Compared to small businesses in many other industries, laundromats have a considerably high success rate with 95 percent remaining open beyond five years. To achieve and surpass the five-year milestone, it’s vital for laundromat business owners to cultivate a loyal customer base. The abundance of laundromats, especially in urban areas, amplifies the need for a differentiated experience that keeps customers coming back.

Customer loyalty develops over time, but laundromat owners can employ these 4 strategies to facilitate immediate business growth.

Provide A Superior Customer Experience

Whether a laundromat is self-service or full-service, it’s essential to provide an outstanding customer experience. 

In the case of self-service, or coin laundromats, patrons can spend upward of two hours in the store at a time. To make those two hours more manageable, laundromats can offer a variety of amenities. Offering customers free WiFi access, coffee or water, and a clean bathroom are three of the simplest and most effective ways to engage customers and earn their continued business.

Full-service laundromats that offer wash and fold are primarily responsible for ensuring clothes are tagged properly and returning clothes on time. However, an online presence that makes it easy for customers to check status, billing history, and more can build trust and enhance the experience.

To push the boundaries of customer experience even further, many laundromat owners are experimenting with hybrid laundromat concepts. These modern laundromats integrate another complementary business such as a café, bar, arcade, or other activity to make customers’ time spent at a laundromat more enjoyable. Consider what services or amenities are in-demand in your neighborhood and which would benefit your customers the most.

Offer Discounts and Incentives for Customer Loyalty

To further improve the customer experience, a customer loyalty program that offers event-based discounts and incentives is a surefire way to earn repeat business. These perks can include a free wash after a certain number of washes, reduced pricing during the customer’s birthday month, free soap on your slowest days of the week, holiday specials, and more. 

Laundromats can make reward redemption and payment easy for customers by implementing a laundry payment app. Apps can enable mobile payment in addition to keeping payment history and rewards organized as customer loyalty cards and point totals can be stored within the app. Further, customers can check machine availability and get notifications when their cycles have completed. 

Present Multiple Payment Options

Laundromats that offer credit card payment options provide an added convenience for those visitors who do not carry coins, while helping laundromat owners avoid the arduous task of collecting coins. Allowing patrons to use credit cards for payment is a significant differentiator that can help laundromats both win over customers and future-proof their businesses.

Laundry payment apps can maximize convenience for laundromat customers since they can function to allow both payment and loyalty programs. Families can share an account so that multiple people can use the same account balance and view previous transactions. 

Meeting customers where they are instead of forcing them to use coins can be the difference in choosing where they prefer to do laundry.

Create a Family-Friendly Experience

Choosing a laundromat often comes down to location, price, and benefits, but an aspect of customer loyalty that’s often overlooked when it comes to laundromats is creating a family-friendly experience.

Given that customers may spend a few hours at the laundromat, they may be inclined to bring their young children with them. To engage these children, many laundromats offer a children’s area. This is a sectioned-off area that can offer books, toys, and technology to keep children’s interest. Some laundromats offer scheduled programming like story time or other children’s entertainers to increase store visits during a traditionally slow time. 

 

Laundrylux is a trusted laundromat partner that can help aspiring laundromat owners increase business with customer loyalty initiatives. Customer service, loyalty discounts, multiple payment options, and creating a family-friendly experience are all ways to grow customer loyalty.

To learn more about opening a laundromat with the right infrastructure to grow customer loyalty, download our guide, “Is the Coin Laundry Business Right For You?” or contact a member of our team today.