Accelerate Your Automotive Marketing with Data-Driven Seasonal Campaigns

In the automotive industry, we often see a seasonal increase in consumer spending with the combination of warmer weather and tax refunds, while we see a dip in spending during the colder months. Having this type of trend insight can help you maximize your auto shop’s seasonal benefit when building your marketing plan and allocating funds for your annual marketing budget.

By exploring the changing seasons and annual themes that impact the auto service industry, you’ll get a clear idea of when and where you should focus your marketing spend — and when additional promotional offers may come in handy to add to your overall marketing plan.

Marketing Benefits of Seasonal Auto-Repair Campaigns

Increasing your auto-repair shop’s traffic, gaining valuable leads, and improving the engagement on your social sites is all about timing, execution, and relevant content. Here are some of the key benefits of incorporating seasonal campaigns into your annual marketing strategy:

• Grow brand awareness and attract more attention to your business.
• Boost revenue throughout the year, leveraging your marketing reach during off-peak times.
• Build an emotional connection with your customers, improving customer retention.
• Increase visibility and engagement among existing customers.
• Convert one-time buyers into loyal customers.

Research and Analysis: The First Stage of Your Campaign

If you don’t have an in-house marketing expert, you’re likely doing the campaign setup and management yourself. That can be overwhelming, but the good news is there are easy steps you can take to get started on your own and plenty of resources online to help you out.

The first step to creating a successful seasonal campaign is researching what your customers are doing, buying, and discovering their interests. The seasonal buying behaviors of your customers are easily trackable and predictable, allowing you to review seasonal patterns and determine the spending trends in your area so you can attract new customers with your marketing strategy.

Start with these steps:

1. Research what your customers are searching for online. This will change seasonally, so for example, during the warmer months, your customers are more likely to be searching for AC repairs than winter tires. There are many resources and tools online to help you find out what your customers are searching. An easy way you can start is by looking at the “People Also Asked” section of a Google search page, reading online forums, and looking at social media groups to see what people are talking about and what interests them.
2. Map out the journey your customer takes with your business to identify their goals and pain points. Do this by putting yourself in your customer’s shoes. How do you meet their expectations? Is your website easy to navigate? Can they find your auto shop’s information quickly? Then make a note of how they interact with you once they find your shop. Consider what your customer is thinking when they make that interaction, what is their motivation, and how are you fulfilling a need? Understanding how your customer feels and responds to your brand can help to eliminate negative experiences and turn that interaction into a long-term relationship!
3. Check out what your competitors are doing and highlight what differentiates your own business. You can do this by looking at their website, see how engaged their customers are on Facebook, and take note of any ads they are running that you come across on your feed. Search their business on Google and see what comes up. Set yourself apart from your competitors by being intentional and unique with your seasonal offers.

Seasonal Themes, Current Events, and Holiday Promotions

Follow along with the changing seasons and relevant news to adjust your content accordingly. Spending habits will shift based on current activities, so it’s essential to stay informed and stay active in your marketing messages.

When choosing a new promotion or service to highlight, the changing weather is a huge factor you should consider. Of course, regular vehicle maintenance is good to do every season, but the changing weather and events give you the chance to promote specific services and entice your customers with these seasonal reminders.

For example, the upcoming summer season (when the weather starts to heat up) would be a great time to promote AC unit tune-ups. Or, consider offering discounted tires when you know your customers are taking their families on that long-awaited vacation. They need their vehicle to be running and reliable, and turning to your auto repair business could be the answer. According to a survey conducted by OnePoll, 73% of vacationing Americans prefer to travel by car. Since the beginning of 2020, the global aviation industry has seen a decrease of 43.5 percent in scheduled commercial flights, leaving even more families choosing to use their cars for travel. The summer is a perfect time to capitalize on the seasonal surge of vehicle use and focus on the need for regular vehicle maintenance.

Entice your prospects by offering a free 20-point inspection, using the resulting foot traffic to convert new customers and schedule their necessary service appointments. The key to this tactic is to be genuine and honest during their inspection, building trust and rapport so they continue to choose your auto shop for their future service needs.

If you’re looking to promote your business with seasonal campaigns, contact UpSwell to get started with a free marketing assessment. Our auto repair marketing experts are ready to answer your questions and get you started on driving more customers straight to your business.