Marketing your Auto Detailing Business - Part I
Just like any type of business you need to have a sound marketing plan. Many times small businesses do not have a plan in place and basically try to "wing it." Some will have some success, but most will fail.
Formulating a marketing plan and executing it is not very hard to accomplish.
In this article I will lay out the ground - work for a marketing plan that any auto detailing business can adopt and quickly see results.
Yellow Pages
One of the first things you should do is contact your local yellow page directory.
I built my auto detailing business years ago and much of my early success was due to the visibility I had in the yellow pages. When consumers want to purchase a service they usually turn to the yellow pages and begin to investigate their options.
New businesses do not need a large, expensive ad to start. Usually an "informational" or "business card" size ad will do just fine.
The size of the ad is not important but the information and how it is laid out in the ad is. Be sure to list your services, hours of operation, web site address, physical address, phone number and a line in the ad that says something special about your business.
Possibly you feel that you are proficient cleaning & detailing SUV vehicles. So your BI-line in the ad may be "SUV Detailing Experts."
If a consumer is shopping to have their Durango detailed and you claim to be an SUV expert, there is a very probable chance that you will be the first called.
If you have a fixed location shop most of your business will come from a 5-mile radius from your location. You want to be sure you are listed in your local yellow page directory.
If you are a mobile operator you may want to list your business in the directories of the communities you are going to serve.
Chamber Of Commerce
Joining your local Chamber Of Commerce is a "must do" for your marketing plan.
You will find that there are many popular businesses in your town or community that are already members.
Besides getting great visibility to other business owners you will receive a membership roster listing the various businesses with their contact information. You can use this information later during your telemarketing and direct mail campaign, which will be discussed in next month's newsletter.
The Chamber Of Commerce will mail monthly newsletters to its members and allow you to supply them with a flyer to be inserted in the newsletter packet. The cost to you is nil but the visibility is great!
So almost instantaneously you will have your name in front of potential fleet and retail clients for pennies.
The theme for your flyer should have to do with a tailor- made special detail package for all Chamber members.
Other Opportunities
Insurance companies are always looking for a professional, reliable auto detailing business that they can send their claims to.
This is a huge opportunity to obtain consistent and profitable business. You will need to contact the "claims office" of the insurance companies you plan to market your services to.
They will have claims varying from fire and smoke jobs, theft recoveries, vehicles with water damage, to in-vehicle suicides. These are all big money jobs. Let me caution you before you solicit the insurance companies; you must have the equipment and knowledge on how to perform the specific reconditioning services requested.
I suggest you get practice and be an expert in those areas before taking on the various insurance claims. They will only give you one chance. But if you prove yourself from the very first claim job you will receive many more profitable repeat opportunities.
There are usually many other types of automotive oriented businesses in most towns and communities. You will want to go to these businesses and introduce yourself and tell them what you do. Auto Body Shops, Express Lube Centers, Muffler Shops, Auto Parts Stores, Car washes and Service Garages to name a few will need your services.
They may want you to provide your detail services on their own vehicles or quite possibly on a customer's vehicle that was in their care and they got it greasy and dirty. You also could promote your company within theirs.
You may have them hand out your flyer and you would do the same for them. This is called Co - Promoting. Many successful auto detailing businesses form a business relationship with the local car wash. You can advertise within their car wash and even offer to make your services available to their clients on a scheduled basis.
I know of some mobile operators that operate at the local automatic car wash on the car washes busiest days and offer "express detailing" services. Typically Friday and Saturdays can be very busy days at the car washes.
The savvy entrepreneur will strike a deal with the car wash owner and offer him a percentage of his gross sales for the day.
Lets say 600 cars go through the tunnel on a Friday. Even if you only sold 5% of those customers an express service at an average cost of $29 that equates to $870 in gross sales. This is only one way to tap the "captive audiences" at the local automatic car wash.
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