How to Get More Customers for Your Limo Services

Do you want more business? Stupid question, right? Everyone wants more customers but doesn’t have time to spend on developing and implementing a plan to improve fleet operations and marketing.  

Customers want everything to be easy and it’s the job of the limo service to cater to their needs. The first way to improve a limo business is to ensure that customers can always contact your company to book rides and that the reservation process is simple. Livery software, 24-hour call center services, booking apps and payment processing are all ways to facilitate reservations for customers. Providing your repeat and VIP clients with a direct phone line can be another way to encourage customer loyalty. Another factor is reliability; customers don’t recommend limo services that are unreliable. Fleet management software, batch schedule reports, driver dispatching, wake-up calls and ride reminders are industry-standard tools that help limo businesses of all sizes be punctual.

We don’t have a solution to the limited-time problem; although if you have a solution, we’d be happy to hear it! Improving operations and marketing, on the other hand, can be accomplished with a few tweaks here and there. Here’s how to get customers for a limo business. 

6 Ways to Get More Customers for Your Limo Business

1. Make Services More User-Friendly 

Of course, updating the technology that your business relies on has advantages for fleet operators and drivers, but it also has advantages for your end customers. Limo clients want to locate services, booking rides, and payment operations to be super smooth. Any glitches in the system, extra clicks, or additional hoops to jump through are seen as an annoyance and decrease customer satisfaction. Some might not even book if they land on a website that isn’t working or looks really outdated. 

Invest time in developing systems that save your team time, and also ensure an optimal customer experience. This includes streamlined booking and dispatch software, handy mobile apps for both drivers and passengers, and a wide range of secure payment processing options.  

2. Decrease Response Time 

It’s a face-paced world, and your customers won’t wait around for you to return their calls. By ensuring that every call is answered promptly, each message and email are responded to quickly, you are increasing the capacity to capture leads and turn them into customers.  

But you also shouldn’t have to lose sleep to answer customer requests. Outsourcing call management, to a service provider like LimoLive24, is a cost-effective way to make sure that you never miss a call. It’s like hiring a full-time receptionist, who works 24-hrs a day, even on holidays, but only charges you for the time actually spent handling your customers and upselling services. 

3. Manage Your Online Reputation 

Reviews rule in every line of business these days; limo services are no different. Part of managing your online reputation requires you to solicit reviews because other potential customers will be more likely to book with a limo service that has a history of delivering customer satisfaction.  

You can and should explicitly ask consumers to rate and review your company online. Provide links to your review listings on Google or post a QR code in the limo so that customers can easily link up your Yelp profile or Limos.com page and post a review. Online evaluations from satisfied customers will aid in increasing the amount of new clients that discover your business online. 

There are also plenty of review monitoring tools out there that can send you a notification whenever your limo business gets a new testimonial. This is a great opportunity to communicate with customers, understand what you are doing right and what you could be doing better. For example, are customers writing that they were happy that the driver was punctual, but thought the vehicle could have been cleaner? Well, there you go! Detailing needs to be stepped up. You should say ‘thanks’ to customers for leaving positive, or mostly positive reviews, and respond (calmly) to any negative reviews. Remember, negative feedback is a chance, not to win the argument, but to improve and make it right for the customer. 

4. Keep Your Web Presence Updated 

You don’t need a fancy website, but potential customers shouldn’t be scared away from your services because of a broken website or really outdated social media page. If you have essentially abandoned your social media accounts, it’s better to deactivate them than to risk customers thinking you have gone out of business. Keeping things simple will make it easier to maintain them and make updates going forward. Even a one-page website with a few pictures and contact information can work fine, as long as the information is current. 

5. Promote Special Experiences Rather than Discounted Prices 

Right now, customers aren’t really searching for bargains on limousine services. So, Groupons and promo codes aren’t likely to be a great success, especially when the costs of running the fleet are higher than ever.  

Yet you can drum up demand by marketing one-of-a-kind experiences. Market trends currently favor a “customer-centric approach,” according to Forbes, even if it costs more. So, promoting limo rides for a girls’ weekend, a holiday-themed party bus, wine-tasting birthday celebrations, tailgating transport, chauffeured anniversary and romantic getaway specials, or black car travel alternative to avoid the crowds, can be winning strategies at the moment.  

It may take a bit more creativity to attract customers, but the response should be good because they are ready to get out and have some fun! In fact, a good place to start with these types of experiential promotions is with your current customer base.  

6. Expand Your Affiliate Network 

Affiliate networks provide a simple way to develop your business outside your local region while avoiding the duty-of-care difficulties that beset TNCs. When your limo company joins an affiliate network, it becomes possible to farm-in jobs captured by operators in other cities. Likewise, you can farm-out rides that you have captured but which are requested outside of your service area and get a percentage of the revenue in exchange. This is a mutually beneficial relationship.  

Just be sure to check that potential affiliate partners provide the same quality of customer service as your fleet operation before signing up. 

Related article: 7 Things that Make Limo Customers Leave Really Bad Reviews.

Increase Client Capture with LimoLive24 

LL24 is the only U.S. answering service dedicated to livery operators. Our services are designed to help your business be more successful, while working fewer hours. Not only do our live call center agents ensure that you never miss a call, we also keep track of affiliate relationships so that you capture indirect client leads and revenue as well.  

Learn more about our affiliate management services.