Blog

How to improve social media engagement for your auto shop

If your content is not getting the kind of engagement you’d like, you’re not alone. No matter how well you plan out your marketing efforts, you might not get the kind of interaction with your audience you’re hoping for, making it difficult to tell how effective your social marketing is. It doesn’t mean you should... Read More

Websites and social media: How to find the right blend

Online marketing and internet searches mean there are more ways for you to promote your business and get noticed than ever before. Obviously, the more different channels you use, the more effective you will be in finding and attracting new customers and engaging with and keeping your existing ones. Studies have shown that more than... Read More

How to check out your competitors’ social media marketing plans

It’s important to pay attention to your competitors, both their brick-and-mortar locations and their social media and web spaces. Not only do you want to differentiate yourself from them, but you also want to learn what works for them—and what doesn’t. Knowing each will help you save money and be more successful in the long... Read More

The five components of a healthy web site

We live in a fast-paced world, with dozens of things competing for our attention at all times. The prevalence of social media and the ever-increasing speed of the internet—along with the ever-dwindling attention span of most people—means you don’t have very long to attract and keep the attention of customers and potential customers. In fact,... Read More

How to maximize twitter for your auto shop

Twitter can be an effective tool to leverage your other social media efforts, but it’s important to use it to its highest potential. Fortunately, that’s not as hard as it may seem. As with other social media platforms, it starts with how you describe yourself and who you interact with. Optimize your profile Focus on... Read More

Make the news work for your auto shop

Facebook isn’t just a place for social interaction any more. It’s becoming more and more a place where people get their news and share newsworthy events. A recent study out of the Pew Research Center indicates that increasing numbers of Facebook users visit the site to get news, as well as to catch up with... Read More

Avoid these email marketing mistakes

Today, personalized marketing is more important than ever. There are so many ways businesses are trying to attract the attention of customers—and so many different ways to do it—that the personal touch will go a long way toward elevating your shop above the rest. Email is a tried and true way for business owners to... Read More

How to use social media to promote your auto shop: a refresher course

By now you know that using social media for business purposes isn’t all fun and games. It takes a little bit of effort to convert your social media presence into sales at your auto shop, but don’t worry: you are not alone. Social selling is as common a challenge in the auto repair industry as... Read More

Borrow ideas from other industries to help your auto repair shop

It the auto shop business, it’s not always easy to come up with a different kind of marketing idea that will bring new customers into your business and keep others loyal. Fortunately, the auto repair business isn’t the only type out there, and you can draw your inspiration from other businesses and types of businesses.... Read More

Mistakes to avoid with your auto shop’s website

Your website is the online anchor of your business and it may be the first thing your customers or potential customers see. With all the free tools out there, it’s relatively easy to design your own, but it’s also relatively easy to make some mistakes along the way. Here are a few common errors to... Read More

How to give your auto shop’s email a fighting chance

Your email list is one of your most important marketing tools, but having a large list doesn’t guarantee success. From the moment you request a customer’s email to the moment you sent out your first—and second, and third—email of the month, there are plenty of pratfalls that can trip you up. Here’s how you can... Read More

How to increase customer loyalty for your auto repair shop

As an auto shop owner, you have to split your time between operating and maintaining your shop, attracting new customers and taking care of the ones you already have. Of the three, ensuring customer loyalty is probably the most important—keeping a satisfied customer loyal is cheaper, in the long run, than attracting new ones and... Read More

What to include in your auto shop blog

Maintaining a blog is one of the best things you can do for your business. Blogs are easy to create and maintain and relatively inexpensive—with sites like WordPress or Blogger, you can get started for free—and they will help you reach new customers through improved search engine rankings and general word of mouth. The concept... Read More

Mobility matters: impress your customers no matter where they are

Many companies optimize their web pages for computer users, but it’s important to remember that that’s not the only way people surf the web these days. In fact, according to Kissmetrics, most people are more likely to surf the web through a mobile device–either a smart phone or tablet–than at their own PC or laptop. Consider this:... Read More

How auto shops use Twitter (and how you can do it better)

There are several ways you can use Twitter to attract and keep customers, improve your bottom line and make your other social media feeds and advertising dollars work more efficiently for you. You certainly don’t want to use Twitter as a base for your social media advertising or presence—you need your own website, Facebook page,... Read More

Six customer retention strategies

Ben Franklin once said: A penny saved is a penny earned. The same applies to customer: keeping them is just like earning them. You know how important customer retention is, but here are a few things to consider: According to the Harvard Business School, increasing customer retention rates by five percent increases profits by 25... Read More

How to build relationships and retain customers

Attracting customers is only half the battle. Once you win them over, you have to keep them and that isn’t easy. With a little perseverance and some proactive thinking, you can keep your customers by reminding them what brought them through your doors to begin with—superior customer service. Before we get to some tips about... Read More

Marketing ideas for auto shops: earn their trust to earn their business

Auto repair shops are unique in the business world because, more often than not, in order to earn new business they have to do something their retail counter parts don’t have to do: earn the trust of prospective clients. It’s not as simple as opening your doors, throwing up a sign and announcing your hours... Read More

Why is text marketing so important?

Short message service (SMS) or text message marketing has advantages over other types of direct marketing. It’s fast, it’s cheap and it’s effective. It also encourages interaction between your brand and your consumers and, for that reason alone, it’s increasing in popularity. There are about 4.55 billion people worldwide that regularly use mobile phones, and... Read More

Where should you put your online advertising dollars?

One of the most important decisions you’ll make as a business owner is where to put your advertising dollars. It’s often the most frustrating, too, because it can be difficult to track the return on your investment (ROI) and, with all the various forms of marketing out there and the number of places available out... Read More