By: Anthony Analetto
Originally Published in AutoLaundry Magazine
"Youth is a quality, not a matter of circumstances." Frank Lloyd Wright
In a single day, I often find myself
having absolutely opposing conversations. One minute I can be speaking with an
operator that recently opened up a new location. They’re talking with
enthusiasm about acquiring new customers, constantly tinkering with new
promotions, tweaking wash quality, training, and site appearance. To them,
their business is like a newborn child, employees are partners, and each new
customer an achievement that needs to be coddled with loving care. Later in the
day, my phone rings, and I’m talking to another car wash owner about increasing
competition, reduced customer spending, economic unrest, and the latest ideas
to cut costs and raise prices to combat these challenges. To them, their
business is like an adolescent child not conforming to their expectations, employees
are adversaries, and customers only care about getting more for less.
Remember TWA, MCI, Compaq, General
Foods, E.F. Hutton, and other once-great organizations that have long since disappeared?
Countless articles have been written on the demise of each. Hindsight always being 20/20, it’s easy to
find a timeline that documents the blunders that led to each company’s decline.
I’d venture a guess however that each organization began its downward spiral
the day the culture and attitude lost its youthful enthusiasm to love and
coddle its customers.
Many factors dictate if a company will
stand the test of time. Responding to changes in the market place and
developing more efficient and profitable practices is crucial to success. But cultivating
a positive attitude in your business with the same enthusiasm you had on the
day you opened your first wash can overcome a lot of challenges. Let’s take a
look.
Destroy Indifference
Attitudes are contagious. Enthusiasm is infectious. This is the phenomenon that drives the successful launch of any business. Think back to the grand opening of your first wash. Chances are you labored over every detail. Uniforms, signage, and wash packages were carefully crafted. Package names, price points, and service offerings to bundle incremental value were debated. You probably made so many last minute refinements that your sign company threatened to charge you a penalty if you made any more changes to the graphics! You were greeting customers. You were talking with staff about what was going well and looking for ways to make things better. The air was filled with enthusiasm to earn the business of every customer that entered the wash. That energy infected you and your staff and most were working with urgency to win the loyalty of each and every customer. Employees were energized to self-manage their work to make sure every customer was satisfied. If a customer wasn’t happy with the wash, your staff would have gone out of their way to fix the problem. Does that energy still exist today? If not, what happened?
Attitudes are contagious. Enthusiasm is infectious. This is the phenomenon that drives the successful launch of any business. Think back to the grand opening of your first wash. Chances are you labored over every detail. Uniforms, signage, and wash packages were carefully crafted. Package names, price points, and service offerings to bundle incremental value were debated. You probably made so many last minute refinements that your sign company threatened to charge you a penalty if you made any more changes to the graphics! You were greeting customers. You were talking with staff about what was going well and looking for ways to make things better. The air was filled with enthusiasm to earn the business of every customer that entered the wash. That energy infected you and your staff and most were working with urgency to win the loyalty of each and every customer. Employees were energized to self-manage their work to make sure every customer was satisfied. If a customer wasn’t happy with the wash, your staff would have gone out of their way to fix the problem. Does that energy still exist today? If not, what happened?
Over time, about 20% of your traffic
will be comprised of loyal customers accounting for 50-80% of sales. The other
80% fall into one of the following categories; impulse customers that purchase
the wash package or special that seems good at the time based on a whim; discount
customers that only wash based on the size of your markdown, and need-based
customers that have a specific intention to get a car wash with minimal loyalty
to any particular wash. To grow your business everyone knows to focus efforts
on the loyal customers and to offer specials to entice the impulse buyer to a
higher ticket. Unfortunately the discount and need-based customers, being in
greater numbers, tend to misdirect our efforts and sap enthusiasm of both
owners and staff to love and coddle all customers in general.
If enthusiasm is allowed to die,
indifference, which is even more contagious, takes its place. One day you might
decide that the practice of collecting community tips and dispersing the reward
for winning customer service in pay checks just isn’t worth the effort. Then, instead
of looking for ways to constantly improve site appearance, wash quality,
training, and customer experience, you’re focused on cutting costs, possibly
cutting what kept loyal customers glued to your wash. Indifference can creep
into your business in hundreds of small ways and spreads to your staff and
loyal customers at lightning speed.
Hopefully what I just wrote makes absolutely
no sense to you. Hopefully your employees are smiling, engaged with customers
as if it was your grand opening, and business is booming. But these are
difficult times. If you suspect even the slightest possibility that
indifference is trying to destroy your business, stop and determine if your
wash can benefit from an attitude remodeling. It’s easier to do than you think
and usually costs nothing.
Meet & Greet Your Customers
A little conversation can go a long way. If you’re not already doing it, invest as many hours each week as you can in walking around and talking with customers. Thank them. Ask them for recommendations to improve your service. Listen to them. Have no doubt that your employees will watch your every move and model their behavior based on your enthusiastic interaction with customers. Take advantage of this free and easy way to fight indifference from creeping into your business.
A little conversation can go a long way. If you’re not already doing it, invest as many hours each week as you can in walking around and talking with customers. Thank them. Ask them for recommendations to improve your service. Listen to them. Have no doubt that your employees will watch your every move and model their behavior based on your enthusiastic interaction with customers. Take advantage of this free and easy way to fight indifference from creeping into your business.
Empower Your Employees
Treat every unhappy customer like a loaded gun and give your employees the tools and training they need to take out the bullets. Absolutely monitor for abuse, but give every employee the authority to both refund the price of a wash and to issue a re-wash. Another helpful tactic to empower enthusiasm at your wash is to distribute a few vouchers for free car washes in paychecks each week. Whether they give them to friends & family or barter for other services, they now have clout as an employee of your wash, a sure-fire way to fight indifference.
Treat every unhappy customer like a loaded gun and give your employees the tools and training they need to take out the bullets. Absolutely monitor for abuse, but give every employee the authority to both refund the price of a wash and to issue a re-wash. Another helpful tactic to empower enthusiasm at your wash is to distribute a few vouchers for free car washes in paychecks each week. Whether they give them to friends & family or barter for other services, they now have clout as an employee of your wash, a sure-fire way to fight indifference.
Identify Loyal Customers
Finding a way to visibly mark your loyal customers is absolutely vital. Not only will you be able to give them the special attention they deserve, but your staff will be constantly reminded that their efforts on delivering enthusiastic customer service does matter. Point-of-sale technology is readily available to make it easy to capture data and automatically connect with your loyal customers. Alternatively, club cards, vehicle stickers, branded air fresheners, can all help make sure you know which customers on your property demand your highest level of attention.
Finding a way to visibly mark your loyal customers is absolutely vital. Not only will you be able to give them the special attention they deserve, but your staff will be constantly reminded that their efforts on delivering enthusiastic customer service does matter. Point-of-sale technology is readily available to make it easy to capture data and automatically connect with your loyal customers. Alternatively, club cards, vehicle stickers, branded air fresheners, can all help make sure you know which customers on your property demand your highest level of attention.
Innovative Offers for Impulse Customers
There are two equally important reasons to constantly innovate new creative special offers to try and move impulse customers to higher tickets. The first reason is obvious – revenue generation. The second reason though is a bit more subtle, it gives you a reason to engage in conversations with staff about the success of each offering. A simple, “how is the special X promotion working?” engages employees and helps combat indifference.
There are two equally important reasons to constantly innovate new creative special offers to try and move impulse customers to higher tickets. The first reason is obvious – revenue generation. The second reason though is a bit more subtle, it gives you a reason to engage in conversations with staff about the success of each offering. A simple, “how is the special X promotion working?” engages employees and helps combat indifference.
Focus on Facility Maintenance
Landscaping, paint, bathrooms, driveways, lobbies – your ability to keep all areas of your wash spotlessly maintained and cared for works like a powerful force field against employee indifference. The opposite is equally true. If you allow the appearance of your site to deteriorate, you’ll be left forever trying to answer the question “did my best customers leave because my wash didn’t look cared for, or did they leave because my employees felt indifferent and didn’t care for my best customers.”
Landscaping, paint, bathrooms, driveways, lobbies – your ability to keep all areas of your wash spotlessly maintained and cared for works like a powerful force field against employee indifference. The opposite is equally true. If you allow the appearance of your site to deteriorate, you’ll be left forever trying to answer the question “did my best customers leave because my wash didn’t look cared for, or did they leave because my employees felt indifferent and didn’t care for my best customers.”
Concentrate on Wash Performance
Cars change. Climate conditions change. Water quality changes. The question is, are you constantly evaluating and tweaking your detergent and wash equipment to deliver the best possible product? Talk about wash quality constantly with all employees. Involve everyone in preventive maintenance and share your ideas for continuous improvement of the wash process. Basically, the more visible you can make your passionate obsession for delivering a clean, dry, shiny car – the harder your employees will work to satisfy your customers.
Cars change. Climate conditions change. Water quality changes. The question is, are you constantly evaluating and tweaking your detergent and wash equipment to deliver the best possible product? Talk about wash quality constantly with all employees. Involve everyone in preventive maintenance and share your ideas for continuous improvement of the wash process. Basically, the more visible you can make your passionate obsession for delivering a clean, dry, shiny car – the harder your employees will work to satisfy your customers.
Summary
Sometimes, the best things in life actually are free. Remodeling the attitude of your car wash doesn’t call for any large sum of money, education, or special talent. Just a little friendly conversation, careful role-modeling of good customer service, and constant vigilance in maintaining your site, and suddenly employee indifference will melt away.
Good
luck, and good washing!
Sometimes, the best things in life actually are free. Remodeling the attitude of your car wash doesn’t call for any large sum of money, education, or special talent. Just a little friendly conversation, careful role-modeling of good customer service, and constant vigilance in maintaining your site, and suddenly employee indifference will melt away.
