It’s a hard sell sometimes, I get it more than Anyone. I drove my Silverado around town for weeks before I started branding myself on the Social Media profiles I knew might bring some interest to my brand. Even then, I took months before I listed my business anywhere else. Fast forward a couple of years and the Pandemic takes place, I choose to stay home and be with my family since work slows down due to lock down. I shut everything down…or so I think and what do I find? I am ranked #1 in Google at the time for Local Mobile Auto Repair, beating out my previous employer in the area (who shall remain nameless). I do my best to figure out what is driving this since I still get calls from people who I have never fixed their car, asking me to go to their location and work on their vehicle. I do some digging, I have no website, and only a few business pages open along with my Facebook Auto repair page where I advertise and it has pulled enough attention to warrant me having a coveted top spot in our favorite search engine.
How I got there was a tough cookie to figure out, I didn’t have many reviews, and most of the ones I did have were on my Facebook Page. Still it instilled in me enough interest that I wanted to know more and more of what I actually did. So, I did what I learned to do as a mechanic, I started at what my “problem” was and went backwards and researched until I found my answer. I was doing A LOT of SEO work with the business page I did have. The best part was I was doing it without even trying. I was able to get enough ground and hit enough Keywords for Google to see me as the Authority for Mobile Auto Repair in my area.
What I have done now, is I have pieced everything I did together, and now I can help other struggling Mobile Mechanics achieve the success and work that I did. And the best part?? I can do it without needing to do the heavy work that most shops do. YES you can partner with a trusted shop for Engine Swaps, Alignments, and any other heavy work that you might not or can’t do on the ground, AND the customer’s know about it beforehand.
I believe the best part of what I did was to set the stage for what was going to happen when they contacted me. I would receive a message on FB messenger or my phone, It would include make, model, year of vehicle and issue they experienced. As much info as they cared to divulge about the problem. Then I would message back with a time and day that I could go look at the vehicle along with a Diag fee, you read that right, Diag fee upfront. I don’t want to waste their time and I have put myself in a position where they don’t want to waste mine. If they asked what a repair costs, such as water pump, my price for the part was ALWAYS MSRP. I could have charged more, but the reality is I hated lying to clients about how much parts are, and much less when I know that they could have called a “friend” or family member to repair it and possibly be in a worse situation that just a broken down car. I was there to save them money in the long run, so if a water pump cost ME 80, and MSRP was 130, the repair was 130 for the pump, plus whatever I charged for “repair hours” for example my hourly rate was 80 dollars, so if the water pump calls for 2 hours to swap out, 130 for parts, 160 for labor, total 290 for the Job and Customer can stay in their living room or work for the day while I did the work. After work was completed I had options for payment, Cash, Check, Venmo, Cashapp, Square invoice, Basically I wasn’t leaving without being paid and never once did I have an issue with a customer not wanting to pay.
My marketing Journey was a long one for my own business, if I had done what I know now, I would have been an instant hit. My ads would have been more effective right off the bat, I would have run organic ads the way I did at the end and blown everyone else out of the water. It happened in the end, and I learned everything I needed. So now, I can help other Mobile Mechanics repeat my success and hopefully even multiply it.
Please reach out with any questions or if You would like to grow and market your Business more effectively with organic (non paid) traffic and we can help you.
Joshua Romo
Owner
Fiero SMM
