Marketing a Taxi Company

[khalid1]

Here's a question for you - If you know a local taxi number how did you find out about it?

The reason - I'm marketing a taxi company in Edinburgh where it is extremely competative and feel I've really pushed the online market with a page 1 listing for a multiple terms so it is time I went offline.

I'm looking at branching out offline and obviously there's a plethora of opportunities available, it is targetting what works and what doesn't because the budget isn't endless!

I was considering leaflet drops as large volume printing is cheap but I am concerned about the conversion rate. Understandably friends have suggested dropping / hanging out something people will keep, such as a fridge magnet or a pen - the former I can understand but it is expensive and the latter I personally think of as a waste of time.

So, perhaps a) by answering my question and b) suggesting ways to market I can get my teeth into other areas I previously hadn't thought about.

Thanks in advance to all replies!

 

[TheGuru2010]

Have you possibly thought of exclusive key rings to get the ball rolling, you could maybe offer a 10% discount with this key ring for say the 1st 6 months???

 

[khalid1]

Have you possibly thought of exclusive key rings to get the ball rolling, you could maybe offer a 10% discount with this key ring for say the 1st 6 months???

The company I market already offer 20% off the meter so it is difficult to pretend this is an "exclusive" keyring.

I was thinking about handing them out though.

 

[TheGuru2010]

I think a key ring would be the way to go then they always have your number when required, you will need a reason for them to have this key ring long term. A discount with the key ring is all i can really think of at the moment & they are cheap to get made up. Are there any large eating establishments near you that you could maybe approach for the other side of the ket ring.

Maybe you could have them on one side you on the other a 5% discount for each company. Charge the eatery nothing but im sure as good will is you would see a return from the people who eat there?

Again just a thought

 

[arfurd]

A local taxi firm here has an irritating tune on the radio.

I hate the tune but I remember the number, so if I'm stuck for a taxi I know who to call. Works a treat but not sure of the cost.

 

[TheGuru2010]

Thats a very good point we have the same round here & i can think of the number just by the song.

 

[Sproston]

as far as online goes, click to call PPC ads viewable on mobiles (obviously) can't hurt.

I know a couple of times when I've been unfamiliar areas I've googled for local taxi firms.

 

[arfurd]

Have a word with your local radio station, see what they say. I imagine they have different packages depending on your budget.

 

[khalid1]

Thanks for the replies.

Radio is one on the table but it is expensive and my worry is that if you don't do it properly you won't make a big enough dent.

I had local ppc ads with tel numbers and it works but my page 1 listing ensures I get the majorty of traffic anyways.

Anyone else?

 

[Sproston]

Looking back, keyrings actually a pretty good idea; leave them at the cashiers in the local off license, corner shops, pubs etc. I'd certainly pick one up and stick it on my fob - then whenever I need a taxi number, it's in my pocket!

of course, it's all about weighing costs of keyring production vs. actual business they'd bring. Departs from the standard taxi business cards though

 

[ob1]

i personally think a keyring is a great idea people 'ill almost always have them in thier pocket but its all about weighing costs up

the old taxi card's get abit tedious after abit and they all look the same. but id think about putting posters/small quantities of leaflets out but in appropriate places. like in pubs, clubs takeaways for the revellers who have been on the wbbly water and cant dive home

 

cards for taxi firms i keep as they are useful-iguess many other people have the same view

 

[cheapestukleaflets_com]

Hi there

We are owned by an advertising agency and have re-branded and marketed a large taxi company in the Midlands. Quite happy to run through some of the campaigns we did for them to see if they're of any use?

Sure we could help each other out.

Please PM me if you'd like to talk.

Stuart

 

[Scott-Copywriter]

I'd try business cards with some sort of useful information on the back which entices people to put them in their wallets and purses.

• Calendar
• Metro/train map (if the city has one)
• Pub/club opening and closing times
• Useful telephone numbers in the city
• 'Present this card to get a further #% off the fare'
• Numbers for various take-aways/restaurants

And so on.

Remember that taxi firm marketing is largely about being the first number available to a person who wants a taxi. However, there are a range secondary benefits which are worth displaying on any marketing materials you use. Doing this will really fortify the decision of using your taxi firm over a competitor.

PS: I'd also recommend looking into advertising which involves mobile phones. It could be worth trying to get people to put the number of the taxi firm into the contact list on their phones.

 

[commercial sports managem]

How much is your budget ??.
I work with businesses who want value for money with advertising and marketing, an example i often use is why spend a silly amount of money on advertising in yellow pages when most 99% of the people lives 40 miles away or more.

I recently saved a local vet hundreds in advertising by getting him to advertise in a local newsletter which had a circulation radius of 2 miles from the practice, real value for money.

Drop me a line, i may be able to help you.

 

[khalid1]

How much is your budget ??.
I work with businesses who want value for money with advertising and marketing, an example i often use is why spend a silly amount of money on advertising in yellow pages when most 99% of the people lives 40 miles away or more.

I recently saved a local vet hundreds in advertising by getting him to advertise in a local newsletter which had a circulation radius of 2 miles from the practice, real value for money.

Drop me a line, i may be able to help you.

Thanks, I am going down that local newsletter style line and getting into local businesses, I think it is just trialling what works.

As I'm an "affiliate" and not the actual taxi company my budget is relevant to my earnings, so probably low £xxx

 

[commercial sports managem]

let me know how much you can afford and i will speak to some local sports clubs in Edinburgh, maybe get an advertising board at a local club for £300-£400. or an ad in a programme, let me know and i'll speak to them for you.

Where abouts is the taxi firm based?, will look to get you a club within a couple of mile radius, if you wish.

Andrew

 

[Hillyer]

Hi Khalid,

Is it possible to workout a points system..? Maybe setup a membership of some kind (perhaps free to join, and they receive a card). Whenever their travel by taxi, and show their card / membership number, their mileage gets noted. Say 1 point for every mile. And then I suppose the taxi company can work out how they reward their members.. if they are frequent customers, then you could give them "free miles" in some journeys.

Perhaps this way, the company is registering who is a regular customer and how much each customer is travelling. They could use this information to benefit them in the future.

- Hillyer

 

[Ian Feingold]

i think you'd be surprised at how cost-effective the digitally printed acrylic keyrings can be. But the cards must work for the majority of the firms otherwise they wouldn't persevere with them...

 

Cards through doors and at takeaways, night club doorways etc etc work.

The keyring is also a good idea, i do not think you should offer a discount though as others have said I don't think taxi fares are all that price elastic its more the convenience factor.

Plus when your pissed in the middle of London, Manchester, Leeds wherever you don't check prices you telephone the first number that comes to hand.

I worked with a small but very reliable promotional merchandise company about 6 months ago they could get you the keyrings done at a good price I think minimum would probably be 100 but the unit price comes down more you order obviously. They are very quick as well.

PM me if you'd like me to approach them for you.

 

[Psl]

I don't know if all local pubs have the same problem but my local have to pay for beermats/dripmats. £95 for a 1,000 printed with the taxi company number on and distributed to the pubs/clubs? Just an idea.

 

[UKSBD]

One thing to consider before even starting the marketing

A memorable local telephone number.

Especially if it's a small local taxi service as most people will know the first
3 digits anyway.

 

[KidsBeeHappy]

Thanks for the replies.

Radio is one on the table but it is expensive and my worry is that if you don't do it properly you won't make a big enough dent.

I had local ppc ads with tel numbers and it works but my page 1 listing ensures I get the majorty of traffic anyways.

Anyone else?

What about student radio?

 

[KidsBeeHappy]

With Edinburgh there is a very heavy tourist market - so keyrings/radio etc, although good for the locals aren't so good for the tourists.

Tourists though will generate some of the better longer runs out to the airport etc.

Same for people visiting the city for business/parliamentary purposes, because no-one in their right mind would voluntarily drive into Edinburgh at present.

Most of these people in both groups will be staying in hotels - What's your relationships like with the consierges of the main hotels?

 

[JoTheEntreprenette]

We all have a funny story about a taxi journey.

Just a suggestion,

Set up a Facebook Fan Page and get the people of Edinburgh to leave their funny stories on the page. This will go viral when someones story ends up on their friends newsfeed.

Then when events are happening in the town, you can email all your fans and tell them to pre-book their taxis etc.

Have fun with your marketing.

Regards

Jo

 

Beware of being creative and imaginative for the sake of it.

Something the very poor copy writers are guilt of.

The very good copy writers don't.

 

[directmarketingadvice]

Here's a question for you - If you know a local taxi number how did you find out about it?

As it's an Edinburgh question, I'll give an Edinburgh answer...

My parents live near Portobello and, in that part of town, getting a taxi late at night at the weekend is a nightmare.

Hard to get through to the companies - they don't answer the phone if they've no free cars (perfectly reasonable) - and, even when you get through, the cabs can take ages to arrive.

So there's a company that specialises in that area and their number is passed around privately.

That might be too small a market for your business model, but it's something to think about.

Sandie P has raised a few interesting points - namely, how do you plan to target your service? Airport? Tourists? Business? Everyone?

The answer to that question will guide you towards the best solution to your problem.

Steve

 

[Scott-Copywriter]

Beware of being creative and imaginative for the sake of it.

Something the very poor copy writers are guilt of.

The very good copy writers don't.

Exactly!

Don't faff around with all these 'creative' ideas if you don't have to. Find what works, and use it.

I still firmly believe that a business card with USEFUL information which people will want to keep in their wallets/purses will work better than most other options. It's also one of the cheapest ideas, and in my opinion, a no brainer.

 

As I said earlier cards will work for taxis. I also think the keyrings is a good idea and I know a company who will do them for you.

 

I feel like a stuck record but marketing is about thinking about your customer, talking to them and observing them.

Someone in this forum on another thread said that market research was a waste of time, I nearly wet myself.

 

[khalid1]

WOW so many replies thanks folks! Here's a few answers / comments...

@sproston - I'm actually going to do something similar with a takeaway that'll go out with every delivery so thanks for the suggestion.

@ob1 - I've got 1,000 business cards coming that are pretty thick and easy to read so hopefully they'll be kept but yes i agree, not the best marketing tool.

@cheapestleaflets com - thanks for the offer Stuart I'll have a think!

@Scott-CopyandDesign - Thanks for the many suggestions! I like the metro / train map, I've been speaking to local venues about doing a single map of local places / services that are useful to visitors / students.

@Hillyer - Unfortunately, whilst this is a good idea it is difficult to manage as people will pass cards around, some drivers may offer more points etc, but could be something for the future if technology improves.

@MichaelJ56789 - We've already got 20% off the meter so cannot offer any further discount but thanks for the suggestion.

@Psl - I was looking into beermats but worried they will just be used as beermats and hardly ever given a second glance. Mind you it could be something to try just to drill the number in people's heads!

@UKSBD - Already got that and couldn't agree more!

@sandiep - Working on student radio, awaiting reply!

@JoTheEntreprenette - Got a facebook page already, just need to keep on top of it and get more people involved! Using Twitter too!

@SteveGibson - I totally agree, it is extremely difficult at peak times for any taxi company as you can have one job in Portobello and another in Ravelston with all other cars out on the road. This is something out with my control as I'm an affiliate however the company I work with are pretty big and expanding continually.

I've begun online targetting airport runs etc and doing about 500 calls a month already, however I need to get the offline market too.

 

Sorry but I actually advised not offering a discount. My suggestion was to stick with cards/flyers as they work and maybe do the key rings as some one else suggested.

My point was when drunk in town and you need a taxi price doesn't come into it.
That's where the keyring with your number comes in.

 

[TheGuru2010]

Sorry but I actually advised not offering a discount. My suggestion was to stick with cards/flyers as they work and maybe do the key rings as some one else suggested.

My point was when drunk in town and you need a taxi price doesn't come into it.
That's where the keyring with your number comes in.

Agreed with this comment but at the same time you need a reason for them to stick this on there key ring - i dont think just having it is enough on there own, I think if you went with a discount & it was done on showing the key ring it would make people keep it handy but prob not show it when they have had a few.

You state that you have lowered the fair already by 20% - Personally i dont think this is needed. If you need a taxi you need a taxi, the only time i think price will come into it is with regular trips (old lady going to the shops once a week) & no doubt she already uses a firm & wouldnt switch.

Well worth a thought - You would be supprised at how well these work for the cost. We did something like this for help the hero's, we got 100 key rings for about £50.00 on one side our details & the other stating i have helped a hero with a image - we sold these for £1.00 & gave the whole amount to charity but got our number in front of 100 people. We easily made back the £50 spent & helped a good cause

 

Yes things might be more price elastic with contracts for large companies who regularly need people collecting from airports, then price probably plays a big role.

For the man in the street just give them a free keyring and sticka card through is door.

When I live din london I ahd about 2or3 by the phone as sometimse sone would be busy so I'd phone the other one.

I recntly sold my hosue an dbought a nice new flat two days after moving in in my letter box was acrd from a taxi firm -I kept it -all the other flyers went in the bin.

Maybe just go and ask people in the street - people love to give you their opinion.

Thing is in my view taxis are something taht people always need so it is more about awareness than promotion.

Free keyring-I'd use it-maybe thats just me

 

[MJBMI]

not read thru the thread so apologies if this is already out there.
Mobile marketing , people will be or about to go mobile when they need the taxi , maybe a simple APP linked in with info re Edinburgh and can also sell ad space to restaurants etc for the taxis clients , hopefully the website is mobile compliant .
Free mobile recharge whilst in taxi
Guide on things to do/where to go in Edinburgh, provided by taxi firm , sponsored by advertisers, supplied to hotels etc in area

 

[surgery_cards]

We could arrange for all the patients of your local Health Centre & Medical Practices to be given the numer of the Taxi firm.

Let me know if we can help you further

 

[khalid1]

We could arrange for all the patients of your local Health Centre & Medical Practices to be given the numer of the Taxi firm.

Let me know if we can help you further

I'm listening.

 

[jewell10]

I work in a pub at the weekends and over the years we've made friends with some of the taxi companies near us. When ever someone asks us for a taxi number we have 2 that we give before any others. Just network with clubs and bars - you'll get a lot of customers from here because of people getting a bit worse for wear, you'll be doing the pub a favour for getting the drunks out before they cause any harm.

 

[surgery_cards]

I'm listening.

We are the UK's leading provider of appointment cards to over 5000 medical centres & surgeries across the UK.

We can promote the Taxi service on all the appointment cards within a chosen medical centre, local to you.

Our team could design the artwork for you and the advert would be produced in full colour.

This would be an exclusive offer to only your Taxi firm.

If this is something you would be interested in, let me know and I can arrange for one of my colleagues to give you a call.

 

[gezzagregz]

i recently received a letter in the post from a taxi firm with a load of discounts that they obvioulsy organised with local businesses (e.g. local macdonalds, fish and chip shops etc) - you had to quote their number to get the deals but now i have their number stuck in my head!!!!!! - good marketing idea and it workerd with me.