Manufacturers
While National Car Care Month (NCCM) has long
been a great educational and promotional tool, your company's
participation can help move the needle even further. Below is a list
of ideas that your organization can incorporate to encourage
customers to take part in NCCM. Help us remind the industry that
through programs like NCCM, we can mold better customers through
education.
Signage
Banners and
signs will alert motorists of National Car Care Month. Whether or
not your customer plans to sponsor vehicle check lanes or other
promotions, simple NCCM banners help attract both DIY and DIFM
customers. View pre-designed National
Car Care Month banners and signs.
Telephone On-Hold Messages
Educate your customers while they're on hold with National Car
Care Month messages. Much like Be Car Care Aware scripts, these
brief messages explain why National Car Care Month is so important
to the industry and how they can participate. Don't forget to add
other messages that explain how your company will partner with
customers to take advantage of this month-long
educational/promotional event. Download scripts (.pdf/16 KB).
Incentives
Almost everyone responds to
incentives. Perhaps your company can offer special product
discounts, coupons for products or co-op money for customers who
sponsor an event to raise awareness during National Car Care Month.
Competitions
Nothing inspires customers like
a little friendly competition. Consider holding a contest that
motivates your customers to participate in National Car Care Month.
Whether it's a media blitz or a vehicle check lane, everyone wants
to come in first, and that's good news for the motoring public, who
will learn more about preventive maintenance and repair. Competition
might include: best NCCM media blitz; greatest number of cars
inspected during a NCCM vehicle check lane; most money raised in
donations for charity during NCCM activity; most creative use of
NCCM in promotions, etc.
Web Banners
Your customers visit your
web page often, so why not use it to heighten awareness about
National Car Care Month?
Download banners
that can be included on your homepage.
Publishing Information
Each time your company
communicates (newsletter, web site, e-mail, etc.) with customers
between now and April, include a National Car Care Month message and
the logo. This can be as simple as putting a border around the
sentence, "Participate in National Car Care Month
this April, visit
www.carcare.org," to reprinting an entire
article. A selection of 3
articles
is provided (.pdf/21 KB). Feel
free to reprint any or all of them.
Cause Related Marketing
A new name for an
old concept, "cause related marketing" is partnering with a "good
cause" as a way to help "market" a product or service. In short,
it's a combination of good will and good business.
If your company is helping sponsor a free vehicle check lane, for
example, consider this as an opportunity to raise money for charity.
In return, local volunteers from that charity might be willing to
help with some aspect of the check lane. Your company might also
promise to match donations made during the check lanes. This
enhances your event by giving it a dual purpose. It also gives you
additional volunteers, exposure, PR, etc. From Mothers Against Drunk
Driving to the Boy Scouts, this marketing idea is a winner.
Motorists view NCCM vehicle check lanes as a great public
service. For this reason, most of them are happy to give a donation.
With a beneficiary, everybody wins:
- the charity makes money,
- the motorist receives an inexpensive
inspection,
- the industry sponsors create a warm, fuzzy feeling in the
hearts and minds of the motorist; this is public relations at its
best.
Getting started
1. If you are working with a WD or Program Group, encourage them
to partner with a charity or charities that can give something in
return. For example, does the group have a good promotional person?
Do they have an active membership base that could provide
volunteers?
2. Encourage the WD/Program Group/Jobber to decide on the
charitable partners ASAP and establish a liaison.
3. Remind the WD/Program Group that it is important to find out
what the charitable group can commit: signage, press releases,
PSA's, local mailings, e-mail reminders, club speakers, radio
interviews, volunteers during the event, tee shirts, etc.
4. Consider offering items that your company has available (mugs,
gym bags, racing items) as incentives to encourage larger donations.
This accomplishes three purposes: the charity makes more money; the
WD/Program Group/Jobber/Service Provider appreciate your help; the
motorist becomes more familiar with your brand.
5. Consider offering to match donations. It doesn't have to be
dollar for dollar, it might be 1 to 3 or 1 to 5.
6. Encourage your group to get a commitment from the chosen
charity as soon as possible, along with a press release to announce
the partnership.
7. Remind your group to stay in close contact with this
organization and make certain they know their responsibilities prior
to, during and after the event.
8. Encourage the WD/Program Group to make certain a
representative from the charitable group is part of the evaluation
session following the event.
9. Promote this activity both in-house, within and outside the
industry.
Brochures
Currently the Council has two brochures available to download
and print. They can be reproduced in color or black and
white and have room for your logo. For distribution during National Car
Care Month, please make sure they should carry both the
Be Car Care Aware and the National Car Care Month logos. Print enough
that your Program Groups and WDs will have plenty to distribute to their
customers.
Implement Programming for Next Year
One of
the best ways your company can encourage business through NCCM is to
implement NCCM programming for next year. Make this event part of
your budget and include it in your promotional calendar using some
of the preceding ideas. Your customers will follow suit.
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