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Survey results for Start-Up-Time-Price Across the Country

I found a Canadian quarter in my pocket the other day, almost handed it to a customer who was trading me a bunch of nickels and dimes for a quarter. Fortunately we don't see a lot of Canadian coins in Texas.
 
bays are $0.25 startup, 40 secs per
vacs are $0.75 startup, 3 minutes

wanting to go to 30 secs per quarter on the bays, am waiting a month or so when I upgrade signage and bay equipment

Lubbock, Tx
 
One wash is $1.50 for 4 minutes for the last 8 years.
The other wash is $1.00 for 2 minutes plus bonus time of 14 minutes for $5.00
Vacs $1.00 for 4 minutes.
 
Buzzers are a hazard to our business. Coins also are a hazard in that their use cause the customer to hurry and get as much done without having to put in the next coin. Why are we punishing our customers and our business with buzzers and coins when we can offer credit or fleet card use that allow a customer to leisurely wash for as much or little time that they require? I pay on average about 5.6% in merchant service fees. I think it's well worth it. The funds are automatically deposited in the bank. It decreases vandalism and pilferage and offers many advantages.
Disconnecting the buzzer may not be as effective as evolving into total credit card use. The use of the coin is the larger culprit. Think about it.
 
I think buzzers are fine, actually helpful. It's better for my business, long term, if a buzzer makes a customer hurry the rinse process as opposed to being surprised by the water shutting off and then driving out with soap still on the vehicle. The buzzers help with that.

CC acceptance is obviously beneficial, but it's a substantial cost to put it in all of the bays and that cost takes years to recoup.

I added a credit-card-to-token machine (along with another bill changer.) While it isn't as beneficial as accepting credit cards in the bays, it does allow CC usage for much less cost than the alternative. Plus it makes them walk over and stand right next to the vending machine as that is where I installed the credit-card-to-token machine.
 
Our customers like the buzzer. I suspect blurdgman doesn't like them since he can't get another full start-up from them when they deposit two coins before time expires.

I don't see them as "a hazard to our business" at all, in fact I've seen and heard many times where customers will migrate to upgraded bays or newer washes because they like seeing the time remaining.

I also tend to avoid such opinions as "Buzzers are a hazard to our business" when they are stated as if they're factual.
 
To MEP001:
What is the average amount spent for a wash by your customers who enjoy the buzzer? Our in bay credit card spenders pay on average $4.60 at one of our locations and $6.70 at another and they don't hear a buzzer. Our cost is $2 startup for 210 seconds. I suspect that our coin customers spend about $3 or $4 per wash. Do these figures make you rethink whether the cost of in bay terminals are worth it?
 
blurdgman said:
Do these figures make you rethink whether the cost of in bay terminals are worth it?
I don't know where you get that from. We have in-bay credit card acceptors.

On Monday I took a counter read to start, and next Monday I'll read it again. I'm using the surveillance video to count the actual cars getting washed so I can get a true number of how much cash customers are spending.
 
I don't know where you get that from. We have in-bay credit card acceptors.

On Monday I took a counter read to start, and next Monday I'll read it again. I'm using the surveillance video to count the actual cars getting washed so I can get a true number of how much cash customers are spending.
MEP001:
Don't you get the total money spent and the number of washes on your software?
Our in bay CC system is Washgear and the software tallies up everything daily.
 
blurdgman said:
Don't you get the total money spent and the number of washes on your software?
It gives me cycles, but can't account for someone letting the time run out and adding more money. Without taking that into account I can't get an accurate number of what people spend per car. Ben's Car Wash has posted that his credit card customers spend 250% more than cash, which is an inaccurate claim since his system accounts by start-up as well, and I'd like to see a better number. I'd probably get a similar number if I only counted cycles.
 
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