If your car rental business feels like it’s stuck in a rut, it can be tempting to let the wheels turn and abandon focus. If you really want to succeed, however, and protect the profitability of your car rental company, there are a number of areas on which you should be focusing your attention.
The Business Model
Take a step back and examine the foundations of your rental business before going any further. You should be asking yourself a number of big questions: Who are your customers? What are your rental rates? Who operates your business? What possibilities are out there? If you’ve been operating the same way for years, you might need to evolve with the marketplace. Making such a fundamental change can be difficult, but it can also be incredibly rewarding.
The Numbers
This doesn’t just refer to your car rental rates – though that is important, of course. Analyse every benchmark and all metrics, including average rental lengths and prices and earnings. Go over these numbers with a fine tooth comb and it should become obvious where you need to make changes. You can use rental company software to optimize your operations.
The Insurance
Self drive hire insurance can help to protect your business against the risks which could threaten your profitability. Self drive hire insurance is vital for any business that rents out vehicles to members of the public. The policies cover the driver and the vehicle during their period of rental and not only provides you with peace of mind but is a legal requirement for all rental businesses.
The Marketing
The lion’s share of your business won’t be gained through walk-in custom but through advertising. Without marketing that makes you stand out, you’re just another faceless car rental service. Figure out what it is that makes your business unique and engineer all of your marketing around that. Distinction is perhaps the most important asset in such a crowded market. Are you a luxury rental dealer? An affordable dealer? Or is there something more unique that you are offering specifically?
The Alliances
A great business cannot exist in a vacuum. If you’re based in an area with numerous other adjacent businesses, consider forming partnerships with them. If there’s a hotel or a restaurant across from your garage, for example, why not ask them to refer customers to you if you do likewise?
The Customers
A good rental company should not only know its fleet inside and out; it should know its customers just as well. Knowing your customers means you are better equipped to tailor your business and its practices (including your rates) around them. Again, lean into what it is that makes your business stand out and what it is that draws your customers in and know when to change out your fleet.
