Bookings up 400 Percent as garage owners future-proof business with specialist websites

Owners say they wish they’d found GSO years ago

Bookings up 400 Percent as garage owners future-proof business with specialist websites

Gotherington Cross Garage and GX Landrovers, two family-run garage brands which operate side by side in Gloucestershire, have seen bookings increase by 400 percent.

Chloe Pinchin, whose parents opened the business 25 years ago, said they’d struggled to get an effective online presence for the last 13 years, going from one provider to another. None of them understood how customers search online for garage services, nor how the independent aftermarket works.

The breakthrough came when they found Garage Services Online (GSO), an automotive website agency which specialises in organic lead generation for garages.

GSO recommended two websites, one for each of the business’ garage brands. This would maximise the organic search potential of each brand’s very different customer bases. The Gotherington Cross Garage site works on all makes and models, and its neighbour, GX Landrovers, specialises in Land Rover and Jaguar.

Within two days of both websites going live, the garages saw a dramatic increase in enquiries. Four months later, bookings are up across the two sites by as much as 400 percent.

Chloe said: “We were inundated with enquiries. It was fantastic. The crucial thing was, they were all for work we wanted to book. There were no time wasters.

“Before the websites were launched, GSO explained it can sometimes take a while for them to index and that we might not see an immediate change. We did though – it was the family’s best Christmas present ever!

“Then, the bookings really started to come in. I remember one Monday earlier this year. I was covering reception and it was the first time that we made 50 bookings in one day. Before getting the right online presence, the most we’d ever booked in a day was 10 jobs.

“We wish we’d found GSO sooner. We wasted so much time and money with previous website providers whose intentions were good, but that was about it. I’m now free to work on the business which, thanks largely to GSO, is future-proofed.”

With the extra cash flow generated by the increased and profitable workload, the business has invested in a new MOT ramp and is rolling out EV and hybrid training for all its technicians.

Chloe concluded: “The websites have had a massive impact on what were already two very busy and reputable garages. It’s like having a few extra members of staff who work 24 hours a day.

“The next step is for us to offer an online booking facility on the websites. We’ll do this with a plug-in that links to our Garage Hive garage management system.

“I anticipate it’s going to be a busy year!”

Have your say!

0 0

Lost Password

Please enter your username or email address. You will receive a link to create a new password via email.