Customer Testimonials

 

Customer Testimonials

   One of the smartest marketing ideas for your shop is the use of customer testimonials. They are an easy way to add credibility to your business by showing that your customers are happy with your services. There's a big difference between you telling the prospective customer how great you are and another customer praising your business. Customers find other people's experiences about dealing with companies to be more legitimate than a business simply promoting itself.

   Many companies acquire testimonials by including a place for comments at the point of sale with a comment box, or on their website. Use customer testimonials on your site and brochures. Before using testimonials, make sure they are legitimate and not obvious and overused, like the bland "They did a good job." Prospective customers need to know the testimonials you provide are authentic. If possible, reinforce them by using pictures of the customers who provide them along with the customers' real names.

   Try to get your best customers to provide a specific reason why working with your business benefited them. Effective customer testimonials tell prospects exactly what's in it for them when they choose your business. Prospective consumers should be able to personalize their customer testimonials and apply them to their own lives.

   Try to get testimonials from a diverse audience that can relate to your prospective customers. This also keeps your testimonials meaningful. Obtain a varied collection of customer testimonials from a diverse group of people about various experiences and benefits.

   Always obtain approval and written permission to use any customer's testimonial.
Be sure to include the person's name, title, and company, and make sure you have these exactly correct.

Here's a real testimonial about my business:

   "We have been working steadily with Bob for over 15 years now, and he is the most cost-effective form of body shop marketing we have ever tried. He consistently brings in business year after year and knows everything about marketing shops."
   Jim Delorenzo, Manager at Main Auto Body, Lodi, NJ.

   If your customer testimonials are honest and trustworthy, then people will respond to them, which translates to positive results for your bottom line.

   Call 973-493-2421 to learn more about how RC Marketing can help bring more business to your shop!

          After over 20 years of handling the marketing for many successful auto body shops, I have proven that one of the most effective ways to bring in business is to build strong relationships with people that can refer business to you. For Auto Body Shops, the best source of referrals is still the insurance agent. In spite of some Insurance Companies using call centers to handle claims, many Insurance agents and their staff still provide the service of taking calls from their insured whom have had accidents and helping them deal with processing their claim. These agencies are the most important businesses to build relationships with because they have the ability to refer thousands of dollars worth of work to your door.

          Insurance Companies and their Direct Repair Program managers are also very important, but they are notoriously difficult to reach. They usually already have enough shops on their programs and refuse to add any more. With over 2000 shops in New Jersey all trying to get on DRP lists, these managers get so many calls asking to be on their program, that they often don't have the time to respond. Although it helps to be on an Insurance Company's Direct Repair Program, taking the time to build a strong enough relationship with your local agents and their staff can become more important than being on their DRP list. If your shop is on the program, agents still refer more when they know the shop enough to feel comfortable referring. They usually still have choices of several DRP shops and are much more likely to refer the ones that take the time to visit and build a friendship with them.

          Repetition can be the single most powerful idea in successful marketing. It typically takes 9-12 months of sales visits to build a referral source. If done properly, repetitive visits make marketing effective.

Why? Agents and their staff have many things to do besides remembering your shop. Like you, they are busy running a business. They will refer shops that they feel have a good business relationship with them. This is why a professional that knows how to promote your shop needs to visit local agencies to properly represent your shop approximately once every month for many months. This will ensure time to build relationships that result in referrals for your shop.  Most shops don't have the budget for a full-time marketing professional.                    This is why using an outside marketing service for just a few days a month makes a lot of financial sense!

To find out more about how this works, and other shop marketing factors, call me at 973-493-2421 now!

Bob Coleman

RC Marketing, LLC

Please click below to see our Facebook page for more free ideas!

www.facebook.com/RCMarketingLLC/

Secrets to New Customer Acquisition - FenderBender - March 2014 - United States

Here is a great article from FenderBender Magazine that features my business:            

Secrets to New Customer Acquisition - FenderBender - March 2014 

A big thanks to Bryce Evans of FenderBender for another great article!

Strategic Marketing - FenderBender - September 2012 - United States

Here is a great article from FenderBender Magazine that features my business:           
Strategic Marketing - FenderBender - September 2012 - United States

Thank you to Andrew Johnson for another great article!

How to Turn Estimates into Repair Orders

Do you know what percentage of estimates your shop turns into jobs? Whatever the percentage is, I'm sure you would like it to be higher, right? I can help. First, start by listening to the customer's concerns and then coming up with solutions. Stop talking and listen. Then:

• Tell the potential customer about your shop's outstanding technicians and equipment. You do it right the first time, every time!
• Use your previous customers' testimonials to support the sale. If you don't have thank you notes from grateful customers in a binder to show others, create that now!
• Warn the customer about how cheaper repairs don't hold up well. Like fading paint or poorly fitting parts that could malfunction or rust.
• If they have a lower estimate from another shop, offer to compare and explain why, so the customer can decide after getting all the facts.
• Warn them about how leaving items off the estimate could affect their safety.
• Tell them about your great warranty (you should have one if you don't!).
• Don't forget to be friendly by smiling!
• Simply ask if you can do the repair.

If the price is really the issue, then:

• Offer incentives to close the deal; like a free detailing, $25 to $50 off coupons to be used now, or for future repairs.


• Offer rental car assistance. Like one rental day for every $500. in repairs.


• See if the customer will consider the use of aftermarket or used parts.


• Use sales techniques such as saying, "If I can take 10% off this repair, would you agree to let us handle it?"

Remember to always be nice and genuinely concerned to help your customers and they will choose to have the repairs done at your shop more often.
Want more ideas?
Call me at 973-493-2421!
Bob Coleman

Web Sites

If you don't have a web site for your shop yet, I strongly suggest you get one. Why? Because millions of people use the web every day to get information, and this medium is constantly growing. The average automobile owner has an accident approximately every 7 years, so it is usually a new and unpleasant situation for them. More and more of these people will go online to research their options. Many of these people are new to your neighborhood, or they are newer drivers that have never had an accident. Others may have used a shop years ago, but still want to look at their options in the area. Even if the insurance company tries to steer them to another shop (or your shop if you are on their Direct Repair Program), they may want to quickly and easily check out their options online before they decide where to go. They will often use the web to see what shops are in their neighborhood. They want to gather as much information as possible to help them take care of the damage right. They want directions, hours of operation, DRP affiliations, estimate appointments or charges, what to expect, and qualifications of the body shop. If your competitor down the street has this information readily available on his web site, they will probably choose his shop.
You should also make sure your shop appears on the first page or so of all the big search engines (Google, AOL, etc..). This is called Search Engine Optimization. Most people won't look past the first page or two when they look online.
Web site design and hosting are one of the most cost-effective marketing tools available today.
For more information on setting up your web site, please contact me at 973-493-2421 today!