When Worlds Collide

Team Rocco's   

Rocco's Corporate Gym 

Some say diversity is the spice of life (and work).  At Rocco's we fix cars and fix them well but we also believe in diversifying our interests. As a result we have decided to endorse a local boxer named Tevin Farmer, and sponsor the World Champion, Danny Garcia. You may have seen our billboards, one of which is pictured below.

Tevin and Danny are both Philadelphia-born boxers and still train in the Greater Philadelphia Area. Tevin is a southpaw and often spars with Danny in an effort to help both fighters get ready for upcoming fights.

Tevin has an upcoming bout against Isaac Suarez at the National Guard Armory while Danny defends his tltle the following day against Zab Judah. His fight will be one for the ages as he and Zab have provided very interesting commentary leading up to the fight. Here are some great quotes from Danny and his father Angel.

Back at Rocco's we're doing our best to support our new interest including the building of a gym and ring.  Our path to becoming a top-tier collision repair shop was built on dedication and hard work. Our goal to supporting our new team will be built on that same premise.  Stay tuned for more information on Team Rocco's.

Why Authenticity and Quality Matter in the Collision Repair Business

Authenticity Removes Doubt and Increases Loyalty

Many argue that today's marketplace is becoming increasingly driven by those companies that commit to authenticity and transparency. In his article, Authenticity and Transparency Matter in Business, Jonathan Goldhill writes "Companies - and the individuals who represent them - competing in today's marketplace must operate with an unparalleled degree of authenticity and transparency....When you're constantly doing the right thing, this should drastically reduce living in fear of being found out about anything."

The same is true, and perhaps even necessary, in the collision repair industry. Doubt, uncertainty and the fear of being taken advantage of continues to plague the industry. In Confessions from the Autobody Shop, Phillip Reed writes "for most consumers auto body shops are intimidating and mysterious." His article tries uncover the mystery by providing eight tips to help consumers remain aware and avoid getting (or feeling as if they are) getting ripped off.

Reeds article is extremely informative and relevant and for all that it does, consumers' mistrust, though always apparent, is often difficult to alleviate and therefore collision repair facilities must operate. However, one way to remove the mystery and intimidation of the body shop is to open tho doors to consumers...literally.  A collision repair facility that actively engages its customers in tours of its facility accomplishes two things: it says to the customer that there's nothing to hide and it leaves them with a 'beyond-the-lobby' experience.  After all, isn't seeing how it's done better than wondering how it's done?

Our team began offering tours to our customers more than ten years ago and we continue to offer tours to each and every customer. We are proud of our approach to collision repair and proud to allow our customers to see (and experience) first-hand the professional and uncompromised dedication we take in repairing their vehicles.

Below is a video of a tour we may give to any of our customers at any of our five locations. In this video Joe DiMonte, manager of our Blackwood Store, leads visitors from the lobby to the shop to the paint booth; in it he explains the equipment we use and why our teams love what we do.

For additional videos of the tours that we offer at other locations please visit our YouTube channel.

Working at Rocco's: Life as a Collision Repair Professional

Running a collision repair facility is not easy. It takes skill, a unique understanding of the automobile and automotive industry, an ability to interact with auto technicians, vendors and the public, and a personal drive to succeed in the industry.

Here, Joe DiMonte, manager of the Rocco's Blackwood facility, discusses what's important to him, his childhood, his love for cars and his responsibilities at Rocco's Collision.

Pink It Is

Pink it is.

Rocco’s Collision Centers has always prided itself on being the number one repair facility in the Greater Philadelphia Region.  Over the past several years we have invested in our infrastructure, our technology, and our lobbies in an effort to create ideal working environments for our staff and exceptional experiences for our customers. 

What many people don’t know is that we also have a tradition of giving back to our community and the charities and organizations that are important to us. Last year we actively participated in two Toys-for-Tots programs, donated to the Johnnie M. Foundation, donated to Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, and hosted a relief effort for victims of Hurricane Sandy.  Giving back is part of our corporate culture.

This year we have decided to try to coax spring into arriving a little early and are committing our brand and resources to going pink. For the next several months we will do our best to support breast cancer awareness. You may see our logo transform to pink, one or two of our vehicles “go pink” and perhaps even a billboard or two dressed in pink.

We hope that by doing our little part we can help those affected by this disease.

Your Vendors as Partners

Four Key Components to Enhancing Your Vendor Relationships 

 Who Has the Quality Parts - In the collision repair industry, replacement parts are critical time is everything. Rarely do we hear that anybody has too much time on their hands and in most cases, and in most shops, time means money. The faster you can get the vehicle moving through the repair process the faster you can return it to your customer, which is why knowing which vendor can supply you with quality parts is so critical.

Shop managers don't have time to worry about whether or not the vendor is going to send them a quality part and they certainly don't have time to send a part back once it's been received. In most cases, shop management is all about process, vision and timing and one little glitch can throw the entire process into mayhem. Tip: Make a list of all of your vendors and rank them in terms of quality of product and timeliness of delivery. This will allow you and your team better understand who can be relied upon when you are counting on quality and just-in-time delivery.

Delivery Time – Speaking of time, it's important to know which of your partners can consistently deliver parts to your operation and at what time of the day. As stated above, managers cannot afford to spend their day worrying about what will and won't arrive on time. Tip: Once you've created the "Quality List" (mentioned above) rank those partners that consistently deliver the parts on time.  Be sure to effectively communicate your expectations to your vendors, such as guaranteed delivery times, order cut-off times, and discount structure.

Casting the Net – While having your "go-to" guys is great, it's also important to build an extensive network of vendors just-in-case you need them. In addition to building your bench, by developing a long list of resources you will also create a greater network of colleagues and experts who can provide alternate perspective and perhaps even enhanced service. Tip: Once you've identified the vendors that deliver both Quality and exceptional Delivery Time, create a separate "Bench" of qualified vendors that you can rely on when necessary. 

Invest in the Relationship - Finally, don't let any of your vendors exist as just vendors. Nurture and maintain the relationship as if it were a customer. In doing so you, you may just gain back that precious time that was once lost. (For more on vendor relationship management (or VRM) please see the following article: The Rise of the Vendor Relationship)

Authored by Brian Riggs and Joe DiMonte, Rocco's Collision

Keeping Promises to Your Customers

Last night our team attended our monthly team meetings and discussed how we can continue to improve upon our customer service. We discussed the following four characteristics associated with delivering exceptional customer service: keeping promises, active listening, attitude and the power of persuasion.

Although each area drew an equal amount of participation it was the discussion around keeping promises that interested our team most.  In the end, we discovered three basic elements that every person in our centers should know - (1) As a member of the company, you are the expert and the curator of the customer experience (2) that the most important thing any member of any company can do is to deliver proper expectations (3) and that every effort should be made to keep any promise made to the customer.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HWTMa76BzH0

In order to drive home the point of keeping the promise to the customer we used the following clip from a Seinfeld episode which proved to be a great way to convey the message. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did and as a customer please know that we are continuously trying to improve our service to you.

Brian John Riggs

Nobody Says it Better Than Our Customers

Not only do we love repairing our customer's vehicles,  we also love talking to them.  Thank you to Ms. McKeever for sitting down with us and we are proud to have been your body shop of choice.