In the article “Operations in the palm of your hand,” featured in a past issue of Professional Carwashing & Detailing, Group Editorial Director/Editor in Chief Rich DiPaolo discusses modern technology’s impact on the world of carwashing.
In the article DiPaolo explains, according to surveys conducted from 2000-15 by the Pew Research center, only about 15 percent of adults in the U.S. do not use the Internet. And, he also notes that in 2015, Radicati Group estimated approximately 2.5 billion email users send 205 billion emails per day.
“At this point you have either embraced communications and operational technologies for your business, or you are scrambling to catch up,” says DiPaolo in the article.
You might not be fully unlocking your car care business’ potential for delivering results and a high level of customer satisfaction if you’re not taking advantage of mobile marketing, carwash-specific innovations, such as RFID, and other operational desktop/online programs.
“Smart operators have taken advantage of digital and mobile technologies,” asserts Walter Sanders, brand manager for Innovative Control Systems (ICS), in the article. “Customers use Web-enabled tools to locate carwashes, compare pricing and specials, purchase carwash services at the payment kiosk or online and share their experiences via social media.”
Also included in the article is a sidebar containing technology security tips, courtesy of Sanders. By keeping in mind the following three guidelines, you can help keep your carwash’s and customers’ information safe.
- Get protection for your network and server. Proper system protection and “use policy” enforcement are musts for today’s carwashes. Computer networks, especially those with POS (point-of-sale) systems, are prime targets for malicious attacks. Misuse of systems by employees can increase exposure to these threats. Use of intelligent controls and automated system monitoring will stop most attacks before they can happen.
- The recent introduction of chip cards into the U.S. market has led to a lot of confusion. Despite merchant liability for fraudulent card transactions, and a larger risk for card data breach, many operators have been unwilling to convert to the new technology. However, solution providers understand the benefits in this change and have begun to bring innovative products to the market. Chip cards and readers have been proven to reduce fraud, but the technology can be costly. For approximately the same cost, a merchant can buy a chip card reader that is validated for its point-to-point encryption by the PCI council, reducing liability for data breach. These two technologies together offer superior protection for operators, cardholders and cardholders’ data.
- Physical security may be a low-tech security measure, but it has a huge impact. This isn’t tough to do, but many operators overlook it. Make sure any physical media, including files, boxes and drawers containing customer or site data, are stored securely.
You can read more about technology at the carwash here.
