Social media, direct mail advertising and coupons are all valid strategies to market a small business, but how can owners cut through the clutter of messages everyone receives to make their company the business of choice for consumers?
“I have been involved in over 100 company launch campaigns over the years, and in my opinion, differentiation is the single most important factor that determines success,” said Tatsuya Nakagawa, vice president of marketing and strategy for Castagra Products and president of Inventoritis Strategy Group, a specialized innovation marketing firm based in Vancouver, Canada. When identifying factors that differentiate your business, be sure you define those factors from the customer perspective, he adds.
The starting point for any car wash should be excellent service, welcoming environment and a clean car. Of course, those are the same goals of every car wash so find a way to reinforce your message that your business goes above and beyond just washing cars; you are in the business of taking care of customers.
Demonstrate your connection to customers by recognizing the frustration of driving into a rainstorm just hours after leaving the car wash in a spotless car. “Offer a 24-hour clean guarantee,” Nakagawa said. A free exterior wash is a low-cost way to retain customers and increase word-of-mouth promotion.
Another way to make your business stand out from others is experiential, interactive event marketing, said Julie Austin, business consultant and author of “The Money Garden: How to Plant the Seeds for a Lifetime of Income.” “These days it’s getting harder and harder to get customers to be loyal to your business, but if you can give them ‘memories’ instead of just selling a product or service, they’ll be more likely to frequent your business,” she suggests. One way to create memories is to offer your business as a location for a community event, she said.
Offering the use of the business’ parking lot for a back-to-school event or the starting point for a road race to support a local charity not only ties the business to community members but also reaches people who might not know about the business. Of course, not all car washes have excess parking lot space that is available for a daylong event, so there are other options to create an experience, said Austin. “Create your own tradition or special holiday – such as ‘wash your car day’ – and offer customers a special price on that day.”
Having fun is a good way to differentiate your business, Nakagawa said. “The more fun you have; the better your sales will be. It’s a win-win.” He offers two suggestions for fun events that increase customer engagement, garner attention for your business and set you apart from other car washes:
• Have a 50-percent-off sale once a month for people that wear their favorite super hero costumes to the car wash. Take pictures of the people that show up and post them on social media.
• Sponsor a contest to give away a free car wash once month to the dirtiest car in the neighborhood. People can submit their photos for public voting via social media.
Social responsibility as a differentiator
In addition to creating fun events, connect with the community by supporting local organizations. “Social responsibility or support of local community is a valid strategy, but make sure you are really passionate about the cause,” Nakagawa said. “A few tips to maximize exposure include securing a media partner for your event or initiative, partnering with prominent local businesses to extend your reach and mentioning your support in all marketing materials,” he said.
As consumers become more aware of socially and environmentally responsible business practices, they are more likely choose businesses that are concerned with more than the bottom line. In the 2012 Edelman goodpurpose® study, 87 percent of consumers worldwide say they want a business to place at least as much weight on society’s interests as does on its own business interests. Large companies, such as American Express and Panera Bread, promote their activities to pursue socially responsible practices.
One way small businesses are demonstrating social commitment is an increasing number of businesses seeking certification as a “B Corp,” which identifies the company as having met rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, accountability and transparency.
Pursuing certification as a B Corporation was an easy decision for Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams, said Christine Deye, director of stewardship for the company. The social and environmentally responsible values of the company were not developed as marketing tactics but grew naturally out of the beginnings of the company, she said. “Jeni started the company in a stall at a local farmer’s market where it was normal to use products from local farms,” she said. “The concept of locally produced ingredients continues today, with farms within 200 miles of the company’s commercial kitchen providing most ingredients,” she said.
“We were already doing everything necessary to obtain B Corp certification, we just needed to put it down on paper,” Deye said. Having the certification and displaying the seal makes it easier for all shop employees to tell the story without having to recite all of the individual values, she explains.
Although there are 23 Jeni’s stores throughout the country, the focus is still on supporting local communities, said Deye. “We donate cash and in-kind product to local events; groups of employees perform service projects together; and the company offers time off to volunteer,” she said. “We want our support of local events to reflect our company values and interests of our employees.” For example, a number of employees at the corporate office and commercial kitchen are artistic, so they chose to paint a mural at a local community center, she said. “We are careful that our support is authentic and relates to both our employees and our customers.”
