It was a very busy, yet exciting week. AutoSally was launched to mechanics in Washington, DC metro area seven days ago and our journey was just started. I met and talked with owners and managers of several independent repair shops in my local area and almost all of them were curious about AutoSally and asked many questions. Since I believe others may share the same questions, I thought I better post them in this blog. Here they are… 

1. What is AutoSally?

AutoSally is an online market place for car owners and mechanics where car owners can post services needed for their car and mechanics can submit their offer. Please see our video introduction in our Home page and on the top right side of this blog for more detailed information.

2. Why should I register with AutoSally?

There are many reasons for you to register with AutoSally (as you can see on the embedded presentation below).  However, if you want quick answers, I would say that the main reasons are to get exposure to car owners in your local area, find auto maintenance/repair jobs available in the market, fill your empty bays and acquire and retain new customers.

3. How much does it cost me and how can I pay for AutoSally’s services?

This is one of my favorite questions. You pay us nothing unless you get a job through AutoSally. Yes, registering with us, creating your profile, listing your shop in our online directory, uploading your coupons, searching for jobs, submitting your offer, and even including your shop information in the service reminder email to your customers are free! You pay us a small amount of commissions only when we bring you additional revenues. The current commission rate is 3% of the total ticket spent by each new customer you get through AutoSally. Please always refer to our Terms of Service for the most up to date pricing information.

At the end of each month you will receive an electronic invoice that includes the total amount of commissions you owe to AutoSally for the month. You can then use your credit card to pay for our commissions. The good news is, during this launch, AutoSally is free for mechanics. No commissions, nothing to pay until December 31, 2010!

4. Why doesn’t AutoSally limit the number of repair shops in each area?

Some of repair shop owners told me that they are willing to pay for higher commission as long as we limit the number of registered repair shops for each area. Well, AutoSally is open for any repair shops and it does not have any plan to limit the number of shops that can register with AutoSally. AutoSally believes the best way to win customers is by providing high quality service to them. When they are satisfied with your service, they will give your shop good feedback and high rating. And, if you build your shop’s reputation at AutoSally as early as possible, you will have a competitive advantage in the future compared to other repair shops that do not have good rating and feedback. It will be more difficult for repair shops that register with AutoSally later and have not built their reputation to compete with you.

5. How does AutoSally market its services to car owners?

Starting July 2010, we will promote our services to car owners in Washington area. We will reach out to car owners whom we believe are looking for trusted, qualified mechanics through direct mail, email marketing, social networking, blogs, press coverage, and online advertisement.

6. What types of job car owners can post on AutoSally?

At this time, AutoSally focuses on factory scheduled maintenance and other standard maintenance jobs (e.g., brake service, timing belt replacement). Registered car owners will be able to obtain factory scheduled maintenance for their car and post them as jobs in AutoSally. Currently, AutoSally only supports factory scheduled maintenance data for most cars manufactured in 2002 or newer.

7. How can AutoSally help me to retain customers?

When your customers’ car is due for a factory scheduled maintenance, AutoSally will send an email reminder to them.  In this email reminder, we will include your shop information for free.  If the customers are satisfied with your service, they may request a quote from you and come back again to your shop.

8. How can I control the quality of my customers?

You can control the quality of customers you want to invite to come back in by controlling your offers. When your customers request a quote from you, you may choose to give them an attractive offer or not to make an offer at all.

9. How does “word of mouth” work at AutoSally?

AutoSally implements Facebook and Twitter APIs that allow car owners to register using their Facebook or Twitter account. Depending on the settings of their’ Facebook or Twitter account, car owners can share some of the actions they take on AutoSally. For example, when a car owner leaves a good feedback for a mechanic in AutoSally, this good feedback will also be posted on his/her Facebook or Twitter account, allowing his/her friends to read it.

10. Is it true that we pay only when we get a job through AutoSally?

Yes, this is true. However, we reserve the right to modify our pricing at any time and for any reasons. Please always refer to our Terms of Service for the most up to date pricing information.

Hope this post answers your most important questions about AutoSally. If you have other questions, please do not hesitate to contact me at info@autosally.com.

Click here to visit AutoSally.