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Tips for Buying the Most Appropriate Car Insurance. Advice From the Experts!

The following article was written for our blog by Brad Brennan, auto repair industry expert, blog author and founder of BKListings.com, 02/13/2012 All rights reserved. Brad is also author of the BK Listings Blog.

Finding the right car insurance is an exercise in patience. There are multiple factors you have to consider when searching. If you’re anything like my girlfriend you will be trying to weigh all factors and options before picking your perfect policy. If you’re anything like me you’ll spend about 20 minutes Googling and then wing it. If you’re reading this article I’m assuming you’re more like my lovely counterpart. What’s to follow are pointers and information to help you in the process of finding that perfect policy.

First, decide what coverage is necessary for your situation. As we have discussed in previous articles you have to weigh really only three factors – what is your budget, what is your probability of your vehicle being damaged, and how much peace of mind are you comfortable paying for. The first factor is really the most important of the three because if you’d don’t have the money for any more than PLPD then it doesn’t really matter if you have a high chance of incurring damage to your vehicle or if you are a worry wart. The second factor may seem arbitrary but you could put together a rough estimate by Googling crime rates in your area. The third factor is much more subjective – how covered do you want to feel and how much are you willing to value the time you would be wasting with hassles in the future. If you have the money and are living in an area with high accident or vandalism rates then consider looking for more complete coverage.

Next, consider what other insurance policies you have or need and look into bundling them. A common example is to bundle car, home, and life insurances. Bundling provides many advantages when you’re attempting to drive premiums and deductibles lower since the insurance companies have a broader base to take profits from you and therefore a reduced need to maximize profits on any one policy.

The most appropriate insurance is essentially one that fits your budget and caters to your needs. This ideal insurance policy takes into account the value of your car and protects it from the inside out. The most appropriate policy should give you peace of mind without costing your arm. In the end, insurance policy preferences are dependent upon your unique situation.

If you’re really into doing homework you can take this search one step further. Once you’ve decided on a few policy choices take the terms from each insurance company and drop it off at an agent of a different insurance company. If there are holes in the contract or if you can get a better deal then your best chance of figuring it out is to let competing companies find it for you. Or you can just Google for 20 minutes. Best of luck my friend.

Thanks again Brad for a well written piece! For those of you who need more information, check out Brad's blog, the BKListings Blog or email him directly bradleybrennan1@gmail.com . You can also leave your comments here and all questions and comments pertaining to the above article will be forwarded to Brad Brennan. Don't forget to check out Brad's site, www.BKListings.com, designed to help consumers find the right shop for them and assist in helping shop owners reach the consumer base they are looking for! See the original article at "Finding the Right Shop is Easier Than You Think!"

Thanks for stopping by! As always, we look forward to listening to our reader stories and suggestions! Let us know what you're looking for and we'll do our best to accomodate!

Dee Blackman
LDJ Auto Body & Mechanical
ldjautobody@yahoo.com

More about → Tips for Buying the Most Appropriate Car Insurance. Advice From the Experts!

Tips for Buying the Most Appropriate Car Insurance. Advice From the Experts!

The following article was written for our blog by Brad Brennan, auto repair industry expert, blog author and founder of BKListings.com, 02/13/2012 All rights reserved.  Brad is also author of the BK Listings Blog.

 

Finding the right car insurance is an exercise in patience.  There are multiple factors you have to consider when searching.  If you’re anything like my girlfriend you will be trying to weigh all factors and options before picking your perfect policy.  If you’re anything like me you’ll spend about 20 minutes Googling and then wing it.  If you’re reading this article I’m assuming you’re more like my lovely counterpart.  What’s to follow are pointers and information to help you in the process of finding that perfect policy.

First, decide what coverage is necessary for your situation.  As we have discussed in previous articles you have to weigh really only three factors – what is your budget, what is your probability of your vehicle being damaged, and how much peace of mind are you comfortable paying for.  The first factor is really the most important of the three because if you’d don’t have the money for any more than PLPD then it doesn’t really matter if you have a high chance of incurring damage to your vehicle or if you are a worry wart.  The second factor may seem arbitrary but you could put together a rough estimate by Googling crime rates in your area.  The third factor is much more subjective – how covered do you want to feel and how much are you willing to value the time you would be wasting with hassles in the future.  If you have the money and are living in an area with high accident or vandalism rates then consider looking for more complete coverage.

Next, consider what other insurance policies you have or need and look into bundling them.  A common example is to bundle car, home, and life insurances.  Bundling provides many advantages when you’re attempting to drive premiums and deductibles lower since the insurance companies have a broader base to take profits from you and therefore a reduced need to maximize profits on any one policy.

The most appropriate insurance is essentially one that fits your budget and caters to your needs. This ideal insurance policy takes into account the value of your car and protects it from the inside out. The most appropriate policy should give you peace of mind without costing your arm.  In the end, insurance policy preferences are dependent upon your unique situation. 

If you’re really into doing homework you can take this search one step further.  Once you’ve decided on a few policy choices take the terms from each insurance company and drop it off at an agent of a different insurance company.  If there are holes in the contract or if you can get a better deal then your best chance of figuring it out is to let competing companies find it for you.  Or you can just Google for 20 minutes.  Best of luck my friend.

Thanks again Brad for a well written piece!  For those of you who need more information, check out Brad's blog, the BKListings Blog or email him directly bradleybrennan1@gmail.com   .  You can also leave your comments here and all questions and comments pertaining to the above article will be forwarded to Brad Brennan.  Don't forget to check out Brad's site, www.BKListings.com, designed to help consumers find the right shop for them and assist in helping shop owners reach the consumer base they are looking for!  See the original article at "Finding the Right Shop is Easier Than You Think!"

Thanks for stopping by!  As always, we look forward to listening to our reader stories and suggestions!  Let us know what you're looking for and we'll do our best to accomodate!

Dee Blackman
LDJ Auto Body & Mechanical
ldjautobody@yahoo.com

More about → Tips for Buying the Most Appropriate Car Insurance. Advice From the Experts!

Finding the RIGHT Shop is Easier Than You Think! The Answer for Shop Owner's and Consumers Alike!

Here at LDJ, we're always looking for new and exciting things to talk about and provide our readers with great new and helpful ideas in the auto repair industry.  In our news blog, "LDJ Auto Body's Car, Truck and Motorcycle News", back in November, we ran an article called "Good Shop, Bad Shop! How Do You Tell The Difference!" Those of you who commented on that article will find this next one extremely interesting!  A new site called BKListings.com makes finding the perfect shop a breeze for consumers and a real time and money saver for shop owners! We know this because we are also a member!  Our guest writer today is Brad Brennan, an expert in the auto repair industry, having been involved in the business for over 20 years.  Brad is the founder of BKListings.com, the "Angie's List", if you will, of the auto repair industry and author of The BKListings Blog.  Brad was kind enough to prepare this letter specifically for us, explaining all there is to know about BKListings.com. 

The following article was written for our blog by Brad Brennan, auto repair industry expert, blog author and founder of BKListings.com, 02/13/2012 All rights reserved.

A letter to shop owners

My name is Brad Brennan and I am the founder of BKListings.com.  I started the website two years ago with the mission of bringing shops and customers together.  I come from a family of mechanics and collision experts and have been involved in the business myself for over twenty years.  What we do at our site is intersect the shop and the customer – we help the customers find quality shops in their area and we help the most active shops pull in the most customers from the online community as possible.  

Our premise is simple and it has two parts.  First is that customers are now opting to do their homework online.  Compared to how it was done in the past, a significant portion of customers now go to sites like Google, Yelp, and Yellow Pages to pull in as much information as they can before making the decision on which shop to go to.  Second is that most shops do not have the time, resources, or insight to drive the online community purposefully to their business.

You may disagree with that premise for a couple of different reasons.  First could be that a large majority of your customers are referred either through a direct repair program, traditional media, or word of mouth.  Consider though that over the last ten years time spent online has doubled from 7 hours a week to 14.  Consider also the affect smart phones (like the iPhone or Androids) and tablets (like the iPad or Kindle Fire) will have on the way people do their research when looking for repairs.  With the technology at our fingertips, it becomes more appealing for customers to Google “collision shops” and choose the shop with the highest rating.  While the majority of your customers may be coming through traditional media, that doesn’t mean you’re pulling in all the customers you potentially can, and as time goes on the number of customers coming from the internet will surely increase.  By not making your internet presence known may prove detrimental to your shop long term. 

Second, you may say that your shop already has a website.  But is your site SEO optimized?  Do you know what SEO is?  SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization, and is the reason why certain websites show up higher on Google than others.  Currently I’m attacking SEO hard, and it’s expensive.  For you to be doing the same means you’re spending much more than you have to.  As you may already know, a basic website build can run more than $10,000, and that doesn’t include the back end work of driving people to your site consistently through SEO.  Wide Open West is running an SEO special for $600 a month.  A spot on Yellow Pages will cost you about $200.  We provide the content of a website and the SEO of Wide Open West for a fraction of the cost.

Why BK

BK has four distinct advantages over the competition.  We are cheap, we are effective, we are specialized, and we work hard for you. 

In terms of cost, an advanced spot on our website, which includes priority placement of your listing at the top of the search results for listings within 25 miles of your zip code and a detailed profile, typically goes for $49/month.  However, sign up using the code LDJAuto and receive a discount bringing the price down to $29/month.  The code won’t expire until next January so take your time checking out our site before making the decision. 

In terms of how effective we are, currently I have a total of 5 backlinkers and 3 bloggers, and I’m looking to grow those numbers aggressively.  What backlilnkers do is strategically place links to the site over the web to increase our presence, and I’ve got thousands of links being created every month.  What bloggers do is to add content to the site, which brings more customers in to find your listing.  These are things that drive SEO.  These are the processes we put our time and resources into so you don’t have to.

In terms of specialization, we are purely automotive.  What differentiates us from Google and Yellow Pages is that our profiles are specific to the industry you are in.  If you are a collision shop you will be able to list collision-specific information like turnaround times, paint lines, extra services like detailing and loaner cars, and more.  If you are a mechanical repair shop, you will be able to fill out your mechanic related information.  What we did was create a simple to fill out template for you to leverage when creating your profile, and the template changes depending on the services you provide.  However, there is also room to add extra information you feel is important.

Finally, we work our asses off, just like you do.  We’re constantly working to make the site better.  Over the next few months we will be rolling out our BKBuySell section, which is a place for individuals, shops, and dealerships to list cars for sale.  Signing up for an advanced BKListings profile will mean that you list cars you have for sale for free once we get the site up.  Other features we’ve added in the past that we think are useful include the Request An Estimate section on the home page.  With this the customers can submit details about his/her job and shops with advanced profiles in that area can pull the customer’s submitted information and bid on the job, proactively driving business to your shop.

Wrapping Up

There’s a great chance your shop already has a basic listing on BK Listings (one including name, address, and phone number).  All you have to do to confirm this is to go to bklistings.com, type in your zip code under the type of service you provide (collision, mechanical, etc), and make sure we have you on there.  Basic listings are free so if you don’t see your shop please tell us so at admin@bklistings.com  or you can email me directly at bradleybrennan1@gmail.com and I’ll add your shop asap. 

We really appreciate LDJ allowing us to guest-post on their blog.  It’s been a wonderful opportunity to help each other expand our reach into education for both customers and shop owners.  I hope in the near future I have the honor of LDJ guest-posting to my blog at The BKListing Blog.

Unlike the seasoned professionals at LDJ Auto News, BK Listings is at the beginning of our mission to provide a medium for both shops and customers to be able to find useful and beneficial information.  It’s a mission we will not give up on, a mission we will work incredibly hard to see through.  I truly hope you’re there with us when we do.

Until then, take care.

Sincerely,

Brad Brennan

A huge thank you to Brad for spending some time with us this morning!  If you have any questions or comments regarding this article, please feel free to comment here.  All questions and comments pertaining to BK Listings will be forwarded directly to Brad Brennan.  Also, fee free to contact Brad Brennan directly at the links listed in the above article.  You can reach me personally at ldjautobody@yahoo.com.  You can see other articles by Brad in our sister site, LDJ Auto Body's Car, Truck, and Motorcycle News!   

More about → Finding the RIGHT Shop is Easier Than You Think! The Answer for Shop Owner's and Consumers Alike!

FINDING THE RIGHT SHOP IS EASIER THAT YOU THINK...The Answer for Shop Owners' and Consumers Alike!

Here at LDJ, we're always looking for new and exciting things to talk about and provide our readers with great new and helpful ideas in the auto repair industry. In our news blog, "LDJ Auto Body's Car, Truck and Motorcycle News", back in November, we ran an article called "Good Shop, Bad Shop! How Do You Tell The Difference!" Those of you who commented on that article will find this next one extremely interesting! A new site called BKListings.com makes finding the perfect shop a breeze for consumers and a real time and money saver for shop owners! We know this because we are also a member! Our guest writer today is Brad Brennan, an expert in the auto repair industry, having been involved in the business for over 20 years. Brad is the founder of BKListings.com, the "Angie's List", if you will, of the auto repair industry and author of http://www.bklistings.com/Bklisting_Blog. Brad was kind enough to prepare this letter specifically for us, explaining all there is to know about BKListings.com.

The following article was written for our blog by Brad Brennan, auto repair industry expert, blog author and founder of BKListings.com, 02/13/2012 All rights reserved.

A letter to shop owners

My name is Brad Brennan and I am the founder of BKListings.com. I started the website two years ago with the mission of bringing shops and customers together. I come from a family of mechanics and collision experts and have been involved in the business myself for over twenty years. What we do at our site is intersect the shop and the customer – we help the customers find quality shops in their area and we help the most active shops pull in the most customers from the online community as possible.

Our premise is simple and it has two parts. First is that customers are now opting to do their homework online. Compared to how it was done in the past, a significant portion of customers now go to sites like Google, Yelp, and Yellow Pages to pull in as much information as they can before making the decision on which shop to go to. Second is that most shops do not have the time, resources, or insight to drive the online community purposefully to their business.

You may disagree with that premise for a couple of different reasons. First could be that a large majority of your customers are referred either through a direct repair program, traditional media, or word of mouth. Consider though that over the last ten years time spent online has doubled from 7 hours a week to 14. Consider also the affect smart phones (like the iPhone or Androids) and tablets (like the iPad or Kindle Fire) will have on the way people do their research when looking for repairs. With the technology at our fingertips, it becomes more appealing for customers to Google“collision shops” and choose the shop with the highest rating. While the majority of your customers may be coming through traditional media, that doesn’t mean you’re pulling in all the customers you potentially can, and as time goes on the number of customers coming from the internet will surely increase. By not making your internet presence known may prove detrimental to your shop long term.

Second, you may say that your shop already has a website. But is your site SEO optimized? Do you know what SEO is? SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization, and is the reason why certain websites show up higher on Google than others. Currently I’m attacking SEO hard, and it’s expensive. For you to be doing the same means you’re spending much more than you have to. As you may already know, a basic website build can run more than $10,000, and that doesn’t include the back end work of driving people to your site consistently through SEO. Wide Open West is running an SEO special for $600 a month. A spot on Yellow Pages will cost you about $200. We provide the content of a website and the SEO of Wide Open West for a fraction of the cost.

Why BK

BK has four distinct advantages over the competition. We are cheap, we are effective, we are specialized, and we work hard for you.

In terms of cost, an advanced spot on our website, which includes priority placement of your listing at the top of the search results for listings within 25 miles of your zip code and a detailed profile, typically goes for $49/month. However, sign up using the code LDJAuto and receive a discount bringing the price down to $29/month. The code won’t expire until next January so take your time checking out our site before making the decision.

In terms of how effective we are, currently I have a total of 5 backlinkers and 3 bloggers, and I’m looking to grow those numbers aggressively. What backlilnkers do is strategically place links to the site over the web to increase our presence, and I’ve got thousands of links being created every month. What bloggers do is to add content to the site, which brings more customers in to find your listing. These are things that drive SEO. These are the processes we put our time and resources into so you don’t have to.

In terms of specialization, we are purely automotive. What differentiates us from Google and Yellow Pages is that our profiles are specific to the industry you are in. If you are a collision shop you will be able to list collision-specific information like turnaround times, paint lines, extra services like detailing and loaner cars, and more. If you are a mechanical repair shop, you will be able to fill out your mechanic related information. What we did was create a simple to fill out template for you to leverage when creating your profile, and the template changes depending on the services you provide. However, there is also room to add extra information you feel is important.

Finally, we work our asses off, just like you do. We’re constantly working to make the site better. Over the next few months we will be rolling out our BKBuySell section, which is a place for individuals, shops, and dealerships to list cars for sale. Signing up for an advanced BKListings profile will mean that you list cars you have for sale for free once we get the site up. Other features we’ve added in the past that we think are useful include the Request An Estimate section on the home page. With this the customers can submit details about his/her job and shops with advanced profiles in that area can pull the customer’s submitted information and bid on the job, proactively driving business to your shop.

Wrapping Up

There’s a great chance your shop already has a basic listing on BK Listings (one including name, address, and phone number). All you have to do to confirm this is to go to bklistings.com, type in your zip code under the type of service you provide (collision, mechanical, etc), and make sure we have you on there. Basic listings are free so if you don’t see your shop please tell us so at admin@bklistings.com or you can email me directly at bradleybrennan1@gmail.com and I’ll add your shop asap.

We really appreciate LDJ allowing us to guest-post on their blog. It’s been a wonderful opportunity to help each other expand our reach into education for both customers and shop owners. I hope in the near future I have the honor of LDJ guest-posting to my blog at http://www.bklistings.com/Bklisting_Blog/.

Unlike the seasoned professionals at LDJ Auto News, BK Listings is at the beginning of our mission to provide a medium for both shops and customers to be able to find useful and beneficial information. It’s a mission we will not give up on, a mission we will work incredibly hard to see through. I truly hope you’re there with us when we do.

Until then, take care.

Sincerely,

Brad Brennan

More about → FINDING THE RIGHT SHOP IS EASIER THAT YOU THINK...The Answer for Shop Owners' and Consumers Alike!

LDJ AUTO BODY AND CUSTOM SHOP ANNOUNCES THE GRAND OPENING OF OUR NEW MECHANICAL SHOP!

LDJ Auto Body is announcing the grand opening of our new, full service, mechanical shop!

Since 2009, LDJ Auto Body has been the #1 choice for our customers for auto body, collision, and auto paint repair. As most of you know, our new facility, located at 10915 East Bay Road, opened in November and we are happy to announce that our complete, mechanical shop is now open for business!

That's right! In addition to the best auto body and collision repairs and factory and custom paint.....LDJ Auto now offers you the same great service and pricing for all your mechanical needs too!

From maintenance jobs, like oil changes, lubrication and tune-ups, to major mechanical work, including complete engine and transmission change outs, LDJ Auto truly is “your one stop shop” for everything automotive!

Our mechanical technicians are all ASE certified and have over 30 years experience in engine and mechanical maintenance, trouble-shooting, and repair!

We now offer ALL mechanical services, including brake jobs, belt replacement, alternators, starters, radiator service and repair, a/c recharging and repair and much, much, more all at the same, great prices and quality our customers have always relied on.

LDJ Auto Body's new location also offers exhaust repair and replacement, suspension work and full welding services too! We can also fabricate many of those “impossible to find” parts for our restoration customers.

Don't forget, our new location is open weekends to help our customers meet their busy schedules. We know that most vehicle repairs are not planned! Repair work can really throw the wrench into your busy days......so we not only offer weekend appointments, but also early drop-offs and late pick-ups to help in avoiding costly rentals and the inconvenience of “finding a ride” to work!

Our customers are the best! To show our appreciation, LDJ Auto will be offering some great sales and promotions including coupons, mobile applications for scheduling, and loyalty rewards! Register for our newsletter, LDJ Auto Body's Car, Truck and Motorcycle News, today to receive the latest information on how to save big money on all your maintenance and vehicle repair needs. You'll get weekly updates and emails for ALL of our promotions. You can even schedule your appointments on-line!

Stop in and see us today for unbelievable prices on oil changes, brakes, and tune-ups! Get free estimates on ALL YOUR MECHANICAL NEEDS!

Remember, ALL OF OUR WORK IS GUARANTEED! We offer “labor only” estimates! Bring your own parts and save money! New and used parts! And, as always, your vehicle will be DONE ON TIME, EVERY TIME!

LDJ Auto Body and Mechanial, your “one stop shop for everything automotive!

Call and schecule your appointment today at (813) 644-4497.

More about → LDJ AUTO BODY AND CUSTOM SHOP ANNOUNCES THE GRAND OPENING OF OUR NEW MECHANICAL SHOP!