Using Technology to Market Your Carwash

At 6 a.m. I hear my cell phone buzz on the dresser, and I know it is yesterday’s revenue totals from my carwashes. When I pick up the phone, I can view the overall revenue for my vacuums, self-service bays and automatic washes. On this particular report, my vacuum sales are up slightly, but the overall self-service numbers are down. I make a mental note to log into the carwash accounting system to see why this is occurring. It might be time to send an e-mail blast to all of the self-service customers in my database offering bonus time. I also need to log into my camera system to see if we had any carwash detailers holding up the bays.

This is now an everyday occurrence for me, and I can access these systems wherever I am in the world. I have spoken with other carwash operators who say technology is flashy and looks good on the surface but also believe it is expensive and can’t really help the bottom line. This simply isn’t true.

As I have written before, it takes the right technology and a well-organized plan to be successful. Here are a few ideas for how you can use technology to market your carwash:

Start an E-mail Database

There are several ways you can collect the necessary information to start a database. I use customer comment forms, and my employees fill out a form whenever a customer has a complaint. Both forms have sections for cell phone numbers and e-mail addresses.

I try to make customers feel like they are in a special club — our “Cool Club” — when they give us this information. As a reward, we give them one of our prepaid Cool Club cards with a preset value. I strategically set the value at a limit which more than likely won’t be used during a single visit.

By doing this, customers retain value on their cards, and our computer system automatically sends them an e-mail each month showing them the remaining value.

I also have purchased e-mail lists from marketing companies in my specific trade areas.

There are several other programs you can establish once you start your e-mail database. Here are a few ideas to help get you started:

1. Consider sending out a monthly newsletter letting your customers know the details about your carwash. Concentrate on the things that make you unique.

2. Send out an e-mail blast offering discount codes for washes purchased on your slowest days of the week.

3. Send out personal e-mails to each one of your customers thanking them for their business. Tell them to ask for you by name the next time they are at your wash.

4. Offer additional incentives through e-mail for adding value to prepaid card programs or wash booklets.

There are many online companies that can help you develop a successful e-mail marketing program. Here are a few things to consider when using their services:

Creative Assistance – Do they offer help creating an e-mail that is targeted to your customer?

Message Testing and Performance Analysis – Do they test your e-mails to improve your message effectiveness?

Frequency and Timing Analysis – Do they make sure your message is sent to the right people at the right time?

Deliverability Assistance – Do they use a program to reduce spam complaints and ensure maximum delivery rates?

Legal Compliance Review – Do they review your e-mails to ensure they are in compliance with all relevant laws and statutes?

E-mail marketing programs are fairly inexpensive. Most online e-mail marketing companies charge a low, monthly flat fee for their services. Fees range from $9.99 and up per month depending on how robust a program you require.

Start a Text Messaging Database

Texting is the new, hot thing to do. This is an exciting new medium to help carwash owners market their locations. It is fairly simple to set up and there are several Web-based software programs you can subscribe to.

Here is how a basic program works:

Customers can subscribe to your text messaging list simply by texting your unique keyword from their cell phone. The software sends an automatic customized text response to customers when they join your text messaging list. In this message you can offer a code for a discounted wash or some other incentive item for registering.

Using your own cell phone or Web-based software, you can instantaneously send out mass text messages. Text messages can be scheduled to go out at specific dates and times, and the cost for most text messaging programs is inexpensive — around 2.5 cents per transaction.