This week on CAR WASH Magazine Live™ Brent Wignall from Wiggy Wash in Utah joins us to talk all things car wash.

 

Wignall shares his path to the industry from military service to multi-site operator with a deep affinity for his community. Plus we'll get important insight into how they've managed to continue growing an already wildly successful unlimited program at a 30% clip. 

 

Be sure to watch at 11:30 central time, at facebook.com/carwashorg

We had the chance to talk with Michael Timmer from WashU in Illinois about his love of belt conveyors, his double tunnel operation in Burbank with a truly innovative video queueing software, and we hear a great story of turning potential negative customer interactions into repeat customers.

 

 

Americans spend an average of 152 hours – or 19 full work days – on the road each year commuting to and from work. So it’s little wonder that when they get into their vehicles each day, they want to make sure that their ride is as comfortable, carefree, safe (and clean!) as possible. New and coming vehicle technologies are helping to make that happen.

Over a three-day period, October 22-24, Mike’s Carwash raised more than $117,000 through its 11th annual “Get a Wash, Give a Future” fundraiser. Normally a one-day event, Mike’s decided to extend the promotion to three days because of the threat of poor weather. Throughout the weekend, all 28 Mike’s locations in Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky donated half the proceeds from every Ultimate and Works wash sold to youth mentoring programs across seven local chapters of Big Brothers Big Sisters. 

Argyle Car Wash and a Shell gas station with a convenience store and a Sonic fast food restaurant are all in the works just outside of Argyle, Texas. Owner Chris Roach said that he and his company have been working on the project for over three years, and they were encouraged to find a location just outside the town limits because of the anticipated difficulty getting approval by the Argyle Town Council.

Quite a few generous car washes are honoring our veterans on Veterans Day by offering free car washes as part of Grace For Vets. Here are just a few: Extreme Clean Car Wash, Sheetz, Autobell, Soapy Joe's, Breeze Thru Car Wash, Splash Express Car Wash, 16th Street Car Wash, Crew Carwash, General Brushless Car Wash, Tommy's Express Car Wash, PDQ Car Wash, Quick Quack Car Wash,  Mr. Splash Car Wash.

 

Some washes, like Soapy Joe's are adding to the free washes with additional contributions. Soapy Joe's in San Deigo is donating $5,000 to STEP, which builds financial self-sufficiency among junior active duty enlisted members and recently discharged enlisted Veterans and their families facing financial crisis through counseling, education, and grants.

Rising Tide Car Wash is planning on constructing a nearly 3,000-square-foot automated car wash with 19 self-help vacuum stations in Coral Springs, Florida, and hiring workers with autism is one of its goals. Since opening as a family-owned, for-profit business in 2012, more than 170 people with autism have worked for Rising Tide. “We are trying to put people on a career path,” said Dennis Mele, an attorney representing the wash.

When was the last time you noticed an employee doing exactly what you wanted them to do and gave them praise and recognition for doing their job? If you dedicate your time to recognizing all of the ways your employees are satisfying your expectations, they will work harder to continue to do so, even in areas where they may be falling a bit short. 

We live in truly entrepreneurial times, in which anyone has the potential to start their own business. But making it work, or even surviving the first six months, is something else entirely. It has never been so easy for people to create their own enterprises, but many markets are extremely competitive. Here is some advice for those with the courage and tenacity to brave the storm.

While virtually every company collects first-party data about its customers, many brands are now inundated with data and look to artificial intelligence (AI) techniques to derive actionable insights from it all. This strategy leverages machine learning and predictive modeling tools to make predictions about consumer behavior, which empowers marketers to engage more meaningfully with their most valuable audiences. 

There are so many tactics that small businesses can use for marketing. But it’s not always easy to get full value from each strategy. Members of the online small business community understand this struggle. So they’ve come up with plenty of tips and tricks for achieving maximum value. If you’re ready to get more bang for your marketing buck, read on for tips.