Guest Editorial
The Mouse That Roared
by Tommy Lee Welcome to Orlando! Who would have ever imagined that one little cartoon-drawn mouse could spur a multibillion dollar entertainment industry? Walt Disney, that’s who! Was it a fluke? Probably — in the beginning. But at some point, Disney had to have consulted with paid professionals in the entertainment industry to analyze the public’s perception, need and desire for his brainchild. His vision became the daydream of every little girl to be Cinderella and every little boy to be Prince Charming.
Success isn’t achieved by guessing. We can’t guess at what it costs us to operate our business. We can’t guess at the amount of time and materials it will take to repair a vehicle. As an industry, we can’t afford to guess how federal and state regulations will impact our business and industry. As professionals, we have to know our industry better than anyone else. How many of us are there, how many do we employ, how much do we contribute to each state’s (the national) economy? These questions should be generated by OUR industry, not by insurance companies, electronic estimators, suppliers or so called "experts."
Why do they have the numbers and we, the industry, do not? Certainly lots of people want and need the numbers. In New Jersey (where we fought managed care for collision repairers), regulators, legislators and the press wanted economic and industry statistics. ASA-N.J. and our coalition, CQAR, hired an economist to project the damage managed care would do to small business and the New Jersey economy. The regulators had no study and were forced to back down. We were a mouse that roared loud and clear!
The need for economic and industry information is not a one-time event among ASA members. It makes sense to have information prepared and available to help set policy, inform the public and provide to the press. With verifiable numbers, our members can shape their business decisions based on their understanding of the facts. Too often we have only our members’ internal operating numbers, or worse, we just make guesses.
Economic facts about our industry can and should form the basis for action that can change our industry and our environment. Government, entities and individuals establish priorities, allocate spending, anticipate revenue and take action based on financial and statistical data. Our knowledge and understanding of the data alters our actions accordingly. ASA, as the credible auto repair industry "source" of information, should take the lead in gathering and disseminating the economic facts that impact our industry and which will determine its future course.
Having a staff expert, loyal to our industry, analyze the financial issues behind the demand for auto repairs, new technology, regulations, industry structures, insurance and EDI networks, is the only way to accomplish the first three goals of ASA’s strategic plan. These goals — to be the members’ primary resource for business knowledge; to be the credible source of automotive service industry information; and to be members’ competitive advantage — emphasize and point the way. We need a skilled individual, with allegiance only to our members, to gather and provide economic and financial facts and analysis to fulfill these goals.
This person could assume primary responsibility for researching economic data relevant to the industry. He/she could coordinate studies, such as "Business First" and the aftermarket paper promised to the EPA, do analysis, present information, suggest improvements and use the data to relate it to other industry uses, including:
As you visit the booths at NACE, attend the seminars and meet your peers from across the country, think about what it all means. We could not have come this far without having an international impact. Our impact should be accountable and countable — on the record!
- making economic presentations for the industry to consumers, legislators, regulators and the press.
- analyzing McCarran-Ferguson’s impact on the structure and pricing of insurance products and the collision industry.
- creating a demand/forecasting model reflecting the determinants of the demand for collision and repair services.
- helping to determine the size and number of auto repair businesses.
- looking at how factors such as levels of deductibles impact the consumer and repair demand.
- estimating the cost to consumers of auto diagnostics that are not available to independent service centers.
Prince Charming could have found Cinderella a lot sooner if he had requested her "vital statistics" (and shoe size) before the ball.
ASA Main Page || AutoInc. Main Page
NACE Pre-Show Coverage
Keeping Up With Industry Trends
Colin Powell – Soldier, Leader ... Automotive Technician?
NACE Show Specials
How's Your Business? || Taking Your Scan Tool To The Next Level
Cruising Instead Of Abusing || Putting The Brakes On Payroll Headaches
What’s Ahead For The Collision Industry?
Guest Editorial -- The Mouse That Roared
Tech To Tech || TechTips || Stat Corner || News Briefs
Taking The Hill || Directions || Chairman's Message
AutoInc. Magazine ®, Vol. XLIV No. 11, November 1996