Marketing Secrets Every Auto Shop Owner Needs to Know!
When business is slow, and you feel the crunch, your first reaction may be to cut back on spending. While that may be the case within certain areas of your budget, don’t mistake cutting the engine that drives your marketing. Danny Sanchez, the former Autoshop Solutions CEO, has been in the automotive aftermarket for 35 years and took his company to the Inc. Fast 5000 three years in a row. Danny says, “When times are good you should advertise. When times are bad you must advertise.
What Does a Million Dollar Shop Do?
They adapt to new marketing methodologies. Marketing in the automotive industry has changed in the last 20 years, but make sure you adjust your marketing strategy to keep up with the adaptations.
They went mobile (long ago). In 2015, Google began to penalize companies that weren’t mobile-friendly. Close to 60 percent of people access the internet using a mobile device versus their desktop. Many businesses use their pay-per-click (PPC) advertising to drive new customer acquisition.
They don’t make mistakes with PPC, and when they do, they don’t give up. Successful marketing campaigns give Google large budgets or put Google Ad accounts to “set it and forget it.” They also don’t put their teenagers in charge because they know the internet or choose not to use the best tools for marketing their business. Don’t give up your marketplace advantage.
They prioritize new customer acquisition.
Marketing dollars should be at the top of the list along with rent and payroll, not the bottom of the list with the “wants” in your business.
They monitor the results. Make it a habit to record inbound calls from your website and measure click volume and quality clicks. Talk to your marketing provider, and make sure you know how to get more data.
They widen their marketing bandwidth. Just like an engine, all the cylinders have to be firing to generate maximum power. In digital marketing that means:
- Website
- Content
- Blogs
- Google My Business
- Reviews
- Social Media
- Name, Address, and Phone (NAP)
- Paid Search
There are many reasons to advertise when the competition doesn’t. The online “noise level” in the automotive industry drops when competitors cut back. Companies project stability when advertising during a downturn, but when there are advertising cuts, the momentum of consumer awareness is lost. Maximize your marketing efforts even in bad times. Keep customers coming, and don’t lose the momentum!
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