Christian Brothers Automotive Keeps Customers and Franchisees on the Road to Success

Much like a trip to the dentist, nobody wants to bring their car in for service. Between the time commitment, cost, and fear of additional repair needs, it is an experience most customers want to wrap up as quickly as possible. Christian Brothers Automotive recognizes this and wants to make the process as easy as possible while letting customers know their commitment to loving your neighbor. 

CBA Chief Brand Officer Janis Lino Jarosz shares her thoughts on how the franchise reaches their customers while also engaging with franchise owners throughout the system. It includes emphasizing that franchisees do not need to have prior experience in the auto repair industry, while also providing ongoing operational support and building a collaborative spirit throughout the system. 

How does Christian Brothers Automotive leverage its brand identity to attract both customers and franchisees?

Every message that we communicate, or action that we take, is rooted in our core value to love your neighbor. Embracing this rule prompts all of us to make other-focused decisions. I think prospective franchisees and guests hear about our promise to love others but it’s when they experience it first-hand, either at a CBA store or at the home office, they understand that our commitment to loving our neighbors is real.

In what ways do you utilize digital marketing channels to engage with your audience?

We use digital marketing channels to: (1) familiarize potential franchisees and guests with CBA; (2) encourage guests to set appointments; and (3) engage with franchisees and guests.

On the franchisee side, we use social media posts and ads, in channels like Facebook and LinkedIn, to introduce CBA and to demonstrate not only the financial strength of the business but also the human and joyful side of owning a CBA store. Once a franchisee is on board, we use various digital channels to engage with them, although we all still relish a good phone conversation and face-to-face meeting as well.

When it comes to consumers, we recognize that most are probably not excited to have their vehicle serviced, so we let them know through social media, display ads, and our websites that not only do CBA technicians understand vehicles and how to fix them, but that we also know how to make the process easier and more pleasant for auto owners. We back up our advertising by making online scheduling through the CBA website quick and easy, by using emails and texts for appointment reminders, and by texting photos and diagnoses to explain the condition of the vehicle with potential fixes and prices.

What role does social media play for Christian Brothers, and what platforms have been most successful?

We use social media to: (1) educate potential guests and franchisees on what we do to establish trust and authority; (2) familiarize these audiences with CBA’s “nice difference” by spreading brief moments of joy whenever possible; and, (3) capture new guests with active repair or service needs through promotional offerings and ads.

Since word-of-mouth is the most impactful way to drive new customers to a brand and recognizing that social media is a digital version of word-of-mouth, we have found that Google reviews and Yelp are key platforms for us to attract guests. 

Are there any emerging trends in marketing that you are exploring?

I'm not sure how “emerging” it is, but we are focused on obtaining more zero-party data from our guests to better serve them and their vehicles.

What is an example of a marketing effort you have applied to your brand that has helped existing franchise owners?

About three years ago, our CEO, Donnie Carr, began a road trip to visit with as many CBA stores as possible. His mission was to thank the shop employees and franchise owners who are the heart and soul of our brand while also learning about their biggest pain points. 

One challenge they raised was the shortage of auto technicians. Less men and women are entering the industry and competition for hiring them is fierce. After Donnie shared this with us, the marketing team got together with our recruitment team and marketing exchange committee to determine ways we could use our marketing funds to help attract technicians.

Through a combination of Google ads, Over the Top (OTT) ads and job board advertising, we saw the average number of technician applications submitted grow by 100 percent each year for the past two years. Our franchise owners have been pleased with this effort and results because employing more technicians means they’re able to service more vehicles.

What are some of the biggest challenges unique to your franchise?

The need for more technicians to service vehicles is not unique to our franchise but is one that is impacting all organizations involved in auto maintenance and repair. We’d love to work with others in our industry to get the word out on how rewarding a career as an auto technician can be.

Another challenge that we have is that we need to do a better job capturing guest data to better serve them. I don’t think that’s unique to us, however, and we are focused on it.

How does Christian Brothers Automotive support franchise owners, especially franchisees with no prior experience in the industry?

One of the points that we emphasize to prospective franchisees is that no prior experience in the industry is required. Our founder, Mark Carr, started the company in 1982 as an “outsider” because he wanted to build an auto repair company through the eyes of a guest. Today, approximately 85 percent of our franchisees had no automotive experience prior to opening their first CBA store. 

It’s important to point out that each of our stores employs knowledgeable, talented technicians and service advisors because we teach our franchise owners how to recruit the best of the best. In addition to providing training to franchisees, we offer training for their team members as well.

Every new franchisee goes through months of training, which includes spending 6-8 weeks shadowing a top franchisee at a certified training location. They also attend week-long, franchisor-led training programs known as Genesis and CBA 101, which covers important topics like the day-to-day intricacies of running their business as well as CBA’s standard of guest service and service excellence. 

How do you foster community among franchisees?

Some examples of our shared communications to engage franchisees include: a weekly e-newsletter; Monday morning operations messages; our intranet, where franchisees can learn the latest company happenings and share their thoughts; and a comprehensive, online learning system for home office, franchisees, and store team members. 

One of our newest ways to foster community is through our quarterly “joy boxes.” Joy is a key component of our company culture, so we send a quarterly activity-in-a box to every store that shares the how-tos and materials for some of our fun-filled home office events (think taco eating contests or putt-putt events), so that we’re all experiencing the same event simultaneously.

Throughout their time as a franchisee, owners will meet each year with their franchisee peer group and some of our home office support team to “talk shop” and learn from fellow owners. We also host an annual franchisee convention where we gather to hear from keynote speakers, share best practices, celebrate achievements, fellowship together, all while having tons of fun.

How does your franchise keep up-to-date with industry trends and innovations?

The home office team continuously reads about, networks, trains, and observes the happenings and discoveries of other organizations involved within the automotive industry and outside of it. We also employ an automotive technology department at our home office that assists technicians when they encounter automotive problems that they need help solving. It offers store technicians remote programming, assistance with emergent safety repairs, foreign repair help, and so much more. This team also hosts regional and national training programs on the latest in technology and diagnostics in the automotive industry.

What are you most proud of in your work with Christian Brothers Automotive franchise?

Working at CBA has emphasized to me the importance of working collaboratively with each other in the home office and with our franchisees. Shortly after I arrived, we implemented a marketing exchange committee comprised of one elected representative from each of our nine regions. 

These representatives volunteer their time and have been instrumental in helping us allocate the marketing funds we collect annually from franchisees, select key marketing vendors, solicit feedback from their peers on various marketing tactics we employ, and test new programs. Our conversations haven’t always been easy, but they’ve always been rooted in love for each other and our guests, and I know that our marketing efforts are better because of the collaboration with the committee.