Every local route PDR tech has heard the stories about hail chasers making a killing in 100 working days and then taking the rest of the year off.  In the right situation a hail tech can take home $2-3k a day.  The income potential sounds amazing.  However, there are several uncontrollable factors that can make or break a hail tech’s income.  Plus staying on the road with a family at home can be difficult at times.  What if you could make great money and sleep in your own bed at night?

With the proper systems and motivation in place, a seasoned veteran PDR tech can produce $2k a day.  Here a few steps you can take to reach this goal.

  1. Network, Network, Network
  2. Acquire several diverse accounts
  3. Establish efficient systems
  4. Set numbers goals

Networking is so important in any business.  You can’t make money if you don’t have any dents to fix.  This takes time and like most things is a skill you can improve on with practice.  You have to get out there and let everyone you meet know what fantastic service you provide.  Making friends in the auto industry is a must.  Dealership schmoozing is an artform.  In order to not just be known as  “the dent guy” you have to build lasting relationships with as many people as possible at all of your accounts.  When you build rapport and are able to solve problems, people will talk about you and your service.  Consistency, and word of mouth combined with social media can result in amazing growth.

The auto industry seems to attract a very transient workforce.  Use that to your advantage.  Follow your industry buddies into their new dealerships, body shops, and service centers.  Use that network you’ve established to build a portfolio of diverse accounts.  A group of several different types of accounts creates balance and can serve almost like a hedge fund.  When one dealership is slow, maybe another body shop won’t stop calling you.  Balance and volume is great.  Once you max out your days pushing dents, it’s time to start narrowing down your accounts.  There are plenty of dealerships and body shops that are run very poorly and will be a huge time suck.  Focus on the accounts that can generate revenue quickly without the burden of management and administrative time on your part.

 

2kaday

 

Now that you have a large portfolio of great accounts, improving your efficiency and speed is the next step to great income.  Establishing systems in your work day is crucial.  The systems you create are like really good habits and rituals that you repeat over and over, to achieve great results.  Here is just a few examples:

  1. Arrange your stops in an order that cuts down on drive time.
  2. Make phone calls and eat lunch only while you are driving, not when you are selling or pushing
  3. Utilize an electronic invoicing system
  4. Have a panel order when working on cars
  5. Have a helper handle all of your administrative tasks

By far the best way to get faster at dealerships is to hire a helper.  You only make money while your hands are on your tools.  Have someone else handle all of the other stuff.  Ideally you and your helper drive in separate vehicles and overlap at your stops.  Here’s how it works:

  1. Your helper arrives at the lot first and generates a list of cars
  2. You arrive slightly later and get the list approved
  3. Your helper lines up the cars next to your tools with windows down and tail lights out
  4. Your helper creates an electronic invoice for each car as they are being repaired and emails them to the manager and accounting office
  5. You crank through the assembly line of cars and head off to the next stop
  6. Rinse and repeat!

Now that your operation is running like a well oiled machine, it’s time to set some goals.  It’s all a numbers game.  Everyone should have a daily and monthly goal.  Why not break it down into hours or stops.  $300 is a very attainable goal at any used car lot.  If you can hit that average at 3 stops before lunch you’re at $900 by 12:00.  3 more lots and you’re at $1800.  Why not finish the day off with an easy $200 body shop or retail job.  Boom $2k a day.  Okay, now let’s try breaking it down into hours.  Any grinder out there is going to work 10 hours a day.  Subtract 2 hours a day for driving, selling, networking, and maybe a bathroom break.  If you can produce $250 an hour for the remaining 8 hours, Bam you’ve got $2k a day.

Get out there, get high quality accounts, get efficient, and kill it!