By: Anthony Analetto
Originally Published in AutoLaundry Magazine
How many customers left your wash today with a plan for the next time they would return and what wash package they would get? Does the old standby of giving the 10th wash free truly differentiate your business and provide a compelling incentive for customers to come back? In today’s hypercompetitive, marketing driven economy, no service business can afford to be a commodity. You can’t let your customers visit you to just to get a “car wash”. They must be guided in understanding the exclusive benefit to the wash process at your location. Within 30 seconds of looking at your menu board they should think to themselves that they really want the highest wash package to protect their cars surface; and if they don’t do it today your signage and promotional materials should help them plan on making the investment the next time they come.
The Bare Minimum
Most of you can skim right over this section but it has to be included. First, you must deliver a quality product. No amount of marketing can influence your customer’s decision making process if their car is not consistently clean and dry in the promised time on the busiest day. Next, make sure the facility is clean. The tunnel must be spotless, well lit, and visible. Odors must be clean and fresh. Landscaping and all exterior surfaces should be bright and well maintained. Pay attention to details. Remember, what may appear like a small chip in the toilet seat of the woman’s bathroom can actually discolor a regular customers impression of your commitment to maintaining your facility. If you can’t show pride in being clean; your customers will lose confidence the quality of the product your deliver.
Treat Your Base Customer like Your Best Customer
Like many, I’ve tried literally thousands of different wash packages, presentations, and pricing levels. Three to Four simple levels is best with the highest package either at the top or left of the list. Often I see operators hide the lowest wash package on the menu board. While traveling I’ll stop in washes I don’t know and ask for the cheapest exterior only wash. You can tell a lot about an operation by the reaction. At some locations you will get a feeling that the attendant is angry and practically insults your choice. Equally, some express-exterior washes, with a computerized attendant, try to dissuade the base package by printing something like “does not include wheels”. Neither practice imparts value or makes customers feel good about their purchase.
Customers only return when they feel like they got a tremendous value. No customer comes to a professional car wash that doesn’t care at some level about the appearance of their car. In addition, the vast majority wants to or feels obligated to protect their vehicle’s finish. If they selected the cheapest base wash, your signage and service should tell them they made an excellent choice to remove pollutants that can harm paint finishes and should be performed regularly.
Let customer’s use your wash on their terms. Educate them on the benefits of the package they purchased. The goal is to guide customers into a total wash regime that involves regularly removing pollutants and periodically protecting their cars finish. Habitual satisfied customers seldom change their routine of visiting your wash without a reason. Remember, the customer exploring a base wash at your location might be a regular but dissatisfied customer of your competitor.
Middle Wash Package Benefits
Too many variations and combinations exist to give justice to this section in a short article. Considerations at full-serve, flex-serve, and express exterior styles affect packages greatly. The guiding principle is to communicate in a few seconds the benefits for the customer in selecting the next higher package. Present clear benefits in big type.
Help Customers Plan the Next Wash
If express detailing is offered at a location, the base express wax will take the place of the top wash package. When only online services are offered then the top wash package is where you deliver the maximum promise of surface protection. Whatever your top service is, it is vital to recommend an interval for performing it. Something like “includes (the brand name of the total body protectant you apply) recommended every 30 days for maximum protection”. The published protection guarantee of your detergent supplier and your application equipment will dictate what you can legitimately promote. The important consideration is to establish that everyone needs to periodically protect their cars paint and that you have an easy solution. The few customers who always opt for the top package will continue to do so while others will try to on a periodic basis. I’ll discuss branding below to help make sure they remember to come back to your wash for the preventative maintenance service.
Visually Reinforce Benefits
Signage, computer, equipment, and detergent innovations are constantly improving the ability to visually reinforce the application of extra services. While still powerful, more options exist than just the lighted flashing sign indicating “now being applied”. Colorful led lighting products that are more conducive to wet environments are increasing signage creativity and flexibility. New colored and scented conditioners work to excite customer’s senses and reinforce their purchase. Electronic reader boards that welcome customers and indicate the purchase of various extra services are constantly dropping in price and becoming a more common feature at in-bay automatic locations. I expect to see greater use of this technology at conveyorized washes in the near future. It is imperative that a customer receives a visual confirmation of receiving the extra services they paid for. Equally important is that customers who do not elect extra services are aware that they are not being performed.
Another trend gaining traction is color coding the actual equipment in the wash to correspond with your wash packages. Mike Black, former ICA president and current owner of several Valet Auto Wash locations in Canada, was kind enough to share some pictures of his newest express-exterior wash in Kitchener Canada. If you look at his menu board he has three wash packages each with a distinct color. Inside the tunnel, his equipment is powder coated aluminum to match the wash package that is used for each level. A customer who selects the top package, green, will see all of the green equipment items running. Customers that select lower packages will pass under the green items in the wash retracted, clearly reinforcing the benefit of the extra services.
Visually Reinforce Your Brand
Be memorable. Be consistent. If you don’t already have a professionally designed logo and color scheme you should. Most important is to carry elements of the design and colors through to every thing a customer will see. Although rather simple in concept, the discipline to stick to it can be hard during the demands of day to day operations. Everything means everything – signs, receipts, advertisements, fixtures, greeter cards, and more. If the toilet overflows and you have to print a quick sign that says out of service – take the few extra seconds to ad your logo. Graphic designers and advertising agencies can provide better insights on visually branding your promotional materials – your job is to maintain its priority and keep designers focused on its importance to you and your business.
Prompt Customers Next Visit
Often all it takes is to say “Thank you for your business, please come again” either by a person or a sign. This small detail is so old and effective, but constantly overlooked. The next step is to make sure the customer takes something with them. The first obvious item is the receipt. Newer accounting systems afford tremendous flexibility with custom promotions to targeted customers that of course should include your logo and any benefit statement. Many options exist and every customer should have something in their hand or car when they leave with either an incentive or reason to return to your wash. Another excellent practice is to have printed copies of your wash menu. These can be located at the cashier or automatic teller for customers to take and review at home. Also, don’t forget to prompt customers to visit your website. Many washes now offer prepaid cards, monthly wash “subscriptions” and other promotions online. A sign or register receipt that instructs customers to go online for daily specials is another excellent method to get customers to return to your wash. Even if you don’t have time to put anything else together, you can always put a sign at the end of the tunnel that says “Save your receipt – the 10th wash is free”; just make sure it has your logo on it.
Summary
Don’t let your customers believe that getting a car wash is a commodity. No matter what format your wash, express, flex, or full serve, you need to design an environment where customers want to come to protect the surface of their vehicle. For anyone who is skeptical that this is possible – think about what Starbucks has done to the old habit of “grabbing a cup of coffee”.
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