12 Auto Repair Marketing Trends and Strategies for 2025

Discover the top 10 auto repair marketing trends that can revolutionize the landscape in 2024 and how you can apply them to your business.

As an auto repair expert, staying updated with the latest and most effective marketing trends is crucial for your business growth. At Podium, we’ve rounded up 12 automotive marketing strategies tailored to the auto repair industry that can help your efforts. Let’s dive in and see how you can make the most of your auto repair shop’s marketing efforts.

1. Leverage Communication

Putting convenient communication practices at the heart of your auto repair business’s strategy boosts customers’ experience. Capturing their attention with reminders about appointments, special promotions, and offers makes your business more approachable.

You can also offer a live chat option for customers waiting for their repair to be completed by your technicians. This makes it easy for customers to ask questions about the repair, for your team to provide timely updates, and to present detailed information in a format that your customers can come back to for reference.

Speed to lead is critical in today’s fast-paced market, and Podium offers an unparalleled advantage by ensuring auto repair shops engage with leads within a couple of minutes—guaranteed. Podium’s AI BDC helps dealers transform potential interest into concrete actions like booking test drives and scheduling service appointments. Bring speed and efficiency to every customer experience and sale with Podium’s AI BDC.

2. Launch a Loyalty Program

Loyalty programs have been long recognized as a powerful car marketing tool. Offering rewards or special discounts to repeat customers not only increases customer loyalty but also boosts sales. In the world of auto repair, this could mean discounts on frequent oil changes, free annual inspections, or prioritized service.

You’ll reap the benefits of this strategy when done systematically and consistently, making your customers feel valued and appreciated.

3. Employ Local SEO

Optimize your website for local search results. Make sure your shop’s name, address, and phone number are consistent across your website and other online directories. Invest in updating your Google Business Profile.

Remember, most customers are searching locally for auto repair services by qualified technicians, and if your shop comes up, the probability of converting them into customers increases.

4. Showcase Customer Testimonials

One of the most powerful styles of marketing is word-of-mouth. Customer testimonials cultivate trust and demonstrate your commitment to quality service. Get into the habit of asking customers to write a review or provide feedback after a service.

Podium offers an excellent platform to collect and manage testimonials, making it easy to broadcast the positive experiences of your customers.

5. Run Targeted Ad Campaigns

A strategic ad campaign can attract new customers to your auto repair shop. Consider using platforms like Google’s AdWords or Bing Ads. They provide options to target your ads based on location, age, interests, and more.

The key to success with this strategy is regularly monitoring the results and tweaking the campaign for better performance.

Get a free Google reputation report. In partnership with Google, we’ll provide a comprehensive report about your shop’s online reputation, detailing your strengths and weaknesses. Get your free report.

6. Engage With Community Events

Engaging with your local community creates a positive image for your auto repair shop. Sponsor local events, run charity drives, or participate in community outreach. This kind of engagement gives your auto repair shop visibility and fosters a sense of connection with your audience.

Community engagement is not only about marketing, it’s about growing your brand and creating long-lasting relationships. Show off your services, such as preventative maintenance or that you service electric vehicles, but also connect with important events in the community to volunteer or get your name out there.

7. Offer Mobile Services

Offering mobile services where you send technicians out to handle minor repairs and services on location can be a great marketing strategy. It provides customers with convenience and can set you apart from competitors who lack this service.

Display details of your mobile service prominently on your website and social media because unique services often attract a higher number of search queries. Ensure your technicians understand how to use scheduling devices and are familiar with their local area so they can stay on time.

8. Start a Blog

Blogging is a form of content marketing that can drive more traffic to your website. An auto repair shop blog could include how-to guides, maintenance tips, car purchasing advice, and more. Blogs also improve your SEO, keeping your business at the top of search results.

The key here is regularity and consistency, coupled with providing useful information to your readers.

9. Make Use of Influencer Marketing

You need to keep up with the automotive market trends popular this year. Partner with influencers who resonate with your target audience. They can increase your brand visibility and enhance your reputation. For example, collaborating with a car enthusiast or mechanic with a large social media following can help you reach more potential customers.

Influencer auto marketing tends to help new audiences establish trust in your business even before they’ve reached out. Don’t skip over the potential of this marketing technique.

10. Employ Text Marketing

Send bulk text messages with promotional content or reminders to your customer base as a way of marketing automotive sales, deals, and products or services that your shop currently has on offer. Text marketing, when used tactfully, can strengthen your client relationships and increase business revenue.

Systems like Podium Text Marketing can help you roll out successful automotive marketing campaigns, reaching a wider customer base with less effort.

11. Integrating AI

Incorporating AI into your marketing efforts in the automotive industry is extremely important. The auto industry is competitive, and without marketing yourself well, you may find it difficult to get leads to come to your dealership or service department.

By integrating AI into your processes, you ensure that customers get excellent customer support and service at all times. For example, when you use Podium’s AI Employee, your AI Employee will respond to incoming leads within a minute, ensuring you’re more attentive than slower competitors.

12. Sustainability

Sustainability is another concept you need to keep close to your heart in the automotive industry. It’s very easy for this industry to be wasteful, and consumers are becoming more interested in eco-friendly products.

Since 92% of potential buyers do their research online before coming into your dealership, it’s important to highlight eco-friendly, hybrid, or electric vehicles (EV) that you have on your lot online. And, if you have any sustainability initiatives (such as offering free or reduced-cost vehicle inspections), make those clear. Those who worry about their impact on the environment will be impressed, and you’ll be closer to making a sale on a new car.

Get Started With Podium

Whether it’s communicating with customers, managing testimonials, or rolling out text marketing campaigns, Podium can help with digital marketing for the automotive industry. Its powerful platforms and automotive technology can enhance your digital presence, improve your communication with clients, and drive the growth of your vehicle repair shop. Get started with us today.

Engage every lead with meaningful conversations to drive sales with Podium’s best-in-class conversational AI Employee. Watch a demo today.