Marketing for bodyshops.

Let customers see who you are.

Spies Hecker simply closer

The outward appearance says a lot about the business.

But what is marketing?

This brochure deals with the concept and significance of marketing. We often read and hear the term, but hardly anyone really knows what marketing means. For most owners of bodyshops, marketing is simply another word for advertising. However, this doesnt do the term justice, for marketing is much more than just advertising. The best advertising is personal recommendation everything else costs money. The fact that this view is a widely held view doesnt make it any more accurate. There can be no doubt that personal recommendation is one of the best and least expensive forms of advertising, but it is still just one of many. The importance of marketing for businesses has increased strongly over the last few years.
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At one time, bodyshops were merely concerned with boosting their awareness amongst customers, e.g. with advertising in the phone directory. Today, marketing activities cover the entire spectrum of business presentation. This includes the interior and exterior appearance, the services provided, pricing, i.e. the business positioning itself as the price leader or in the low-price segment, and finally the entire range of outward communication

These activities are undoubtedly the key aspect of marketing. It also encompasses things that arent automatically associated with marketing: Attracting new customers Encouraging customer loyalty The right placement of articles in the press Effective public relations, e.g. articles in the regional paper Uniform presentation of the business, from the colour scheme through to work clothes. All this is marketing! Putting effective marketing into practice in ones own business means two things: Not only selling the demanded services at realistic prices in ones own catchment area, but also stimulating future demand among customers. And best of all in such a way that your customers are satisfied and are happy to come back.

You therefore need to ask the following questions: a. What do I need to do to encourage the customer to come specifically to me and not to the competition? b. How can I distinguish myself and set myself apart from the other bodyshops? In the following, we would like to to introduce you to the most important fields of marketing in the refinishing sector, give you tips and outline proven methods so that you can present your business and your services in a professional way. You should always have one overriding goal: Whenever it comes to accidents or damaged bodywork or paintwork, your commercial and private customers should always think of your business first best of all, as a kind of reflex. When youve achieved that, youll know that youve got your marketing right!
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The Spies Hecker service systems support their members with the design of their advertising.

1. The key uses of marketing for bodyshops.

Tip: Rather than do a DIY job on your advertising, entrust the task to a specialist (advertising agency or graphic designer). You can always tell whether an ad is homespun, as it usually looks unprofessional and ultimately does the business a disservice.

1.1 Advertising. Most advertising activities in the refinishing sector are focused on advertisements in the phone directory/Yellow Pages, daily papers and giveaway papers and on flyers. Entries in the phone book and Yellow Pages certainly still make sense so that potential customers can find your phone number and address. Nowadays, this is joined by the business own homepage on the Internet. Analyses show that more and more customers obtain information via the Internet. You should therefore present yourself here with pictures of your business, with the range of services that you provide, warranties and a map showing how to get to you. Also make sure that you can also be found with the aid of search engines, e.g. Google. When your

name and town are entered, your business should be prominent among the documents found. Most customers search the Internet with the aid of search engines. With advertisements in daily papers and giveaway papers, you can certainly reach a lot of potential customers, but you always have a lot of waste coverage, i.e. the vast majority of readers dont even notice the advertisement. This is why the design, placement and timing of advertisements are crucial for their success or failure.

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1.2 Catchment area analysis. Your aim should be to gain precise knowledge of the distribution of customers in your catchment area, pinpoint untapped potential and identify the actual boundaries of your catchment area. If you then examine the area covered by your advertising, you will be able to tell immediately whether your advertising budget has been well spent or wasted on areas that havent supplied a customer for years. You can actually investigate the targeting of your advertising for the first time and make much more efficient use of your advertising budget. The most effective way of analysing your catchment area is to evaluate your sales by post code areas. This way you will not only determine the precise extent of your

catchment area, but also find out where most of your customers come from and where there is room for improvement. You can then target these areas with advertisements and flyers. Tip: Many business computer programs support catchment area analysis. Predefined evaluations based on sales and post code can often be simply generated at the stroke of a key.

The analysis of the catchment area shows where you can make the most effective use of your outlay on advertising.

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Use of press relations is a highly inexpensive form of advertising and should never be excluded from your marketing plan.

Tip: An article combined with an ad on the same page can achieve a pretty high attention rating. Your business can also make a name for itself at the same time. In some areas you can even mobilize local radio stations. Phone the station to find out the journalist responsible.

1.3 Public Relations (PR). Public Relations covers such things as reports on the business in magazines and newspapers. These usually coincide with a special occasion, such as an Open Day, a building extension or the addition of a new service such as suspension alignment etc. New painting techniques or materials are also just as good as reasons for an article in a newspaper. PR articles are an excellent marketing tool for giving yourself a good reputation and an attractive profile with the aid of positive reporting. PR is also free of charge.

By using rear-view mirror hangers, you can ask the customer whether he is satisfied with the repair.

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Leasing companies

Private customers

Target groups Commercial fleet operators Vehicle dealerships

Eye-catching finishes achieve a high attention rating.

Insurance customers

1.4 Customer group analyses. If you are considering active marketing for your business, youll soon arrive at an important question: Which customers or customer groups should I target with my marketing activities? For your various customer groups (e.g. private customers who pay out of their own pocket, insurance, dealership and commercial fleet customers), you need different marketing tools to draw their attention to you. For a private customer, the price may well be the decisive factor, while the dealership is mainly interested in the quality of the work, and commercial customers attach most importance to your service and flexibility.

Whats important is not only the requirements of the customer groups, but also their economic importance for your business. Which customers generate high revenue, and which are hardly worth the effort? In this connection, also bear in mind the periods for payment and discounts that you have to grant your various customers. Before you examine the various marketing tools for different customer groups, you must first set priorities. The decisive question is: With which customers do you want to generate more sales in the next three to five years? You can then adjust your budget and the intensity of your marketing activities accordingly.

Tip: With precisely tailored services such as a pickup and drop-off service, a courtesy car and the warranty services pledged for the work done, you can tap into huge customer potential.

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For commercial customers and dealerships, active marketing is advisable in the form of direct mailing and face-to-face meetings.

1.5 Attracting commercial customers. The best way to attract commercial customers is with face-to-face meetings. This is all the more necessary as competition intensifies. However, the obstacle that you have to overcome is that of leaving your home patch and advertising your services on foreign soil to men in suits who are often highly skilled negotiators. Many bodyshop owners are reluctanat to take this step. First of all, we recommend setting priorities. These can be based on the fleet size and the distance, for example. Once you have identified the various customers, it is advisable to proceed as follows:
Fleet operators and leasing companies are attractive potential customers.

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Tip: The Spies Hecker service systems provide seminars especially for attracting commercial customers. Anyone can hold such talks! You just need a bit of practice and a professional who can give you a few tips. Dont forget to review the meeting afterwards. You should send the customer a specific offer a few days later. Summarize the main points of the meeting and agree specifically on the next steps, i.e. who does what and when. A useful idea is to invite all the insurance agents in your catchment area to your business. Tell them about your services and professional approach. Experience shows that such personal contact can work wonders. However, it is important not only to send out the invitations, but also to follow them up with a phone call, otherwise only a few potential customers will actually turn up.

a. Send out an image brochure. Present yourself and your services and give advance notice of your phone call in the next few days to make an appointment with the person in charge of the fleet. Dont forget to enclose a business card. b. Ring up the fleet owner to arrange a meeting. This call should be made about a week after sending out the brochure, and you should always refer to this. c. Successfully making an appointment is followed by the most important part: The face-to-face meeting to sell your services and attract customers.

The make-or-break factor for such a meeting is preparation. Never go to the customer unprepared. Go through your own arguments, consider possible objections and be ready to counter them. The most important thing during such meetings is to ask the right questions, listen attentively and, above all, always be yourself.

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The marketing plan helps you to plan and implement the various marketing activities better.

2. Check list and priorities for marketing activities in your business.

As you can see, marketing is at home in almost all areas of the business. There are many different tools and applications. Without a marketing plan in which you decide on priorities, activities, responsibilities and a timetable to coordinate all the activities, many things will simply fizzle out in day-today operations. 1. Decide first of all which marketing activities are most suitable and most effective for which customer groups. 2. Then set the priority for each activity. This should be based on the economic importance of the customer group and/or possible strategic potential. 3. Precisely define responsibilities and areas of competence. Who does what, what can be delegated and what do you have to do yourself? 4. Plan the periods and intervals for the various activities. Take account here of external circumstances such as holiday periods and other seasonal and regional influences. 5. Dont forget to monitor your marketing activities. Are your preparations on schedule? Have you generated more sales due to the activities with the customer group or in the particular post code area?

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Good marketing starts with a motivated workforce. A positive attitude to the business is one of the most important prerequisites for efficient customer service.

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Spies Hecker DuPont Performance Coatings (UK) Ltd Wedgwood Way Stevenage, Herts, SG1 4QN Tel. + 44 (0) 1438 734727 Fax: + 44 (0) 1438 734730 enquiries@spieshecker.co.uk www.spieshecker.co.uk Barloworld Automotive Coatings PO Box 136178 Alberton North 1456 Johannesburg Tel. + 27 (0) 11 861 0300 Fax: + 27 (0) 11 907 8858 www.spieshecker.co.za

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