vehicle. • Additional sales create bigger problems when technician capacity and workflow cannot absorb the work. • Six advisors should not be operating six different service processes. • A successful advisor cannot overcome a broken appointment, dispatch or communication system. • Service department performance should be measured by customer trust and a healthy, profitable net—not gross sales alone. • Service managers need access to financial statements and net-to-gross performance to manage the business effectively. • Standardized processes protect customers and employees from daily chaos and inconsistent expectations. FAQ Q: Does service advisor training increase hours per repair order? A: It can improve sales technique and hours per RO, but that gain may not improve net profit or customer experience if the shop lacks capacity, workflow discipline or a consistent operating process. Q: Why are service advisors not selling recommended work? A: Advisors may be unable to reach customers, may present work too late, or may know the shop cannot complete additional repairs within the promised time. The cause is often operational rather than motivational. Q: What should a dealership fix before training service advisors? A: Review appointment spacing, shop capacity, technician staffing, advisor-to-technician ratios, dispatch, communication, declined-work follow-up and the complete customer process from arrival through delivery. Q: Why can advisor training make a service department worse? A: Better selling creates more work. If the shop cannot process that work, delays and broken promises increase. Advisors then abandon the training because using it repeatedly creates unhappy customers. Q: What should fixed operations leaders prioritize? A: Build a repeatable process that produces two outcomes: customers who trust the dealership and want to return, and a service department that is consistently profitable. Q: Should service managers receive dealership financial statements? A: Yes. Service managers need financial visibility to understand whether labor gross is creating a healthy net profit and whether spending is eroding department performance. CHAPTERS 0:00 Why You Don't Need Service Advisor Training 1:40 Chicago Bears, Football and Fan Loyalty 7:19 The Seattle Homeless Story 9:34 Chaos During the Los Angeles Boot Camp 13:36 Andrew Bustamante and the Top Dog Event 15:01 Tesla Self-Driving and the Future of Commuting 21:06 Can Legacy Automakers Compete With Tesla and BYD? 28:10 What Will Fully Autonomous Cars Look Like? 32:14 Why Service Advisor Training Is Usually the Wrong Fix 35:27 What Declined Service Work Really Means 38:25 Customer Experience and Service Department Profitability 38:59 Shop Capacity, Loading and Technician Efficiency 40:06 Paying Advisors on Warranty and Internal Work 42:50 Systems First, People Second 44:34 Why Profitability Must Come Before Training 48:27 Does Your Service Drive Have a Standardized Process? 50:05 Six Advisors Shouldn't Have Six Different Processes 51:18 The Fundamentals That Actually Increase Service Sales 53:53 Why Service Managers Need Financial Visibility 56:35 Final Thoughts and Closing 📞 GOT A QUESTION OF YOUR OWN? Call 833-3-ASK-SDR—we answer on the show! 🛑 SDR Live Academy Online Training For Huge Results: https://chriscollinsinc.com/op/sdr-live-weekly/?=sdrpod 🛑 Book your Profi
- Sep 14, 202654 min
Avoiding Socialism in the Service Drive | SDR #376
Socialism in the service drive starts the same way every time: top performers get capped, weak performers get carried, and the whole shop drifts toward the middle. In this episode of Service Drive Revolution, Chris Collins, Adam Krey, and Hogi break down how to spot it early and what to do strategically to keep your service department on the capitalist side of the coin. This is the follow-up to last week's episode, which sparked a huge conversation in the comments — so this one is a live Q&A. Questions from dealers, service managers, and advisors get answered on air. What is "socialism in the service drive"? It's when pay, work distribution, and recognition get flattened so that effort and results no longer determine outcome. Hours get spread evenly instead of earned. Underperformers are protected. Your best advisors and techs subsidize everyone else — and eventually they leave. Why does it matter? Your top 20% drive the majority of your gross. The moment they realize their production is being redistributed, you lose them to the store down the street. Fixed operations lives or dies on retaining high performers. What you'll learn in this episode: - The warning signs that your service drive is drifting toward a socialist structure - How pay plans quietly reward mediocrity and punish production - Why "fairness" and "equality" are not the same thing on a service drive - Strategic moves to protect your top performers and your gross - Live answers to viewer questions from the Q&A Who this is for: Service managers, fixed operations directors, dealer principals, service advisors, and technicians at franchised dealerships in the US and Canada. ⏱️ CHAPTERS 00:00 — Welcome to Service Drive Revolution + today's topic 02:22 — Why we banned Kindles (you don't actually own the book) 06:14 — Adam finally joins the Apple ecosystem 09:14 — Forgotten towns: Cairo, Illinois and the Rust Belt 11:25 — Why aren't factories going where people want to work? 14:11 — No housing, no retail, no comeback 17:35 — The Bentonville blueprint for reviving a town 18:19 — The redevelopment playbook: retail first, then apartments 21:27 — Marketing lesson: go young to sell the older buyer 24:46 — Manufacturing is skipping the towns that need it most 25:31 — Q&A: Technician minimum standards with too many techs 26:19 — Guarantee opportunity, not pay 27:29 — Pay plans that reward mediocrity 27:51 — The 80% warranty / 20% customer pay trap 28:15 — Warranty reimbursement laws and why techs want hourly 30:11 — Is your advisor pay plan too complicated? 31:00 — "How many techs will follow you?" — the best interview question 32:31 — Why only 2 or 3 of 12 techs are high performers 34:07 — Q&A: Are dealers pushing for socialism? 35:18 — Why the car business runs on self-agency 36:30 — Career path: the #1 reason techs quit early 38:34 — The ASR closing percentage trap 40:29 — Chasing metrics that look good vs. make money 41:14 — Hire disciplined: look for assassins, not resumes 42:25 — Techs can already name their price 43:59 — The vocational school gap 46:43 — Dealers recruiting straight out of high schools 49:02 — Dealerships as the fabric of the community 49:46 — Older techs vs. younger techs in the shop 52:00 — The industry has to evolve or get left behind 🛑 SDR Live Academy Online Training For Huge Results: https://chriscollinsinc.com/op/sdr-live-weekly/?=sdrpod 🛑 Book your Profit Gap Analysis Now: https://calendly.com/byron-webster/30min 🛑 Best Selling books on making Fixed Ops a money printer: https://chriscollinsinc.com/shop/ 🛑 Got a question? Call us at 1-833-3-ASK-SDR 🛑 Want to work with the best? https://chriscollinsinc.com/careers/ 🛑 Chris' Top-Selling Leadership Book I AM LEADER: https://iamleader.com
- Sep 7, 202655 min
Socialism In The Service Drive | SDR #375
Is socialism coming to your service drive? In this episode of Service Drive Revolution, Chris Collins, Chris Hogland, and Adam Krey dig into one of the biggest conversations building inside fixed operations: technician pay, flat rate vs. hourly, student debt, apprenticeship programs, entitlement, leadership, and why dealerships have to stop ignoring the people who actually produce the labor. The team also answers a live fixed ops question about labor gross percentage, posted labor rate, and Effective Labor Rate. Chris explains why posted labor rate is one of the least important numbers in the service department, why ELR is the number that actually matters, and how smart dealerships separate labor into categories like competitive labor, maintenance labor, repair labor, diagnosis, diesel, and heavy-duty labor. If you are a service manager, fixed ops director, dealer principal, general manager, technician, or advisor, this episode is about the future of your service department. CHAPTERS: 00:00 Welcome to Service Drive Revolution 01:05 SDR Live Academy and weekly live training 03:00 Top Dog 2026 and transcending the service drive 09:30 Why service managers should think bigger 13:20 Listener question: labor gross, door rate, and ELR 16:45 Why posted labor rate does not matter as much as ELR 21:00 Competitive labor, maintenance labor, repair labor, and diagnosis 25:30 How smart pricing strategy increases ELR 30:00 Is socialism coming to the service drive? 35:30 Student debt, college, trades, and workforce problems 42:00 Why the technician shortage is bigger than pay 47:00 Flat rate vs. hourly technician pay 52:30 Heavy-truck shops, car dealerships, and productivity gaps 58:00 Technician frustration and the future of fixed ops 1:05:00 Why dealerships need better systems for technicians 1:10:00 Final thoughts and SDR Live Academy invitation KEY FIXED OPS LESSON: Your service department does not make money because your posted labor rate looks good on the wall. It makes money when your advisors, technicians, managers, pricing strategy, inspection process, and leadership system work together. Effective Labor Rate, Hours Per RO, technician productivity, advisor communication, customer trust, and shop flow are all connected. FAQ: What is Effective Labor Rate? Effective Labor Rate, or ELR, is the actual labor revenue your service department collects per flagged technician hour. It is different from the posted labor rate because it reflects the real money collected after maintenance pricing, repair pricing, warranty, internal labor, discounts, and labor mix. Why does Chris Collins say posted labor rate does not matter? The posted labor rate is only one number. Customers care more about the outcome, the repair, the trust, and the experience. A dealership can have a high posted rate and still have weak ELR if the pricing strategy, advisor process, and labor mix are broken. How can a dealership improve ELR? A dealership can improve ELR by separating labor categories, improving advisor communication, reducing unnecessary discounting, selling maintenance consistently, inspecting every vehicle properly, tracking labor mix, and holding the team accountable to the right KPIs. Is flat rate good or bad for technicians? Flat rate can be powerful for productive technicians because it gives them more control over their income. But if the shop is poorly dispatched, badly managed, under-supplied, or unfair with warranty time, flat rate can feel broken. The pay plan is only as good as the system around it. Why are technicians leaving the automotive industry? Technicians often leave because of workflow problems, pay frustration, lack of respect, poor leadership, warranty time issues, weak career paths, and shop cultures that treat technicians as an afterthought. What is SDR Live Academy? SDR Live Academy is the live fixed ops training community from Chris Collins Inc., built for service managers, advisors, fixed ops leaders, and operators who want real-time coaching, practical systems, and ongoing training. Ready to train your service drive? Join SDR Live Academy and get access to live fixed ops training, Service Advisor training, Service Manager University, technician recruiting systems, BDC training, OnDemand courses, and the Top Dog Underground 🛑 SDR Live Academy Online Training For Huge Results: https://chriscollinsinc.com/op/sdr-live-weekly/?=sdrpod 🛑 Book your Profit Gap Analysis Now: https://calendly.com/byron-webster/30min 🛑 Best Selling books on making Fixed Ops a money printer: https://chriscollinsinc.com/shop/<br
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About Service Drive Revolution with Chris Collins
Service Drive Revolution, hosted by Chris "Bulldog" Collins since 2013 with 360+ episodes, helps Service Advisors, Service Managers, dealership leaders, and independent shop owners build more profitable Service Departments. Service Advisor Training. Service Manager Coaching & Automotive Fixed Ops drawing on 25+ years of experience, Chris shares practical systems for customer communication, technician hiring, retention, leadership, and Service Drive performance. Learn how to improve Effective Labor Rate (ELR), Hours Per Repair Order (HPRO), Customer Satisfaction Index (CSI), and customer-pay sales. Explore episodes, interviews & actionable training clips. Chris Collins Inc. offers dealership coaching, books like Millionaire Service Advisor, and SDR Academy: 700+ on-demand videos courses & live classes with Q&A from Automotive Fixed Ops professionals.
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It's a free AI-powered email that summarizes new episodes of Service Drive Revolution with Chris Collins as soon as they're published. You get the key takeaways, notable quotes, and links & mentions — all in a quick read.
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When a new episode drops, our AI transcribes and analyzes it, then generates a personalized summary tailored to your interests and profession. It's delivered to your inbox every morning.
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Service Drive Revolution with Chris Collins publishes weekly. Our AI generates a summary within hours of each new episode.
What topics does Service Drive Revolution with Chris Collins cover?
Service Drive Revolution with Chris Collins covers topics including Business, Careers, Entrepreneurship. Our AI identifies the specific themes in each episode and highlights what matters most to you.
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