This is one client's story — told in his own words. It's a story we hear more often than you'd think.
Wearing All the Hats
I was running around like a mad man. I was trying to wear all the hats — working on the tools, doing all of the office work, all the admin, quoting jobs. Everything. Looking back now, I don't know how I made anything come to fruition for all those years. It was just absolute chaos, 150% of the time.
BSR Client — Bodyshop OwnerWhen you're just fighting fires all day, you jump from one urgent task to another. It's so inefficient — you never get to the important tasks. Or you do, and it's 9 o'clock at night.
It was to the point where I was almost ready to chuck it in… just because it was ruining me. And in the last three or four months, that's completely turned around.
BSR Client — Bodyshop OwnerThe Mindset Shift
The turning point wasn't just about getting help with estimates. It was about what that help unlocked.
"It takes you out of that whole jumping onto urgent tasks at the drop of a hat — and makes you realise there are actually bigger, more important things you need to work on for the business to grow."
Now I focus on what's important for the business and what the business needs. That's the biggest thing that doing all this has changed — my mindset. I now understand the importance of working on the business, not in it.
BSR Client — Bodyshop OwnerThe Sceptic Who Became a Believer
Like a lot of shop owners, he wasn't immediately sold on the idea of a remote estimator.
When I was first starting, I remember thinking — it's just some dude in another country. How can he estimate as well as me? How the hell is this going to help me solve this problem? But it's absolutely incredible. When you set aside this time at the beginning and say, alright, I'm going to give this a shot, things have to change… you soon realise it puts power back in your hands. I couldn't work without him now.
BSR Client — Bodyshop OwnerTime Back. Family Back.
Prior to starting with BSR, I was leaving the house at 5 or 6am, getting back anywhere between 5pm and 8pm, going 100 mph all day, then working on the computer until 9 or 10 every night. Plus my cash flow wasn't as good as it should have been. I felt myself being short with staff, clients, even my wife.
BSR Client — Bodyshop OwnerNow I work from 7am to 4pm. I usually have an early knock-off on the Friday. I'm spending so much more time at home with my wife and my son. I still go hard most days, but it's different. Very different.
It's not just the time at home, though — it's also the quality of it. I'm not just in a spinning head kind of state. When I'm outside of work, at home with them, I'm actually present. I'm there. I'm focusing on what's going on.
The Numbers Don't Lie
The money side of things is great too. It's nice to actually know what's going on with your money, rather than just seeing dollars come in and dollars go out and wondering where the hell it all went. I now focus on my margins, job cost every job, and I know which ones I'm actually making money on. I'm starting to feel more like a business person.
We've seen our revenue grow from just above break even to a very healthy profit, every month. In the last three or four months, we've been consistently hitting around 15 to 22% net margin on sales. My business has never done that in the past. It just shows that the things we're bringing in, the work we're targeting — it's all working for us as a business and a family. All because we gave it a shot and trusted the processes that BSR put in.
Sound familiar? It doesn't have to stay that way.
If you're still wearing all the hats, still fighting fires, still working until 10pm — talk to the BSR team. The first step is simpler than you think.
Get in Touch