I recently checked out the websites of a few current and past body shop clients. In all but a few, there were virtually no changes from the last time I looked nearly a year ago.
Driving around and noticing which shops are still somewhat busy during this economic downturn is very revealing. One common denominator that I’ve noticed is the way these busy shops persist with their marketing programs even when they’ve had to lay off some technicians and make other cuts in expenses.
I recently spotted a local mechanic going on-site to do some customer repairs. He had his ASE emblem in his truck window and a magnetic sign on the door advertising “Auto repairs at your home or office.” With the recent downturn in the economy, many technicians have been laid off. Most of those who can’t find another job go on unemployment until business improves. But there are a few enterprising guys like the mechanic I saw. He went out and hustled his own business.
1. When Business Is So Slow You Have Time On Your Hands, You Must Go Out And Do More Marketing And Selling To Bring In More Business!
Dis-solve: (verb) 1. To pass or cause to pass into solution; 2. To melt; 3. To cause to disappear or dispel; 4. To separate into component parts; disintegrate.
The past few years have been fairly good for most of my body shop clients. In fact, business has been so good it’s been difficult to get some shop owners and managers to get serious about marketing initiatives. They may get interested in an idea for a short time, but as soon as business picks up, that interest disappears.
We’ve all had a customer come into the shop with bumper damage. You write the estimate and he stares at the total cost, stunned! “How could a little bumper damage possibly cost this much?” he exclaims. After you show him the cost of the reinforcement bar, impact strip, (etc, etc.) and then explain how the impact also pushed the fender into the quarter panel requiring additional repairs and refinishing, he may look a little less stunned. And you hope he may begin to understand how what seems to be superficial damage may have traveled far deeper than he could have imagined.
Every professional has a pet peeve. In fact I’m sure that you, as a collision repair professional, have many things that really annoy you. But as a marketing consultant, there is one specific thing that bothers me most of all. People pay me good money for marketing tactics and strategies. Some will put them into practice for a short time, but soon will stop. Others won’t even begin to take the marketing measures I recommend. Why is this? Have I suggested actions that are too complicated? Too expensive? Too difficult to carry out?
I recently wrote an article berating shop owners who wasted marketing money on ineffective advertising (which is most of it). I pointed out that few people who have recently been in an accident will look to an ad to find a shop for repairs.
Recently one of my readers called to ask how he could find a professional salesperson to go out and sell prospects on sending business to his shop. He had run ads for sales people and interviewed quite a few. He advertised on Monster.com and other online job sites. He may have even tried out a few applicants. But basically he couldn't find any that could effectively go out and represent his shop. I told him he would probably never find anyone who could. Why is that?