February 2021

T his article is the result of one of our trade customers, my local garage, asking for tips on how to promote some of the JLM Lubricants’ products we supply to them. Many of the products are for trade use only. For example, the DPF Cleaning Toolkit which will clean a fully blocked DPF without having to remove it. However, other JLM products are designed to prevent problems from recurring and are simple to apply. This makes them ideal for a customer to use in between having their car serviced. Crucially, it also builds a steady income stream for garages with repeat purchase patterns establishing quickly. The advantage for customers is measurable. If they want to avoid unnecessarily high repair bills, they should embrace the preventative regime recommended by you, their trusted technician. And all that’s needed is to unscrew the cap, apply the product to the fuel tank and drive. What’s more, you benefit with ongoing product sales whilst retaining a customer’s business for servicing, ad hoc repairs and MOTs. Why is this prevention- after- cure regime so important? If we look back at 2020 and make predictions for 2021 based on this, the pandemic has caused a major shift in driving and buying behaviours in the automotive sector. For starters, an existing car is no longer a bargaining chip for the shiny new model that’s been admired for several months. The goal now is to keep the trusty steed on the road for longer, ideally minus big repair bills, but that’s easier said than done. Regional, and national lockdowns have resulted in more of us working from home and our driving patterns have fallen into the stop-start short journey groove. For two car households one car is often left on the drive for weeks on end before being taken out for a short spin. Vehicle servicing has been put off as have MOTs resulting in poorly maintained vehicles eventually presenting at workshops with all manner of problems including blocked DPFs. This looks set to continue. One thing is for certain, the skilled independent garage mechanic will be more important than ever. Those mechanics recommending trade trusted, high-quality additives in-between vehicle workshop visits will keep their customers workshop bills down plus their car on the road for longer. Whereas in previous years, a mechanic might have been sceptical about using these products, what we’re now seeing is a wholesale buy in. The products 24 AFTERMARKET FEBRUARY 2021 TECHNICAL www.aftermarketonline.net ADD MORE VALUE TO VEHICLE SERVICING Kalimex says the pandemic has highlighted the need for technicians to provide and promote high quality additives to customers in between vehicle servicing BY Colin Benzie, Marketing and Technical Support Manager, Kalimex and the brand must be right though, which is where JLM steps up to the mark. JLM products are first and foremost developed for the trade. So, this brings me back to the request from my garage namely how to market JLM products that complement the work they’ve already completed? Let’s take the example of a vehicle presenting with a blocked DPF. If the mechanic uses JLM products as my local workshop does, then after diagnosing the cause of said blockage and making the corrections, he will use the JLM professional toolkit to completely clean the DPF in situ. The customer is happy especially if they have already been quoted telephone number costs for a new DPF (not needed) from the main dealer. The significantly smaller bill for cleaning the DPF will be appreciated. Money-saving and a big tick for the environment too. Repaired not replaced, minimum fuss, minimum downtime. Alas, the motorist then goes away and continues the stop- start, short journey driving, occasionally taking the car for a blast on the dual carriageway believing this will prevent the DPF from blocking again. As those in the trade know, it won’t work.