The new year is all about resolutions. Losing extra weight. Breaking bad habits. Saving more money. It’s the perfect time to evaluate your life and look for changes you want to make — and that includes changes and improvements in your business.
One of the most important things to take stock of in the new year, says Daniel Burkholder, owner of BodyShop Marketing, is your digital marketing strategy. Few things in your business have the kind of far-reaching ripple effects on your profitability and growth potential, he says, and there’s no better time to start than now.
As told to Lindsey Gainer
The first thing to consider is where you are and where you'd like to go over the next 12-24 months. We’re talking things like revenue, car count, the value of your average RO, efficiencies, sales closing ratios, customer experience, capture rate…everything.
In addition to thinking about your goals, ask yourself questions like:
Thinking through the answers to these questions is important to find a starting point for your digital marketing plan. A great marketing strategy takes time to build… six to 12 months, on average, so the sooner you start, the better.
If you’re plenty busy at the moment — say, for example, 90% of your work comes from DRPs and that’s the way you like it — you might not have much need for new business right this second. In that case, you may want to focus on building your shop’s brand recognition through social media and local SEO efforts — things that take time to build, but are hugely important in the long run.
An independent shop that needs more customers immediately, on the other hand, might want to consider paid advertising, which puts you front and center with potential customers actively searching for a repair shop now.
You’ve completed a thorough evaluation…now it’s time to plan. There are plenty of “tools in the digital marketing toolbox,” so to speak, and the ones that can bring you the best return are largely dependent on your unique goals and budget.
Here’s a high-level overview of different digital marketing options, and who they might work well for:
A shop with ambitious sales goals, for example, would likely want to utilize a combination of local SEO, PPC, and geofencing to reach as many people as possible. A shop that’s well-established and busy may just want to focus on one effort — like building their local SEO — to keep their shop ranking well in search.
And now for the question on everyone’s mind…how much will this cost you? Generally speaking, a shop’s recommended marketing budget can often be determined based on growth goals and a percentage of annual revenue:
Anywhere between $2K-$5K per month is a reasonable estimate — but this all depends on your goals, size, competition, and many other variables.
Depending on how much you want to do, digital marketing efforts can take up quite a bit of your valuable time. Many shops turn to professional services to help manage their marketing plans. But if you’re more of a DIYer, there are plenty of things you can do on your own, especially in the beginning as you get started.
5. Build a simple website — preferably on WordPress — and optimize it for your keyword phrases.
6. Get your shop's info onto as many free online directories as possible (making sure your name, address, and phone number are correct) — places like BBB, Yelp, Google, Apple maps, and YP (Yellow Pages). This helps with your local SEO strategy.
Finally, make sure all of this hard work is paying off by following up with every new lead and closing the sale. And don't give up too quickly; you’ll need to stick with these efforts long term to see results!
With consistent effort and a solid plan, you should gain traction and really start to see your efforts paying off in around six to 12 months. You should see more traffic to your website, and more sales and new customers coming into the shop. Be sure to track where every job comes from — ask all your customers how they’re finding you and make decisions on how to adjust your efforts based on their answers.
