(We haven’t actually said that, but maybe we should.)
Today, we’re gonna try something a little different: We’re going to look into why people don’t want to work with us.
Yes, it’s true—not everyone is instantly willing to partner up. And that's okay! We understand it’s a big decision to make. That’s why we’re discussing some of the worries shop owners have shared with us over the years.
“I DON’T WANT TO WORK WITH DIESELMATIC BECAUSE…”
1. Dude, I don’t need more business.
You mean you don’t need more business right now. Customers come and go, and a lot of shops will be in big trouble if one or two of their cornerstone clients shut down or take their vehicles elsewhere. Building out a marketing pipeline helps you weather that kind of trouble.
As a side note, if you’re looking to retire, or give out big raises, or sell the shop, you’ll want to build up the business—no matter how good it’s looking.
2. Why should I spend more money on marketing? I already have a website and/or word of mouth works great for me.
Hey, you’re a few steps ahead of the pack already! But how much work is your website generating? Are you seeing new leads and customers every month?
(If you are, congratulations! You’re doing a bang-up job with that site!)
If you’re not, well, high-performance websites are pretty much our MO. And they come with a marketing strategy and a whole team of experts to make sure your work pipeline is absolutely bursting.
3. I need more techs, not more customers!
Y’know a slick website and a solid online presence both do their part to attract new techs, right? The techs you’ll be hiring over the next few years are going to skew younger—millennials, Gen-Z, and whoever comes after. A lot of these younger people grew up with the internet. They see an online presence as a requirement for any company they patronize or work for.
We’ve already got a big post on this phenomenon (called recruitment marketing), so we won’t linger too long on it, but here’s how it works:
- You post your available jobs (psst, Dieselmatic makes it really freakin’ easy with DieselJobs).
- A tech sees that you’re hiring and creeps on your website, your reviews, and your social media.
- They use that information to determine whether they want to apply.
A bigger, better digital footprint gives a tech the information they need to see if you two would be a good fit for each other.
4. It’s too expensive!
You’ve probably heard that from your own customers at times, right? (Or maybe they never became your customers.) Our fields are similar in that high-quality work shouldn’t be cheap. You charge what you and your techs are worth—so do we.
Your marketing is an investment, just like the lift you just bought, or the certification courses you’ve enrolled your techs in. It pays you back. And look, you’re not committing to a huge expenditure right off the bat—we offer several plans, so you can find the one that fits your budget.
(And our dashboard shows you in real-time exactly where your money is going and what it’s doing for you. Your swanky new lift can’t tell you that!)
WE STILL THINK WE CAN DO GREAT WORK FOR YOU!
We’ve heard a lot of objections during our years in the industry. And you know what? They’re legit. Shop owners are looking out for their businesses and trying to do the right thing.
But the reality is too many shops finally turn to marketing when they’re already in trouble—the work’s dried up, they’re having hiring issues, the mortgage or lease is due…you get the idea.
So think about why you’re objecting to marketing. Try framing it as something preventive—a step you take to make sure you don’t hit some of the snarls life can throw at us.
And hey, drop us a line with your concerns. We’d love to talk you through it!