Best ways to get your business out there quickly and affodably

PERFECTIONPLUS

PERFECTIONPLUS

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So im sure most of know word of mouth is the best form of advertising,but in order to get this , first you have to get people to come to your business and purchase your service. Here are some things as a new business owner i plan on doing to get my name out there quickly and affordably. My total advertising budget for this is 500.00 .

(1) Go to all of my local auto body/ parts/ repair / dealers and introduce myself and my services. Ask if i can leave some business cards and some menus of my services with them on there counter in a stand up display.Talk to dealers about detailing for them at a discount rate. Offer a free wash n vac for letting me advertise at there business.

(2) In my area I have strategically picked some locations where people frequent with nicer than average cars and have some money. i.e. (golf courses, resorts , etc). Same as above applies with these places.

(3) Offer a 10% discount to all hospital staff , emergency services , seniors and military. Advertise this in my menus as well as stop by these places and let them know of my services and that we appreciate them for there services . Leave some business cards and menus and ask if they can be put up in there break room.

(4) Talk to all of the small businesses owners in my area and let them know of my services. Most of my clientele now own there own business and simply do not have time to take care of there vehicles and with a pick up and delivery service its so convenient for them they simply love the convenience factor
Also realtors they love clean cars .

(5) Social Media = Facebook,website and Craigslist , I plan to have specials just for these outlets and also a drawing for a free detail on face book for liking my business page with two catches (1) winner must review me on yelp.com as well as my website and facebook (2) winner must allow me to post pics of there vehicles before and after on same social media sites.

Thats my plan so far peeps, any all other ideas, suggestions are greatly appreciated!!! P.S. sorry for the lengthy postFeed back please
 
I like the idea of offering 10% to Hospital staff, seniors and so on. I think I will start that also.
 
Sounds like this is a full time gig for you and your plan sounds well thought out. I just started out and right out of the gate Facebook has worked out well. So well that I'm having my wife hold off on publishing my full website just yet. I have 2 cars to do tommrow. One I need to get done one day next week. And just picked up a BMW owner that has four vans a the business he owns. Facebook is nice. Because you can instally post Jobs you finished. Also ask your customer to post a quick photo of their comPleted car with a quick review of how you did along with a link to your Facebook page. Youd be surprised how well this works and gets your name out there and really gets people talking. Best part you spend $0 of your advertising budget. My goal is to get to 100 Facebook likes by the end of the month. Just that business will keep me busy. For me this is only a part time gig.
 
you being a new business, from what you list there 1-5 it will not be quick at all. you may get 3 washes but that will not cover the 500 expenses you have.


here is why:
- body/ parts/ repair / dealers , if you plan work for them u better have some help , and be ready to swallow ( read: profit as volume on long run , on moment cheap work and extra time ) and "detailing for them at a discount rate" good luck with that , your business already loose
- "people frequent with nicer than average cars and have some money" , you will soon learn that if someone has a nice /expensive car dosn`t mean he needs your service, or he cars about it.
- "Offer a 10% discount" that is not enough , when you just start. plus you may end up with beat-up cars and trash ones that will take you extra time on your 10off discount.
- "a pick up and delivery service its so convenient " u better have a good insurance if you plan do that .. also time consuming.
- Social Media may work , depends of you service and your market.

i have nothing personal with you , don`t know your skill level , or your background, my answers are from my own experience.
i think you should read more about marketing and business ...
you have to invest , 5 $ and visit few"friends " business will not run your business , it may pay your bills month to month , if...
Cosmin
 
rustytruck said:
Sounds like this is a full time gig for you and your plan sounds well thought out. I just started out and right out of the gate Facebook has worked out well. So well that I'm having my wife hold off on publishing my full website just yet. I have 2 cars to do tommrow. One I need to get done one day next week. And just picked up a BMW owner that has four vans a the business he owns. Facebook is nice. Because you can instally post Jobs you finished. Also ask your customer to post a quick photo of their comPleted car with a quick review of how you did along with a link to your Facebook page. Youd be surprised how well this works and gets your name out there and really gets people talking. Best part you spend $0 of your advertising budget. My goal is to get to 100 Facebook likes by the end of the month. Just that business will keep me busy. For me this is only a part time gig.
Click to expand...

I actually havent had any luck on facebook page so far, but im sure it will pay off eventually and its free plus like you said you can instantly show off your before and afters. i like the customer reviews i think i will start implementing that .
 
Cosmin said:
you being a new business, from what you list there 1-5 it will not be quick at all. you may get 3 washes but that will not cover the 500 expenses you have.


here is why:
- body/ parts/ repair / dealers , if you plan work for them u better have some help , and be ready to swallow ( read: profit as volume on long run , on moment cheap work and extra time ) and "detailing for them at a discount rate" good luck with that , your business already loose
- "people frequent with nicer than average cars and have some money" , you will soon learn that if someone has a nice /expensive car dosn`t mean he needs your service, or he cars about it.
- "Offer a 10% discount" that is not enough , when you just start. plus you may end up with beat-up cars and trash ones that will take you extra time on your 10off discount.
- "a pick up and delivery service its so convenient " u better have a good insurance if you plan do that .. also time consuming.
- Social Media may work , depends of you service and your market.

i have nothing personal with you , don`t know your skill level , or your background, my answers are from my own experience.
i think you should read more about marketing and business ...
you have to invest , 5 $ and visit few"friends " business will not run your business , it may pay your bills month to month , if...
Cosmin
Click to expand...

First let me say this is nothing personal towards you either, i appreciate your opinion. I might have a new business but im not " new " to this business. I get what your saying about working for dealers / body shops, ive done volume detailing before and know of what you speak. I look at this way ; The dealers in my area pay 100.00 -125.00per detail to the other shops . I can do them for 90.00-120.00 per vehicle due to my low overhead. I do have help if need but these are not huge dealerships im speaking of , they are potlots and probably have 2-3 per week each.

I think the 10% discount is a great value to these public servants , my services will already be cheaper than my competitors and they get an additional 10% as our way of showing our appreciation for the community. Insurance coverage i got as well. I dont EXPECT people to need my services at all but it doesnt hurt to plant a seed where one is hanging out. I know that this alone will not run my business as i stated this is my starting point. I study marketing/business/sales like you would not believe , thats 80% if not more of this business. What other suggestions might you have ? I have more than 500.00 to use if needed . My overhead is roughly 500.00 per month so i should be able to cover that along with my personal expenses . I have been planning this for over five years , ive studied my competitors , done my market research , talked to everyone and there brother about business. Ive been the manager at 3 different shops over a 15 year period. I take your opinion and respect it but i think this is a good building block to get off the ground. Like i said before if you have some other helpful marketing strategies you would like to suggest im all ears. Feed back please
 
Cosmin, Seen you feel all 5 of his ideas are bad how would you spend his $500 start up advertising budget. Radio TV any large regional newspaper would all cost much more than he has to spend. Why don't you add to the conversation with some good ideas. I would like for you to share what you think could work.
 
I understand everyone's concern about being cheaper to get more business but its only going to cause grief. Forget about being cheap.
For the most part, the people you really want as a client, think if you are cheaper you probably aren't as good.
That's just reality.

Don't ever offer a discount. Its business suicide and de-values your service ... its far better to 'Add Value' - this way the client gets to experience another service he/she may want in the future.
Perhaps a free clay OR tyre shine?
The 'hard dollar cost' is a lot less than discounting.

Its certainly good to take into account what others charge, but consider what kind of 'overall buying experience' you will be offering to your clients.
The shiny car at the end isn't always what dictates customer satisfaction.
e.g - i do all my billing online (for regular clients) . I find people tend not to keep cash on them as much any more and it can be inconvenient. I email them their invoices and they pay into my account.
Its a convenience that my clients love & its 'one' of the reasons i charge 10-15% above my market. Emailing also is another opportunity to put your brand in front of them, ask them to check out pictures of their detail on your website or facebook.
Learn to take good pictures. Place your brand on the picture ... when they 'like it' their friends will see it and know where to go.
Then use facebook as your marketing tool ...
Make a couple of small videos on 'what' you do and 'how' it will benefit the client.
It builds trust when people can see you & relate.
People will also pay a premium if you dress nicely, turn up on time (time is money), are polite & honest .. you get the idea? Think image ....

I would forget about business cards and all the fluff. The modern day business card is the phone.
If i were you id rather get some 'really really nice glossy flyers' for the same money.
Just from a flyer you can make it obvious you are 'different'. How?
A thick card, glossy, textured, with a Gold Foil & a perforated edge that tears off as a referral slip. (just an idea)
It will stink of quality ... you know the calls you get aren't going to be concerned so much about price because you already relayed that 'image' from the outset.
Leave them with people who are 'image conscious' - Your local hair dresser, accountant, law firms, real estate professionals. They are all members of a wider community which thrive on referrals also.

I'd put off the commercial side of it - chances are you will have to carry some form of credit line with them ... 7,14,30 days?

You said your doing this part time or perhaps its full time and you are the only person? Use that to your advantage ... to some extent that makes your services 'exclusive'. Figure out hot to market that exclusivity and people will pay for it.
Just make sure you know how to create a 'whole experience' to customers. My exclusivity comes from referrals ... if you aren't referred ... i'm not doing business with you.
Of course there are exceptions to the rule, you can make this a positive and make them feel 'special' that you have broken your golden rule to bring them into your circle.

Did i mention don't discount? ;)

Best of Luck!!:dblthumb2:
 
The 1st 3 years of me being in business I did not spend one red cent on advertising, it was all word of mouth. I feel very strongly that if you provide outstanding service and your customers are happy with the result they will do your advertising for you. Good luck!
 
Paul Lonergan said:
I understand everyone's concern about being cheaper to get more business but its only going to cause grief. Forget about being cheap.
For the most part, the people you really want as a client, think if you are cheaper you probably aren't as good.
That's just reality.

Don't ever offer a discount. Its business suicide and de-values your service ... its far better to 'Add Value' - this way the client gets to experience another service he/she may want in the future.
Perhaps a free clay OR tyre shine?
The 'hard dollar cost' is a lot less than discounting.

Its certainly good to take into account what others charge, but consider what kind of 'overall buying experience' you will be offering to your clients.
The shiny car at the end isn't always what dictates customer satisfaction.
e.g - i do all my billing online (for regular clients) . I find people tend not to keep cash on them as much any more and it can be inconvenient. I email them their invoices and they pay into my account.
Its a convenience that my clients love & its 'one' of the reasons i charge 10-15% above my market. Emailing also is another opportunity to put your brand in front of them, ask them to check out pictures of their detail on your website or facebook.
Learn to take good pictures. Place your brand on the picture ... when they 'like it' their friends will see it and know where to go.
Then use facebook as your marketing tool ...
Make a couple of small videos on 'what' you do and 'how' it will benefit the client.
It builds trust when people can see you & relate.
People will also pay a premium if you dress nicely, turn up on time (time is money), are polite & honest .. you get the idea? Think image ....

I would forget about business cards and all the fluff. The modern day business card is the phone.
If i were you id rather get some 'really really nice glossy flyers' for the same money.
Just from a flyer you can make it obvious you are 'different'. How?
A thick card, glossy, textured, with a Gold Foil & a perforated edge that tears off as a referral slip. (just an idea)
It will stink of quality ... you know the calls you get aren't going to be concerned so much about price because you already relayed that 'image' from the outset.
Leave them with people who are 'image conscious' - Your local hair dresser, accountant, law firms, real estate professionals. They are all members of a wider community which thrive on referrals also.

I'd put off the commercial side of it - chances are you will have to carry some form of credit line with them ... 7,14,30 days?

You said your doing this part time or perhaps its full time and you are the only person? Use that to your advantage ... to some extent that makes your services 'exclusive'. Figure out hot to market that exclusivity and people will pay for it.
Just make sure you know how to create a 'whole experience' to customers. My exclusivity comes from referrals ... if you aren't referred ... i'm not doing business with you.
Of course there are exceptions to the rule, you can make this a positive and make them feel 'special' that you have broken your golden rule to bring them into your circle.

Did i mention don't discount? ;)

Best of Luck!!:dblthumb2:
Click to expand...
.


GREAT ADVICE!!!! I get what your saying about not discounting but my thinking on it is that im a new business in town and none of the other shops advertise or offer any kind of specials or anything, so i wanted to separate myself from them by offering these things.Even with my 10% discount my services are only around 5.00 cheaper than my competitors. Im going to try to get out of the commercial stuff, but i think off the bat that is whats going to keep me afloat until i get some good referals coming in. I really like what you said about not going the business card route and just doing flyers maybe like 3x 5's or 5x6's with a nice finish . I was reading about image conscious people as well and was actually planning on doing that to. I do try to add value as well in not only my ads by giving free claybar or free bottle of spray wax (ill explain if you need me to )costs me about 1.00 to do this. I am doing this full time.
 
PERFECTIONPLUS said:
.I do try to add value as well in not only my ads by giving free claybar or free bottle of spray wax (ill explain if you need me to )costs me about 1.00 to do this. I am doing this full time.
Click to expand...

You have some good ideas and were given pearls of wisdom as well. You seem to be pretty bright and I know you will take heed of some of the advise you have been given.

This statement I pulled from your last comment worries me though. I might need some explanation (as you mentioned) because to me it looks like you are considering the monetary value of the clay/wax and not the sweat-equity involved with these free services. Furthermore, and I could be wrong with this, I think you missed the point about adding value.

What I think the member meant by "adding value" is to show the customer the difference between you and the competition. Show them your dedication to detail (no pun intended) and the extra effort you put in to making sure the customer is happy. Heck, mention that when you vacuum you make patterns in the carpet to add that extra touch, whatever. I think thats really what was implied, everyone can charge the same amount as you and it does not matter. The person with the best service, that can sell themselves the best will win. By adding "free stuff" actually decreases your "value" because now you are a "budget detailer".

I think too hard into things and tend to over analyze anything and everything. However, as others have mentioned, the worst thing you want to do is start off on the wrong foot. Statistics are a nasty thing to look at for new businesses the first year, over zealous, over commitment, over investing, and poor business planning can absolutely destroy a new guy. Trust me... been there, done that. If I ever do again, I know better.
 
Tundra_10 said:
the worst thing you want to do is start off on the wrong foot. Statistics are a nasty thing to look at for new businesses the first year, over zealous, over commitment, over investing, and poor business planning can absolutely destroy a new guy.
Click to expand...

so right.


PERFECTIONPLUS , your ideas does not match your background (as study and work experience) , i think your start plan is weak.
i may be wrong and it may work are cars and market for all the services..
 
Cosmin knows what he's talking about when it comes to the detailing business. Voice of wisdom #Listen
 
PERFECTIONPLUS said:
So im sure most of know word of mouth is the best form of advertising,but in order to get this , first you have to get people to come to your business and purchase your service. Here are some things as a new business owner i plan on doing to get my name out there quickly and affordably. My total advertising budget for this is 500.00 .

(1) Go to all of my local auto body/ parts/ repair / dealers and introduce myself and my services. Ask if i can leave some business cards and some menus of my services with them on there counter in a stand up display.Talk to dealers about detailing for them at a discount rate. Offer a free wash n vac for letting me advertise at there business.

(2) In my area I have strategically picked some locations where people frequent with nicer than average cars and have some money. i.e. (golf courses, resorts , etc). Same as above applies with these places.

(3) Offer a 10% discount to all hospital staff , emergency services , seniors and military. Advertise this in my menus as well as stop by these places and let them know of my services and that we appreciate them for there services . Leave some business cards and menus and ask if they can be put up in there break room.

(4) Talk to all of the small businesses owners in my area and let them know of my services. Most of my clientele now own there own business and simply do not have time to take care of there vehicles and with a pick up and delivery service its so convenient for them they simply love the convenience factor
Also realtors they love clean cars .

(5) Social Media = Facebook,website and Craigslist , I plan to have specials just for these outlets and also a drawing for a free detail on face book for liking my business page with two catches (1) winner must review me on yelp.com as well as my website and facebook (2) winner must allow me to post pics of there vehicles before and after on same social media sites.

Thats my plan so far peeps, any all other ideas, suggestions are greatly appreciated!!! P.S. sorry for the lengthy postFeed back please
Click to expand...


From personal experience, introducing yourself is great but is extremely time consuming...... I have spent weeks getting out and about and still have only hit about 2% of my town lol.

Facebook has produced absolutely nothing in regards of business - but does produce a median to show work.

Craigslist has produced minimal responses for me - sure the one or two here and there, but honestly don't worry with it any more.

B & B has a budget of 200 a month for advertising which is currently being wasted with two companies promising wonders and producing garbage.... when these contracts are up I will happily spend that money for google ratings. Optimize your website if you have one, most random calls that I get come from the internet and Im not even close to being on the first page.

Word of mouth is EVERYTHING - has exploded our company.

I offer 10% off for everything and no one utilizes it at all - they don't know about it till I mention it lol..... not a selling point for 99% of people looking for a detail I think.

Again, these are all from my experience and may differ from yours or anybody elses.
 
I see many words of advice that are very good points so far but I wanted to add my own. Currently I only offer a discount to people in my local car club and their vehicles (which is only 10%). I do get business from them along with my usual random customers now and then but I will say this. Dont ever offer any discounts ever, it eats into your profit IMO. Once a customer is use to paying a certain price they will expect that price everytime, regardless of whether or not you offer it anymore. Sadly people only care about price now a days and dont care about quality.
 
Cosmin said:
so right.


PERFECTIONPLUS , your ideas does not match your background (as study and work experience) , i think your start plan is weak.
i may be wrong and it may work are cars and market for all the services..
Click to expand...


I agree with you that some of my ideas are weak and also see what your saying about adding value to the customers overall experience not just to the car but to the entire process. Could you elaborate more on some other ideas you might have used when you got into this business?Feed back please
 
Tundra_10 said:
You have some good ideas and were given pearls of wisdom as well. You seem to be pretty bright and I know you will take heed of some of the advise you have been given.

This statement I pulled from your last comment worries me though. I might need some explanation (as you mentioned) because to me it looks like you are considering the monetary value of the clay/wax and not the sweat-equity involved with these free services. Furthermore, and I could be wrong with this, I think you missed the point about adding value.

What I think the member meant by "adding value" is to show the customer the difference between you and the competition. Show them your dedication to detail (no pun intended) and the extra effort you put in to making sure the customer is happy. Heck, mention that when you vacuum you make patterns in the carpet to add that extra touch, whatever. I think thats really what was implied, everyone can charge the same amount as you and it does not matter. The person with the best service, that can sell themselves the best will win. By adding "free stuff" actually decreases your "value" because now you are a "budget detailer".

I think too hard into things and tend to over analyze anything and everything. However, as others have mentioned, the worst thing you want to do is start off on the wrong foot. Statistics are a nasty thing to look at for new businesses the first year, over zealous, over commitment, over investing, and poor business planning can absolutely destroy a new guy. Trust me... been there, done that. If I ever do again, I know better.
Click to expand...

This is very sound advice and much appreciated, i do plan on showing my dedication to detail to the customer once i have them in the door but i how do show them over the phone or on the internet? in my shop usually we show this kind of value when the customer comes to pick up there vehicle during the walk around by telling them of the exclsuive types of polish we used on there wheels that no one has , or how we had to spend some extra time on there vehicle to get that smell out. I guess i just dont understand the advertising part of showing this kind of value. Any help is greatly appreciated.
 
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