1. Be fair, be professional
Unfortunately, no one looks forward to calling a towing company. Despite the circumstances, try to make sure that each customer has an overwhelmingly positive experience. When someone calls for roadside assistance, do your best to provide an accurate quote. Try not to keep someone waiting for too long. It’s important to clearly communicate your estimated time of arrival. When you go above and beyond, you can turn a one-time customer into a customer for life. They will also happily recommend your towing service to friends and neighbors. This type of word-of-mouth marketing can be very beneficial to the growth and success of your business.
2. Build a great website for your towing business
Your towing business needs to be online. If someone’s car breaks down in the middle of the road, they won’t have a phonebook with them. If they don’t have a go-to towing service, they will likely look up a local towing company on their phone. If you don’t have a website, this person won’t even know your business exists. A well-organized, professional website is an amazing marketing tool. Make sure that your phone number and other important contact information is easy to find on each page.
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3. Ask for positive reviews
A few customer testimonials on your website will not suffice anymore. People want to see verified reviews on third-party sites. Consumers trust these reviews to make educated hiring decisions. If you deliver a great service, people will be happy to leave a review of your towing business. Don’t be afraid to ask for positive reviews. Highly-rated towing companies with many positive reviews will stand out from the competition. If you have received some negative reviews, do not get discouraged. There are online reputation management services that can help you recover.
4. Try PPC advertising
When someone searches “need a tow truck” online, an advertisement for your towing business can show up at the top of the page. Pay-per-click advertising is a good way to get more calls into your office and more visitors to your towing service’s website. It’s easy to get started. You can do-it-yourself using an online portal. Setting up your first campaign is fairly simple. You can set a budget, pick the keywords that you are interested in bidding, and even decide which geographic locations you would like to target. If this seems like too much work, you can also hire a PPC agency to do this for you.
5. Build relationships with relevant local businesses
Networking is not just about exchanging business cards. You want to build real relationships with people that may need towing services in the future. For example, an apartment complex manager may be looking for a towing company to patrol their lot for parking offenders. It can also help to know car dealership owners, auto mechanics, traffic enforcement professionals, police officers, and parking lot managers. When they need a towing company, they will know to call you. When someone needs their services, you can return the favor.
6. Try pay-per-call advertising
Pay-per-call advertising can be a great way to jumpstart your marketing efforts. The pay-per-call company advertises on your behalf. When someone is interested in using your towing service, they will be able to call you directly. When you sign up, you’ll agree to pay a set fee for each incoming call. Each lead will be a little bit different. There are many different reasons to call a tow truck, including 1) engine problems (breakdown, overheating, etc.), 2) car lockouts, 3) flat tires, 4) battery trouble, or 5) auto accidents and collisions.
Check out this article about
towing lead pricing.
7. Pass out fun, promotional items
People love free stuff. After you tow someone’s vehicle, hand them something to remember your business. It could be a refrigerator magnet, keychain, pen, bumper sticker, ice scraper, tire pressure gauge, mini flashlight, or another small token. It’s even better if it’s something that they can keep in their car for future reference. Anytime they have car trouble, they’ll know exactly where to find your phone number.
8. Build a memorable brand
What do you want people to think about when they hear the name of your towing company? Do they immediately remember your catchy radio ads? Will they remember the bright orange shirt that your employee was wearing? Will they remember your logo? If your towing truck service has a strong brand, people will remember you each time they need your services. It’s important to use your website, business cards, and other marketing materials to reinforce and grow your brand.
9. Invest in SEO
Search engine optimization can help your website rank higher for important towing keyword. What keyword searches would you like to rank for? For example, you might want your site to show up for “towing companies near me” or “24 hour tow truck service”. In order to improve your search engine rankings, you will need to invest time and money into optimizing your site. You can do this on your own or you can hire an SEO company. If you prefer the DIY route, start by writing blog posts for your website. Original content is a great way to boost your rankings.
10. Try radio advertising
Many people listen to the radio when they are in the car. This makes radio advertising ideal for towing services. Make sure that your ad script includes the name of your company, your business phone number, and website URL. If you have a catchy slogan, tagline, or jingle, you can include that too! If you create a memorable ad, people will think about your business automatically when they need to call a tow truck.
11. Increase your marketing budget
If business has been slowing down, you may need to
spend more money on your marketing efforts. Invest more in advertising techniques and marketing strategies that have been working for your towing company. Go ahead and abandon programs that are not providing any value. What works for some towing companies might not work for others. If radio advertising is not providing a good return on investment, try something new like hiring a PPC agency or an SEO consultant.
Last Updated: October 8, 2018