A company’s brand isn’t simply a name, logo or phrase. The brand is what customers think of when they hear or see a business’ name. In this sense, the “customer experience” is how a carwash’s brand is developed.

For this blog post, I will briefly discuss five customer service strategies carwash owners and operators can implement to help grow their brands. In the February issue of Professional Carwashing & Detailing magazine, I will go more in-depth on how good customer experiences are essential for effective carwash branding.

1. Create customer experience through effective team training. Training and operational processes should be in place to help all team members create the brand customers want. Everyone working at the carwash should be doing something to help improve customer experience.
2. Rely on checklists to deliver a consistent experience. Create tasks such as opening and closing checklists as well as maintenance and employee training schedules. Think of these functions as the key to driving repeat business. Research shows that a repeat customer spends 67 percent more than a new customer.
3. Establish an environment where everyone reports issues. Everyone working at a carwash location should look for items that need attention. Once a team member spots an issue, make sure he or she has a quick and easy way to report it.
4. Take care of any low-hanging fruit. When you feel confident that tactics one through three are working to enhance customer experience, it is time to review the two core ways a wash directly interacts with customers: sales and services.
5. Adjust any ineffective actions. Instead of informing managers of a specific adjustment that needs to take place, consider what part of the process failed, and then focus on fixing that. If something isn’t being completed or carried out as effectively as it should be, keep in mind that it might not be an isolated experience.

Note: This is a brief synopsis of a larger article that will be published in the February issue of Professional Carwashing & Detailing. While you wait, peruse through the Digital Archives here for more informative articles covered in past editions of PC&D magazine aimed to help your business thrive.

John Booth is co-founder of Wash Systems LLC. Wash Systems is focused on providing flexible solutions to issues unique to the carwash industry. Everyone at Wash Systems has direct carwash industry and information technology experience. Wash Systems recently released its Operations Process Engine (OPEn), which empowers organizations to operate more consistently.