Topic: Business Talk

Multi-Tech Operators: Can your techs fix these three washers?

Posted on June 12, 2015 by - Academy Talk, Business Talk

If it seems like laundry technology is advancing faster than you and your appliance repair techs can keep up with, fasten your seat belts, because we’re taking a fast ride into a future that is here right now. Here are three examples of innovative laundry systems your team may be called on to service in the not-too-distant future:

Whirlpool Smart Washer/Dyer Combo

Whirlpool's Smart Dryer

Whirlpool's Smart Dryer

Whirlpool’s Smart Front Load Dryer takes advantage of the Nest Learning Thermostat to integrate a home laundry system into an energy-saving mode that senses when a home’s residents are away and automatically reduces dryer heat and drying time to conserve energy. A sophisticated electronic control panel guides decisions about what materials and colors can be washed together or separately and automatically controls water temperature and volume based on load size and content.

 

LG Twin Wash System

LG Twin Wash System

LG Twin Wash System

Double ovens have been around for a long time, but double washers are a fresh out-of-the-box innovation. LG’s Twin Wash can manage two loads of laundry at once. Imagine the convenience of being able to simultaneously wash delicates in one gentle cycle while a heavier load of towels or jeans gets a thorough cleaning in another — all in a compact, stacked appliance. The dryer unit recirculates heat to save energy, helping keep utility costs under control. If the owner likes to iron clothes right out of the dryer, a steam function within the dryer sprays a fine mist directly on the clothes to keep them at the perfect all-over dampness level for easy ironing.

Samsung activewash

Samsung activewash

Samsung activewash

Samsung’s newest washing machine harkens back to great, great grandma’s washboard — and that’s a good thing. A small sink-like compartment on top of the washer lets users soak or gently hand-scrub fabrics ahead of washing, offering one-stop convenience on laundry day. No more running back and forth to the bathroom to soak delicates in the sink.

Although products like these are so new to the marketplace they probably won’t need service immediately, it’s a good idea to bring your appliance repair techs up to speed before that time comes so they can perform flawlessly when called on. With ahead-of-the-curve training they’ll have the knowledge and confidence to quickly diagnose problems and make needed repairs, keeping customer satisfaction high and company services running smoothly. And having your techs fully trained early in the game will enable them to perform warranty services your less-prepared competitors may have to pass on.

 

Master Samurai Tech specializes in developing custom continuing education programs designed to keep appliance repair technicians on the cutting edge of technology. Beginning with the Master Samurai Tech Fundamentals of Appliance Repair Course and continuing through the Advanced Schematics Analysis and Troubleshooting Course, you can be assured of thorough, comprehensive training on the ins and outs of home appliance repair — customized to your unique needs, if desired. All Master Samurai Tech training courses develop your employees’ knowledge base with the exact information needed to have a handle on modern appliance technology.

 

Best of all, Master Samurai Tech self-paced continuing education programs are available on-demand, so your techs can complete the coursework at a time and a pace most convenient for them — during lunch periods, slack times during a work day, or at home on weekends and evenings.

Please call Scott, the Original Master Samurai Tech, at 603-290-5516, so we can understand your needs and help your techs to be prepared for any new model that comes their way.

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Why Continuing Education for Your Appliance Service Techs Is a Good Investment

Posted on May 15, 2015 by - Business Talk

As a multi-truck appliance repair operator, you need to be sure every one of your technicians is performing at the top of their game on every service call. Gone are the days when fridges and ranges used simple mechanical controls that a rookie tech could quickly understand and repair. Today’s appliances demand a level of technical expertise and interpersonal skills undreamed of even a few years ago.

For instance, in a state-of-the-art kitchen, all appliances can be networked and synced to perform tasks programmed remotely. Modern coffee systems custom-blend brews to individual preferences and even mix bean types to taste. Smartphone- and tablet-controlled ranges are in the offing, and kitchen robots can already take over the monotony of making the perfect risotto, among many other routine tasks. There’s even a 3-D food printer, no joke!

With so many technical advances coming from every direction every year, it’s hard enough to keep up with the technology without having to worry about assuring quality control for each service call to make sure customers are happy in sometimes challenging situations. That’s why continuing education for your appliance repair techs makes good business sense.

From new hires to old hands, your techs will benefit from continuing education in several important ways:

  • All of your technical staff will receive expert interpersonal skills guidance so you can be sure the service to your customers is of consistently high quality and customer satisfaction, no matter which tech handles the job.
  • New appliance service techs coming into your company will quickly come up to speed on important people skills and receive valuable pointers for conducting service calls when they enter a customer’s home.
  • If desired, we can customize training to the way things are done in your shop, again assuring consistent service quality across the board.
  • Continuing education not only gives your techs the confidence to meet new challenges on the job, it promotes loyalty to you and longevity in employment, a big benefit to you in reducing costly turnover and building a highly skilled staff — and securing your competitive advantage.

    At Master Samurai Tech we specialize in developing every tech's skills — both professional and personal — to enhance their customers’ experience. It’s an investment in your staff that will pay off in enhanced customer satisfaction and more business for your company. Click here for more information on our Professional Development course!

    Multi-Tech Operators: Keep Your Appliance Repair Techs on the Leading Edge of Innovation

    Posted on March 27, 2015 by - Business Talk

    Keyboard with Training and Development Button.In the appliance repair industry, hiring the best qualified technicians can be a hit-or-miss proposition, especially in the face of increasingly sophisticated 21st century appliance technology. The industry’s revered tradition of bringing up techs with on-the-job training, passing on expertise from older, experienced techs to younger apprentices, has given way to a demand for a better-trained workforce from the get-go. In fact, even seasoned technicians increasingly find themselves scrambling to keep up with technological advances that were nonexistent just a few years ago.

     

    As an appliance repair operator with a staff of technicians, you may be finding it daunting to keep your techs on top of the latest developments in appliance repair and service. Obviously, if your technicians lag behind in expertise, your competitive advantage in your marketplace can suffer or vanish altogether.

    One convenient, affordable, and surprisingly easy way to bring your entire staff up to speed is to provide up-to-date technical training to fill in knowledge gaps or acquire new knowledge from the ground up. How? Online education.

    Whatever the experience and training level your individual techs may possess, you can provide targeted training online to meet each tech’s particular learning requirement. Online coursework can be completed at each tech’s convenience and personal learning pace and repeated as necessary until mastery is achieved.

    At a minimum, you’ll want to be sure each tech has mastered the essentials needed for any repair job: tools used in the appliance trade, basic electricity, reading schematic diagrams and using them to develop troubleshooting strategies, gas fuels used in appliances, electronics in appliances, appliance parts, and electric motor systems in appliances. Even old hands may benefit from refreshing their basic knowledge from time to time.

    If your technical staff needs training in specific technologies or brands, online courses can be customized to deliver the precise mix of training you need for your business, without extraneous or irrelevant information. For example, you may want particular emphasis on electronics or certain high-end appliances. Online training providers keep up to date on the latest developments and quickly gear up to provide the latest information to develop courses that will keep your company ahead of the competition. Online training can even be customized to incorporate your company’s particular procedures and systems.

    Customer service is key. While your technicians’ technical expertise is a major part of the customer service experience, a strong professional attitude and interpersonal skills help your techs to become trusted, welcome brand ambassadors for your company. Online training is an ideal vehicle for developing those essential skills.

    When hiring new technicians, look for specialized training as well as practical experience. Evidence of formal training and certification demonstrates both expertise and initiative, qualities that bode well for a person becoming an excellent employee.

    Offering formal training and continuing education to new hires is also a terrific selling point for attracting potential superstar technicians — and for keeping your current technical staff happy, productive, and loyal. Providing continuing education with the opportunity for certification lets prospective and seasoned employees know you care about them and their future in the industry, and letting your customers know your technicians are certified gives them an extra level of confidence in your company’s services.

    Whichever your goal — building your business and its reputation or building a staff of expert repair technicians — employee training is a commonsense, economical way to achieve both.

     

    7 Easy Steps for Signing up your Techs at the Master Samurai Tech Academy

    Posted on February 24, 2015 by - Academy Talk, Business Talk

    7 seven birthday anniversary celebrationWhen enrolling technicians in an MST Academy appliance repair training course, most business owners will do the registration/enrollment process themselves so that they will have the username and password for each tech, and can therefore log in as desired to check on a tech’s progress. Here’s how to do that:

    1. Make sure you are NOT logged in (check the upper right hand corner of the site).

    2. Go to the Enroll page.

    3. Select the course or bundle you want from the pull-down menu box.

    4. Now enter your coupon code, if you have one.

    5. Create your tech’s profile - First and Last name, email address, username, password. (See notes below.)

    6. Click "Add Billing Method" at the bottom of the Billing Method section of the enrollment form and enter your credit card information.

    7. Click the red "Submit Form" button.

    That’s it! The tech is ready to log in and start his Journey of Total Appliance Enlightenment! If you have more techs to enroll, simply go back to Step 1.

    Notes -

    1. Once you create a profile, the username cannot be changed. All of the other items can be changed, if needed.

    2. Each email address must be unique, in other words, one per student.

    3. If the tech’s email address has already been registered at the site (for example, to take the Sample Course), then you can’t do a new registration with that email. You can either use his existing registration (get his username and password, log in to the site with them, then enroll in a course) or contact us and we can delete his old account and you can start fresh.

    4. If a tech has a company email address, then some business owners set their email client to forward messages from the Academy to them so they will see the progress notifications. (Emails are automatically sent out when a tech completes a lesson and successfully passes a quiz.)

    5. Taking our courses is a very personalized experience for each student, so each technician needs his or her own enrollment in each course. For online training to be effective, students need to work at their own pace and be encouraged to repeat lessons and videos as needed. The goal is mastery of the material, after all! And each tech comes to their training with their own unique mix of strengths, weaknesses, and experience.

    If you have any questions at all, please contact us!

    How Much Does Appliance Tech Training Cost?

    Posted on January 28, 2015 by - Business Talk, Career Talk

    Costs and Benefits of Appliance Tech TrainingMany of you may be asking yourselves: how much does training cost? Well the truth is good training doesn’t cost anything because it pays for itself. Whatever money you spend on the training that you need to become a good tech you’ll quickly earn back when you're out in the field kicking appliance butt.

    In fact, the better question to ask is: how much does it cost you not to get training? Profitablity and customer satisfaction rely on a high first call complete (FCC) rate. A high FCC rate comes primarily from successful pre-diagnostic work and sharp troubleshooting skills, which happen to be two key areas of instruction in the Fundamentals of Appliance Repair training course.

     

    If you are either a novice or a working tech without a thorough background in electricity, schematics, and modern motor/circuit board configurations, then it is imperative for your bottom line that you divert some of your budget away from advertising and towards training. There’s no sense getting a bunch of calls if you can’t fix most of them on the first trip.

    If you've been working as an appliance tech for awhile and still have a low FCC (below 80%), then you should definitely invest in some training.

    After you’ve completed your training in appliance repair, then you can kick up the spending on advertising with confidence. You can also tout your new certification!

    Make the right choice, get the training you need to succeed. Or, as we say at the Samurai Tech Academy, "Learn More. Earn More!"

    If you’d like to get more of a look and feel for how the courses work and receive a discount coupon, please try out our FREE Sample Course!