One word underscores the car-wash evolution for 2016: technology.
Car-wash suppliers say fresh technology will sweep the segment, canvassing all aspects of the business, including equipment, maintenance, customer experience, marketing and sustainability.
While external factors—such as the falling price of gasoline, favorable weather patterns and drivers buying or leasing new cars in record numbers—should continue to drive car-wash profits upward, technological innovations and improvements will also propel wash sales in 2016.
What follows are evolutions and enhancements you can expect from the car-wash segment in the year to come.
Equipment Innovation: There’s an App for That
The market over the past decade has been switching from touch-free equipment to more technologically advanced friction or hybrid equipment.
One reason for the shift, says Steve Robinson, marketing vice president of Arvada, Colo.-based Mark VII Equipment Inc., is that touch-free systems require more water and chemicals. Robinson credits c-store operators and a more educated consumer base for the swing, pointing out that roughly 80% of Mark VII’s units sold in 2015 were friction or hybrid. Motorists are no longer fearful of foam brushes touching their cars, he says.
For 2016, Robinson says Mark VII is developing enhancements for hard-to-clean parts of a car—such as complex wheel designs—to generate more revenue for c-store owners.
Tommy Car Wash Systems of Holland, Mich., a family-owned business that operates six tunnel washes, uses a tablet-based control system that allows the operator to make instant adjustments from inside the wash. The system was installed in its six locations this year.
“Even half a tick can make a huge difference to the bottom line, especially over the long term,” says Ryan Essenburg, president of Tommy Car Wash.
Grimes, Iowa-based Ryko Solutions, meanwhile, will continue pushing its 18-month-old cloud-based technology known as RykoTrax in 2016 for both its wash machines and teller kiosks.
“This allows car-wash operators to monitor wash counts as well as Ryko service technicians to perform remote diagnostics to fix machines with less downtime at less cost,” says David Miller, Ryko’s senior vice president of marketing and product development.
RykoTrax is installed at more than 300 customer sites, and Miller is expecting double-digit growth in adding this technology to more sites in 2016. He also predicts that growth in both full-length tunnel and the smaller in-bay Express Tunnels will outpace other segments of the market in 2016.
Maintenance: Diminishing Downtime
Along with equipment upgrades are a rise in high-tech maintenance systems. Among those is one by Tommy Car Wash, which uses a management app that offers complete control over operational costs by providing real-time numbers and information. The app kicks out reminders and daily, weekly, monthly and occasional maintenance procedure updates, and even allows operators to order parts and supplies from the app.
“Maintenance costs are reduced when a regular schedule is followed,” Essenburg says. “The app also tracks personnel schedules [and] detergent levels and provides accurate statistics for wash effi ciency.” In 2016, Tommy Car Wash expects to release a slightly trimmed version of its smartphone management app that will allow users to receive push notifications from the primary application.
Ryko this year is pushing preventative-maintenance service programs to maximize wash equipment uptime, deploying coast-to-coast service coverage.
“When combined with our technology of field-based service tools, our people can diagnose and service machines faster with their own service vehicles equipped with critical parts,” Miller says.
Robinson of Mark VII advises c-store operators to shop for a comprehensive service program that maximizes uptime.
“Whether you choose a monthly fixed-price service agreement, a cost-per-car agreement or a time and materials agreement, take care in selecting your service provider, as it can make or break your car-wash program,” he says. “You can’t make money when your equipment is down, so pinching pennies on preventive maintenance is never a good idea.”
Customer Experience: Creating a Theater
Developments in technology are allowing the industry to continue moving forward in providing an interactive experience for car-wash consumers.
“Consumer experience is quickly becoming a large differentiator in car washing,” says Chelsea Beyer, senior vice president of sales and service for Zep Vehicle Care Inc., Eagan, Minn.
“In the past, triple-color foam was the only real ‘show’ aspect to the car-wash process,” she says. “Today, car washes can go all out—from the experience at the code box showing videos of upsell options to high-color chemistry, special lighting, projections and unique applications that show off the wash process and engage the consumer.”
That entertainment value, Beyer says, could help entice the customer to become a more frequent user.
Miller of Ryko agrees. “Scented soaps and waxes and LED light shows are a few examples you see prominently in today’s car-wash machines,” he says, citing as an example the company’s newest SoftGloss MAXX 3 brush machine, which comes with multiple LED lights around the machine.
Beyer of Zep points to the Armor All Professional Extreme Shine Wax as a product that has both a material effect on the vehicle and a high-show aspect. The wax is applied as a waterfall of bright purple with a strong berry scent and can be paired with LED lights to make the waterfall color and sparkle even brighter. “Customers love these new showy applications and will pay more and purchase more frequently the wash packages featuring these shows,” she says.
Across the industry, these new high-tech customer-experience packages are boosting top wash package prices by $2 to $5 per wash, she says.
Essenburg of Tommy Car Wash points to high-tech glass as a huge success factor in enhancing the customer experience. “By using all-glass walls and a translucent polycarbonate roof, customers are able to see what’s happening inside while waiting in line,” he says. “Likewise, while inside the wash, customers can still see outside, relieving much of the fear and tension many feel in a tunnel wash.”
Tommy customers this year will see an improvement in the window frame system, with the new design expected to make daily maintenance easier and faster.
Consumer Marketing: Entering the 21st Century
Gone are the days when marketing a car wash consisted mostly of direct-mail fliers or street signs. Today, successful marketing ties heavily on technology, specifically on social media.
“Some car-wash operators are successfully using social media as a marketing tool to create buzz, spread excitement and create connections with their customers,” says Beyer of Zep. “As mobile usage increases, mobile applications can give car-wash operators a way to not only create connections with customers, but also capture and keep loyal customers through digital loyalty programs.”
Statistics bear that out. According to clickz.com, 81% of consumers get advice from their social network. Figures from InReality.com show that 46% of shoppers who use loyalty programs consider them important, and 87% of consumers want to be part of a loyalty program.
Beyond teasing consumers with Twitter and Facebook deals, some innovative car-wash marketers are finding fresh ways to benefit from social media.
Holland, Mich.-based Quality Car Wash, recently added a texting program to its social media portfolio, says marketing manager Don Ebels. When gas prices are about to rise, drivers on the company’s text message list receive a notice of how much a gallon of gas will increase and what time it will take effect. By showing the text at the site, drivers can get the gas at the lower price—even after it’s gone up for everyone else.
The program also allows recipients discounts on a wash and beverages inside the c-store. “This has been exceptionally popular, showing a typical 25% to 39% increase in traffic almost instantly,” says Ebels. “No other forms of social media offer programs we have employed delivered these results.” He expects those numbers to increase in 2016 as more drivers sign up.
Ebels points out one other important feature of the texting program: “It allows the location to limit the duration of special offers and thus control the cost of discounts, while still generating increased traffic.”
Traditional marketing still will have a place in 2016. A good promotional program, says Robinson of Mark VII, will generate new customers and highlight new car-wash features, and include a loyalty program to keep customers coming back.
Sustainability: Wise Water Use
It wasn’t long ago that the industry was under fire as parts of the United States struggled with drought conditions, and the wash industry had not yet undertaken water reclamation and conservation systems.
Even over the past two years, states including California and Texas have imposed water-use restrictions. The increasing cost of water as well as jurisdictions that have use restrictions will make sustainability a major issue in 2016. In response, suppliers have focused on water-consumption innovations.
“Water quality, reclamation and treatment have vastly improved in recent years,” says Beyer. “This technology continues to get better as costs and regulation impact washes directly.”
However, Miller of Ryko says, “It can be cost-prohibitive to install a new water reclamation system at an existing site due to the high excavation and installation expenses.”
Still, Beyer says today’s water-reclamation systems provide clear water that can be used in up to 80% of the wash process efficiently, and the industry is working toward a goal of close to 100% that would allow washes to operate even under drought conditions.
“The days when capturing wash water meant stinky, dark and dirty bay because of water reuse are over,” she says.
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