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A mechanic story

By JNSwanson

Our van broke. More accurately, while taking our daughter to college, our van, loaded with her stuff, began overheating 90 minutes into the two hour drive. After stops for cooling, much fretting, some praying, and smoke coming out of the tailpipe, we got to the college, got her stuff unloaded, and parked it.

for the last timeAfter catching a ride home with some friends, I sent an email to a friend who lives in the college town.

“Do you know of a mechanic like Jim’s?”

Jim’s Auto Care is a place that we both know. It’s a place we both trust. It serves as a standard of comparison for family-owned, local, reliable auto repair. And David was able to tell me about a place that was just like Jim’s.

The van is gone. Somehow, we weren’t interested in putting a new engine in a 1997 van with 184,000 miles and a lot of rust. But Gary and Sheila gave us great service, even helping us sell the van for parts.

I have a feeling that there are a lot of places like Jim’s in the word-of-mouth chain. Are you one?

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About JNSwanson

Jon has been a regular reader and occasional contributor around here since 2006. Jon works as a pastor, but he understands business better than many so-called business people. He gets that it is about people, relationships, service, and yes, even love.
  • When the planes are coming in to land - July 18, 2016
  • Are you mortgaging your time? - April 24, 2013
  • A customer service story - September 12, 2012
  • What to do when a blog post is suddenly popular - May 2, 2012
  • Review: The official guide to QuickBooks 2012 - January 23, 2012
  • Two discussion questions for you - December 8, 2011
  • From scrap metal to skilled crafts - November 23, 2011
  • How a small business can be huge - November 16, 2011
  • Banding together - October 12, 2011
  • Show the love - October 1, 2011

September 29, 2010 Filed Under: customer service, marketing Tagged With: Jon Swanson

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