TEXTING CUSTOMERS

[DUFRESNES]

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[DUFRESNES]

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[dfrisby]

I've been using "My Shop Manager" and it's been great for our business. It also has digital vehicle inspections that seem to work well. Also, with the slowdown from COVID 19 and me having to let my two employees take time off, I contacted them to suspend service for a month or two. They were quick to get back to me and allow us to keep service in order to contact customers and whatnot, but not charge me for this coming month. They are in the fight to help get through this crisis right along with the shops. I really appreciated that from them.

 

[JustTheBest]

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[BrandonNco]

Just be sure you are taking all the proper steps to make sure you are in compliance with the laws around texting your customers as it relates to “marketing”. 
 

[John Fabrega]

On 3/29/2020 at 1:30 PM, BrandonNco said:

Just be sure you are taking all the proper steps to make sure you are in compliance with the laws around texting your customers as it relates to “marketing”. 
 

Definitely! If sending messages promoting a product or a service, make sure you have express written permission and bullet-proof opt-out capability.

[Jeremy Glassco]

Email is & was important.
And yes, more than ever texting is critical too.
But what about in-app messaging and live chat?
Better yet, what about all 3 of these mediums working seamlessly together?

During a 4 part COVID-19 webinar series I'm hosting, I've been featuring guest speakers to share with us the importance of reaching smartphone addicted consumers remotely as #socialdistancing and #nocontact services gain in popularity.  

Even though part 1 is over, it's not too late to join in for part 2 coming up this Wednesday.
May 27th at 12pm CST.

Get your complimentary invite here. 
https://www.appfueled.com/webinars

[JimO]

I have sent out three mass text messages using BayMaster which is my shop management system. Worked great, targeted all my customers and kept them informed that I am open and willing to help. Definite positive results and the cost is negligible. I am in New Jersey and it seems everyone has a friend or relative that Covid has taken. For that reason I do not send a marketing message since I have no way of knowing what the recipient is going through during these difficult times. Instead I send out messages indicating that we are available to help our customers even for non-automotive needs. 

[Jeremy Glassco]

I've heard it all over the place that texting customers should now be a given.
I've heard the Elite Worldwide coaches, the ATI coaches and other say it is a given.

Honestly, from a business owner perspective it does seem so much better, faster and seems to generate a higher ROI than say using email.
There are many good solutions in our industry from texting.  AutoTextMe, Kukui, etc.

Although, I'm also interested if as an industry are we taking the time to listen if as an industry we are taking time to listen to vehicle owners and what they prefer.  
Let me explain.

Although we're just getting the first results of our vehicle owner survey back... this next statistic I share may shock auto repair professionals around the country.  When we asked vehicle owners, "What method would you prefer as the most convenient way to book an appointment with your local auto repair shop?" .. So far, as of 5/30/2020, a large majority (61.5%) of our vehicle owner survey respondents answered, "Book and confirm appointment in mobile app".  

Note:  "Send a text message to my shop" was only chosen as the preferred method by 11.5% of the survey vehicle owner respondents.

Does this consumer insight where texting trails mobile apps by almost 50% lead us to ask if 2020 is the year where shop owners need to consider getting their own vehicle owner mobile app??

Where their customers can manage and track their vehicles in their custom mobile app keeping their brand front and center on their smartphone??  
Perhaps to help answer this for your shop, I've put together a quiz so any auto repair shop owner can see where their shop ranks in a digital brand score compared to say a Fortune 500 and how they are using the latest in mobile app technology to blend email, YES texting too, but all seamlessly integrated with in-app push notifications too.
https://www.appfueled.com/quiz