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Motyka Johnson

Posts by Motyka Johnson:

OSHA Top 10 Citations for Dealerships and Service Centers in 2012

Tuesday, November 27th, 2012

Managers need fast, straightforward answers to their compliance concerns. To meet this need, KPA researched the Top 10 OSHA Citations for Dealerships and Service Centers by combining OSHA’s annual Most Frequently Cited Regulations for Dealerships, and OSHA’s annual Most Frequently Cited Regulations for Repair Shops. We pin-pointed specific machinery and processes at facilities that were frequently cited, and developed the Top 10 OSHA Citations for Dealerships and Service Centers.
The List
1. Hazard Communication
2. Respiratory Protection
3. Unguarded Machinery (Parts Grinder)
4. Electrical Safety Requirements
5. Powered Industrial Trucks
6. Exit Routes and Emergency Action Plans
7. Portable Fire Extinguishers
8. Spray Finishing Using Flammable Liquids (especially at collision centers)
9. General Duty Clause
10. Improperly Maintained Emergency Eyewash Stations

Learn More
KPA will host a free educational webinar on November 29th about OSHA’s Top 10 Most Cited Violations by Dealers. Register now at http://www.dealerwebinars.com/top10 to attend or to receive a link to the recorded webinar.

Tags: osha top 10
Posted in Citations, OSHA | Leave a Comment »

Environmental Safety and Your Oil Water Separator

Wednesday, November 21st, 2012

Oil/water separators used by automotive repair or fleet maintenance businesses to pre-treat waste water usually rely on flow-through, gravity fed systems. Inside the separator, oil gets trapped in a layer over the top of the waste water. As dirt, sand and sweepings fall out of the waste water stream, they form a layer of thick sludge along the bottom of the separator. Once these layers reach sufficient amounts, they need to be removed by skimmers, pumps, or other methods.

Generally, separators should be monitored on a routine schedule and collected oil should be removed as appropriate, so that it operates properly. The required oil/water separator capacity should always be available (i.e., oil should not continually accumulate in the separator over a period of time that would compromise required storage capacity if an oil release were to occur within the drainage area).

Want to know more about OWS compliance? Checkout these resources:

Best Environmental Practices for Auto Repair and Fleet Maintenance

EPA Guidance Chapter 5: Oil/Water Separators

Tags: environmental safety, oil water separator, ows
Posted in EPA | Leave a Comment »

Internet Marketing 101: Facebook for Dealerships [video]

Monday, November 19th, 2012

This quick video covers the five basics about facebook:

1. Why your earlier efforts on facebook failed

2. How to build a social media strategy on facebook

3. How to actively engage the facebook community

4. How to really advertise on facebook

5. Build positive word of mouth (pwom).

More resources for using facebook as part of your internet marketing mix:

The biggest Facebook Marketing mistake: Not using Facebook Insights [webinar]

Marketing Alert: Don’t Post the Same Content as Other Dealers

Tags: dealership, Facebook
Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »

Internet Marketing 101: Navigating New Media [video]

Friday, November 16th, 2012

Your internet marketing strategy should work across multiple platforms: Foursquare, Pinterest, Tumblr, and Google+. Your goal is to drive sales for your dealership on social media using geek credibility. Here are some basic internet marketing strategies for widening your sales funnel through engagement and geek credibility in internet communities of early adapters.

Tags: dealership, internet strategy
Posted in Internet Marketing | Leave a Comment »

Internet Marketing 101: Your Website’s SEO [video]

Thursday, November 15th, 2012

How to optimize your dealership’s website for Organic SEO. This instructional video covers the basics:

1. What organic SEO means

2. Basics of ranking for high volume search terms and long tail search term

3. Difference in visitors from different search terms

4. What are back links

5. Use your fixed ops search words

6. Keywords

7. Getting specific about how you want to be found.

Tags: dealership, organic SEO
Posted in Internet Marketing | Leave a Comment »

SPCC Plans Dealerships and Service Centers [video]

Monday, November 12th, 2012

The Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) regulation is a federal regulation that applies to all states. Its purpose is to reduce the discharge of certain petroleum products (oil) into navigable waters. This regulation may apply to you if you have a floor drain in your service area or sewer drain in your parking lot.

This quick video overview gives basic information about what the EPA takes into consideration for determining if your business is required to have an SPCC plan. For more information, check out these resources:

KPA’s Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) Plan service

EPA Finalizes Multiple Changes to the SPCC

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »

3 Ways to YouTube (in 3 Minutes)

Wednesday, November 7th, 2012

The second largest search engine isn’t Bing or Yahoo. It’s YouTube, which of course is owned by Google. That’s why your social media strategy can’t ignore the importance of posting original video content to YouTube. Here are three creative ways to get your dealership’s staff involved, promote customer service, target a demographic, and showcase your inventory on YouTube. Check out this three minute video by Erin Ryan for three helpful tips to improve your dealership’s visibility and reputation on YouTube.

Tags: dealership, video, YouTube
Posted in Internet Marketing | Leave a Comment »

How to Manage Hazardous Waste at Your Dealership

Monday, November 5th, 2012

Hazardous waste regulations vary slightly across the country depending on if your dealership is regulated by a state or federal office of the EPA. However, there are some common hazardous wastes generated by the vehicle service and repair industry that your business is responsible for handling properly and tracking, regardless of your location.

Watch this quick video for tips on how to identify several common hazardous waste streams, how to dispose of them, and your responsibility as an individual when you sign a waste manifest.

Here are few other helpful links about managing hazardous wastes in the automotive industry:

Get Rid of It: Waste Management for Dealerships [Webinar]

Hazardous Waste Cost Recovery Program for Automotive Industry

Dealer Fined for Fluorescent Tube Disposal – Are You Properly Managing Your Universal Wastes?

Sorting game: How Well Can You Clean Out the Service Bay?

Tags: dealership, hazardous waste, waste manifesto
Posted in Environment & Safety, EPA | Leave a Comment »

Internet Marketing 101: How to Use Google Analytics

Wednesday, October 31st, 2012

If you’re not already using Google Analytics as part of your website diagnostics toolkit, you should. Google Analytics is a free, robust solution with custom reporting and advanced segmentation built-in, not to mention the tight integration with Google’s core search and display business. This three minute video walks you through the basics of Google Analytics, a few of it’s pros and cons, and how it can help you understand the performance of your dealership’s website.

Tags: dealership, Google Analytics, Internet Marketing
Posted in Internet Marketing | Leave a Comment »

Truth About Conversion Rates

Friday, October 26th, 2012

First of all, conversion rates are not directly correlated to actual sales. Many websites with tiny conversion rates are actually extremely profitable. Here’s why.

As your website grows in popularity, it attracts more visitors from a wider audience. When this happens, your conversion rate goes down. That’s because a conversion rate is actually a ratio of overall visitors to your site and visitors who performed a specific task; like signing-up for your newsletter or buying something (whatever you have decided to track as a conversion). When you expand the audience, you attract more visitors.

Not everyone is a buyer, but by increasing the shear volume of targeted traffic to your site, it becomes easier for potential converters to find you. Your website increases in overall conversion numbers. When this happens, the conversion rate usually goes down.

Watch this quick video by JD Rucker to get more facts about conversion rates.