By Robert Cannon

When I was young my father bought a Ford Galaxie Sunliner. Bright red and a convertible to boot. I loved how it looked and I also loved how fast it was. My father was a dentist and so the only tools around our house were for probing and poking inside the mouth and not the engine of a car.

I did not learn about the inside of the car until I got married. One day I drove into my driveway and my neighbor, ex NFL defensive end, and his father walked over to me. They were looking at me very strangely and then Stan said, “Your wife was outside today changing the oil in her car”.  Caught a bit off guard by their statement, I responded, “Good, because I wouldn’t know how to do that”. Fortunately, I played some running back so I avoided being sacked.

The lesson I learned was valuable and something “we” passed along to our children. Taking care of our cars is critical to their longevity and safety. But, of more importance is understanding what the various services are on a car and why they need to be done. There is more than just oil that needs a car owner’s attention.

Recently my daughter, from Dallas, a long way from home, called me about her car. She had received a notice to have her car serviced. She and her husband, more financially inclined than I, took their car to the service center for the work. In a few minutes they left without doing any service. She called me all frustrated. “They told me that I needed all of these services and I didn’t know what they were talking about.” I understood their frustration: if you’re asked to spend money you want to know why.

Any wise customer wants to understand why they need to perform services. As my daughter said, “Call them and tell them to use your videos to show me what they are talking about”. You know she is right. A picture is worth a thousand words. If a customer can see how a specific service works and the impact it has on the longevity and safety of their car, they will see the benefit of the service. Most people don’t understand how many parts and systems on a car need routine maintenance.

Help your customers by attaching video links on emails and postcards; show them at the point of sale or in your waiting area. No one wants a frustrated daughter.

Robert Cannon is Chairman and CEO of AutoNetTV.  AutoNetTV’s digital signage products deliver entertaining and educational TV programming to the lobbies of automotive service and repair businesses as well as digital menu boards and automotive website video content.