I’ve developed quite an affinity for sushi as of late. I don’t know what it is, whether it’s the freshness of the ingredients, the crunch of the tempura, or the sticky rice. I love sushi so much that whenever my wife and I are headed for dinner, the first suggestion in my brain is sushi.

My appetite for the Japanese rolls may be strong, but my taste in sushi varieties can swiftly change from day to day. One day may be a pedestrian California Roll while the next is a Spider Roll. Nearly every sushi dinner will include a favorite, the Totally Crazy Roll (the whole roll is tempura’d and served warm with a spicy sauce – delish!)

What doesn’t change when I go for sushi is the location. I frequent the same location time and time again. I want to be clear about one thing: the restaurant is nothing special. At all. It’s a cinder-block construction building on the corner of a busy street with poor parking. Inside, there’s peeling wallpaper and the melamine on the tables is chipped. The bench seats are saggy and less than comfortable and the lighting is fluorescent, highlighting the unappealing nature of the restaurant.

But I keep coming back, and here’s why:

• The food is delicious. Naturally, that’s the main reason you go to a restaurant repeatedly, right? The seafood is always fresh, the rice is perfectly cooked, they have darling little appetizers, and the typical green tea is hot and soothing, especially on my over-full stomach.

That’s not the main reason I keep coming back, though. I’m willing to bet that there are dozens of sushi restaurants within a 10-mile radius serving sushi just as good as my restaurant, or maybe even better. The food is excellent at Magic Sushi 2, but I can’t say it wouldn’t be tastier elsewhere.

• The service is fast and friendly. I mean extremely fast. The sushi flies out of that tiny kitchen faster than you could imagine possible and it’s fresh without fail. Your cup is always full of ice water and your tea is refilled without asking. Even in their peak times, like all-you-can-eat lunch and dinner hours, you’re attentively served even while your sushi is being made. Although your wait time for lunch may be a few minutes longer, it doesn’t seem like it because the waitress is always there making sure you’re looked after.

That’s still not the full reason I keep coming back. It’s definitely a reason they are a favorite, but again, there’s probably a handful of sushi restaurants near me that have customer service nailed to the same level or better.

• I’m rewarded for returning. My little sushi haven, Magic Sushi 2, has a loyalty program! Whenever I reward myself with a sushi meal, the double down and reward me as well. It can be a free appetizer, a free drink, or a free roll, but I always receive a reward after dining at my favorite sushi spot.

This ties in with the main reason I keep coming back, but it’s not the be-all, end-all. You see, I get a text message that thanks me for coming in, and that same text message lets me know what my reward is for my next visit. It even gives me an expiry date so I know when I need to return by (although I know from past experience the expiry date is flexible.)

• They ask me to come back. It’s true. The reason I come back to the same sushi restaurant is because they ask me to. I receive follow-up text messages from Magic Sushi 2 frequently so they are always at the front of my mind. They remind me that a reward is waiting for me whenever I end up coming back. If they’re running a special or promotion, I know about it in a brief text message. And I return because they tell me they miss me.

You may be wondering what this has to do with your Fixed Ops business, but it has everything to do with it. Literally, it’s exactly what your service department needs to be doing to get your customers to come back.

As I see it, the problem with customer retention in service departments nationwide has everything to do with engaging your customer. If a simple, run-down sushi restaurant can absolutely nail customer retention simply by engaging customers in a way they want to be engaged, you can too.

Text messages are so simple. Apps are easy to use. Virtually everyone has a smartphone, so use the technology to engage your customers as non-intrusively as possible. Receiving a reminder from the car dealership that my car is due for an oil change would be amazing. Having an app notify me or receiving a text message about my services due wouldn’t interrupt my day and would be helpful to make sure my vehicle received its proper maintenance.

Emails are easy to ignore and direct mail is expensive. Use the technology that every one of your customers uses from day to day to be in contact, reminding them who you are and asking them to come back.

They’ll come back, but only if you’ve mastered the other three points.

• You need to offer an excellent product, one worth coming back for. The parts, maintenance, and repairs that you offer have to be spot-on for your request for repeat business to be acknowledged.
• Your customer service has to be a focal point. Customers won’t come back for excellent repairs if they’re treated poorly. Greet your customers quickly on their arrival, keep them informed during their visit, and always treat them like they’re the only one in the room when you talk to them.
• You don’t have to offer a rewards program, but you’ll have greater success if you do. Offer a low-cost bonus or benefit for repeat business, or a Starbucks-like star program for money off repairs or a free oil change. It can increase your loyalty as it ends up being a game to some people, trying to achieve the next level of service. Offer double points promotions or what have you.

And ask your customers to come back. It’s the shop that asks for repeat business that gets the repeat business.

Now I think it’s time for sushi…