It’s deep autumn outside. People are rushing to get warm boots and stock up on raspberry jam. But not motorists. What winter shoes, if the car still drives on summer shoes? And in general, where to get a normal antifreeze? And if you do not know how to open your own tire shop – we hope this article will inspire you a little.
Let’s go! 🙂
Start: gathering information about competitors
You don’t need to reinvent the wheel – all the information you need is in the public domain. Before starting any business, you need to do a niche analysis, namely:
- how many drivers there are in your area;
- what the ability of the population to pay;
- how many competitors are in the market and how strong they are;
- What they do to attract their customers and what unique offers they make;
- whether it is a profitable business (what is the market capacity).
You can find out these facts with the help of official statistics and ratings. Or you can order marketing research, which will provide all the necessary information. You can also order a promotion strategy, which will determine the vector of the company’s direction and further costs for the “promotion” of the service station.
Read also: Ukrainian instant and bean coffee market overview
Stop #1. Creating the corporate style of the service station
Men love the eyes. And since it’s mostly the stronger sex behind the wheel, let’s give them what they need!
Color matching: branding of service stations
They say he was driving so fast that only the lanes were flashing. Indeed, if you are a new car service center, which is not yet being targeted, you need to “lure” visitors along the road.
The bright colors as well as contrasts will be catching even with side vision.
A successful example: a combination of blue, red, black, white and metallic colors
The combination of black and red is a classic in the world of service stations. Red works as a trigger, attracting attention, and black makes any color more expressive. Also, these colors symbolize aggression. Which means that you are serious. This color scheme can attract the audience of the “below average” and “average” segment.
Read also: Clean branding: brand development for dry cleaners
Metallic is a relatively new color, or rather a modification of gray. It is associated with (unexpectedly) steel, durability and technology. It also symbolizes cold-bloodedness and pure reason. However, it should be taken into account that such a color solution will attract the segments of buyers “above average” and “premium”.
Blue is the color of tranquility. It’s like it’s saying to your customers: “you have nothing to worry about with us”. This color of their service stations are mainly “painted” branded car services, so with the use of blue (especially halftones) should be careful. You can be sued!
But orange is a typical color for the American market. Psychologists say that orange is the color of self-sufficient people.
If you want to create a brand for a network of service stations, contact our managers for consultation.
Read also: How to name a furniture company: checklist, 7 approaches and 9 examples
Brand development for a service station: name
How you name the service station will determine the target audience. Whether it will be “Car Wash” or “Auto Kraken” – choose you. But a successful naming should:
- evoke an associative series – “Clean-wash” evokes an association with cleanliness;
- to fit the scope of the business – calling a car service “Sweetie Pie” is not a good idea;
- to be unique – “Car Service №1” in Kiev is definitely not one;
- if you want to register a website (and you should want to, read further in the article) – you need to check if the nym is free on the domains.
Development of a brand style of a service station: logo
Not the most common part of corporate identity in the Ukrainian market of car service is the development of the logo of the service station. Nevertheless, it can become your advantage. Especially in communication with customers.
Stop #2. Choosing interior and exterior decoration
Signage, interior design, and identity objects are important parts of the brand identity that form the perception of the brand as a whole. It is important to create a working atmosphere for both employees and visitors.
Equipment quality
Visitors pay attention to the condition of the technology. No matter how professional your employees are or whether your location is optimal – it’s the technology that pays off the most.
Employees
The condition of the staff – both moral and physical says a lot about the owners of the tire shop. Providing the right equipment, uniforms and optimal working conditions will reflect both on the quality of service and the impression of the company.
Tire shop corporate identity: interior
The auto service room should be bright and spacious. It can also be branded like Orozco’s Auto Service.
Brand development for a tire shop: exterior
A signboard with large letters and illumination is ideal for any service station. Again, building off the theory of “the client passes by” – he must catch the eye of the name, he should not confuse you with someone else. And even if you do decide to call your car service something like “Sashenka”, at the bottom must be a clarification about the car service. Drivers will not have time to look at small signs and guess what they can mean.
A good example is the Kiev service station “Maslenka”. It is made in a uniform style, the inscriptions are large enough and legible. Also a huge plus is the fact that all services are placed on the walls of the service station. So users do not have unnecessary questions.
Stop #3. Standing out among competitors
Just to attract attention is not enough. In order for the consumer to come back again, you need to leave something to remember.
Unique selling proposition
It can be an impression. For example, the tire shop “Stealth-service” offers its visitors a separate comfortable room, which has a TV, vending machine, a set of printed publications, as well as armchairs or sofas.
It can also be something more tangible – for example, a business card, a sticker or a branded car fragrance. It’s a small thing for you, but a keepsake for your customers.
Stop 4. Customer communication
Keeping in touch with customers is an important part of a brand’s reputation. In order to collect feedback about the company and attract new customers, you need to prepare your own media platforms.
Read also: Media research in social networks: does it make sense
Social media
Representation in social networks will make it much easier to find customers. There you can find both car enthusiasts and newcomers in need of repair behind profile groups and hobbies.
Website, official page
Nowadays, before going somewhere, everyone is looking for information on the Internet. Make sure that the search engines give out your site for the query “car service” – and you won’t get away from your clients.
Finish!
We hope our article inspires you to open your own tire shop. If you need branding advice, please contact our managers
