RECIPE FOR SUCCESS

RECIPE
FOR SUCCESS

Diversifying Your Film Business
By Stan Foster

With the turn of the millennium, we have entered into a very competitive era in which businesses ranging in size from small to large are clamoring to diversify, cut overhead and raise the bottom line. Of all businesses that can be combined to complement each other, it is extremely hard to beat the union formed when you mix auto window tinting and auto glass repair and replacement together. The two are so well-suited to each other; the combination is helping both auto tinting and auto glass businesses across the country to stay ahead of the competition by increasing their customer base and profits.

Traditionally, each business has referred customers to each other, basically sending money and new customers out their door. Now with today's cost of doing business continuing to increase, it makes sense to diversify your business with a product that can be brought on board to increase profits without significantly adding to your current fixed overhead cost.

Unlike many aftermarket products or services your business might consider for diversification, the shop space needed for auto window tinting and auto glass replacement match perfectly. With very few changes to the layout of many average shops, both crafts can be performed simultaneously. Many tools such as heat guns, gasket tools, and glass racks used in the installation of each product are already in the shop, thus reducing the start-up cost of adding new services.

With the similarities of shop space and tools, many businesses are choosing to cross train existing employees. By doing so, a business can further increase profits and improve its ability to deliver its product with the greatest customer satisfaction. An experienced owner or employee of either business is already way ahead of the game in understanding the dynamics of the other's trade. Both deal with auto glass and the problems associated with it being attached to a car. The knowledge needed to remove and replace door panels, rubber gaskets, rear decks with third lights and child restraints built in, are but a few of thy talents shared by experienced professionals in both businesses.

Another very important cost of doing business that must be used wisely to ensure success in either business is the coveted advertising dollar. Common sense tells us our advertising dollars are best utilized by offering as many related products and services as possible to our customers with the same dollar. Yellow Pages advertising remains an expensive but effective way to reach customers of both businesses. Savvy advertisers in each business routinely place ads under the headings of auto glass and the heading of window tinting because the customer base is so close. The mere mention of window tinting in ads under auto glass or window tinting ads that mention glass repair and replacement can generate fantastic results. Other popular forms of advertising used in the industry, such as telemarketing and direct mail, are also ideally suited to share the advertising budget when the two businesses are combined.

The window film industry has spent millions of dollars over the last few years to make the tremendous advancements in product durability and workability retail shops enjoy today. The scratch- resistant coatings available on most quality products has in itself revolutionized the industry by protecting the retail customer's purchases while making the application process much easier for. New high temperature adhesive systems formulated to withstand the brutal effects of the sun without bubbling also allow installers to take the film all the way to the edge or bevel of roll up windows to give the window a factory look. Today's quality tinting products are also designed to be heat-formed which means most curved rear windows are installed in one piece. The different wet and dry methods used to heat form rear windows into one piece are not things that you can learn in a few days, but is well worth the time and energy spent learning. One-piece rear window installations eliminate customer complaints of light gaps and damaged defroster lines. Most major manufacturers of auto window tinting now offer extended warranties with their hybrid and metal product lines that cover the possible problems of film bubbling or turning purple. These factory-backed guarantees can help you in not only closing the sale but also in protecting your business should a problem arise.

Over the last several years, states from coast to coast have enacted laws pertaining to tinted windows on cars. Thanks to the dedication of organizations like the International Window Film Association, most state laws are now allowing tinting to be applied on auto windows as long as predetermined visible light transmission levels are met. The film industry itself responded to the new laws with several manufacturers developing spectrally selective films that have visible light transmissions of up to 70 percent while rejecting more of the sun's heat and UV rays than the old dark films of a few years ago.

The future is here today. With computerized inventory and ordering in the glass business becoming routine and computer-generated patterns for auto tinting rapidly becoming available, tomorrow is just around the corner. The advancements being made using electrical current to control the darkness of auto glass and window tinting film will, in the future, increasingly tie the businesses together. For today one thing is certain, by offering both of these products and services not only will profits increase but your company can effectively share overhead and broaden name recognition, while drastically increasing its customer base. Regardless of what part of the country your business is located in, rural or urban, the customers you once referred out to other shops will soon be referring new customers to you.

Stan Foster is the owner of www.autowindowtinting.com. He operates an auto window tinting school in Beaverton, Ore.

Article Taken From:
Window Film Magazine; Volume 4 - Issue 2 - March-April 2000; pg 14-15

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