From Alliance Laundry Systems’ Wash and Learn series:
Soft improvements to your laundromat
Making soft improvements at your laundromat can go a long way in customer satisfaction. The importance of customer perception or customer satisfaction correlates closely to the level of competition you might face. Not improving or investing into your laundromat can make you an easy target for new investors looking their new, state of the art locations. You want to make sure your customers see your laundromat as the best choice among available alternatives.
An addition that can be made to improve your laundromat is a new credit card system which allows the customer to pay with their credit card. Some laundry owners that have used credit card systems have stated that their overall revenue comes from customer’s using their credit cards. This could be a positive attraction for customers as they don’t have to carry around change or keep bringing in dollars for a change machine.
Another investment you can make is improving your vending machines, whether it is a food and beverage machine or a machine that offers a variety of detergents and cleaning supplies. Make sure that it’s stocked with many selections so the customer has many choices to choose from. Also sometimes people show up and have left their detergent at home. You can offer them a chance to purchase a small package of detergent out of your vending machine. Not only will this be helpful for them, but will be profitable for you.
Also, besides improving your facility, you can also add in Customer Appreciation Days during the week. You could do Tuesdays and Wednesdays 20% off all washes. This could help with customer attraction on these days, and you could see a rapid growth in revenue on those two days.
Other small improvements to think about with your facility:
- Cleanliness (sweep, mopped, and make sure there are no spider webs on the ceiling or corners).
- Fresh coat of paint on the walls
- Lighting: Make sure there is good lighting in your laundromat for your customers (replace all burnt out light bulbs)