We’ll explain how postcard marketing can help build your auto shop business fast and also provide you with some highly effective print marketing campaign ideas.
Conceptualminds | April 29, 2022
Build Your Auto Repair Business Fast with Postcard Marketing
You may not know it by looking at one, but postcards are a marketing MVP.
Whatever your mission—increasing car counts, brand recognition, or keeping customers loyal—you can do it with this humble rectangular flier.
Not only are they affordable, they also delight consumers with a more memorable, tactile experience.
In fact, you can build your auto repair business quickly with postcards.
Regardless of your ambition, read on to learn what makes them unique with postcard marketing campaigns you can use to convert new customers and retain existing ones.
Why Postcard Marketing is Great for Auto Shops
While postcards are not a technical revolution, their pleasant tactile experience and relative affordability make them ideal for a range of business goals and campaign types.
Some basic facts:
- They’re far more affordable than other mass marketing
- They’re more likely to be responded to: 25% response rate
- Instantly consumable: 6x more likely to be read than other mailers
Postcards are not just an efficient advertising medium.
They’re powerfully motivating and overwhelmingly preferred by consumers.
First, Define Your Postcard Marketing Campaign’s Purpose
Postcards are a flexible advertising medium, and you can design any number of campaigns around this single sheet of glossy paper.
The one thing your campaign can’t be is directionless.
Since we’re focusing on building a business quickly, we’ll look at campaigns that re-engage current customers and draw in new ones.
Campaigns for Retaining Auto Repair Customers
Customer retention campaigns are about getting more value from your most valuable asset.
As you may already know, getting more revenue from current customers is between five to 25 times cheaper than generating new customers. A substantial portion of your increased business revenue will come from retention campaigns.
Re-Establish Connections with Old Customers
You don’t always know when a customer leaves or why. You could assume they’ve left for a reason—they’re unsatisfied with your service, found a better deal elsewhere—but don’t count these clients out.
Sometimes all they need is a reminder to get back in the fold.
Send welcome-back postcards to all customers who haven’t purchased in the last six months.
Personalize them for added impact, and include discounts for higher response rates.
Send Regular Service Reminders to Relevant Customers
Auto repair shops and dental offices have long used postcards to remind their clients of essential messages or appointment dates.
People appreciate having a tangible reminder of upcoming maintenance (Many have spare magnets and lots of fridge real estate, too).
Create an automated send after any repairs that require further maintenance or consideration.
Don’t just remind them of already scheduled repairs. Remind them of follow-up services that add value to their initial purchase.
Cross-Sell Auto Repair Products and Services
Cross-selling is another great way to earn more revenue from the average customer.
Postcards are big enough to highlight at least one service. Send out postcards to customers for any you’re hoping to boost.
Offer a limited-time discount to get them across the finish line. Don’t forget, the more expensive the advertised products, the more response rates drop.
Introducing New Auto Repair Products & Services
Above all, we’re looking for a good excuse to show up in your prospects’ mailbox. New products and services are just that.
Send out postcards to all prior customers with new product or service releases.
Feel free to offer a discount to get more responses and remember that higher ticket items will see lower response rates and will need more repeat mailer sends.
Campaigns for Acquiring First-Time Auto Repair Customers
Direct mail is perfect for generating new customers efficiently.
While you’ll likely see lower response rates compared to customer retention campaigns, their lifetime value probably justifies the expense
(Read our article on calculating essential campaign metrics like lifetime value and ROI).
Blanket Neighborhoods with Every Day Direct Mail Campaigns (EDDM)
If campaigns were tools, EDDM would be a hammer.
This US Postal Service program lets businesses blanket every home in a large geographical area with your marketing.
Targeting is limited to median age, household income, and income. There is no targeting aside from geography.
What’s more, EDDM campaigns are not only straightforward, they’re also very affordable—postage is 70% cheaper than traditional direct mail postage.
All you have to do is choose your creative, select your preferred zip codes or postal service carrier routes, and you can target lucrative neighborhoods with your slick and memorable postcards.
New Movers: Target People Who Have Recently Relocated to Your Area
New drivers are moving to your service area practically every day. And you can target every one of them with a new mover campaign.
These new residents aren’t as set in their ways and are often much more receptive to offers for businesses they haven’t yet visited.
Many direct mail providers offer new mover prospect lists. It’s an excellent opportunity to create a persuasive first impression, hopefully winning you their loyalty for the course of their stay.
Grow Your Network with Referral Programs
This campaign could be filed in customer retention—but referral programs are great for delivering high-quality customers.
Research shows that referred customers are precious. One Wharton Business School study shows that referred customers are 18 percent less likely to churn and 25 percent more profitable.
They work so well because they’re a two-way street, and you grow your network while your customer gets a tempting offer.
Establish one yourself.
Decide on the offer you’ll use to tempt current customers and whether to pass on this incentive to their friends, too. Since postcards are tangible and portable, your customer can simply hand theirs off to their friend.
Learn About Conceptual Minds
At Conceptual Minds, our team helps automotive businesses get the most from their marketing dollars with tried and tested methods backed up by regular testing and research.
We equip our clients with the tools and knowledge to eliminate the guesswork from their marketing efforts and get top ROI through our tailored services.
Ready to grow your auto repair business with postcard marketing?
