Advice on marketing new Friction wash, that is attended 6x/week

[soonermajic]

I just installed a new SoftGloss friction, right beside my OHD Touchless. I'd like to market the SoftGloss/Friction wash. I have 2 full-time preppers, that work hard & are busy most of the day.

You guys have any good ideas that are cheap to do? I live 45 miles from my wash & teach/coach full-time (Head bb coach & it's bb season). So, I can only go over on Wed nights & Sundays.

I was thinking about doing a "BOGO free".... Buy 1 wash get the 2nd wash free. How would be best to do this? Maybe also have the customers give us a "like" on the FaceBook...? I have put a feather flag out front, & that is the only marketing I've done, so far

I'm all ears....

 

[bert79]

Facebook advertising has been absolutely the best thing we have done so far. If you havent tried this already, this is something to pursue. Basically can choose your market (including a radius) AND you can choose how much you want to spend. We spent $200 on the last “boosted post” and reached over 20,000 people. Approximately 15k people watched our ad video for 10 seconds or more. FB has cery good analytics to show you how effective the ad has been.

 

[soonermajic]

I don't have the FaceBook, but my wife does. Is that $200/yr or per month, or what? Do we need a business FaceBook page, or just the one she has our family on?

What does "Boosted post" mean?

 

[bert79]

I have a personal fb and i set up and a business page for the wash. It is free to set up a page and post pics and videos of what u have to offer. After u set up a business page you can make a “post”. The people who “follow” your page can see what you post (text, pics or video). When posting fb will offer u the opportunity to “boost” the post which basically means that fb will take your post and send it out to the facebook of a demographic u select. I selected a 3 mile radius for one post and a 5 mile radius for another. The $200 got us a 14 day ad which reached 20k people and got a lot of feedback (comments and likes). In my opinion FB is an absolute MUST for a car wash, especially if you have something new to offer. If you have any more questions i would be happy to help out. You can check out our page if you’d like. Just search Suds Auto Wash Muskegon Michigan. Feel free to call too 616-six 44-zero one nine one.

 

[dukeofsuds]

Congrats on the new friction machine.
My first comment is to keep it as simple as possible. I think the BOGO stuff is too hard. Here's what I seen, and what I plan to do with my new conveyor in the future.

1. For a week offer it as free. You might be tempted to do this for a day, but the power of this is the word of mouth that can get their friends to tell their friends and make it there in time to get a free wash too. You can have a sign there that says "tell your friends on Facebook" (and have a Facebook page if you do this). Also, try to get free PR from radio, newspaper or other civic groups in the area.
2. For a week (or a second week if you do free), then offer washes at 50% off. All day long, all night long. Again, for a week. You'll still get buzz, and get the people who finally got around to getting their "free" wash their friends told them about. You won't get PR like #1. This might work best for you because you have a touchless right next to it, and it might be ignored with #1 -- not sure of the economics of how much it would take for a touchfree customer to put their car in brushes. Interesting science experiment!
3. Do facebook with a twist, not just a regular ad. Here's what I do for an existing wash, but works anytime -- every fall, spring, winter, summer I give away 13 washes to a lucky person. All they have to do is enter to submit a comment and like the page. Coupled with a boosted (aka paid) post, you will go viral. I am in a town of 3500, and get 1600 views about my contest and 400 entries every time. Use a facebook random contest winner website (google it) and pick a winner. I like this option least for a new wash because it doesn't get the experience. It gets people to know you have a new wash, but doesn't get people to try it.

Anyway, I'd do all 3 if you can afford it. We have a lot of luck with Facebook, but I wouldn't pay $200 on Facebook, tho to boost a single post. Give away value (the car washes are cheaper than the Facebook ad rates) and you'll get the same effect. You just need to ask people to share with their facebook friends. The #3 contest will get by with $50 of boosts tops, less if you have an established Facebook page (you don't). I pay about $20 to boost this post, myself.

Also, I used this promotion to get to about 1300 likes in a town of 3500. I give away $3 off coupons on this site too, so people subscribe for that.

BOGO good idea, but too complicated. Especially if your preppers are busy. Plus they'll pay full price to experience your wash the first time, which means your hurdle is still there. Getting them to give you a like at the car wash is probably too complicated too. You can ask, and hopefully they do it in the bay while fiddling with their phone during the wash, but it's not likely.

PS. When you set up your free business facebook page, make sure you stock it with likes before you do much with it. The best way is to ask all your personal friends.

Good luck!

 

[MEP001]

You don't have to "do the Facebook" to use it for advertising. You can add it under her account if she's going to manage it for you, or you can create one under your own name and just set it to private, then create a business account to manage.

You can choose how much you want to pay. I can set it as low as $5 a month, which doesn't do much more than put your business name and thumbnail image on people's feeds (so make it a good thumbnail). I tried for a month at $5 and got some 300 likes, and when someone likes it it shows on all their friends' pages so it proliferates well.

 

[dukeofsuds]

d when someone likes it it shows on all their friends' pages so it proliferates well.

IMHO that's where the power of Facebook comes from. If you can get a comment on a post (not just a like) it will show up on all of that person's friends wall.

Facebook algorithms are best with comments. So anything you can do even simply asking a question will drive the comments up, which then shows it to all of that person's friends. A contest drives comments. A question like "do you prefer touch free or friction" drives comments. Even "who will win the SuperBowl?"

There's overlap, but say that one person has 300 friends, and that person has 300 friends. And you posted a contest with comments, and you get 400 comments (my average on contests). Then you'd have a theoretical maximum of 12000 accounts that see what you original posted.

The theoretical max isn't reached. What brings it down are 1) no one reads everything on their facebook wall, and 2) friends have overlap with other friends. But you get the idea of the power of the exponential math.

 

[Rfreeman]

Sooner,

When I installed my softgloss a few years back I ran free washes and advertised them on the road sign and with feather flags....gave me great results been thinking about doing a customer appreciation and doing it again...good luck!

 

[tdlconceptsllc]

Nothing beats the power of free washes for a week straight nothing. 8am-6pm. Or just 3 days Friday,Saturday,Sunday when there's cars lined up in the road for 3 days word gets out across the entire town overnight. I haven't seen nothing yet that attracts people to a carwash more strongly, unless you had a topless wash or something lol. Or $1.00 washes for several days. So what if it cost 2 grand in expenses I don't know how else you could take that money and advertise so strongly where people actually try it and see results also you get to put your new equipment to the test and if you see any glitches it will show under washing cars like that. (Your friction wash aint even going to use that much chemical & water to give them away anyways)

 

[wgwagg]

We have done a radio remote several times with great success. Radio station advertises it the week leading up and they come the day of and spend a half day broadcasting live from the wash. We usually couple that with a $5 for any wash deal to help give customers value and a reason to show up, plus it lets them experience your top package. Always try to give them a coupon for $3 off their next visit and a free air freshener while they’re there. Also have done some extensive Facebook promotion, some paid and some not, with mixed results. Facebook advertising is so cheap and easy any results are worth it. Radio always seems to get people through the door for us though, and the $5 for any wash usually generates enough income to pay for the radio remote.

 

[carwashireland]

Interesting Idea! A week of free washes sounds like a great plan based off your experience! Cheaper than most other marketing plans with guaranteed customers trying it out! I like it!

 

[soonermajic]

You guys have a LOT of great ideas.

I might add, I have almost no competition. There is 1 other old Belanger Vector in town. But it does a very avg job.

 

[dukeofsuds]

No competition is interesting (and awesome), but I'd still stand behind my advice. Your competition isn't just the guy down the street, but includes alternatives. One alternative is to continue to do what people in that area may be doing -- which isn't getting a car wash at all OR washing at home. You need to get them to re-appreciate a new option now available to them -- a good car wash.

Thus, the free week would change people's habits, attitudes, etc. And there's no way to do that faster than with a free week. You'll get the area buzz, and you'll get a lot of good will.

Also, you can consider getting a charity involved in the free wash week and get other good will that way, too. Have a jar or something at the end. That makes it more complicated, but maybe that appeals to you too.

 

[cap732000]

Coach, all of these ideas are good only thing as you are very aware I know your area very well the comments things I’d prefer them not be able to post comments because there is always that one that is irrational and blow you up about how it’s a rip off or a crook or something like that because something they didn’t like. Unfortunately in our areas it happens all to often and gives a bad taste in people’s mouths or at least it feels that way. I like constructive criticism but some is anything but a trash to your brand and business.

 

[soonermajic]

I can't try anything til Spring Break, so gonna give it a G0 then. Thanks 4 all the advice