1. Lead Prioritization – Turning a higher percentage of leads into customers can be impacted by identifying the prospects that are most likely to buy and focusing more attention on them. Ranking prospects based on interest level is a common method for prioritization.
2. Purchase Phase Recognition – Knowing the purchase phase of a prospective customer will provide intelligence on the key points to stress in the relationship. Whether the person is at the point of need recognition, information search, evaluation of alternatives or ready to purchase allows cultivation of the relationship at the right level.
3. Ongoing Communication – Staying in touch with prospective customers is imperative. On average a customer must be exposed to a product or service seven times before considering a purchase. So multiple communications are a necessity in most cases.
4. Performance Evaluation – Closing efforts must be monitored and improved on an ongoing basis. Lead prioritization, purchase phase recognition and ongoing communication efforts must be measured for effectiveness and changes enacted where necessary. Achieving the best possible results requires striving for excellence in all actions taken.

Inbound marketing focuses on establishing and building relationships by providing value and developing trust. Visitors are attracted to venues such as websites and social media through marketing efforts for the purpose of creating opportunities. Conversion starts with encouraging people to begin a relationship. Thus a ‘Call to Action’ is employed and something of value is offered in exchange for contact information. Thus the foundation for the relationship is established. Building a relationship to the point that people become prospective customers is the crux of conversion. The most important factors are providing value in a non-intrusive way. Following are tips on converting visitors to leads:

1. Employ Calls to Action – A basic tenet of advertising is the ‘call to action’. The person who is exposed to a marketing message is persuaded to take some kind of action.  Inbound marketing is based on providing value and building relationships. Thus a call to action equates to providing something of value in exchange for contact information. For example offering an eBook on reducing the cost of vehicle ownership in exchange for contact information will encourage a person to provide their information and establish a relationship.
2. Use Contact Information Forms – When a visitor reacts to a call to action they should be presented with a form allowing entry of their contact information including email address. When possible the offer of value should be emailed to the person in effect validating the email address. Acceptance of the item of value and establishing contact is the start of relationship building.
3. Continue the Relationship Building Process – Once a relationship has been established it’s important to build and sustain it. Continuing to stay in contact and bringing value will strengthen a relationship over time.
4. Personalize the Relationship – A relationship with a person is much more valuable to an individual than an arms length relationship with a business. Establishing a relationship based on trust is much easier when cultivated at a personal level.
5. Periodically Communicate Advances in Services Offered – Providing content of value is the foundation of positive relationships. The objective of relationship building is to attract business. Letting people know about improvements in product offerings will prompt consideration of your service offerings when they’re ready to make a purchase.

1. Define Your Ideal Buyer Persona(s) – Attracting the right people requires knowing the interests of the people you want to attract. The first step is to assign a name to the profile such as ‘soccer mom’, ‘business commuter’ or ‘racing enthusiast’.
2. Identify Common Interests of the Buyer Persona – Providing content of value in areas of interest will elicit the attention of the target market. Identifying topics of importance will facilitate attraction. This can be accomplished by questioning people that fit the defined persona. Communicating with people that are customers will bring results but those who aren’t already customers will be more effective.
3. Define What Gets Their Attention – It’s important to understand what elicits a response in the members of the target market. What are their goals? What are their challenges and concerns? What is it that influences them for or against the product or service you offer?
4. Provide Valuable Content – Providing information that’s useful to those of the defined buyer persona will attract the right inbound traffic. The messages must be brief, easy to understand and focus on areas of interest. They must provide value in order that people will be willing to invest their time in absorbing them.
5. Create a Trail to the Content – People tend to look for things on the Internet. But knowing what they’re interested in and providing valuable content will have no effect if the existence of the information is not communicated. Search engines on the Internet base their results on key phrases and other factors. In addition to using tags, it’s advantageous to use key terms in the actual content. For example phrases like ‘vehicle safety’ or ‘vehicle reliability’ included in content will attract people who are interested in those topics.
6. Post Content Frequently – Search engines determine rankings based on changes. So posting entries more often will result in higher positioning in search results

1. Website Blog Postings – A website without a blog can be effective but a website with a blog to which entries are posted frequently will be exponentially more impactful. Well-constructed blog entries will be recognized by Internet search engines thus boosting search engine rankings and provide useful information for readers.
2. Email Newsletters – Newsletters with useful information provide value to existing and prospective customers thus building and/or enforcing positive relationships. Frequency should be enough to be beneficial but not intrusive.
3. Webinars – Periodic webinars on topics of interest will provide value in an easy to absorb format. The length of time devoted to a webinar is greater than a written topic and flexibility in participation is somewhat limited. But the presentation can be interactive in nature increasing the engagement of the audience.
4. Videos – Businesses can set up their own You Tube accounts or post videos to their website blogs. Videos that are of minimal duration with compelling content provide value to viewers.
5. Social Media – Posts to social media sites such as Facebook are effective mediums for sharing useful content. The automatic notification function alerts participants to new postings increasing interaction.
6. Articles and eBooks – Articles and eBooks are effective avenues for information sharing. It’s important that they’re available and able to be found by people interested in the topics.

1. Define the Target Market – Target market definition is the basis for successful business promotion. A clear picture of the customer a business wants to attract will serve to increase the effectiveness of any marketing campaign. Read more >>
2. Identify Potential Buyers and Purchasing Behavior – Mass marketing can be effective but if over utilized can lack potency. Over marketing dilutes the impact of marketing messages and thereby results in a lower return on marketing dollars invested. Read more >>
3. Focus the Organization on the Target Market – Organizational focus is a powerful factor in reaching and connecting with the target market. Success will be increased significantly if all team members are working toward the same goals. Read more >>
4. Develop a Sound Marketing Strategy – Focused marketing is based on maximizing the impact of advertising. The objective is to reach the members of the target market that are close to purchasing auto repair services. Read more >>
5. Employ Effective Marketing Messages – An effective marketing message is an integral component of any marketing campaign. Defining the target audience and how and when to reach them are the foundation of focused marketing. Read more >>
6. Expand Brand Recognition – Brand recognition can have a significant impact on customer acquisition as well as retention. To achieve the best return on investment in brand promotion effective marketing tactics must be employed. Read more >>
7. Define a Clear Customer Engagement Strategy – Customer engagement is the link between marketing and services performed. It should be given as much emphasis as promotional efforts to attract business and performance of quality vehicle repairs. Read more >>
8. Refine Sales Tactics to Match the Customer Profile – The best marketing efforts in the world can be derailed by poorly defined or inconsistent sales processes. Sales tactics must be aligned with marketing strategies and employed across the organization. Read more >>

1. Clearly Define your Customer Profile – Defining successful sales tactics starts with defining the profile of the target audience. If marketing efforts are successful customers will fit the definition of the target market and will be at the point of making a purchase decision. The customer profile allows sales processes to be aligned with customer perspective.
2. State Your Unique Value Proposition – It’s imperative that a clear statement of what sets your company apart from the competition be developed. Further it is necessary that the statement of unique value is in line with the customer’s perception of need. A well stated unique value proposition supports a positive image in the mind of the customer.
3. Document the Sales Process – Consistency among frontline personnel is paramount. Customer perception must be enforced in the same manner by all personnel for a stable image to be formed. Fluctuations and variations in a company’s identity confound and confuse customers. A well defined process ensures that all important points are communicated to the customer in a consistent way.
4. Communicate Processes to Front Line Personnel – All people that deal directly with customers should be trained on the sales process. Also, training should be repeated periodically so key points are fresh in people’s minds. Everyone should understand the customer profile, unique value proposition and the process by which value is communicated and delivered to the customer.
5. Strengthen Sales Support Functions – The operational and back office aspects of the business need to be aligned with sales processes. When people understand the ultimate objectives of the business the means by which they support those objectives will be clear. All operational and back office functions should be evaluated to make sure the processes they employ support the marketing and sales functions of the organization.

1. Recognize the Role of Customer Engagement – Customer engagement is the link between marketing and services performed. Great marketing and great auto repair service can be undermined by poor customer engagement practices. Customer engagement at all levels should be given as much emphasis as earning business and performing quality vehicle repairs.
2. Understand the Perspective of the Customer – Excellence in customer engagement is predicated on the customer’s point of view.  Understanding the preferences of the customer is a critical component of successful customer engagement. Knowing the common traits of the target market is the key to defining a successful customer engagement strategy.
3. Realistically Assess the Culture of Your Organization – The culture of an organization must support the image marketed and service performed. If quick service is marketed and performed the mindset of frontline personnel must support this overall strategy. If premium diagnostic and tuning services are promoted and performed all members of the organization must understand and support this philosophy.
4. Identify Expectations Instilled by Promotional Efforts – The customer’s perspective will be influenced by the messages communicated in marketing campaigns. The image formulated in the customer’s mind of the service a business will delivery must be supported by customer engagement processes.
5. Document Service Delivery Processes – Disconnects between promotional efforts and services performed are most likely attributable to flawed or poorly defined business processes. Processes that involve customer interaction should be closely examined and evaluated for their effectiveness in supporting company image and quality of repair service.
6. Ensure that Engagement Supports Expectations – Customer engagement must be in line with customer expectations. For example if promotional efforts communicate friendly customer service and customers are rushed through the vehicle drop off and delivery process with little or no interaction there is a disconnect between what the customer understood through promotion and what their experience is. The process of engagement must be consistent and align with promotional messages.

1. Recognition by the Target Market Produces Results – Increasing brand recognition will foster business growth but only when the right people are affected. It is of no benefit for a BMW auto repair shop to be remembered by a Honda owner or vice versa. Efforts at brand recognition are best served by communicating to the target market.
2. Recognized Brands are Recalled When Services are Needed – Brand recognition brings new business when a vehicle owner needs service. So focusing on those within the target market at the time they’ll be consider purchasing auto repair services will further improve the effects of brand recognition.
3. Brands that Speak to the Target Audience will be Remembered – Brand promotion must be clear, easy to understand and should connect with the audience. People should grasp the message in a few seconds.
4. Advertise Where Visibility to the Target Audience Exists – Brand promotion in the right place will achieve the best results. There may be websites or locations that are frequented by prospective customers. Advertising in these places will have the most impact.
5. Place Brands on Products Used by the Target Market – Using a branded item will not only increase recognition by the person using it but will provide exposure to others as well. The drive to eliminate plastic and paper shopping bags is a good example. Providing shopping bags with brand promotion is an example of this type of opportunity.

1. I Want to do Business With This Company – Trust, integrity, reliability and friendliness are examples of traits that will attract people to a business. A strong marketing message will convey these types of ideas and people will formulate a positive image of the company.
2. I Want and Need What This Company is Selling – People don’t purchase automobile repairs – they purchase benefits. If the benefits of doing business with a company are in line with what the customer wants and needs they will recognize an advantage in the relationship. This doesn’t preclude specific automobile repairs from effective advertising it means that benefits should never be excluded.
3. The Price and Value Meet My Expectations – Phrases like ‘lowest price guaranteed’ and ‘we’ll meet or beat any advertised price’ can be very influential. Quality guarantees serve to minimize the perception of risk. An effective marketing message answers these concerns.
4. This is the Right Time to Buy – The timing of a marketing message is critical. People are more likely to respond when they’re close to the point of making a purchase decision. So basing a marketing message on auto repair services that are needed at the time the message is delivered will have the most impact.
5. I Will Buy From This Company – This response is the ultimate goal of an advertisement. If the result of exposure to a marketing message is the decision to buy then the message achieved the desired result. An effective message is designed to elicit this response.

Focused marketing is based on maximizing the impact of advertising. The objective is to reach the members of the target market that are close to purchasing auto repair services. Identifying the members of the target audience, what services will attract them, communicating with them at a time when they’re thinking about making a purchase decision through the most effective channel and delivering a compelling message will elicit optimum results. Following are 5 steps to developing an effective focused auto repair marketing strategy:

1. Identify the People to be Attracted – Focused marketing starts with the target market and takes it one step further. The objective is to communicate with the members of the target market that are close to the point of purchasing auto repair services. Existing customers as well as prospective customers can be the target of marketing campaigns and may require different strategies.
2. Settle on What Services Will be Offered – When a consumer is at the point of purchasing auto repair services there is most likely a specific service they are in need of. The objective of focused marketing is to offer the service a customer is most likely to need. With existing customers this is based on information about previous services performed and the next service required can be identified and communicated to the customer. For prospective customers the simplest approach is to offer services that are needed most often.
3. Determine the Best Time to Reach the Audience – The best time to reach a consumer is close to the time auto repair service is needed. For existing customers notifying them prior to a required service interval is pretty straight forward. For prospective customers choosing the point at which communication occurs is a judgment call based on the target market. If the message is delivered too often it will not be effective. If not often enough effectiveness will likewise be reduced. The idea is to reach a prospective customer when they’re thinking about purchasing auto repair services.
4. Pick the Best Mode of Communication – Today there are so many options for communicating marketing messages choosing the best method can seem daunting. Website, email, social media and mail are some of the options. Recognizing that each option has costs associated with it stresses that being selective may be necessary.
5. Define the Message – An effective message can make all the difference in attracting business. Having determined who will receive the message as well as the timing and mode(s) of delivery the final piece of the puzzle is to craft a message that will elicit the desired response. Communication based on the target audience, the proximity to the date service is needed and the best mode of communication will have the greatest effect.