One Ad at A Time
Guy Shipp Turned to Advertising to Ensure the Longevity
of His Retailing Business
Owning a small business is never easy, and owning a small
business in a small town can make high profit margins and sales volume
difficult to achieve. Many times, small business ventures find it difficult
to achieve success on a large scale. This said, it's time to introduce
Guy Shipp, someone who knows a thing or two about running a small business.
Shipp believes his business has been so successful over
the years because of effective advertising. He sees major advertising
efforts as the key to running small shops such as Truckers Warehouse
in Decatur, Alabama. He knows that looking forward and noticing trends
in the industry are key to staying competitive. He applies this theory
not only to his custom jobs, but also to his advertising efforts.
Shipp advises that getting your name out into the public
eye is extremely important. This is why, over the years, Shipp moved
from basic print and radio advertising into television ads and the creation
of a Web site. He reaches many more customers this way. He even said
that, while watching television one night, he saw his ad on more than
four stations in one hour.
Maximizing exposure, according to Shipp, will never hurt
sales and can only increase the number of inquiries about services offered.
This increases business, something any small shop owner is interested
in. Looking for local outlets such as small newspapers, billboards,
television stations, and radio stations is a great way to find fairly
inexpensive advertising solutions. Getting your name into the public
eye via local, recognizable media ensures that your shop will be known
as a reliable option for anyone looking for custom work.
Shipp believes that getting
your name out into the public
eye is very important.
Internet advertising, via ad banners on local Web sites,
can be helpful as well. Another option is the creation of a site specifically
for your shop. Creating a Web site for your shop is a great way to gain
exposure from those clients looking for after-market parts and custom
work. You can showcase past installations and custom projects, list
the services you provide, include testimonials from satisfied customers,
and even tell the story of your business. All of these advertising efforts
go a long way to make sure your name is one that customers remember
and recognize.
Hard Work and Dedication
Shipp is no stranger to hard work. His idea of a vacation
is a mission project spent working as foreman on roofing projects for
underprivileged families. A fulfilling day's work at Truckers Warehouse
Inc. involves getting, as he said, "dirty." It's no surprise that Shipp
spends as much time on custom installations and spraying truck bedliners
as he does managing his business. His hands-on approach and strong work
ethic are what have put Truckers Warehouse on the map. Race car drivers
and clients from as far away as New York and Arizona have come to visit
Shipp's shop in Alabama.
Services Galore
With a shop that handles all kinds of truck accessories
and modifications, from installing mud flaps to the creation and installation
of Aluminum Truck Beds, tool boxes, and dog boxes, Shipp knows the value
that attention to detail and extra effort can generate. After all, he
has seen a steady increase in sales each year.
Truckers Warehouse has been in business for more than
20 years. Shipp and his partner Victor Jeffries purchased the shop from
Shipp's father in 1990. A short time later they began a major overhaul
of the business, moving from one small building to their current location
with multiple buildings totally 6,200 square feet. Shipp and Jeffries
had to sacrifice both time and money, not knowing if it would pay off
in the end.
Creative Beginnings
It wasn't easy for the shop in the early days when Shipp's
father owned the company. What began as a hobby of showing horses in
and around the South turned into a moneymaking enterprise. Fueled by
imagination turned to business opportunity, Shipp's father noticed a
need for custom metalwork within the horse show industry. Truckers Warehouse
started out as a small company that made aluminum truck beds and custom
toolboxes. It ended up taking on the entire metalwork production needs
of another local shop in Decatur. At first it seemed as though the shop
would have a steady well-paying client. But as many small-business owners
know, what seems too good to be true often is. That was what Shipp's
father realized when his main client went belly-up in 1990. The elder
Shipp decided to bail out and leave the business behind.
Despite it being a family business, Shipp was not ready
to give up. He realized there was still a market for the kind of handmade
custom work Truckers Warehouse was accustomed to. He and his partner
Jeffries saw the potential for growth and decided to purchase the business
from his father and keep it going. This decision didn't seem so wise
during the first few years of business.
During that time both Shipp and his partner invested their
own money into the business to keep things going. Most owners would
worry about a return on their investment; some would not even have the
courage to make the sacrifice. However, for Shipp and Jeffries, the
investment would eventually pay off.
These two entrepreneurs built Truckers Warehouse the same
way many guys build their custom jobs. They paid attention to their
customers' needs and had a basic understanding of the economic impact
a small business can have on a community.
What they didn't realize was that this payoff wouldn't
happen overnight, and there was a learning curve involved in realizing
profit. The light at the end of the tunnel was there, but early on Shipp
and Jeffries were not sure they could see it.
Shipp's Practices earned the
shop its reputation for
quality
and reliability.
At first Shipp was cautious with inventory and wasn't
always ready to do whatever it took to make a sale. Learning the hard
way by losing business and customers, Shipp discovered that a sale doesn't
always come easily. He realized that he would have to be willing to
stock extra, seemingly unnecessary, parts no matter the expense, and
do whatever it took to make the customer happy. Shipp learned that keeping
various kinds of parts in stock and devoting extra hours to quality
and timely projects would be central to keeping his business going.
Their practices also helped it earn the reputation for quality and reliability
he desired. However, just being reliable isn't always enough. Repeat
customers make for steady business, but pulling in new ones makes profit.
Shipp knew he would have to devote time and money for advertising to
develop a successful business model.
Successful Advertising and a Lot
of Faith
Shipps' success is a product of hard work, quality service,
and advertising. All these are important aspects of running a business.
However, for Shipp they do not guarantee happiness. There is one other
thing Shipp strongly believes in. Although some might not realize it,
Shipp credits his success to his strong faith in God.
When asked what his advice to other shop owners would
be, Shipp said, "Put God first," and for him this has been the foundation
to his success and happiness. He sees hard work, the desire to please
the customer, effective advertising, and trusting God to guide him as
the reasons why, despite hard times and doubt, Truckers Warehouse has
grown and expanded.
What began as a risky venture has turned into a successful
business, providing Shipp with a place where he can combine work and
his love of getting dirty in a shop all his own. With business steady
and plenty of advertisements out there to keep his shop's name in the
minds of potential customers, Shipp and Truckers Warehouse appear to
be in very good shape. Now, if he would only take a vacation!
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