We had a client approach us recently who was interested in using email to market his body shop, but he wasn’t quite sure how to go about it. This is one of our specialties at Stratosphere Studio, so we were able to develop a full-scale email marketing campaign for his shop based on our extensive research into lead nurturing.
Are you hoping to establish a successful email marketing campaign for your auto body shop? Then read on for basic guidelines on how to start.
Start with the right content marketing.
When we talk about content marketing, what we’re really trying to say is that you need to provide plenty of useful content on your website. This is the key way to get visitors to your site in the first place and it will help to establish your website as a resource for answering their auto body questions. Be sure to blog regularly and get your keywords in there to boost your rankings on Google.
Post calls to action.
Encourage your website visitors to provide their contact information by providing them with valuable offers in exchange. List coupons or enable online appointment scheduling and request their names, phone numbers, and email addresses. This is how you’ll begin to build up your email contact database.
Follow up immediately.
As soon as someone inputs their information on your website, it’s essential that you follow up with them immediately. Send them the coupon they requested or schedule their appointment—no matter what it is, time is of the essence here. People want to know that your website is reliable, since it’s a reflection on how reliable your shop is.
Follow up again after a designated time period.
There are lots of great email marketing tools available to help you to automate the process, so do your research. Hubspot is one that we’ve used frequently, as well as Constant Contact. Once you’ve sent your follow-up email, schedule a series of additional emails to go out after a designated timeframe. You could apply various tactics, such as sending out additional coupons, tell-a-friend incentives, or even a “did you know?” email with body shop news. The goal is to be frequent enough to stay relevant to the customer, while not becoming an inbox irritant.
Be vigilant about following the email marketing rules.
With the CAN-SPAM Act in 2003, laws for email marketing have become more stringent and it’s important that you follow them carefully. For instance, you must include an opt-out link and be sure to honor unsubscribes immediately. For a list of additional rules, visit our Email Marketing page.
If you are looking for a digital marketing agency to handle the email marketing for your body shop, then give Stratosphere Studio a call. We can develop a strong campaign to boost the marketing for your shop and invite customers to value not only your car repair services, but also your email correspondence. We are experts at body shop marketing and are proud to represent some of the top shops in the country. We would love to boost the sales for your shop, too.
