Marketing your shop can take many forms. Whether you send customers postcards, participate in welcome mail packages, have a Web site or just try to educate your clients, you’re marketing your shop constantly.
Adding to your marketing plan can boost your bottom line without adding numbers to your budget. While it could sound like a double standard, even your community service can serve as a marketing tool, as can simple conversations with customers. By putting some time and thought into your shop’s offerings and employees’ capabilities, new pieces for your strategy will develop faster than you might think.
Taking a look at how some of the Top Shops handle their marketing, we can build an ultimate plan of navigating your customer base and drawing in new clients.
Spreading Your Message Worldwide
Each Top Shop has a Web site, and your shop probably does as well. But do you utilize it to the best of its ability? This goes beyond just having it listed on business cards, repair slip copies and receipts. Drive your current customers to the site; it’s free to do so.
When your service advisors are talking with clients, have them collect their e-mail addresses. Some people might be hesitant to hand over that information for fear of getting too much unsolicited e-mail. But simply laying out your plan when collecting the addresses can set these fears at ease.
Explain that your shop sends e-mails once a month with service information and specials available only through the Web site. Feel like your customers could handle more? Then make it twice a month or even weekly. But the Web-only specials are key. If your shop promotes specials like this and already has a Web site, it won’t cost much – if anything – to add a printable coupon for services you already plan on offering.
Al Duebber, owner of Duebber’s Automotive in Cincinnati, uses reminder e-mails as a marketing tool. In 2006, the shop began allowing MechanicNet to tap into its Mitchell 1 database for this information.
“While the majority of our MechanicNet reminders are still sent through the mail, our e-mail reminder program is quickly growing,” he says. “Our average response rate that is generated through this program is 17 percent — more than five times the national average direct mailers receive, according to direct mail marketing industry experts.”
Another free alternative is Facebook. Frantz Automotive in Cary, N.C., and Terry Wynter Auto Service Center in Fort Myers, Fla., both have implemented the social networking site into their marketing plans. While Terry Wynter Auto co-owner Kay Wynter doesn’t expect to gain much from its fan page, it is another way to stay in touch with customers.
It’s also a good way to stay in the mindset of younger generations and your future customers. If they know their parents bring their vehicles to your shop and can be your “fan” in a social network setting, they will be more apt to bring you their business when they get behind the wheel.
An Alternative Education
Tom Gyder, president of Wilhelm Automotive in Peoria, Ariz., says his five-location company has found that traditional marketing doesn’t work for his business. Instead, Wilhelm's concept of marketing is to educate the customer.
“Educate them about what we’re doing in the community, educate them about their car, educate them about our pricing philosophy,” he says. “That’s a lot of what we do as marketing. It’s like you know you want to come see us because we know what we’re doing, we’re constantly reinforcing what we’re doing, we’re giving back to the community and it’s a win-win for everybody.”
You’re probably already sponsoring youth athletic teams, so your name is out there. If you or your employees give their time to helping these teams, your faces will be out in the community, too. And really, aren't you the best marketing tool you have?
In addition to team sponsorships, promoting charitable events around your area within your shop is an easy marketing opportunity. And volunteering is even better, especially if you make it a team event as a workplace and wear clothing promoting your business. Even just small logos on hats can make you noticeable out in the community.
Another free option is the follow-up phone call. Menke’s Automotive in Newburgh, Ind., is a big believer in this. Co-owner Barb Menke calls each customer 10 days after his or her visit to find out if their vehicle repairs are working properly and if they are happy with the service they received.
“Our customers love the calls because they know we really care,” says owner Vernie Menke. “After calling all customers, Barb does a presentation to our team with the results and some of the quotes from customers. It’s important for our techs to know how the customers feel about the way they are treated and the repairs are handled. It gives them a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction in a job well done.”
More importantly, your customers know you care about their experiences, a marketing value you can’t really put a price on, especially if you’re utilizing current office staff.
Reaching the Airwaves
Despite the growing number of abilities for vehicles to play other forms of music media, many drivers still listen to the radio. And you all probably are familiar with the trick of checking to see what station the radio is tuned to when the customer comes to the shop and making a note of it.
But it goes beyond just writing down the station, sponsoring a show or running some ads. Downing Street Garage in Denver, sponsors the local National Public Radio station (the one it found was the most listened to through its informal survey) and promotes the sponsorship in its shop and shuttle.
“We put a little plaque on our counter that says ‘Did you know that we sponsor KCFR National Public Radio’ and we put another laminated plaque on the dashboard of our van trying to get people to say, ‘Hey I listen to your ad,’” says owner Douglass Kirchdorfer.
While the constraints of NPR advertising rules prohibit the shop from doing a “mention this ad” deal, Downing Street gets more value out of it from just hearing people say they heard about the shop from its sponsorship, which included the “Car Talk ” program.
Terry Wynter Auto also hits the talk radio airwaves, but utilizes a local celebrity in its marketing. One of its customers hosts a radio show and agreed to endorse the shop. They’re now reaching a desired demographic of educated, middle-aged drivers with disposable income just by talking with a customer.
That might make you wonder what loyal, satisfied customer in your clientele could help you out.
Hitting Them in The Mailbox
It might not be considered “green” and it might not be the future, but direct marketing still is a big part of many shops’ plans. Hires Automotive in Fort Wayne, Ind., utilizes this route as it is easy to track and measure, says, owner Tom Hire.
Ross Schofield, owner of Marathon Automotive in Traverse City, Mich., started out with a newsletter in the 1980s, switching it to a still-used postcard project in the early 1990s.
“I was looking at the newsletter I was sending out and thinking, boy, this is a lot of reading. I don't want to do all this reading. So I switched it over to a postcard format,” he says. “I would send out these 6-by-11 postcards. And it’s just so much more accessible for customers. Postcards you don’t have to open, you don’t have to deal with. You can look at one side, flip it over and look at the other side. It takes probably about five seconds and people have a really good idea of what’s going on.”
He sends out smaller, 4-by-6 postcards in early January advertising a special on preventive maintenance checks. Timing when he sends these is key; he wants to make sure all Christmas décor and leftovers are put away and gone so the card isn’t thrown out with that stuff.
An alternative to direct mail are yard signs you can put around your shop. Menke’s Automotive posts signs along its road promoting services it offers. “As elementary as it sounds, you cannot believe the business we get from these signs," Menke says. "We hear a lot of different responses like, ‘I didn’t know you did that here,’ or, ‘Your signs reminded me I need an oil change.’”
Plus, these signs often are not expensive to have printed. You probably could get information on the best and least expensive from local politicians.
No matter what ideas you implement into your plan, marketing doesn’t have to be expensive, and sometimes the simpler the approach, the better.
