As I travel all over North America, I am always being asked if I have any "menus". Naturally I do, in fact, I have a great collection of them as I too am always looking for new ideas on how to effectively market a service department. The difference is that many service managers are looking for THE Menu, that one and only menu that will resolve all of their maintenance, accessory and parts woes and ensure future business.

There is no such Menu, there are just many examples of how Service Departments endeavor to build value in their operations. Certainly there are some that are good, others that are not - below are a few elements of an effective menu for your customers.

1. Keep it simple, avoid the "Add for" scenario's, such as ADD FOR Fuel filter on model X, with Engine Y - it becomes too confusing for customers.
2. Avoid the "fluff" in an effort to fill the page - customers understand that all of the Inspects and Checks are no charge everywhere anyway.
3. Include prices - when you look at a menu in a restaurant without prices, what do you think?
4. Make it accessible - Don't spend so much on printing the most elaborate full color menu that you don't give them out because they are so expensive - a customer should receive one every time they step in your service department.

Remember the most effective menu ever created is the one that the service advisors understand and can explain to customers. If the Advisors can't understand it, they'll never present it, and the presentation is the beginning of your success.