10 Proven Marketing Strategies For Your Auto Repair Shop ​

It is quite obvious that running an auto repair shop is not merely waiting for customers to come but there should be a well-thought strategy to bring customers. An auto repair needs to constantly update itself as per the changing market trends and customer preferences. A marketing plan for an auto repair business should be planned in such a way that it can bring in new customers and also retain its existing set of customers.

A detailed and foolproof marketing plan for an auto repair shop is an absolute necessity in today’s times and should be the one that can be easily tracked and analyzed so as to understand which campaigns are working and which are not.

While there are surely numerous strategies around auto repair marketing ideas useful for running such a business, we have simplified your job here by highlighting some of the best 10 proven auto repair marketing ideas for a shop that would boost your business and give it a different dimension.

1. Give your customers an awesome experience

An awesome experience after availing services at an auto repair shop can immensely help in increasing a brand’s word-of-mouth publicity. Customers then become brand ambassadors of the business without any added costs and attract a new set of customers to the fold. They can also refer the business to their friends and family members who can become customers of the business in the future. An awesome experience especially the first one ensures that customers come back to you only.

2. Ensure satisfaction of your customers and track it​

No business can continue with its good word of mouth publicity among existing and new customers unless it gives focus on ensuring that all customers get the same amount of focus while availing services. Customers will come back only if they are happy so it is very important to track each customer’s satisfaction level to bring them back. Auto repair shops should track customer satisfaction through surveys and reviews, then accordingly work on the issues identified. Customers love it when businesses care about their views and concerns.

3. Get reviews from your Happy customers​

A crucial component of an auto body shop marketing plan is to build its presence on review sites where customers generally go for obtaining information about a business. Today most people either search for reviews on Google or websites like Yelp to find out more about the business. Auto repair shops should get their profiles listed on many of such listing websites so that they become more visible. Businesses can put the link to their websites in such local review websites. Responding to reviews of customers promptly helps to portray the image the businesses care about customers. Both the good and bad reviews should be given the same amount of importance. All this develops a positive image of the business and more customers talk about it. Happy customers should be encouraged to post their feedback about the business on the official website or review sites. Other people on the internet can read them and then avail themselves services from the same shop, boosting its business. Reviews help build the reputation and credentials of the business and develop trust with your customers.

4. Bring your existing customers through smart service reminders​

Pleasing the existing customers is the first thing which every business should invest its energies upon. Businesses should provide reminders to customers about the next servicing dates or of the new services at the shop which customers can avail. Regular direct communication through messages and calls can surely keep the existing customers engaged. Timely and accurate reminders go a long way in strengthening the relationship with your customers thereby helps in increasing the business.

5. Reward your Loyal customers (Loyalty reward programs)

Reward programs encourage people to avail services from a business and increase their loyalty to the business. A study by Accenture has also revealed that loyal customers contribute 12 to 18 percent to the revenue each year. From providing customers a loyalty card to creating a unique loyalty program for them, businesses can get create and improvise on the number of ways of rewarding their important customers.

6.Encourage your existing customers bring new ones (Customer referral program) ​

Customers need to be informed about attractive offers and packages as this will ensure they keep visiting the shop multiple times. Customized packages for customers can further engage a more fruitful relationship. Not only will such offers engage the existing customers but would create avenues to attract new customers. Such curated offers and packages would make the customers feel special and they would always come back expecting more.

7. Bring customers through attractive offers/Package​

It is necessary to document a foolproof and effective business plan on how the business would function, the cash flow, the plans for expansion in the future and other industry-related information. To secure funds to start a garage business, businesses can either go to a bank or apply for loans with a local lender. They should opt for minimum funds to secure a location, tools and working capital enough to sail through till the revenue starts coming in. Used cars which customers discard and are in good condition, can be refurbished and then can be put up for resell. This will ensure another mode of revenue generation which will be great for a new business.

8. Maximize through Digital marketing​

a) Have an impressive Digital presence (Branding the website properly)​

The website of the business is the first place where it gets visibility and should portray all the good aspects of the auto repair business. Some basic good practices should be followed while creating a website so that it adds more meaning to a business. The website should be mobile-friendly and have a responsive design. It should be secure and should have content that explains the services offered in detail. The contact information should also be mentioned as this increases reliability. The domain name should be relevant to the business and the work it does. A live chat option should be present on the website helping customers to drop in their queries. These steps can boost the image of the business and attract more customers.

b) Email/SMS marketing​

Emails/SMS are extremely necessary for regular communication with customers and sending them updates. It is the direct form of communication that has always helped businesses establish a better connection with customers. The businesses can ask the customers if they are ready to join an email list that could update them about all new updates about the business. It is essential to take the consent of customers before planning this else they could get annoyed and send these emails to spam which would totally hamper the overall effect these emails could do. There are several email/SMS marketing tools and services that businesses can adopt. Tools like Mailchimp can send around 12000 emails per month for free and do not require any manual intervention. Writing emails to new customers, spreading the word about new services, and sharing regular blogs are some of the things that can be done through email marketing campaigns.

c) Using the vast reach of Social Media​

An auto body shop marketing plan should invest huge efforts and a decent amount of money on social media. Most people use YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram in their daily life and therefore these become important mediums to market a business making people aware of it. There are a huge number of social media websites these days but the significant ones are Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Auto repair shops could upload videos of technicians at work on YouTube in order to show how the business functioned. Customer testimonial videos could also be uploaded which can help in developing more connections. Facebook can be essential in reaching out to a wider audience and regular updates around businesses or special deals could be shared with the customers. Instagram is a great platform to put pictures and businesses can probably share photos of the staff at work and the hard work they put in to bring in customer satisfaction. These can really promote the company and its brand image. LinkedIn is extremely essential to connect with other businesses and probably also get some work. The microblogging site, Twitter, can help in indulging journalists and influencers to promote the business. It is important to use the right hashtags and content in order to make them more visible to customers. While every social media has its own way of functioning and helps the business to grow, the most important things that should be present are accurate contact information and proper management of these social media channels.

d) Search Engine Optimization for the content​

An effective auto repair marketing plan for shops should definitely use search engine optimization for its content so that people can find the mention of the business in the top searches on the web. The website should be SEO friendly and should use popular keywords that most people search for. The security and ease of accessibility of the website are also some of the components of SEO. The layout of the website should appeal to customers and encourage them to stay on it for longer periods of time. Read this blog to know more about how to optimize a website as per Google guidelines to rank it higher on the search engine result page.

e) Pay-Per-Click Advertising​

Pay-Per-click advertising can be an effective component in an auto repair marketing plan of a business especially in its initial journey. It is one of the most effective forms of advertising. An advertisement is created and a certain pattern of demographics as well as keyword searches are targeted. Whenever a user clicks over the website link on this advertisement featured on Google or Facebook and goes to the website, only then do they pay for the conversion. Such pay-per-click ads should be distinct so as to capture the attention of users. These pay-per-click ads should be optimized as per requirement and should be tracked regularly.

9. Create an engaging content to attract genuine customers

Targeting the right customers with the right kind of content is what constitutes content marketing. Valuable content helps in building trust and authority over existing customers and encourages them to always think of the business over other competitors whenever they think of availing services. The domain of content marketing includes blogs, videos, infographics, and webinars. Many studies have indicated that content marketing makes a comparatively better impact than TV or radio advertisements. Auto repair advertising ideas require a lesser cost compared to other forms of outdoor marketing. The more effective the content marketing of a website is, the more are the chances of it appearing on top of the searches. More people visit the website and it complements the SEO strategy. A successful content marketing strategy should have an excel sheet with a content calendar with regular updates. Blogs or other content should be regularly updated in order to attract more traffic.

10. Utilise Print and physical marketing as well​

Targeting the right customers with the right kind of content is what constitutes content marketing. Valuable content helps in building trust and authority over existing customers and encourages them to always think of the business over other competitors whenever they think of availing services. The domain of content marketing includes blogs, videos, infographics, and webinars. Many studies have indicated that content marketing makes a comparatively better impact than TV or radio advertisements. Auto repair advertising ideas require a lesser cost compared to other forms of outdoor marketing. The more effective the content marketing of a website is, the more are the chances of it appearing on top of the searches. More people visit the website and it complements the SEO strategy. A successful content marketing strategy should have an excel sheet with a content calendar with regular updates. Blogs or other content should be regularly updated in order to attract more traffic.

Conclusion​

A marketing plan for an auto repair shop is something that needs to be planned meticulously after proper research and analysis. It needs a great amount of creativity and awareness to make a good marketing plan. Ideas may look good on paper but it is their implementation is what matters. All channels should be utilized properly for promotion with equal participation of all stakeholders in the business for a marketing plan to function effectively on the ground.

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