Marketing Advice?

Discuss all aspects of headlight restoration, including marketing, technical, and business advice.
Old Blue 66
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Re: Marketing Advice?

Post by Old Blue 66 »

The cost of professional headlight restoration is minimal. Its less than what it takes to fill up a gas tank (leave the Prius out of that formula) and after you spend the money on bumper paint, dent removal and interior recon, remember that the customer will appreciate all of that only after they have seen the first thing that catches their eye – the font of the car and the headlights.

If you can make a dealer believe this, you have a customer for life.
Paul Weinstein
mrchips1952
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Re: Marketing Advice?

Post by mrchips1952 »

I have a pocket full of business cards and during my normal day, if I see someone getting out of a car with weathered headlights, I walk up and hand them a card and invite them to call me anytime to discuss improving the safety of their vehicle. I also take pictures with my phone camera of each and every car that I do both before and after restoration. I print off the most dramatic ones with my computer and hot laminate them with plastic sleeves. This costs about a dollar a page. I carry these along to show prospects, and I also have non-laminated pages that I leave with them. The laminate makes the color photos "Pop" and leaves a lasting impression. I use the same approach with prospective fleet accounts such as Taxi Fleets, Trucking Companies, equipment rental companies and furniture moving and sales fleets.

Don't forget to approach Penske and Ryder fleet management service managers, as they control huge numbers of vehicles. They usually supply many companies with fleets and rotate them out at the end of 4 years for new ones. If headlights are damaged they don't want to replace them, but they still want maximum return on their investment.

Body shops often replace one headlight after a collision repair, leaving the other on cloudy. The insurance only pays for the broken one. If you can go in and refinish the other one for $40-50 you now have you foot in the door for referrals.
I leave laminated color photos in waiting areas of truck stops, auto repair shops that do safety inspections, smog stations, car washes and with municipal fleet maintenance shops, police and security fleet managers and post them up at auto auction houses.
Don't forget Kijiji, the free ad link of ebay, I get many more calls from there than Craigslist. Just remember to post a new ad every month so it doesn't get lost in the back pages. Then go in and cancel the old ones. These ads are free!

Little by little, you will build the volume you want, and if you know your techniques well, and believe you can save your client money, you will build your confidence and your business.
Let us improve your driving outlook!
mrchips1952
jasonsresin
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Re: Marketing Advice?

Post by jasonsresin »

so i admit i haven't read all 3 pages but here is my two cents worth. go to the dealerships that haven't shot you down once a week, on the same day of the week, and offer to do a free demo at first, and then do it with some pics. i mean before, one/one pics (one done, one not done) and after pics. do not ask for a penny that week. its not about the money for a while, roughly 3 weeks worth of visits (assuming on the third week he lets you do a free demo). on week 4, walk the lot and find 2-4 suggestions, not too much, of cars he could do to fix up his lot at your bottom line price, $40-45 seems fine. if you have been showing your face with a smile and a positive attitude each week, you'll get the work on week four and you'll get 2 cars every week for sure. a few car dealerships and for one day a week you own your own business. expand from there, marry a model, buy starbucks stock, etc etc. good luck, hope it works for you.

recap. don't give up, and remember to go back every week. they do not call you back! you go get back in front of them. don't try to close any deals for a while, just something casual "hey remember me, the headlight guy, just wondering if you had anything you wanted me to do." no? ok no problem. next week, same thing. week 3 have a demo in mind, close the deal, even though its free it will be a memory for him of approving work and you're in!
Old Blue 66
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Re: Marketing Advice?

Post by Old Blue 66 »

We changed our business plan to focus mostly on used truck dealers. Currently getting $125 per unit and they don't squawk over it because they know they have to replace them at a much higher cost. If you present it right, yopu'll save them half on what they spend annualy on HL replacement.

Also, hit up the school bus companies. They are under safety scrutiny all the time. You may need to charge them less but how many school buses roam the streets every day?

Our new business plan is to do car dealers at a minimum. there s not much money to be made in that arena. So far we are busy and there's not much in the way of a slow period like a new car dealers.
Paul Weinstein
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