Auto Shop Marketing — 5 Ways to Increase Your Car Count in 2024

Are you asking yourself how to increase car count at your shop in 2024? You’re not alone! According to recent industry surveys, 67% of auto shop owners are looking to grow their customer numbers this year by improving their auto shop marketing efforts. 

How many cars are coming through your auto shop per month in 2023? When you consider the gross sales and net operating profit you’re trying to achieve, as well as your staffing and equipment resources to handle increased traffic, how many cars do you want to drive through your garage each month?

Once you have a goal, you can use the following methods to increase your monthly and annual car count:

• Optimize Your Schedule:

  Calibrate between the number of cars you can handle each day with your personnel. Find the right balance to avoid overworking or underworking your staff. Keep wait times per service at or under the industry average for your area. 
  Pro Tip: Use scheduling software to maximize efficiency. Shops using such tools report a 25% increase in productivity!

• Master Your Auto Shop Marketing:

  Partner with experienced print and digital marketing companies like Ad Pages. The right partner understands your market and optimal service promotions. They’ll help you drive additional business from your current customer base. Did you know? Targeted marketing can increase customer retention by up to 40%!

• Improve Technician Efficiency:
  

  It’s not just about expertise and capability. The shops that handle the heaviest volumes train their employees on techniques to finish jobs in competitive time frames relative to the labor guides. A great technician is worth their weight in gold. Once you know the capacity of each of your technicians, maximize their time by funneling the work they are best at to each of them. Most important, avoid delegating non income-producing paperwork, stocking parts, and other work to technicians who are newer and less efficient, consider hiring low wage people for those tasks. 

• Ask for Referrals and Reviews:

  Your happiest customers are your greatest asset. If you’re using print advertising in your auto shop marketing, leverage their love of your shop by encouraging them to refer new business to you with a bonus offer in your print ads. Use the Ad Pages social media service to generate weekly posts, some of which ask your existing customers to provide online reviews on Facebook, Google, and Yelp. These reviews are essential to driving new prospects into your garage, since people tend to research businesses before trying them. Reviews provide trusted, objective information from customers just like themselves.

• Establish Thought Leadership:

  You’re not just the best service provider in your area for brakes, wheel alignments, and new belts and hoses; you’re also a source of valuable expertise. Include a monthly blog on your website and create weekly social media posts that educate your audience and establish your credibility. In 2024, consumers love to be educated and entertained on social media, so sharing behind the scenes and in the inner workings of your shop, you’ll grow online visibility. And, why would anyone go to another shop, when you’re showcasing you’re the expert and a willingness to help them achieve their objectives? Cover topics that help consumers save time, money or entertain them, and you’ll gain their trust. Pro tip: People hate being sold to, so avoid at all costs coming off like the typical used car salesman and your shop will increase car count in no time. 

• Start a Customer Education Program:

  Host monthly “Car Care 101” classes to build trust and attract new customers. People don’t know what they don’t know, so helping educate them Create an online knowledge base with video tutorials and blog posts. Offer personalized vehicle “health reports” to encourage repeat visits. Key Statistic: Educated customers are 78% more likely to approve recommended services.

• Develop Marketing Partnerships:

  Your neighborhood is full of opportunities to cross-promote with non-competing local businesses. A couple of ideas: Collaborate with driving schools to offer discounts to new drivers. Sponsor local sports teams or events for community visibility. Auto shops with local partnerships report a 30% increase in new customers! 

• In fact, Ad Pages helped a local auto shop increase their car count by 383% in 90 days with print and digital advertising. Our campaign generated 177 new customers for Texas Auto. Want results like this for your auto shop? Talk to a strategist today to get a custom plan unique to your shop, customers, neighborhood and specialty. 

The first steps toward growing your monthly car count are defining your goal and then establishing momentum toward achieving it. Beyond the obvious like setting up your Google Business Profile, if you want to get a free marketing audit for your auto shop, book a strategy session with one of our marketing experts. You’ll at least leave with strategic ways to grow whether you partner with Ad Pages or not.