If you’re in the car wash business or are planning to get into it, you are probably wondering who your ideal target market is and how best can you attract them to your car wash.
There are all sorts of people who use car washes, for all sorts of reasons. Some people go to a car wash because they don’t have the time or energy to wash their car themselves.
Others go because they want it to be done properly, and they don’t trust themselves not to damage their car. And still others go because they want the experience of having someone else clean their car for them.
Before making any investment or marketing decisions about this business you need to make sure that you understand the motivations of the people who constitute the car wash target market.
Also, keep in mind that not everyone wants or needs a car wash, so you’ll need to make sure you are targeting the right people!
In this article, we will look at the different types of customers who could use a car wash and understand what motivates them to do so, as opposed to washing their car themselves or not washing it at all.
We hope this insight into the car wash target market will be helpful to you.
Thanks for reading!
What is the Target Market for a Car Wash?
The target market for a car wash includes people who have a need to keep their car clean but are not willing to do the work themselves.
However, even within the car wash target market, different people have different reasons for going to the car wash. Understanding these reasons is how we can segment this market and use different marketing strategies to appeal to each segment.
We can also offer different products and services to people in each segment. This is one of the ways of making a car wash a profitable business.
Here is the classification of the people who typically will go to a car wash to get their car cleaned:
- People who want to keep their car looking new or in pristine condition
- People who use their car for business purposes
- People who have a luxury car or a classic car
- People who frequently drive in dirty or muddy conditions
- People who live in an apartment or a condo
- People who live in areas with a lot of dust or pollen
- People who have pets that shed fur or hair
- People whose car is frequently exposed to the elements
- People who want to extend the life of their car
Car Wash Target Market: Why do people use a car wash?
The key to understanding the car wash target market is to understand what makes people use a car wash. What are their motivations? Why don’t they clean their car themselves?
To answer these questions, let’s look closely at each of the segments identified in the previous section.
1. People who want to keep their car looking new or in pristine condition
Many people like to keep their car looking new or in pristine condition. For some, it’s a status symbol. Others like to keep everything clean and organized. Whatever the reason, these people are more likely to go to a car wash rather than clean their car themselves. Car washes offer a quick and easy way to get their car looking its best without having to do any of the work themselves.
2. People who use their car for business purposes
People who use their car for business purposes often need to keep their car clean for a variety of reasons.
First, it creates a professional appearance. The condition of the car reflects on the condition of its owner.
Second, they may need to drive clients in the car and so need to keep clean both on the outside and on the inside. Third, a clean car can convey trustworthiness and competence.
Car washes offer a way to maintain a high level of cleanliness without taking time away from work. Besides, if a car is a company car, the company probably pays for its maintenance including regular cleaning.
A car wash business can use price segmentation to offer premium services, like waxing, to this market segment.
3. People who have a luxury car or a classic car
For people who have a luxury car or a classic car, keeping the car clean is often part of the maintenance routine.
These cars are often expensive to maintain, so owners want to take care of them in the best way possible.
Car washes offer a safe and gentle way to clean these types of cars. If the car owner were to clean the car himself or herself there would always be the risk of an accidental scratch.
4. People who frequently drive in dirty or muddy conditions
If people live in an area with a lot of dirt or mud, or if they frequently drive in these conditions, their car is likely to get dirty quite often.
Such people may not be wont to manually wash their car each time and are ideal potential customers for a car wash.
5. People who live in an apartment or a condo
Those who live in an apartment or a condo, may not have access to a hose or other equipment necessary to wash their car.
And even if they do, there might not be enough space in the apartment common areas to wash the car or they may not be permitted to do so.
In large cities, those who live in apartments often have to park their car on the street or in public garages, and washing the car in such public locations is usually out of the question.
And so for apartment and condo dwellers, a car wash offers a convenient (and usually the only) way to get their car cleaned.
6. People who live in areas with a lot of dust or pollen
If people live in an area with a lot of dust or pollen, they may find that their car is completely covered with pollen each morning. This is common in the spring in many parts of the world.
Now if someone isn’t allergic to pollen and doesn’t mind a sheet of yellow on their car, the pollen will eventually blow away.
But if the driver or any occupant of the car is allergic to pollen they would need to get the car washed before getting into it.
And instead of manually washing the car each day they may simply prefer to drive it to the nearest car wash.
7. People who have pets that shed fur or hair
For those who have pets that shed fur or hair, they may find that their car is constantly covered in fur. This is more of a problem for the inside of the car than for its outside.
Many car washes also provide internal vacuuming services and if someone drives to a car wash to get the insides of their car cleaned it is likely that they will want to get the outside cleaned too.
8. People whose car is frequently exposed to the elements
People who live in parts of the world with extreme climates could find that their cars are frequently exposed to the elements (e.g., sun, rain, snow).
In extremely hot, dry and desert-like conditions a car can quickly get covered in dirt. Similarly, where it rains a lot the car can get dirty with all the mud that can fly back at it from the wheels. The same can happen when the snow starts to melt.
Many people who live in such climates tend to get their car washed frequently at car washes.
9. People who want to extend the life of their car
Another reason why people may use a car wash is that they want to extend the life of their car.
Car washes can help remove built-up dirt and debris, which can cause the car to wear down more quickly. And so car washes offer a way to maintain the car’s condition and help it last longer.
Summary
In conclusion, there are many reasons why people use a car wash.
Some people want to keep their car looking new or in pristine condition. Others need to keep it clean for business purposes.
Some people have a luxury car or a classic car and want to take care of it in the best way possible.
Others live in an area with a lot of dust or pollen and need to clean their car often. And finally, some people want to extend the life of their car by regularly using a car wash.
Car washes offer a convenient and effective way to clean a car, and so are popular among many different types of people.
If you’re thinking of starting a car wash business, it’s important to understand who constitutes the car wash target market and why they prefer to use a car wash.
This understanding can help you create car wash products and services to serve the different segments of this market and devise marketing strategies that will bring more people to your car wash.
