Cutting Through the Hype: How Payment Integration Can Truly Transform Your Auto Shop Experience
by Zach Howell, Senior Payments Consultant, 360 Payments
Every day we are bombarded with advertisements of smart technologies with empty promises of how they can make our lives easier. However, this automation rarely feels worth it; the difficulties associated with implementing such tools, not to mention the learning curve associated with getting acquainted with them, make them feel like they aren’t worth the headache. On the flip side, when they do work, they are really worth it and often you can’t imagine your life without them.
One example where the tool is more than worth the hype is payment integration with your auto shop management system. Imagine this from your customer’s perspective: you have a busy day planned when disaster strikes and you need vehicle repairs. You manage to rearrange your day, to squeeze in just enough time to drop your car off at the auto shop and coordinate a ride to work, already behind in your to-do list.
Before you know it, you are wrapping up your day. You check your phone only to notice that you have a missed call from your auto shop and a voicemail letting you know that your car is ready. A quick check of the clock and you realize that there are only ten minutes before the shop closes – you’ll never make it there in time.
Rather than risk giving your card information over the phone, you decide to wait until tomorrow to pick up your car, committing to another day of chaos. While we’ve all been there – or at least in a similar circumstance, this situation could have been avoided with a credit card payment processing integration with your shop management system, like Text-To-Pay.
In addition to providing the highest payment security standards, ShopBoss’ Text-To-Pay feature streamlines the checkout process saving both customers and employees valuable time. The added convenience of letting your customers complete transactions at the time and place of their choosing also allows for seamless integration with shop management software. This means that rather than dealing with tedious receipts and filing systems, everything your auto shop needs is at the click of a button – no more cross-referencing! By working with your current auto shop management software, there is no need to install or learn a confusing new interface.
Adopting a shop management system payment integration interface represents a rare win-win scenario in which not only do the customers benefit from the added convenience and safety of the software, but the repair shop eliminates inefficient bookkeeping practices and potential sources of both error and frustration. In addition, the transaction can hit your account immediately, you no longer have to wait for it to clear.
Long gone are the days of lines out the door behind the checkout counter, slowing down your day and occupying valuable time. As a result, with less of the day dedicated to completing transactions, employees will have more time to dedicate to other activities, allowing for more focus on the customer’s needs, ultimately allowing for a more personalized customer experience and undoubtedly an increase in customer satisfaction. What’s more, the use of such an interface signals to clients, both current and prospective, that you are willing to evolve with the times and grow to provide the highest standard of customer service possible.
