Veteran Operators Partner with Digital Marketing Expert to Launch New Industry Marketing Company
Are you happy with your current marketing strategy? Does your laundry business even have one?
Marketing is often referred to as a necessary evil. In an industry that’s oversaturated with choice, information and sometimes contradicting advice, the notion of trying to promote your laundromat can become overwhelming.
Although “marketing” may be a word that many store owners loathe, it’s one with which you must become acquainted if you want to be truly successful.
To that end, LaundroBoost Laundromat Marketing was founded late last year, as a collaborative effort between the Laundromat Millionaire team of Dave and Carla Menz and marketing veteran Brett Lyon.
The Menzes are multi-store owners based in Cincinnati, who have been successful operators and industry coaches since 2009. Meanwhile, Lyon is a digital marketing expert who has spent that last eight years founding multiple companies in that space, as well as creating campaigns specifically for laundromat owners.
“I’ve been in the marketing world for quite some time, and I’ve never seen industry veteran operators and respected coaches like Dave and Carla combine their expertise with a more technical background such as mine,” Lyon said. “Once you add in our collective hustle and passion for helping others succeed in business, we believe we’ve got something special, and I’m honored to be their partner.”
The partners’ vision for LaundroBoost is to help laundry owners optimize their bottom line profits in a hyper-focused way.
“Honestly, our team at Queen City Laundry has tried seven different marketing companies since 2009 and has had limited results with each one,” explained Dave Menz. “The Laundromat Millionaire mission has always been to bring resources and to solve problems for the independent laundromat and drycleaning operators, and LaundroBoost is a next logical step. God sent Brett into our lives, and we thought the timing was perfect.”
The company was established upon a three-pronged approach to maximizing every dollar a laundromat owner spends on marketing and advertising, while eliminating any unnecessary fluff.
This strategy revolves primarily around (1) website design/SEO, (2) daily optimized Google Ads campaigns, and (3) a unique technology called geofencing.
“We’ve been in business for nearly 14 years and have never seen the growth we’ve experienced since we combined forces with Brett,” noted Carla Menz. “Building diverse expertise within our team and utilizing innovative marketing techniques, such as geofencing, has really taken us to another level. We’re excited to show others what we’ve been up to.”
LaundroBoost’s Dave Menz recently took some time to share with PlanetLaundry his thoughts on the laundromat business and how his new collaborative venture can help today’s operators:
What is the most pronounced trend you’re currently seeing in your segment of the industry?
The most unique trend our team sees in the industry is a new level of sophistication among laundromat owners and operators. Some are current veterans stepping up their operations to compete in a new way, and others are new investors entering the space for the first time with a zeal for community that is challenging the status quo. We believe this is all very healthy for the future of our industry, and we’re excited to be a part of it all.
What are you most excited about heading into fall 2023?
Our team is most excited about the newer technology trends in both marketing and software services available to everyone. Gone are the days where larger operators can compete in ways that smaller operators cannot. Technology, innovation, and scale are now possible for the smallest operators if they’re willing to make the investment.
From a business perspective, what are you most concerned about?
Our team is most concerned that many operators are starting to believe that marketing is too expensive for them, not needed at all, or that it’s not a good investment. We understand because, as operators ourselves, we’ve been there. Unfortunately, this typically comes from marketing companies encouraging operators to invest their budgets in ways that don’t bring reasonable returns on investment.
Where do you see your niche of the laundromat industry headed?
The digital marketing niche of the laundry and drycleaning industries is rapidly growing as technology makes services more affordable and accessible, and as it brings a tremendous ROI for operators. We see this as a natural evolution in a rapidly growing and vibrant industry. The future is bright for everyone who sees and takes advantage of this next phase.
What’s the biggest reason for laundromat owners to be optimistic heading into 2024?
We believe that innovation is moving rapidly, modernized laundry and drycleaning services are more appreciated than ever before, and our industry continues to get phenomenal media attention nationally. This is a big reason for optimism if you’re a forward-thinking operator looking to strive to new levels. Our industry is rapidly separating into a world of those with a clear vision of the future and those without that vision. We’re currently experiencing an industry renaissance like never before, and we believe that most of us cannot fully grasp the opportunity quite yet.
What are the keys to successful laundromat ownership today?
Whether self-service, drop-off, drycleaning or pickup and delivery, our observation is that the best operators obsess over building a great facility, but they don’t stop there anymore. We see them also focusing on a high level of service, building a team that can scale, investing in technology, and then creating a budget for marketing that allows them to quickly and efficiently get the word out to their communities that they are providing a higher level of value than most.
Since you’re a marketing organization, how much should an operator budget for marketing services like yours?
We believe, if allocated correctly, 2 percent to 3 percent of gross revenue is a healthy marketing budget for any operation. In fact, at Queen City Laundry, that’s exactly what our budget is. We’ve spent much more in the past and still not received the results we’re seeing now. More isn’t always better, if the budget is optimized correctly.
If an operator approached you asking for advice on where to spend a very limited budget, what would be your recommendation?
Our team believes the best place to start is always organic reach and that is with your Google Business listing and earning a few dozen 4- and 5-Star reviews, which are free. After that, your website is next, and you can have a very nice website with individually optimized services pages for about $1,000.
After that foundation has been laid, you will want to begin running paid Google Ads, along with geofencing, if it’s within your budget. A big mistake we’ve noticed is laundry owners running geofencing ads without a cohesive and complimentary Google Ads campaign, too. Based on our experience, Google Ads without geofencing can be great, but geofencing without paid Google Ads isn’t a good strategy.
