By Mr Retail
Many of us have seen the spike in vehicle thefts, noticed all the buzz around Kia and Hyundai theft, and the code grabbing of keyfobs. That brings us to the “new car security.” With smartphone control for alarms/remote start and the new Drone XC camera, I think we have a new, or back-from-the-dead category to discuss; Protection Packages. Why am I calling it protection packages instead of just security systems? Because it now goes way beyond a shock sensor and a siren under the hood. Let’s explore together.
In decades past, alarm systems were more popular than a remote start. Nowadays, factory remote starters and electric vehicles have all taken a chunk of that business from us. But any of those vehicles could potentially benefit from an alarm system. Thirty years ago, we had no way to get smartphone notifications of the alarm going off. And we surely couldn’t track the vehicle from our smartphone. Add in live video feed capability from the Drone XC camera and I think we have a whole new game, especially with parents and younger drivers, older drivers, and fleet vehicles.
At Westminster Speed & Sound we will begin promoting alarm and alarm/start combo units that use a Drone XC camera with the interior camera facing into the cargo area of the truck or van. If the client’s smartphone tells them of an intrusion, they can select the interior camera on the app and see what is going on with their vehicle that may be holding potentially tens of thousands of dollars of tools and/or inventory.
Our team will also begin offering Drone XC cameras as an upgrade on any remote start system.
We will create an average price and offer an alarm upgrade package to any remote car starter.
We will merchandise alarm systems again as well as update our security systems page on our website that probably hasn’t been touched in years.
A sub page of alarm systems will be added to our site showing the models we carry in remote car starters.
A fleet protection page will be added to our site and a flyer will be made to be handed to any client that owns any fleet vehicles or works in an industry with them.
A marketing email will be created to target existing clients that own fleet vehicles.
You could send a targeted email to owners of Hyundai, Kia, or Dodge, Ram, Chrysler, and Jeep PTS vehicles offering alarm systems to combat theft.
In the end, all of this will take up very little in marketing dollars, just some time to create the items. A small amount of inventory will be needed initially and then adjusted as sales ramp up.
I hope these ideas can be used to help you grow your business and attract a whole new set of clients.
Mark Miller
(Mr Retail)
Mark is the CEO of Westminster Speed & Sound, an award-winning retailer in Westminster, Maryland. The company was founded in 1969, and Mark took it over in 1990 at the age of 23. He first started in the industry in 1986, so he has been at it for a while. He has served on the board of MERA, taught seminars in over a dozen different cities, and served on the SEMA New Product Awards judging team. He has been married to his wife Dawn for 33 years now and has four grown children and four grandchildren. His hobbies include being a sound engineer, doing life coaching, and being active in the local and national Porsche community.
Photo: Drone XC
I love the idea of vehicle-specific content sent to customers. It feels like a more tailored, and personable approach to re-marketing to customers that have previously visited your store and/or interacted with your business.