Best way to market my mechanic shop ?

51 replies
Hi,

I would like some opinions on how I should market my mechanic shop in Chicago, IL.

Some things I would like to mention:

-Majority of my customers are Polish, about 85% speak Polish.
(NOTE: I'm trying to target all types of people, not just the polish)
-I have local TV ads and radio ads.
-I'm in the yellowbook & have magazine ads.
- I do NOT have a website, because prices vary from car to car and it would be almost impossible to give someone a price without actually knowing exactly what's wrong.

I have a Facebook fan-page but I do not run ads, because lets admit how many 30-50 year old polaks sit on Facebook hoping to find a mechanic..almost none.

My Yelp & google reviews are very weak because I have NONE!

I was thinking of running google ads using polish keywords, just not sure what would work best in my situation.

Any help would be great!

Thanks!
#market #mechanic #shop
  • Profile picture of the author Barry Unruh
    A website is not about doing quotes online, it is about helping people find you.

    It is your "Yellow Pages" on the internet. Imagine how many leads you are losing from people who have problems with their cars, grab their smart phone, and search for a mechanic. They are not finding you.

    That should be a high-priority for you.
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  • Profile picture of the author wolfmmiii
    You need a website. You are right. People don't look on facebook for mechanics. However, if you use facebook to build a following in your local area by posting repair and maintenance tips, you have a pool of people who already know who you are before they go looking to call someone when they need service.

    Using facebook to connect with your community is a proactive way to generate business rather than a reactive way of just waiting for the phone to ring.

    You are leaving LOTS of money on the table by not having a website and not building a relationship with locals through facebook.
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  • Profile picture of the author Barry Unruh
    Getting reviews on Google and Yelp is not that hard. You just need to engage your clients and ask them to give you reviews.

    You should be collecting email addresses of your clients so you can ask for those reviews, remind them of routine service, and keep your shop forefront in their minds so they recommend you to friends.
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  • Profile picture of the author yukon
    Banned
    Get a website & also get current customers to post testimonials on Facebook.

    Make some Youtube videos.




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  • Profile picture of the author ewenmack
    11,891 home addresses of Poles are available
    for rent in greater Chicago.

    Can reduce it to the ones nearest to your biz.

    That's a mailing list there.

    Then there is the Polish Societies.

    Ask them if you can either advertise in
    their publications or rent their member list to send out your offer.

    I'd look at writing your mail/ads in Polish
    if they are fluent in Polish.

    Best,
    Doctor E. Vile
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    • Profile picture of the author ewenmack
      Guys, talking about online media like websites, videos,
      Yelp and Facebook probably aren't visited by the Polish community.

      Dave's client base is Polish therefore more will want to go to him.

      How to lose money...be everything to everybody.

      Best,
      Doctor E. Vile
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      • Profile picture of the author yukon
        Banned
        Originally Posted by daveski View Post

        Some things I would like to mention:

        -Majority of my customers are Polish, about 85% speak Polish.
        (NOTE: I'm trying to target all types of people, not just the polish)
        Originally Posted by ewenmack View Post

        Guys, talking about online media like websites, videos,
        Yelp and Facebook probably aren't visited by the Polish community.

        Dave's client base is Polish therefore more will want to go to him.

        How to lose money...be everything to everybody.

        Best,
        Doctor E. Vile
        Who cares, Chicago has a few more people than a Polish neighborhood & OP already said he wants to target a variety of people.
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        • Profile picture of the author ewenmack
          Originally Posted by yukon View Post

          Who cares, Chicago has a few more people than a Polish neighborhood & OP already said he wants to target a variety of people.
          Well, I'm advising him NOT to target other than Polish people.

          They are proven buyers for him.

          We can reach only Polish people.

          We don't want to waste his money on marketing to people
          who are less likely to buy than Polish.

          Best,
          Doctor E. Vile
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          • Profile picture of the author yukon
            Banned
            Originally Posted by ewenmack View Post

            Well, I'm advising him NOT to target other than Polish people.

            They are proven buyers for him.

            We can reach only Polish people.

            We don't want to waste his money on marketing to people
            who are less likely to buy than Polish.

            Best,
            Doctor E. Vile
            No offense but, duh!

            OP can clearly comprehend the English language.

            Does it make sense for Walmart to only sell to Canadians?
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            • Profile picture of the author ewenmack
              Originally Posted by yukon View Post

              No offense but, duh!

              OP can clearly comprehend the English language.

              Does it make sense for Walmart to only sell to Canadians?
              His is a one location service business which has a
              ceiling on capacity.
              Another words, he can only service so many cars per day.

              A Walmart store or product based business doesn't
              have restraints on capacity to sell more because they just restock the shelves faster.

              Different business model.

              Best,
              Doctor E. Vile
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              • Profile picture of the author yukon
                Banned
                Originally Posted by ewenmack View Post

                His is a one location service business which has a
                ceiling on capacity.
                Another words, he can only service so many cars per day.
                You obviously don't know the power of social media testimonials. Every single person that lives in the same neighborhood as OPs shop has friends family within a reasonable driving distance of the shop.

                Personal recommendations (friends/family) are way stronger than any other form of online or offline advertising because people trust family & friends, no thinking involved.
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                • Profile picture of the author ewenmack
                  Originally Posted by yukon View Post

                  You obviously don't know the power of social media testimonials. Every single person that lives in the same neighborhood as OPs shop has friends family within a reasonable driving distance of the shop.

                  Personal recommendations (friends/family) are way stronger than any other form of online or offline advertising because people trust family & friends, no thinking involved.
                  Here's his quote...

                  " because lets admit how many 30-50 year old polaks sit on Facebook hoping to find a mechanic..almost none. "

                  Looks like this Polish community aren't like the majority of the people
                  you refer to, big online users.

                  Hence fish were his fish swim,
                  in their mailbox.

                  Social proof is that the Polish community are his clients, they must already recommend
                  him to family and friends. It's already built in. Outside the community, it doesn't exist,
                  or very little.

                  That's his built in asset, therefore let's make the most of it.

                  Best,
                  Doctor E. Vile
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                  • Profile picture of the author yukon
                    Banned
                    Originally Posted by ewenmack View Post

                    Here's his quote...

                    " because lets admit how many 30-50 year old polaks sit on Facebook hoping to find a mechanic..almost none. "

                    Looks like this Polish community aren't like the majority of the people
                    you refer to, big online users.

                    Hence fish were his fish swim,
                    in their mailbox.

                    Social proof is that the Polish community are his clients, they must already recommend
                    him to family and friends. It's already built in. Outside the community, it doesn't exist,
                    or very little.

                    That's his built in asset, therefore let's make the most of it.

                    Best,
                    Doctor E. Vile

                    Lol, give me a break, it's CHICAGO!

                    You've got some serious tunnel vision going on.
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                    • Profile picture of the author ewenmack
                      Originally Posted by yukon View Post

                      Lol, give me a break, it's CHICAGO!

                      You've got some serious tunnel vision going on.
                      Maybe...just maybe the mechanic knows his customers better than you.
                      because he speaks with them...and you?

                      Best,
                      Doctor E. Vile
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                    • Profile picture of the author ewenmack
                      Originally Posted by yukon View Post

                      You've got some serious tunnel vision going on.
                      Pleased we both agree on that!

                      Totally against him wasting his money
                      on low probability of getting a return on his
                      marketing dollars.

                      That's my tunnel vision.

                      Best,
                      Doctor E. Vile
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                  • Profile picture of the author savidge4
                    Lets break this down a bit... did you know that aside from WARSAW POLAND, Chicago has the largest concentration of Poles?

                    So when you start looking at 80% of the guys business being Polish.. and then taking in to consideration the neighborhood dynamic of bigger cities. As much as this is not what it used to be... meaning Poles on one block and Italians on another.. yes it is more diversified, but the pride in heritage is still there.

                    He already has a walking ( well driving we hope ) network of referral and testimonials around. a nationality specific campaign may create the "hey do you know so and so down the road?" and the reply can then be "Yeah been taking my car there for years"

                    You then start considering the 80 / 20 dynamic and how that falls into play... If Polish decent is the 20% why would you shoot for the 80%?
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  • Profile picture of the author bizgrower
    I'll bet some of your customers stay at my hotel about every other summer - to go four wheeling.
    Nice rigs, too. They do come from the same neighborhood in Chicago and are mostly just friends
    with each other, some related to each other by birth, and more recently by marriage. For first generation, they were just in their thirties and forties and their English comprehension was really very good. I had several enjoyable conversations without difficulty, and I do not speak a word of Polish.

    SO, I think you do keep on doing well in that demographic to have your bread and butter customers and then expand.

    Do you specialize in any area, such as 4 wheel drive?
    Or, in any make or type of car?
    If you do, get known in those circles via print or internet publications that cater to the work that you do best.

    To start with, though, at least get a mobile website up and claim your Google My Business spot (and the equivalent on Bing and Yahoo).

    Below is an older style website, but provides a pretty good example of how to establish credibility and expertise and getting found. They come up tops in a google search for "transmission repair Denver, CO" and don't quote prices on the site.

    (I understand why you don't quote with out seeing a vehicle first, but I do think shops could say something like " about $150 per axle for a routine brake job, but of course it depends upon exactly what is needed and how badly worn everything is. How long has it been since you had the brakes serviced?...")

    http://www.advancedtransmission.com/

    Dan
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    • Profile picture of the author ewenmack
      Originally Posted by bizgrower View Post


      To start with, though, at least get a mobile website up and claim your Google My Business spot (and the equivalent on Bing and Yahoo).
      Dan, I'm opposed to him spending his advertising dollars on places
      where his market doesn't go very often, online,
      according to him.

      We can reach his market, the Polish community
      with 100% reach, which is their mailbox.

      Zero wastage.

      No other media can do this.

      Best,
      Doctor E. Vile
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      • Profile picture of the author wolfmmiii
        Originally Posted by ewenmack View Post

        Dan, I'm opposed to him spending his advertising dollars on places
        where his market doesn't go very often, online,
        according to him.

        We can reach his market, the Polish community
        with 100% reach, which is their mailbox.

        Zero wastage.

        No other media can do this.

        Best,
        Doctor E. Vile
        Your premise is all wrong.

        Because OP "assumed" that 40-50 year old Polish people don't use Facebook to find mechanics, you've equated that to "polish people don't use Facebook" - which is absurd.

        You've also made an assumption that just because 85% of OPs business is Polish, nobody else is really interested in using his service. Maybe, just maybe, his customer base is mostly Polish because there are simply more Polish people in the area.

        OP wants to grow his business - that means reach new markets. As such, an argument "could" be made that targeting Polish people exclusively, per your suggestion, doesn't really grow the business since he is already established within that community. To grow, he would want to reach outside that community, where his penetration isn't the same.

        To be honest, even THAT may be a faulty assumption. If the surrounding population is 85% Polish and 15% other, it would make statistical sense that 85% of his customers are Polish. It would have nothing to do with others "not being his target market". In this case, "other" is just as big a target demographic as the Polish community is.

        Yukon is right - you have serious tunnel vision going on. You are also making quite a few faulty assumptions.
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      • Profile picture of the author bizgrower
        Originally Posted by ewenmack View Post

        Dan, I'm opposed to him spending his advertising dollars on places
        where his market doesn't go very often, online,
        according to him.

        We can reach his market, the Polish community
        with 100% reach, which is their mailbox.

        Zero wastage.

        No other media can do this.

        Best,
        Doctor E. Vile
        Doc,

        I'm not excluding direct mail, but it would have to be repeated a few times before it gains traction.Or not.

        He ruled out Facebook, but ruled out a website only because he does not want to give pricing - which he does not have to do on a website. An effective mobile or responsive website would not cost that much and claiming the search engine spots is something OP can do himself.

        I'm fairly certain my Polish 4 wheelers reserved their hotel rooms online via our website last time. I'm not certain how they found us their first visit. That was before my time.

        My group seemed strongly bilingual, so I'm not sure about having to use Polish in marketing. But my group was only about 35 people total and Daveski would know better on that.

        We don't know his budget, but he appears to have one because he does radio and TV. Those formats can be looked at for improvement, or deciding they are not effective enough.

        We also do not know if he specializes in any aspect of auto repair. For routine stuff, I go to a shop
        about ten miles away because I live in a rural area and because the two closest shops are not good for anything in my opinion. When I lived in Denver, CO, I used a shop that was 4 blocks away.

        If Daveski just does general repairs on common vehicles in a densely populated area, he probably just needs to focus offline on a two to five mile radius from his shop. Ten mile maximum?

        -Post cards on community bulletin boards in Laundromats, grocery stores, post offices, churches, schools, and colleges.
        -Advertisements in such things a school and church newsletters.

        If I get my '95 Land Rover project going, I'll have the transmission rebuilt by a passionate, geek transmission guy who is about 50 miles away. I forgot, but I had heard about him years ago, and again recently from a shop that specializes in Land Rovers. He has been in business a long time and has grown by word of mouth. He's known as the go to guy for the Cadillac Club of America (something like that). His only web presence is Google plus, a Yellow Pages website that is not working at the moment, and two excellent Yelp reviews. LOL

        Dan
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  • Profile picture of the author TrafficFlow
    Why not do a mass mailing of color postcards featuring your business to residents in your local community offering a ten cent discount to new customers or you could pay a company like Val-Pak to include your business in its mailings.
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  • Profile picture of the author Ron Lafuddy
    daveski,

    From my experience, most Poles are Catholics.

    One church may have thousands of members.

    Do you by chance advertise in the church bulletin?
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  • Profile picture of the author Freebiequeen1999
    Not Polish but I was born in Pittsburgh....LOL

    Polish Sons and Daughters - sponsor a polka night or something

    Polish (Orthodox) ad in church bulletin

    with the amount of Poles in Chicago I am sure they have some sort of newspaper right??

    here it is >>> Polish classifieds, ads, jobs, real estate ads, newspapers. - Newspaper ads

    online too - check it out

    Google is your friend - I typed in Polish Chicago Facebook and got lots of possible connections

    work Linked in too - get your keywords right and connect with suitable people

    seems that Chicago has lots of Polish festivals and stuff too....every Catholic church Polish or not loves a carnival....be there...have a booth or someone passing flyers

    I still think you should have a facebook and website , "bi lingual"....check on any sites from Miami to see how it works...how you can have 2 flags - here usa and spanish....or check sites in canada where they manage bilingual english and french - it can be done..why not polish too? realize that many of your online customers may be english speaking...but the other thing is many people CAN READ AND UNDERSTAND ENGLISH>..they just don't like to but they can...and/or they have a kid who can and will read it....or read it and tell them"hey this shop looks good and they speak Polish"

    so ...there are lots of ideas

    as far as reviews....well you can encourage your english speakers to write them but honestly a review in polish on yelp ain't gonna help you

    hmmmm...now I am hungry for some pierogies LOL
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  • Profile picture of the author daveski
    Thank you everyone for all the copious amounts of useful information!

    Great stuff, I read everyone's post! I liked the little argument earlier, made me EL OH EL!

    Anyway, I forgot to mention that my main goal is to focus on marketing my business online, because I feel like I kinda have the "offline" marketing part fairly covered with TV ads, newspaper ads, etc..

    From what I read, I will be creating a website just like @bizgrower mentioned, both in English & Polish & give out rough estimates for repairs.

    I would like to optimize my Facebook fan-page and rank on Google..however, what type of keywords should I focus on? Should I focus on polish keywords or would that be pointless?

    I feel like it would be much easier to rank for the polish ones, instead of like "auto repair chicago" in English because it will be competitive.

    Let me know everyone's thoughts.

    Once again, thanks for all the help! It's really giving me a lot of ideas!
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    • Profile picture of the author DABK
      Make 2 pages, one for English, one for Polish.

      They're not mutually exclusive, you know.

      And, I would focus on more narrow keywords than 'auto repair chicago.'

      I mean, I'd go for that one too, but some people want to know
      break pads cost
      rack and pinion repair Chicago
      flat tire Chicago

      Granted, few, but 3 a month from here, 10 a month from there, if you rank for 100 keywords you could rank just by having the keyword in the page title and url, you do end up with a few hundred, very interested, visitors.

      Originally Posted by daveski View Post

      Thank you everyone for all the copious amounts of useful information!

      Great stuff, I read everyone's post! I liked the little argument earlier, made me EL OH EL!

      Anyway, I forgot to mention that my main goal is to focus on marketing my business online, because I feel like I kinda have the "offline" marketing part fairly covered with TV ads, newspaper ads, etc..

      From what I read, I will be creating a website just like @bizgrower mentioned, both in English & Polish & give out rough estimates for repairs.

      I would like to optimize my Facebook fan-page and rank on Google..however, what type of keywords should I focus on? Should I focus on polish keywords or would that be pointless?

      I feel like it would be much easier to rank for the polish ones, instead of like "auto repair chicago" in English because it will be competitive.

      Let me know everyone's thoughts.

      Once again, thanks for all the help! It's really giving me a lot of ideas!
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    • Profile picture of the author Barry Unruh
      Originally Posted by daveski View Post

      give out rough estimates for repairs.
      I like everything you said except that...

      I don't get the impression you are trying to be the "low cost provider" in your neighborhood.

      You seem focused on quality service and taking care of your clients.

      Giving estimates online is a sure way to get "shopped". I go to mechanics that are highly recommended as being great mechanics and fair on pricing, and have never asked for an estimate before letting the mechanic look at my car to determine what is wrong.

      But, you know your market better than I do..
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    • Profile picture of the author bizgrower
      Originally Posted by daveski View Post

      Thank you everyone for all the copious amounts of useful information!

      Great stuff, I read everyone's post! I liked the little argument earlier, made me EL OH EL!

      Anyway, I forgot to mention that my main goal is to focus on marketing my business online, because I feel like I kinda have the "offline" marketing part fairly covered with TV ads, newspaper ads, etc..

      From what I read, I will be creating a website just like @bizgrower mentioned, both in English & Polish & give out rough estimates for repairs.

      I would like to optimize my Facebook fan-page and rank on Google..however, what type of keywords should I focus on? Should I focus on polish keywords or would that be pointless?

      I feel like it would be much easier to rank for the polish ones, instead of like "auto repair chicago" in English because it will be competitive.

      Let me know everyone's thoughts.

      Once again, thanks for all the help! It's really giving me a lot of ideas!
      Daveski,

      I suppose you'll get some who will try to hold you to your estimate, but I think the majority
      of people will understand that you don't know until you get in there.

      As you build your websites in English and Polish the keywords will, I think, naturally arise from
      the service you provide - and then decide which to use in the tags. I think you'd want to
      emphasize your most common and profitable services. Plus "Polish Speaking Mechanic".

      Do you have a killer introductory offer? Such as free inspection or tire rotation with oil change,
      or a good price on updating the car's computers, or a good price on a chipped key...

      Dan

      PS - Barry does have a good point to consider on the estimate thing. But, we don't know
      how competitive your market is, or if you want - say for example - the brake job business where you have
      to educate some consumers about the difference between your honest work and those places
      who constantly advertise $99 per axle and do crappy work, or turn it into "you have to replace everything for $865.59".
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      • Profile picture of the author ErnieB
        Since you wanting to focus marketing efforts online, building a website is a must. I would follow the course made by Paul James(Maps Mentor). Its directed at those wanting to sell the service to businesses but you can obviously use the info for your own business. Deals with setting up website and getting reviews and such so you can get onto front page of google in their "Google my Business" pack which normally will be easier than traditional SEO to rank.

        However, I think the BEST way to market your business ( like your thread topic suggests your after ) would be direct mail postcards to your surrounding community. No envelopes to open, no pages to flip through. Your ad gets seen almost guaranteed and if you offer a good deal like a $20 oil change to get them in, you should get a good response and can then add them to your customer lists.
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  • Profile picture of the author Freebiequeen1999
    Like I said - check similar sites in Miami and ? Montreal/Toronto etc to see how they handle it

    do a google search for your local polish org facebook pages..see how they handle it

    you could work a deal to have them promote your page on their facebook page - that would be the best way online IMHO

    pay or barter or link exchange with other Polish websites
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    • Profile picture of the author DABK
      To reach more Polish prospects in Chicago, you'd do well, in my opinion, to advertise on the Radio Polish shows (FM 92.7) or their newspapers:
      Polish Newspaper

      Dziennik Zwiazkowy

      dziennikzwiazkowy.com

      Polish Daily News

      To reach non-Polish people, you might want to make friends with insurance agents, especially the ones that sell car insurance and have newsletters... Advertise in their newsletters, or ask them about solo ads to their list.


      Get an O'Riley Auto Parts or Auto Zone store to let you advertise in their store? They're big, corporate might say no, I don't know... But, if you could get them to let you put a poster by the entrance...
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  • Profile picture of the author yukon
    Banned
    Here's why I think the whole neighborhood idea is holding you back.

    Real example.

    My brother has a 1 hour drive to work, his AC went out on his car. He didn't get the car repaired near his house, he found a mechanic within a couple of blocks from where he works.

    You're in Chicago, I'm sure there's a boat load of businesses in your area where all kinds of people work, not just Polish people.

    You need to drop the Polish traffic tunnel vision If you're serious about expanding sales.
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  • Profile picture of the author RTSteam
    To summarize:

    1. Build a website.
    2. Optimize your website after doing a proper keyword research.
    3. Make use of social media sites.
    4. Improve and manage your online reputation.
    5. Have an animated explainer video.
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    • Profile picture of the author Freebiequeen1999
      Originally Posted by RTSteam View Post

      To summarize:

      1. Build a website.
      2. Optimize your website after doing a proper keyword research.
      3. Make use of social media sites.
      4. Improve and manage your online reputation.
      5. Have an animated explainer video.
      Huh??? Are you actually reading the topics or just copy pasting in boiler plate advice in English?
      I am always annoyed when people who obviously don't really speak english just come to show off their sig line

      I don't go to other countries and post with a translator program
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  • Profile picture of the author SashaLee
    Hi there,

    Pay close attention to the advice ewenmack gave you. In fact, if I were you I'd hire him to do a direct mail piece for me.

    Polish in Chicago will use you if they feel you speak to them directly. They will refer their friends and be loyal.

    I lived in Chicago when I was younger. There was a club called "Touch of Europe". It should have been called "Touch of Poland" - I was the only European (not Polish) there anytime I went.

    It was said at the time that there were more Polish in Chicago than there were in Warsaw (at that time). Big market. Old school market. Great market.

    All the best,

    Sasha
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    • Profile picture of the author yukon
      Banned
      Originally Posted by SashaLee View Post

      Hi there,

      Pay close attention to the advice ewenmack gave you. In fact, if I were you I'd hire him to do a direct mail piece for me.

      Polish in Chicago will use you if they feel you speak to them directly. They will refer their friends and be loyal.

      I lived in Chicago when I was younger. There was a club called "Touch of Europe". It should have been called "Touch of Poland" - I was the only European (not Polish) there anytime I went.

      It was said at the time that there were more Polish in Chicago than there were in Warsaw (at that time). Big market. Old school market. Great market.

      All the best,

      Sasha
      Ignore that nonsense, she's clearly scratching a friends back which has nothing to do with business.

      When a person (anyone) has a car broke down, they don't care what ethnic background a person has, they care that the mechanic is capable of doing a good job fixing the car.

      Stop picking ethnic groups, you'r not running a soup kitchen.
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  • Profile picture of the author HuiBang
    As you mentioned in your post that you have your business presence everywhere but don’t have business website yet. These days, even small business should have website. Any business that does not have a website is missing out on one of the most powerful marketing tools available to them. These days’ people love to go online and search for the product before buying any product, if you don't have a website you are missing out on all of this potential business.


    So according to my perspective you should work on your business website and then marketing.For any help feel free to ask
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  • Profile picture of the author SnacksSays
    Originally Posted by daveski View Post

    Hi,
    -Majority of my customers are Polish, about 85% speak Polish.
    (NOTE: I'm trying to target all types of people, not just the polish)

    .....

    I have a Facebook fan-page but I do not run ads, because lets admit how many 30-50 year old polaks sit on Facebook hoping to find a mechanic..almost none.
    Well you just said you're "trying to target all types of people, not just the polish". This is contradicting. Why not run the Facebook add if you're trying to target all types of people?

    Join local Facebook buy sell and trade groups and look to advertise on those groups if they allow it.

    I run a local group that has 23k members and people have made their own businesses flourish because of the power of word of mouth via local members.
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    • Profile picture of the author jimbo13
      Originally Posted by SnacksSays View Post

      Well you just said you're "trying to target all types of people, not just the polish". This is contradicting.
      In which language would this be contradicting?

      Dan
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      • Profile picture of the author SnacksSays
        Originally Posted by jimbo13 View Post

        In which language would this be contradicting?

        Dan
        Did you read the rest of my post? He said he wants to target other people besides Polish yet his reasoning for not running a facebook ad was

        "I do not run ads, because lets admit how many 30-50 year old polaks sit on Facebook hoping to find a mechanic..almost none.

        He's saying he doesn't run Facebook ads because "30-50 year old polaks" don't sit on Facebook hoping to find a mechanic

        So why not target Facebook if he's looking for customers other than Polish?
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  • Profile picture of the author ErnieB
    If your already doing well in the "Polish market", why would you waste time/money to market to them? They are already your customer base.
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  • Profile picture of the author FreedomBlogger
    I would recommend you to actually invest in building your own website. It doesn't really have to be to give quotes. It should be to tell your potential customers about you, leave you reviews, share images, connect with people, etc.

    You have to learn more about building a connection with potential customers. Learning a little bit of human psychology can really make a huge difference in your business!

    I read an article a few weeks ago, where they say showing potential customers images of your services and of your workers socializing with customers, will make the potential customer really consider doing business with you. A lot more than if they did not see these images. You get what I mean?

    Having your own website, will also give you more authority in front of potential customers. You can even have this website on your business cards (and I hope you do have business cards). That will give your business a more professional look too!

    In today's world, not taking care of the online side of your business, even if your entire business is offline, can really cost you missing out on a lot of money!

    Once you have your own website, you can hire a Search Engine Expert to help you rank it up for local keywords.

    Just imagine your website ranking up on the first 3 spots in Google, when someone is typing the term; "best mechanic shops around chicago, IL"

    That is someone who is ready to buy a service! .... because, obviously, they are looking to fix something, right?! ... otherwise they would not make that search!

    And there a few keywords like that, that you can rank for!

    You can also rank your Yellow Pages and Google Listings. I recommend you to hire a search engine expert.

    But I would definitely invest in my own website, if I was you.

    I hope this helps!
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    • Profile picture of the author ewenmack
      Here's what's happened...

      1 He has spent money on general advertising,
      not targeting the Polish Community

      2 Most of his customers are the Polish community,
      without targeting them. They self selected.

      3 He has not reached all of them because to do that,
      he would of had to get his message in every mailbox of the Polish community.

      The general public have already voted with their wallets
      that they would rather go to another mechanic shop.

      All this means is going after those people who match existing
      buyers and don't go after those who don't match the majority of the buyers.

      Nothing to do with ethnicity.

      It's just a hard-nosed rational decision of going where the money is.

      And reaching 100% of them is renting a list of only them
      and sending the promo.

      It's the same approach used by those who follow the behavior of the best buyers.
      They find out what they have in common so they can get their message in front of
      others just like the best buyers.

      An example Target knew when a teenager was pregnant
      before her father did based on what other pregnant teenagers bought.

      Best,
      Doctor E. Vile
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      • Profile picture of the author wolfmmiii
        Originally Posted by ewenmack View Post

        Here's what's happened...


        The general public have already voted with their wallets
        that they would rather go to another mechanic shop.
        Where did you get this info from??? Are you assuming this because 15% of his customers are "non-Polish"?
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  • Profile picture of the author bizgrower
    I would like to know if Daveski is running a small shop, or looking to get more business for a fifteen
    bay shop. And, any specializations.

    To me that makes a difference in profiling and reaching his ideal customers.
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  • Profile picture of the author Barry Unruh
    Originally Posted by daveski View Post

    I have a Facebook fan-page but I do not run ads, because lets admit how many 30-50 year old polaks sit on Facebook hoping to find a mechanic..almost none.
    That statement speaks to what Ewen Mack is proposing, which I think is a brilliant strategy, but leaves one glaring problem in my mind...

    Their 16-30 year old kids DO SIT ON FACEBOOK, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, etc..

    I'm 55, but I frequently help my two sisters, my kids, my mother, and other relatives find someone to do services for them. I instantly turn to the internet, as I suspect those 16-30 year old kids will, too.

    The best thing is to combine what both sides of the argument are suggesting, but choosing how to split the marketing budget based upon the shop's goals.

    I don't think you can ignore either side of the argument as a long-term marketing solution.
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  • Profile picture of the author bizgrower
    A way I would use Facebook is to remind existing customers to brag about you.
    I'm not a Facebooker, so if it does not violate TOS, maybe incentivize it with
    something like a free tire rotation with oil change if they do brag about you.

    Something to tap into the word of mouth aspect of FB. I had a housekeeper who is not
    computer person at all, but she does FB with her bajillion relatives in Colorado and Oklahoma,
    and that group helps each other find anything needed to buy or sell or get fixed...

    Maybe just a "Remember us when you use Facebook" sign by the register...
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  • Profile picture of the author Peter Lessard
    This thread is a prime example of a little bit of information shared causing a whole bunch of assumptions.

    After reading everything I understand one thing. You feel you are neglecting the online world because you have offline covered. That in and of itself is not really a sound business reason to do anything online. I am not saying you should not, just saying it is best to dig deeper to make this as profitable as possible since this feeling will likely cause you to take some sort of action online.

    To that end I would ask you to consider the following ( and if we had this information we could of served you much better with less argument about ethnic groups etc.. lol )

    What is your capacity?
    At what level of your capacity are you operating?
    Do you have droughts in business that you wish to level off?
    Given the choice are there certain types of jobs or clients you would rather focus on?
    If you are actually attracting one ethnic group over another do YOU see a reason for this or is it just based on population and if for some reason your offer resonates better with one group than others do you see growth potential as it relates to the reason they choose you?

    Without this info all the recommendations are generic shots in the dark.

    Now in regards to doing something online, or post cards etc.. the most important advice I can give you is to focus your efforts in such a manner that the least amount of effort and cost will yield the best results and base that decision on what you already know.

    I believe EwenMack was going down that path but I also share concerns of other posters that we may be making some assumptions without facts.


    In regards to focusing your efforts for least cost/trouble and maximum returns consider the following.


    Maintaing social media takes time and effort and is easily done wrong. Ranking for all kinds of key phrases takes time, effort and results change constantly. If you are already operating at a high maximum capacity and all you want to do is generate a bit of extra business during slow times then there are much more efficient ways to do this than going for full blown web sites social media and seo.

    Here is an example of keeping it simple and making a killing:

    I took on the marketing for a locally focused commercial paving company.
    In business 22 years, Italian descent, anyone in paving knows them as the go to guys.
    Tons of Italian clients but of course also non Italians.
    They had zero online presence. All work by referral. They too had that nagging feeling about missing out due to no web presence. They were pitched all kinds of expensive internet plans and complicated do it yourself plans.

    By simply putting up a quick web site and putting them on Google maps and getting it ranked ONLY for their company name and the owners personal names quote requests started to flow quickly.
    Why? because they were indeed being referred constantly BUT the person receiving the referral
    would go looking to good old google for phone number or address, not find them and invariably hire the competition.

    They were also doing radio and some print ads.
    We noticed an immediate jump in sales of their radio offers after fixing the web
    BUT
    the leads came in through their web site even though the web site name
    was not even mentioned in the radio spots!
    Again, people hear the name and hit Google later just to get their contact info.

    NOTHING on their site tries to sell anybody on anything.
    Its just easy to find and easy to contact them via the site.

    Could they run ads, do seo, build a facebook yada yada....
    yes! but their specific business goals were met with a small effort that is easy to maintain
    and cost them very little and will require almost no upkeep.
    In 12 months, their next expansion phase we will take it to the next level.


    There is nothing better than having an existing spend like radio and with a tiny investment in another channel make that first investment skyrocket. You could easily do the same wth all kinds of options like printable special offers on your site etc.. for things like AC service, oil change but in the end my advice is keep it simple or to be more accurate keep your effort inline with your desired result. There is no need to crack a nut with a sledgehammer.

    P.S On another note to those selling online marketing an average job cost for these guys is HUGE so I could of gone in like everyone else with 20k plans and baffled them with bullshit to get the check. Instead I gave them a cheap fast solution. Did I make less upfront? Yes. But the referrals I am getting from these guys has yielded serious income and will for a long time into the future.
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  • Profile picture of the author yukon
    Banned
    My wife found our current HVAC guy from a recommendation on Facebook so I know peer recommendations work.

    You guys make simple things over complicated, lol.
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  • Profile picture of the author rafsco
    Have you thought about working with tow companies?
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  • Profile picture of the author netbroker
    I would do a cheeky Ad along the lines of this:

    Free polish sausage with every oil change:
    Free Polish sausage with every MOT:
    Free Polish sausage with every Tyre change:

    How you actually make the Ad is up to you!.. however i would make a life sized cardboard laminate picture of a mechanic holding a polish sausage!.. outside your garage!.. now what polish guy or girl would turn down a free sausage do get their car done.
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  • Profile picture of the author blisonickid
    You can market such a website in local ads directory or you can use news paper advertisement too.
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