Pit stop to profit: Auto shop marketer shares tips for other shops

Marketing — where to start

Does marketing your auto shop feel like a daunting, tricky game? It can be overwhelming, and it’s hard to know where to begin.

Almost two years ago, I was hired by Schmidt Auto Care as their marketing manager when they decided to bring their marketing activities in-house. Here are my tips to help your auto shop begin thinking about marketing:

First and foremost, know your audience

To get yourself on the right path for marketing, it’s important to know your audience. Why? You don’t want to waste time and money marketing to an area where your shop’s processes won’t thrive or where certain marketing tactics just won’t work.

For example, one of my shop’s key processes is sending digital vehicle inspections to every customer. Since our local demographic is comfortable using the internet, they love receiving these digital inspections. They appreciate the directness and the opportunity to see what our technicians see.

But say the town a few miles over from ours has a smaller, older population that is less comfortable with digital interactions. We wouldn’t invest in marketing to that town because our shop’s processes wouldn’t be a good fit for their preferences. They may prefer face-to-face interactions, and that’s okay!

Similarly, because our local community is active online, we thrive using social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok for marketing. But if your community isn’t as active on these channels, they may not be the best fit for your shop’s marketing efforts.

Navigating decisions like these is only possible when you take the time to learn about your audience and their demographics.

Marketing to the right demographic

To establish your target audience, you need to understand the demographics of your area. It’s important to know who YOUR customer is.

Here’s what we considered at Schmidt Auto Care:

• Average household income: Know the average household income of your town and surrounding areas. Your services might be perfect for 80% of your neighboring towns, but it’s okay not to market to the 20% who may find your prices too high.

• Average age and life stage: Understanding the average age of people in your area is also important. Are there a lot of college students, young professionals, or retirees? This knowledge helps you tailor your marketing tactics to your audience’s preferences.
  • Tip: If your area has a mixed-age demographic, decide who your primary target audience is. For example, you could position yourself as a family-oriented business or focus on attracting students from the local university. The choice is yours, but you must be intentional in your marketing.

Know your town

When exploring your town, pay attention to things like school districts, clubs, and local events. How do people market themselves? Are they using Google Ads, Facebook Ads, or traditional methods like signage and newspapers?

Figure out where people spend their time — at the mall, local sporting events, salons, etc. Take note of what’s popular in your community. For example, if a particular make of vehicle is popular, marketing that your shop works on those cars can benefit your business.

This or that? Choosing your marketing approach

Marketing your auto shop involves making decisions that suit your shop’s needs and your audience’s preferences. Two major questions you may have are how to handle your marketing (in-house vs. outsourced) and how to reach your audience (print marketing vs. digital marketing).

In-house marketing or outsourced marketing

In-house marketing

At Schmidt Auto Care, we handle most of our marketing in-house because we like having control over our brand’s visual style, tone, and consistency. We can quickly tweak our ads and messages and ensure everything aligns with our overall branding. If you have the resources and skills within your team or can hire a marketing person, doing marketing in-house can be a great option. You get complete creative control and immediate flexibility, which is something we value.

Outsourced marketing

Outsourcing your marketing is a great option for some shops! Not every auto shop can have a dedicated marketing person, so hiring a marketing agency or freelancer can be beneficial. Can’t wrap your head around Google Ads? Is social media marketing not your jam? Maybe you have the words you want to market but not the visuals. (You need to make sure your marketing is visually pleasing.) There’s no shame in needing to reach outside your shop for help. Just make sure you’re able to get clear analytics. You need to see what’s working, where your money is going, and which efforts provide a return on investment. If you don’t see results, it’s time to reconsider your options.

We’ve outsourced help for specific projects ourselves, like when we needed help creating our shop’s app. That decision worked well for us because we didn’t have the in-house expertise at the time, and it allowed us to focus on other areas while professionals handled that side of things.

Print-based marketing or digital marketing

Print-based marketing (or non-digital marketing)

Some audiences respond well to traditional marketing tactics like flyers, posters, or newspaper ads. If you’re in an area with an older demographic or if you’re trying to reach people who don’t spend a lot of time online, then print or non-digital marketing may be your best approach. Community events, direct mail campaigns, or posters around town can be effective ways to get noticed.

Connecting with the schools is a great way to be involved in the community and get your name out there. Contact your local athletic directors, coaches, and guidance counselors, and find a way to be involved. We like to support the cheerleaders, school fundraisers, fall/winter term sports, and more. These types of community engagement are great exposure for your shop name and your brand as a whole. Finding ways to relate your business to the public is significant, especially if you’re running a small business. Run specials that will motivate your guests to get into the shop.

Remember, what works for us might not work for your shop, and that’s okay. Maybe radio ads would be a better fit for your community, or a TV ad that targets your local area’s primary demographic. You’ve got to look at the statistics and see what makes sense for your specific location.

Digital marketing

If your audience is more digitally inclined, digital marketing could be the better option. Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and even TikTok are powerful tools for building your brand and engaging with your community. You’ll never know unless you try, so start where it’s easy. Make a social media page (Facebook, Instagram), and start putting your name out there. Make a Facebook page, begin posting, and join local groups. Make connections and offer your services. Setting up a Google Business page is also a must-do.

Make sure your business is branded

When you begin putting your business out in the community, it’s important to have a brand. This isn’t just about your logo — it’s your brand as a whole. You want to have a set of colors and stick with them. Your ads, website, logos, uniforms, and everything else should all look the same. Branding can do a lot, especially in a small community. Think about school colors — when you see them around town, you immediately know what they represent. You want to create that same recognition for your business.

One online marketing effort you should do today

Even as you research your local demographic and town to define your target audience, ultimately, there is one thing I’d encourage you to do today: set up your Google Business Page. Setting up your Google Business page is one of the most important steps in online marketing because you want your shop to appear on the map when people search on Google for an auto repair shop.

Google reviews are a great way to attract attention, so start asking people to review your shop on your Google Business page so you can build up your rating. On your Google Business page, you can list things like your hours, location, specials, and services. Multiple features make it easier for your business to be found.

It’s also important to share content on your Google Business page. When people look you up, make sure you have appealing posts. Here are some examples of what you could include:

• New training

• Meet the team
• Online booking
• Frequently asked questions

If you don’t have a Google Business page yet, don’t worry — you don’t need to be an expert to get started. While dealing with SEO can get tricky, setting up your Google Business page is straightforward and effective. You can sign up for your business profile here!

Track your marketing efforts to learn what’s working and what isn’t

Once you begin marketing, make it a habit to track your efforts. Ask every customer how they heard about your shop to understand which tactics are working and which aren’t. If a marketing channel isn’t bringing in customers, it may be time to shift your budget to something more effective.

Tracking your marketing activities is key to knowing where you’re seeing results, what’s working, and what you need to adjust. Not every marketing strategy and tactic will work for your shop — and that’s okay.

Look at the data to help direct you on how to adjust your marketing. The important part is finding what works for your business, and that can take time, testing, and patience. Taking advice from others and observing what other shops are doing can be helpful, but every business is different. What works for one shop may not work for you. Your goal is to try and try again until you find the right marketing that works for your unique shop. 

Related resources:

• Webinar Recap: Top Processes Every Auto Shop Needs (Featuring Lauralee Schmidt, COO of Schmidt Auto Care)
• SEO for auto repair shops: A step-by-step beginner’s guide
• Customer newsletter template for auto shops
• Tom Ham’s tips for handling customer reviews in your auto shop