marine quick lubes

[catchall]

I currently work at a car quick lube. The owner and i are think about offering our services to the local boating community here in Stuart Florida. I would like to get some feed back about how many people would be interested in this and what they would pay. We could go to marinas and do it there for large boats and could do smaller boats at our shop. we could offer preventative maintenance services like oil and filter changes, coolant flushes and intake cleaning. Please let me know what you think.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: marine quick lubes

You will never know unless you try it. My suggestion however is that when you prepare your flyers and printed advertising that you drop the word "preventative" or at least change it to "preventive". Sort of like the word "irregardless" (which is not a real word). Drives me nuts but that's just me. Getting the word out is essential to any new business. If people don't know you exist you will have no customers. Introductory offers (on the cheap) help get your foot in the door. Word of mouth can help after that. Do it right for a fair price and come-backs will happen. Do it wrong and one customer can destroy you.

 

[pine island fred]

Re: marine quick lubes

Check and see if marinas would allow you to come in. Might be stepping on other peoples toes. They might also want a piece of the action. FRED

 

[ridesapaint]

Re: marine quick lubes

I say go for it! I would love to have had someone Tuesday at the marina to change fluids in my boat. I probably would have paid $50 or so for it.

Found in the Merrium-Webster Dictionary: "Irregardless originated in dialectal American speech in the early 20th century. Its fairly widespread use in speech called it to the attention of usage commentators as early as 1927. The most frequently repeated remark about it is that ?there is no such word.? There is such a word, however. It is still used primarily in speech, although it can be found from time to time in edited prose. Its reputation has not risen over the years, and it is still a long way from general acceptance. Use regardless instead."

 

[Silver Heels]

Re: marine quick lubes

Hello,

Kind of like auto dealers, there are many boaters like myself that avoid the service department at marinas because the cost is invariably prohibitive for many of us. The smaller boat repair shops are usually scheduled a couple weeks out for service. I think its a good idea to offer a service like that. The marina I used to work at takes a large cut of the profits of outside mechanics because, lets face it, they want their own service department to stay busy. But, if you could offer this service to trailerboaters who bring their boats to you, I think it would require minimal, if any additional investment on your part. Plus it might attract a whole other segment of customers. What do you have to lose, the cost of a sign?

 

[Silver Heels]

Re: marine quick lubes

One more thing, don't "misunderestimate" the power of advertising