If you think you’re too busy running your shop to focus on branding, you might want to think again. Thanks to longer service intervals and better-built cars, your customers don’t have to visit you as often as they did in the past. They also have more choices when it comes to service – from specialty providers to dealerships to chains that seem to have shops on every corner.
There are a lot of advertising and marketing efforts out there that are pushing free services, or services that are so inexpensive that they aren’t representative of the true marketplace. These are often efforts to lure you into other services that cost much more, or monthly fees that add up over time.
Since the first radio commercial hit airwaves more than 90 years ago, large and small businesses alike have often turned to the medium to deliver their messages to consumers. This may lead to the assumption that radio advertising works – after all, longevity speaks for itself, right? – but we all know that the digital, mobile and social age has brought about some major marketing shifts. But have radio commercials gone the way of Yellow Pages or newspaper ads?
OMG! It’s about time there’s an article about Millennials (also known as Generation Y) and how they use the Internet. Millennials were born between 1980 and 2000, and there are more than 79 million of them in the U.S. Got any of them coming into your shop? Of course you do. And here’s a hint … they’re different!
Last year, I described resolutions as promises you make to yourself in hopes of making a positive difference in your life and the lives of others. You know … those promises you usually break before the second week of January! How about breaking that cycle? Let’s revisit some of those resolutions from 2013 and take a look at new resolutions for 2014.
In a society that is increasingly becoming accustomed to instant gratification (you can find just about any information with a quick Google search), it should come as no surprise that the motto at Mark’s Auto Service in Rockford, IL, is, “We fix it all, right here, right now!”
The way customers prefer to communicate is changing, and there are great opportunities for every business owner to reach them more efficiently through E-communications. Email, social media (Facebook/Twitter) and texting are just a few of the electronic communication channels we use that benefit both our customers and our shop.
Ever notice how in upscale neighborhoods, even the fast food restaurants are nicer? Instead of a bright red roof and the famous golden arches, the McDonald’s in ritzy Aspen, CO, for example, boasts a second-floor fireplace and is housed in a sedate red brick building that blends in seamlessly with the surrounding architecture. The fancier digs reflect McDonald’s understanding that its target market in Aspen is far different than its target market in Akron, OH. The same idea holds true in the automotive repair world, but, unfortunately, too many shop owners fail to realistically identify their ideal market or customer.
I am a believer in “guerrilla marketing,” which is a strategy that allows us to compete with the big guys, without going head to head with them. Most of us cannot compete on the same level as a large dealership or national account, and we shouldn’t. It’s actually more important to find out what the competition is doing and do the opposite.