Before SHiFT begins this next part of its journey, it is important to look back on what has been achieved thus far. Who says that reflecting on the past is only something one is supposed to do in January? Come look back on SHiFT’s 2023 year with us.
2023 was a big year for SHiFT. February saw the launch of the SHiFT site, which has grown in its digital authority each month since. The website’s domain rating has also seen incredible improvement over the last year; we hope to continue to work with our recycling partners to help them improve the searchability of their own sites.
New visitors are coming in from organic search, as well as paid campaigns, and we find this combination of approaches to be incredibly effective.
In June the team took a trip to Wareham, Massachusetts where we filmed the SHiFT video in collaboration with Robertson’s Auto Salvage. It was a fun project that took us out of our normal routines and into an actual (!!!) recycling yard. Not to mention, the video itself came out great (we’re biased) and has been an awesome resource for explaining SHiFT quickly and effectively.
In October our team attended and thoroughly enjoyed the 80th annual ARA National Convention and Expo. While there, our CEO, Joseph Hearn, gave a presentation on SHiFT and how it will benefit the automotive recycling industry.
The conference allowed us to meet many of our recycling partners and expanded upon existing connections. We had a lot of productive conversations around the benefit of offering SHiFT services directly through individual yards’ websites. Since the conference, many recyclers have reached out to do exactly this.
The second half of the year saw a great increase in the number of vehicles entered into the program. Our partnership with the National Auto Body Council’s Fire Rescue Emergency Extrication, or rather, F.R.E.E., program is to thank for many of these vehicles. The NABC works with insurance companies to provide emergency responders with vehicles to use to facilitate teaching and skill-building.
This partnership continues to grow as next month we will be hosting an event at our offices in Middletown, Rhode Island where local fire and rescue officers will be able to practice new techniques on four different donated vehicles. The vehicles will then go through the SHiFT program and be permanently retired from roadways.
Operationally, we are thrilled by our ability to offer SHiFT Vehicle Retirement services so widely and smoothly. We have received helpful feedback from recyclers who have processed their first SHiFT vehicles and continue to improve our processes to support recyclers in meeting the conditions of the SHiFT program.
For recyclers that have yet to recycle their first SHiFT vehicle, remember that once you accept a SHiFT vehicle you should keep an eye on your inbox for an email from <shift-esign@shift4tomorrow.org> where you will find the affidavit required to officially execute a SHiFT vehicle retirement. Successful completion of these affidavits are essential to maintaining the integrity of this program.
Growing SHiFT’s media coverage was something we really focused on this year.
Some of the major publications we were featured in include Forbes Advisor, AutoWeek, and Recycling Today. These features were key to improving our digital presence. We have more media in the works for 2024 and will continue to grow SHiFT’s presence on a national level.
In SHiFT’s first operational year, the program recycled vehicles across 8 different states!
186.5 tons of CO2 were avoided for each year these vehicles are off the road. To put that in perspective, the average American’s diet emits 2 tons of CO2/year. A typical passenger vehicle in the U.S. emits approximately 4.5 tons of CO2/year. This impact is significant and SHiFT is only just getting started.
Thank you for being a part of this program. SHiFT simply could not exist without you. With your support, SHiFT can continue to help U.S. recyclers get more inventory and gain customers from new acquisition channels.
