We've "scene" it all--The SceneExchange Blog

Facebook as a Marketing Tool

With over 200 million users Facebook provides companies with a great opportunity to reach new and existing customers, and not just high school or college age users anymore.  The fastest-growing demographic on Facebook right now is users over 35 years old.

Back in 2007 Facebook began allowing users to create "pages" separate from their personal accounts but with similar functionality.  This feature can be a great way for companies to interact with Facebook users who may never find their website but could stumble across their business page on Facebook.   Some recent re-designs of the business page layout have added functionality as well.

One of the main benefits to promoting your company, such as a repair shop, on Facebook is the  potential to reach an ever-increasing number of potential customers.  Because updates to, and user interactions with, business pages post notes to user's mini-feeds it's possible to reach Facebook users 2 to 3 connections away.

These pages are still free to setup, require relatively little maintenance and finding helpful advice on using Facebook to promote your business is easy.  For shops looking to increase their visibility a business page on Facebook is a great start and can be used to direct users back to the main company website if not giving them all the information they need right on the page.

--Jen

We've got a HUNCH this website can help solve your burning questions

Here's a quickie, just for fun.

Hunch.com bills itself as a way to help you make decisions that gets smarter the more you use it. Does this mean it can become a crystal ball to tell my future? Well, I wouldn't go that far...however, it can tell me what book I'd like to read, what shirt I should wear, whether or not I should have my DNA sequenced, and what extreme sport is best for me.

Hunch runs an algorithm built by MIT computer scientists that answers your question with a series of them. Your answers allow it to build information about your preferences, lifestyle, etc. Each one narrows the field of outcomes, so the more questions you answer the better your recommendation.

Give it a try and tell us what it recommends for you.

--BEth

PS. Here are some stats based on Hunch's users:

• Hunch users preferring a Vespa like veggies on their pizza; those preferring a Harley tend to favor the death penalty.

• The 22% of Hunch users who are afraid of clowns tended to know what math was before kindergarten.


• Fact: 59% of Hunch users say they like the smell of Play-Doh.

Rallying behind the Hydrogen Car Road Rally!

What is 1,700 miles long and has 28 stops along the West Coast? The annual Hydrogen Road Tour running from May 26 to June 3rd. The rally was begun to demonstrate the viability of hydrogen-powered cars--at each of the 28 stops, the public is welcome to inspect the cars, which include the Honda FCX Clarity, Hyundai Tucson FCEV, Kia Borrego FCEV, Nissan X-Trail, and Toyota FCHV-adv Highlander. A mobile refueling station is along to power up the cars (ranges average between 200 to 500 miles).

Here's the official website. If any of you are along the route and stop to see the tour, I'd love to hear your impressions.

--Beth

Networking for Auto Collision Repair Professionals

I just saw that there is a new social networking site specifically for the auto collision repair industry - it's called Collision Hub. I recently signed up—it is free and pretty user-friendly. It looks like a great way to network with people in the industry.

You can set up your profile with information about yourself, add photos, and even create your own blog. Like other social networking sites, you can invite friends, and join groups that interest you. You can add events for others to see, or search for events to attend. There is a lot there—I still have to figure it all out.

Check it out! Collision Hub is encouraging technicians, shop owners, vendors, consultants, insurance companies, rental agencies and salvage companies to participate. 


Let me know if you are a member and what you think of it.

--Shanna

Has your shop gone "virtual?"

Being in the software industry, I love to hear stories about how implementing various technologies have a positive impact on business. This story on Virtual Auto Body of Dayton (out of Fairborn, OH) caught my attention for just that reason. Virtual Auto Body figured out a way to keep their customers informed of the status on their vehicle, which in turn, is keeping them happy. They installed 10 web cams around their shop and they stream the video live on their website. Therefore, giving their customers better access to the status of their repair, and exactly what goes into fixing their vehicle.

If you check out their website you can also see that they offer a plethora of other online features as well which include live chat support, online payment of your deductible, email and help desk, and customer surveys. This shop has definitely grasped the idea that people like to get as much information from their service providers online as they can - and it sounds like it's working for them!

Have you implemented any features like this on your website? If so, how are they working for you?

--Shanna

Makin' it electric--REEV is the new buzzword

Ever wish that your guzzler guzzled less? That you could ride around town with electric power? That you could enjoy the benefits of an electric car even if your car is not currently one of the models the auto manufacturers make?

Well, look into the Alternative Fuel Credits available in your state and find out if a conversion can be reimbursed (Colorado, for example, will cover 100% of cars older than 10 years and 85% of newer vehicles), then track down a company like Ree-V that can do the deed.

Here's a good overview of what a REEV vehicle is and what the car companies are planning that meet the criteria. From concept cars to a no-gas reality, could this be a ride of the future?

--Beth

From Pump to Plug...

Automobiles in the 1950s could run about 100 miles on a tankful of gasoline, the idea of taking lengthy roadtrips wasn't reality for the average vehicle owner until a network of gas stations was developed to allow people to drive farther. (It also led to a boom in roadside motels, restaurants, and the world's largest ball of twine--but that's another story...) Today, vehicle owners with electric cars face many of the same constraints. They are unable to journey further than a roundtrip that allows them to be back at their garage at night for a recharge.

Now, Shai Agassi’s company, Better Place, is ready to create a network of charging stations in Israel and Japan, with pending stations in Canada as well. In fact, the first electric car parking lot and docking stations has opened in Tel Aviv. Charge spots are designed with driver experience in mind--simple and easy-to-use.

Since most car companies are designing electric cars, and our new President has been very clear in his desire to reduce oil consumption, the time is ripe for electric cars to go more mainstream. Mr. Agassi's vision just might help make that into a reality.

--Beth

Keeping up with your favorite blogs

Obviously, if you are reading this, you are already on the blog bandwagon. How do you find out about new blog posts? Do you check your favorite blogs websites daily, or weekly? Or do you use an RSS feed to a web-based news reader?

I was talking to my husband last night and was telling him about some of the blogs that I read and how I use Google Reader to keep up with all of the blogs that I am interested in. I was surprised to find out that he didn't know what Google Reader was. A news reader keeps track of all of your favorite blogs and shows you when a new post has been added to that site. You can either read the post right from the reader, or click a link to go to the blog site. I find that using a news reader is the most efficient way for me to keep up with the blogs and to stay on top of what is going on in our industry. So I thought that if my husband didn't know about this great technology, maybe I should pass along the information to you as well.

Getting started with a news reader
If you aren't familiar with news readers, here's how you can get started. First, choose the news reader that you would like to use. There are quite a few out there - MyYahoo, newsgator, myAOL, Bloglines, netvibes, Google, and Pageflakes, to name a few. Create an account and you are on your way to subscribing to your favorite blogs using the RSS feed.

Subscribing to blog feeds
Most blogs have a link that allows you to subscribe to the blog using an RSS feed. For example, for our blog, 'We've "scene" it all - the SceneExchange blog,' if you scroll to the bottom of the page,  in the right menu you will see a link to 'Subscribe to this blog's feed.' If you don't see a link to subscribe to a particular blog, then simply add it as a subscription within your news reader. You will be asked for the website of the blog, then the news reader will handle the rest (at least that is how it works with Google Reader). Also look for the 'RSS Feed' icon on your favorite blogs, and that should lead you to the right area to subscribe to the blog.

Finding industry blogs
The next question by my husband was, 'how do you find blogs in your industry?' First, when you start reading a blog that you like, many times the authors will link to other blogs in the industry when they find something interesting posted. Check out those blogs, and if you like them, add them to your news reader. That's how I found most of the blogs that I read. I also checked out the 50 Best Business Blogs of 2008 and found some of those to be interesting.

Here are some industry blogs that I follow if you want to check them out:

ASA Blog  - It is written by the President of the Automotive Service Association. He provides commentary about the automotive repair industry.

BodyShop Business Blog - This is written by Jason Stahl who is an editor at BodyShop Business. He talks about what he sees going on in the industry.

AutoMuse - Erica Eversman discusses automotive legal and consumer issues in this blog.

If you find some other interesting blogs in our industry, please pass them along.

--Shanna

Beer=Fuel

Kudos to the Sierra Nevada Brewing Company! They will begin manufacturing high-grade ethanol fuel from leftover beer yeast. In a partnership with E-Fuel (the company that invented the world's first home ethanol machine), they will begin testing portable ethanol refineries at their Chico, California brewery.

The company creates approximately 1.6 million gallons of unusable beer yeast waste each year. Testing will begin in Q2 of this year. The company hopes to use ethanol for their own vehicles and may supply employees--as well as distribute extra fuel through E-Fuel's network.

I think I'll pick up a six pack to show my support.

--Beth

Business Technology Trends--Use Your Customers

Today I'm cribbing from an article published by the McKinsey quarterly that identifies eight business technology trends to watch. Their list is as follows:

1. Distribution co-creation
2. Using customers as innovators
3. Tapping into a world of talent
4. Extracting more value from interactions
5. Expanding the frontiers of automation
6. Unbundling production from delivery
7. Putting more science into management
8. Making business from information

Here is a link to their article. You may have to register to read it all (but that's free!).

Anyhow, I wanted to take a moment and chat about using customers as innovators. Chrisa and I have just finished writing an article for Claims magazine on the power of online communities (We don't have the publication date yet, but I'll try to remember to mention it once we know). While researching the article, I was struck by how much customers will help each other if you have provided an active forum where they can do so. Plus, active participation helps boost brand and customer loyalty.

If you pay attention to what they are talking about, it can help you identify trends. You can also handle customer service inquiries this way through active forum monitoring--regular posters may actually field questions before your CSRs get to them, preventing them from becoming bogged down.

Never underestimate how much people like to be the expert--and get creative about how you can build camaraderie. For example, a company that makes indoor rowing machines (which I used to work out on all the time in college) has over 150,000 logbook users. Each week they post photos and bios. of two of the users. They also have rowing challenges so people can post about reaching their goals as well as information about their workouts.

By reaching out to customers you can more easily pay attention to their suggestions as a springboard for development or refinement of a product. We do it here with SceneExchange. Feedback from users has moved several features up the to-do list because they let us know it would positively impact their experience. And we do want our users happy! I know you do as well.

I'd love to hear about experiences from anyone using an online community. Thanks!

--Beth