The Garage 333

In-Store Marketing and
Point of Sale
Implement a Garage VIP Club
Account
If you offer regular maintenance services
at your garage, consider implementing a
loyalty programme that will ensure that
your customers return to you for all their
upcoming requirements.
Offer informative in-store content
Workshop customers can be notoriously
sceptical, so you have to create trust.
One way is to provide informative content
that lightens their fears, concerns, and
confusion. In-store signage can provide
content that:
• Explains how services are performed and
why these are necessary
• Shares facts and evidence about the value
of products and services
• Includes product/parts videos that show
how items work
Again, talking to your distributor and
brand suppliers can help, as many will
already have POS and generally will be
happy to supply it as this will only help
confidence and increased sales all round.
Use In-Store Digital Signage to
Promote Products and Services
Grab customers’ attention by scrapping
boring or out of date posters/flyers that
they usually ignore. Instead, use engaging
and attractive digital signage marketing
tools.
Social Media Marketing
Encourage Engagement on Social
Media
You don’t need to be on every social media
platform. But at least create a profile on
Facebook and regularly update your page
with content to interest your audience. This
doesn’t have to be all about automotive
repair work. It can be about vehicles,
driving, your community, and your garage
business. Offer discounts and vouchers for
‘likes and shares’
Use Social Media as Another
Customer Contact Platform
Being on social media is also about listening
to what others are saying. ‘Social Listening’
is the act of tracking conversations online
to discover what customers think and need,
what their problems are - so you can help
address customer issues and concerns.
Look for:
• Comments about your business
• Mentions of your competitors
• Remarks that relate to your industry,
products, and services
Encourage Customer Reviews
Get customers to post reviews and
endorsements about your business. Positive
endorsements are important as they build
trust and encourage new customers.
Set up systems that encourage past
clients to share reviews on feedback
cards, review sites and maybe film their
testimonials on your phone.
Post Before and After Photos
Show new customers they can trust you, by
sharing examples of your work.
Email Marketing
Send Regular Emails
Collate your customers’ email addresses
and consider an email newsletter. Email
allows you to stay directly in touch with
customers. But, it’s only effective if you
follow a few best practices.
• Understand and know your audience -
When you know exactly who you are talking
to, you can create better content.
• Sort your audience into groups - As
you build your email database, use tags
to identify the qualities and habits of
each customer (i.e. oil change customer,
mechanical repair customer, MOT customer,
body repair, PCV, LCV, CV etc.). Then, you
can send specific key email messages to
each.
• Provide more value than promotions -
Balance your messages by sharing more
useful and valuable content than simply
sales-focused messages.
Personalised Service Reminders and
Promotions
Providing personalised customer
experiences helps your workshop business
stand out. Collecting customer data,
creates profiles and allows you to know
when a customer’s service is due, then
send targeted and personalised reminders/
promotions via email or SMS. Examples:
• Free offer with the purchase of another
service (a thorough tyre check with repair
work)
• Discounted offer with the purchase of
another service (30% off oil change with
MOT)
• Money-off discounts (£20 off an oil and
filter change)
• Percentage discounts (20% off a brake and
disk change)
• Seasonal specials (£10 off an AirCon check
in May/June)
Create a Follow-Up Programme
Stay in touch with customers by following
up after they’ve visited your workshop.
Implement a programme that requires a call
to each of your customers once they have
completed a service.. This gives feedback
about your performance and creates a
greater,more personal relationship with
customers.
Community Marketing
Host Events
Running information sessions about car
maintenance can bring new faces to your
workshop and strengthens relationships
with regular and previous customers.
Again, your factor distributors and
product suppliers/manufacturers will
generally happily support this kind of event.
Get Involved Locally
Show you are really part of your community
by supporting other local initiatives.
• Sponsoring local events
• Working with nearby charities
• Partner with other local (non-competing)
businesses
Partner with Other (noncompetitor)
Local Businesses
Swap marketing materials with your
business neighbours to expand your
customer reach.
Get Started!
Remember: ideas for a garage workshop
marketing strategy are only powerful if you
implement them. So, prepare your own
official ‘garage workshop marketing plan’
and create a schedule for it.
If you need any help implementing any of
what we have suggested here, Chicane
would be delighted to help you. We
aim to help you grow your business and
improve your relationships with your
customers, distributors and product brand
manufacturers.
For further information please contact
chicane. Tel: 01923 265894
or email gary@chicane.marketing
THE GARAGE 33
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