Technology Necessitates Change for Car Care Businesses

The speed at which technological innovation and adoption occurs is sometimes cause for pause, but inevitably it is a reason for change. I sometimes marvel at the technological advancements in my daily life that are relatively new but which I already take for granted. For example, it’s difficult to remember how I conducted work without e-mail, Web sites, and robust word processing and desktop publishing software.

On the days I commute to the office, I do so in a hybrid vehicle that uses some auxiliary battery power to help achieve average gas mileage near 45 miles per gallon. If I work out of my home office or from the road, I can connect to the office network and my personal desktop as if I was sitting at my desk in downtown Phoenix. When I hook into our network server from a remote location, it never ceases to impress me.

I am from the generation of kids that was first dazzled by Pong, amazed by this square blip traveling across a television screen between two plank-like paddles. The evolution of video game graphics since then is astounding, but even game consoles today are about much more than games, providing access to the Internet, social gaming, movie streaming and media files from a home computer connected to a wireless network — all visible in striking color and clarity on a high-definition television screen.

The amount of technological gadgetry we use on a daily basis borders on the ridiculous. On any given day, thousands of people today would feel naked and paralyzed without their cell phones, laptops, MP3 players and GPS units. Many others have added a Kindle or iPad to their daily assortment of wired and wireless dependency.

The day my father came home and proudly plugged in a large electric calculator that did nothing more complicated than division and multiplication seems like more than a lifetime ago, but in reality it’s been only about 35 years. Within a decade, I had my own pocket calculator that did scientific notation. Now phones can be calculators, televisions, computers, gaming devices and cameras in addition to communication devices. That’s truly amazing in such a short span of time.

I was a late adopter of carrying a cell phone, but now I never leave the house without it. The phone I carry is the second I’ve owned, but it already is pretty much obsolete next to its BlackBerry cousins and 4G smart phones, even though it is Internet capable and was fairly cutting edge when I first obtained it.

The problem technology poses for many in the car care industry is when to adopt it and how to incorporate it wisely. Adopt too early and there may be bugs to contend with and shaky technical support. Adopt too late and companies risk falling far behind competitors that opt in early, not to mention that the learning curve and ease of integration can become dauntingly steep.

By and large, though, once technological improvements take hold, adoption is inevitable. Whether it’s remote access or monitoring, automation improvements or Internet marketing, new technologies have seeped into every facet of car care business operations. Advancements that affect multiple levels of your business or improve quality, service or productivity deserve close examination and may warrant quick action, particularly if they will reduce costs or increase sales.

The last thing you want to occur while you’re waiting to act is for success to pass you by.