Advertising

S

samiam513

New member
I am trying to find new, creative ways to advertise. I have flier's business cards all over the town.



I need your help to boost my income!



My latest idea was to run a Christmas special. Have little green christmas tree cut outs printed with "10%off full detail" printed on them. Then Staple one on a flier, and also staple a business card to the flier and leave them at local pizza shops, and the like (of course asking first.)



Thoughts on this?



Any other ideas?
 
Leaving them at businesses is a good idea.



I have a few places that have my flyers up. I've gotten a few customers from them.



You could also stick some bumper stickers on their car and then leave a flyer that says, "Free bumper sticker removal with purchase of wax package"
 
I'm not a detailer, but I am self-employed. I have gotten some customers from my Yellow Pages listing (I know that isn't a quick solution). I have gotten a lot of customers from classified advertising.



I also get customers by handing out biz cards to my current clients and asking them to recommend me to friends.



This year I'm trying something new. I ordered 500 biz card sized calendars with a logo, my company name, phone number, and address. So far, people are reacting very favourably. They figure that these are useful. Since they are only good for less than a year, I'm pleased to give people twenty or so at a time.
 
* Yellow Pages

* Local newspaper ad

* Word of mouth (ask all family and friends hand out your biz cards)

* Direct mail... buy a list for your area. There are many different sources.

* Flyer stuffers in local newspaper

* Radio (if you live in a small town)

* Web page and pay-for-performance listing in overture.com

* Grocery store shopping carts

* Church bulletins

* Bus or commuter train advertising

* Billboards

* Sponsorship: golf, little league...

* Pay students to put your sign on their car

* Local town welcome wagon



How many more ideas would you like?
 
Carefully look at different types of advertising in your area. Do not waste money on high cost ads such as newspapers. You pay big bucks for a very short time period and no one saves old papers for the ads. If you are doing high end work you will also find thatvery few people willing to spend a few hundred dollars to clean their car are hunting for coupons. This is and always has been a luxury service, not a necessity. It is the first thing you can cut off when times get rough. The ones that can afford this or saved up to have it done look for recommendations and quality. I see complete details in town for $89.95 and see empty shops. We charge a minimum of $225.00 and go up and stay busy year round.

Yellow pages are the only paid advertising we do and word of mouth from satisfied customer does the rest. We have even had competitors recommend us if a vehicle come in they cannot handle. Another thing we do is sell gift certificates and donate 3 to 5 details each year to local charites. Mailing lists are costly and the return is usually less than 2%. Adding to someone's daily influ of junk mail does not make many friends. Your brochures left at businesses that gave you permission is a good tool. Look for an opportunity to cross market your service with theirs. Ask for business cards and brochures that you could pass out in return. One good source are local independent mechanical shops. If they have a good reputation and loyal customers, then they also get asked for their recommendations regarding other services on their car. We work with dozens of shops, insurance agents, body shops that are either to busy or do not have a detailing service of their own and many other good connections in a networking type of advertising. Hearing your name or the name of a business from another person has way more impact than anything you can pay for or print.
 
Here is the simplest, most cost effective way to do it:

-Hire some responsible local kids (try asking in a church or youth group) to place flyers promoting your biz under the windshield wiper of cars parked around town. Hit major traffic areas such as grocery stores, ballparks, bowling alleys, movie theatres, etc.

That'll get the job done, and your only costs will be only your copy costs at Kinkos and the $8 per hour per kid.

Cheers and good luck!

John
 
Intel486 said:
You could also stick some bumper stickers on their car and then leave a flyer that says, "Free bumper sticker removal with purchase of wax package"
Click to expand...

You do this to my car and I can guarantee what you'll get: not a new customer but an ENEMY FOR LIFE!!! :mad:

The people you want -- the people who recognize and will pay for a high-quality job -- probably are not the people who want tacky little opinions stuck on their bumpers.



Can you tell this one hit a nerve?
 
I totally disagree with jcattarulla. Most parking lots are private property and posted with signs stating "no posting". I know businesses that had to race back and take them off all the cars or get a ticket and a fine for doing this. Do any of you want some kid messing with your car? How annoying is it when you come out of a store and find unsolicited junk stuck under your wiper. You immediately look around hoping to see who did it and want to yell at them or make them take it off. DO NOT MAKE ENEMIES INSTEAD OF CUSTOMERS!!! If the kids had no idea about posting rules you are putting them at risk. All the places mentioned woould have rules regarding this and most will say absolutely not.
 
I tell you, I don't understand this at all: paying people to stick your flyer under windshield wipers... Who are you trying to attract with a detailing business? Probably people who care about their car. Why would you think that this target audience would respond favorably to some stranger prying up their wiper blade and cramming some ad under it (which they then have to deal with disposing of).



That is one of those things that really pisses me off. I'd be more likely to go to the business being advertised and burn the place down than to pay them for a service. Clearly there isn't much chance I'd commit such a criminal act over a piece of paper, so imagine how low the odds are that the business in question would ever get one cent of my money...
 
If you are so violent that you would threaten kids and burn places down you are probably not a customer that anyone would want.

But I understand your concerns over my proposed method.
 
I promise not to burn down villages or pummel children. At least you undersstand that most folks feel their vehicle is very private and do not want it touched without permission.
 
Lynn said:
You do this to my car and I can guarantee what you'll get: not a new customer but an ENEMY FOR LIFE!!! :mad:

The people you want -- the people who recognize and will pay for a high-quality job -- probably are not the people who want tacky little opinions stuck on their bumpers.



Can you tell this one hit a nerve?
Click to expand...
I think he was joking.
 
Nagchampa said:
I think he was joking.
Click to expand...

:doh Uh-oh! Was I a dummy or what? But, actually, I have seen that tactic used, and it really burns me! Shoulda known, no Autopian would have made it as a serious suggestion. My bad.
 
Nagchampa said:
Donate a few washes to a church raffle or other fundraiser or local telethon.
Click to expand...



Don't forget schools!



I put flyers on cars when I first started out at DFW Airport and Dallas Love Field and got several customers, some of whom are still regulars. I wouldn't recommend this now, I didn't know I wasn't allowed to until a security guard saw me and told me I couldn't. Now with security being the way it is, they'd stop you in two seconds. After that, I concentrated on high end neighborhoods, but make sure you honor 'no solicitor' signs.



Definitely get into the Yellow Pages. I noticed a big increase when I first got in. I used to have a 3 line ad, but now I am just listed and still get a lot of calls because it is obvious from the name of my business I am mobile, so those looking for a mobile detailer know that is how I operate.



Once you get a solid customer base, you probably won't have to advertise. I haven't put out a flyer in over 6 years now. I just have a listing in the Yellow Pages and a sign on my car.



Doing a great job is the best advertising in the world because then your customers will sell you to their friends. You can tell when a new customer has been referred because they don't really ask any questions, they are ready to set up an appointment right off the bat.
 
jcattarulla said:
If you are so violent that you would threaten kids and burn places down you are probably not a customer that anyone would want.
Click to expand...



Don't take this the wrong way, but there was a whole paragraph there that made up the context of what I meant by that. Pulling one little snippet out and disregarding the context doesn't make for a very good counter-point. I think I made it rather clear that I'm not a violent person and there is basically no chance I would commit any sort of crime against a business just for sticking a flyer on my car. And this then illustrates how remote the even lower probability that I would ever use the business in question is.



Masterfinish put it well, though. My car is my property, and no one has a right to do things to it without my consent. You may not think a flyer is a big deal, but I do. And since it is my car, it's my values that apply to it. If you (the generic you, not you specifically jcattarulla) feel it's no big deal, then feel free to stick flyers on your property all you want. But your values don't apply to my property...
 
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