12 Basic Auto Repair Marketing Tips to Attract Your Customers

People maybe know that marketing strategies are extremely necessary for each business. It helps the business develop goods, services and find potential problems. Thereby, your business can create a new plan to cater to customer needs. The same is true of the auto repair company, it needs clear strategies to compete with the same industry companies. It is not easy to plan a strategy but don’t worry! We will suggest some ideas for you to operate your auto repair company. There will be things that you have not needed at the moment yet, but let’s prepare everything ready before your company gets any problems.

#1. Email marketing

You would ignore a lot of chances if not have a list of customer emails who visiting your website. Because email is a means of communication that businesses can use to keep in touch with customers. Except for this function, it still hasn’t brought about significant efficiency yet unless you follow a few best practices.

You should determine your customers by using tags to identify the qualities and habits of each customer before creating any useful and relevant content. When knowing exactly who you are talking to, it will be easy to come up with suitable content as well as the right advertising strategies. If you start sending irrelevant content, you could lose your potential customer. On the other hand, customers also don’t like to be disturbed by advertisements so that let’s provide more useful, value information than promotional and sales-focused advertisements.

You must create a follow-up program to support customers. When they are potential customers, you will send advertisements according to target then you send email reminders if they are interested in your services. Finally, when they have completed a service with your business your performance feedback emails are sent to them to show interest for customers and create a connection between you and them.

Most people are busy with their work so sending a brief mail with contents such as your company’s latest offers, events to help them update information and become familiar with your brand.

#2. Direct mail

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, a little over 11% of the American population moves every year. It goes without saying new homeowners need auto repair service if they have cars but they have not ever known your company. Therefore, one good way is sending direct mail to introduce your store. However, to make your direct mail is attractive, you can hire a designer to create professional postcards for your company. Because of the eye-catching appearance of postcards will promote potential customers opening them immediately.

#3. Video

There are a lot of ways to provide information for customers about their vehicle and services needed but the video is a great way to attract customer’s attention. To make your blog more valuable, instead of writing normal articles, let’s add informative how-to videos. Videos will help customers increase memory and your auto repair company’s website becomes valuable. This helps promote trust and credibility to you as an automotive repair expert.

#4. Referral rewards program

You can use current customers to create more leads for your business by offering a referral rewards program. Let current customers know that if they refer a new customer to your business, they will receive benefits such as small freebies, service discounts, and some gifts. Apart from the benefit, the more they can have memorable experiences in your store, the more comfortable they’ll feel recommending you to their personal networks.

#5. Blog

It is difficult to keep updating your business’s website and it’s a challenge for owners. But you can solve this problem by starting a car advice blog to drive visitors to your website. A blog is an important tool not only to provide useful content and connect with customers but also to promote your rank on the page (SEO). You needn’t post articles on your blog every day but maintain a regular schedule for it not to turn to be boring. Some topics are usually written such as ways of drive safely, car maintenance advice, travel tips, information about traffic, etc. If the content you provide truly valuable to your most-likely customers, they will revisit your website and maybe even subscribe. It is an opportunity to show your business’s profession in this industry and it will promote customers to come to your service.

#6. In-store marketing

If you supply regular maintenance services and make sure that customers will come back your business for all their upcoming needs, let’s build a long-term service program with a lower cost than normal and they can pay over time. With this strategy, each store should have salesclerk to consult about the service package that customers should buy.

Most customers of auto repair shop often don’t understand about the process of this service. So that signage should be equipped to explain how services are performed and why these are necessary. Don’t use boring old posters and flyers that only make customers ignore and instead use engaging digital screens which can help you customize television programming, quickly update promotions, deliver animated and video advertisements. It looks like a silent, continuous salesperson.

In addition, there is a method which has not to keep paying for the advertisement to keep running that is decorating feather flag, panners, standees. For them, you only buy once, and it will be marketing your store for you constantly. You can place them in front of the store or along the way to grab attention from customers.

#7. Social media

Share information

People of all age ranges are on social media and if you also have a social media account, you can approach many customers in a huge market. For the customer, social media is a thing that supports and entertains. Besides, for an auto repair company, social media is a channel to interact with customers and it is not necessary to be on every social media platform. At least a profile on Facebook can also to perform auto repair marketing strategies. Certainly, contents are about auto repair which interests your customers such as:

• Photos of your staff and customers at the store location
• Customer satisfaction stories
• Information about local events
• Initiatives about support for the community
• Offer discounts and coupons for likes and shares

Interesting content can inspire active conversations. People may comment on your posts or directly message your page. Your shop should have at least an available assistant dedicated to answering these questions in a timely manner. The sooner you can reply, the more likely you can prevent seeking your competitors.

Get information

Social media not only is a place for you to post advertisement, article or information about your business, it but also is used to listen to opinions from society. This work helps you know what customers need, the way that they feel about your brand. From there, you will create ideas to solve problems your target customers have. Pay attention to contents such as information about your business or your competitors, reviews that relate to your industry, products, and services.

Create interaction

While customers are waiting, let’s recommend them to mention positivity about your brand such as posting a photo with checking in at your store, sharing blog posts, commenting truthful evaluation to get incentives.

In addition, you can create contests to challenge customers and mini-games with team playing which can not play alone. Good rewards for winners include inexpensive car parts like wiper blades or a free tank of gas. This strategy will help your repair company be well-known.

#8. Post before and after images

Another way to show customers that your repair shop is believable by sharing before and after photos to perform your service. You can post the on flyer, digital screen, blog, social media, and anywhere that customers can see.

#9. Reviews

Don’t rely on content that is posted from your business completely. Let’s leverage user-generated content to connect with more customers by collecting and posting reviews about your business. Reviews of current happy customers have a part in building trust for the brand and encourage new customers to come to your business. Recommending customers who are like referral of your business to write reviews in many places such as feedback card, review website, social media as well as filmed testimonials. This helps your auto repair store be more objective than normal. Whether positive or negative reviews even neutral reviews are better than no reviews at all. Let’s try your best at work, delight your loyal customers, and they’ll return with all sincerity.

#10. Community marketing

Host event

One of the auto repair marketing strategies is hosting an event which can bring customers right into your store. Some purposes of the event are usually organized such as grand opening, seminars about car maintenance, strengthen relationships with past customers and welcome new customers, etc.

Participate event

Let people in your community know your existence of auto repair store by sponsoring local community events, contributing nearby charities, help out citizen groups as well as school, etc. They may not need your service at the moment but your brand will appear in their mind first when they have demand.

Cooperate with other (non-competitor) local Businesses

 Swap marketing materials with other businesses in the area to expand your customer reach. In some store, there is a waiting area and business cards are placed there is quite reasonable to advertise brand each other. On the other hand, you can disclose this partnership to social media to create the power of cooperation.

#11. Website

Website of auto repair company is not only a place for your prospects to visit you online but also is a part to develop your business. Ninety-five percent of potential customers will visit your website before making any decision to buy from you or not. It must be easy to understand enough for customers not to move to other companies that are your competitor. To ensure this matter, your website has to include the following:

• Let your customers know who you are by creating an attractive logo professionally designed specifically for your auto repair company and all things are designed a theme color.
• There is a list of services which your company supplies. You need to show them know that your company is more professional and various than others.
• Useful information and positive images will prove you’re a real credible business.
• Contact details in full and importance is a memorable phone number which is an enduring brand asset. It attracts customers to contact your company and making it easy for customers to share contact information with their friends and family.

Besides, more and more customers prefer to access the internet through their mobile devices. Not to waste a huge potential customer resource, your website must be mobile-friendly to attract the attention of them.  A mobile-friendly website if the following conditions are satisfied:

• Text size is easy to look
• Button space is large enough to click
• Simple design but make sure it looks good
• Loading fast

#12. Limit advertising object

To save cost, you should select the right potential customers following age, profession, income, etc to advertise and the best choice is local customers. Because they will not choose an auto repair company far from home to maintain their cars.

Furthermore, Facebook allows you to send advertisements to users who’ve already visited your website. This is more effective than running interest-based advertisements or location-based and who have never known your auto repair company. Because this advertisement helps to optimize to people who know who you are.

Conclusion

The above marketing strategies will help you develop your auto repair company. Let’s consider and select ideas that are suitable for your resources and company status. Keep track of the company’s situation to modify and improve strategies in the future. Implementing marketing strategies but don’t forget that human resource is the best important element because customers need to be served considerately. You are an owner and your mission is to remind your employees have to serve customers with all their heart.