SEMA’s Collision section expands Photos by Jay Sicht Sata again had its 3D virtual-painting system at SEMA. Contestants vied for getting the most-complete coverage on a panel, with the best score of each day earning an iPad. Jason Jewett, owner of Redhouse Custom Paint in Derby, Kan., shows his skills in the Ultimate BrushOff competition finals held at the Anest Iwata booth at SEMA. Prizes were provided by distributor <strong>Auto</strong>motive Spraying Equipment Technologies. A one-of-a-kind Chevrolet Camaro featuring NAPA’s Martin Senour paints is displayed at NAPA’s “Paint Store in a <strong>Parts</strong> Store” booth at the SEMA show. Mickey Harris (back to camera) and Leah Gall were two of the airbrush artists on hand at the Sata booth at SEMA to demonstrate their skills and give tips to show goers. Discussing the features of one of the new SATAgraph 4 airbrushes are Bob Derby (l.), sales representative at Caruk and Associates in Richmond, B.C., Canada; Mitch Peacock (second <strong>from</strong> r.), of Jus Cuz Customs in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada; and Shannon Herboldt, of Classic Collision & Frame in Menno, S.D. Insurer panel among the highlights as NACE returned to ‘The Big Easy’ Continued <strong>from</strong> page C-2 everybody is saying that’s the model they really want to support. There’s opportunity out there, opportunity to extend hours, opportunity to look at the model differently.” Though the term “partner” when referring to shops and insurers has drawn a lot of derision among shops in recent years, Avery said that he sees more of a need than ever for partnerships that help give the customer what he or she wants — and will get “with or without us.” He suggested shops think of a young driver who is using a mobile device to find out what to do after a minor accident. “What can we do together? Can we work together to offer a 48-hour repair?” Avery asked the NACE event attendees. “You might say, ‘Yeah, if you quit making me take all these pictures and jump through these hoops.’ And I might say, ‘Okay, I’ll stop that.’ So as we look at the future, I’m leaning toward partnering and saying, look, that customer is going to leave us and go somewhere else. He or she is not going to tolerate inefficiency.” Elsewhere at the event For the second year, NACE included a day-long event open only to MSOs. This year’s MSO Symposium reportedly drew about 250 attendees (it was closed to the trade press as well). NACE keynote speaker Dick Cross, a former CEO of the Carstar organization who recently published a business book, told a crowd of about 800 attendees that one of the biggest failings he sees among many business owners and CEOs is not regularly setting aside time to just think about the business. “For most of us in this room, thinking is the hardest work that we have to do,” he said. “If there’s anything else to occupy our time besides thinking, we’ll generally be doing it. But thinking helps you understand what the possibilities of your business could be, and helps you to understand generally how to make it happen.” The kind of thinking that makes companies succeed, Cross said, can be accomplished by those at the top who set aside 20 minutes a day, three days a week, to tune out other day-to-day distractions and just think about the business. NACE organizers will no doubt spend a lot of time thinking about next year’s event, which returns to Las Vegas next Oct. 16-19. n Audatex to use Demandforce for marketing and communications San Francisco—Demandforce announced it has been selected by Audatex <strong>North</strong> America for marketing and communication software to help build strong online reputations for its customers and help them compete in the Internet economy. “Demandforce was the clear choice to help our customers drive additional revenue, increase efficiencies, and help build a strong online reputation,” said Gordon Henderson, vice president of Collision <strong>Repair</strong> Services for Audatex. “Demandforce and Audatex share a common goal to foster an environment of innovation, high performance, and proven results and we look forward to working together to serve our customers.” The Demandforce communication platform automatically collects certified reviews and publishes them on Internet sites including Google, Facebook, Bing, Judy’s Book, and Citysearch, helping to enhance a shop’s most valuable asset, its “Education and networking remain major draws for NACE attendees, and this year’s event offered more than 80 sessions.” reputation. Through the Demandforce automated review syndication, Demandforce-certified reviews reach a total of 200 million monthly unique visitors across the Web, helping local consumers find businesses in their area. Also, Demandforce makes it easy for shop owners to not only build new relationships, but also maintain established relationships by giving them the tools to drive new revenue through promotions and newsletters that offer value-added services. Additionally, Demandforce automatically tracks results and revenue <strong>from</strong> online marketing and communications efforts to provide shop owners with real-time visibility into the success of their business. “The use of Demandforce by Audatex is a great example of two companies coming together to promote growth and relationship building in the collision repair industry,” said Rick Berry, president of Demandforce. n Page C-4 December 2012 <strong>Parts</strong> & <strong>People</strong> www.partsandpeople.com
More Opportunity. With the strength of the industry’s largest open network, connecting insurance carriers to your shop is a lot easier than you think. CCC ONE Open Shop seamlessly enhances collaboration between insurance carriers and shops...even shops that are not part of carrier direct repair programs. CCC ONE Open Shop Extending Your Shop’s Reach To learn more about CCC ONE Open Shop, logon to www.ccc-one.com/openshop or call us at 888-832-1764. ©2012 CCC Information Services Inc. All rights reserved. Where it all comes together. ® <strong>Parts</strong> & <strong>People</strong> December 2012 Page C-5
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