Trade Shows Offer 4 Tangible Takeaways

Imagine the benefit of being able to accurately envision the future—today. What technologies will impact your business the most tomorrow? How can you begin to improve your current and future customers’ experiences right now? How can you make your team stronger today for the industry changes they’ll face tomorrow? And what new tools can your business benefit from the most?

These are the kinds of questions quick lube and quick maintenance owners can answer by attending industry events, according to Ben Enns, director of people and mission at Petaluma, California-based Oilstop. He knows from first-hand experience. 

Here are four key areas where Oilstop—a combination of oil change shops and car washes—has benefited from prioritizing attendance at outside events.

Cultivating Employees’ Life-Long Love of the Industry 

Enns says when Oilstop sends both veterans and new hires alike to tradeshows, the company reaps big benefits.

“Our up-and-coming people go alongside senior leadership,” Enns says of tradeshows on the car wash side, in particular. “It might be that a young person gets on a plane for the very first time and has a brand new experience going to Las Vegas, for instance.”

He continues, “When a company invests in someone, it can spark an idea for a future career. As an industry, we’re all in the same boat and doing the same sorts of things, and great ideas come out of the trade events. It gives the new person the opportunity to see there’s something bigger than the day-to-day they experience at work. They begin to understand they’re part of an organization deeply rooted in serving people.”

Enns adds, “It’s a beautiful thing for an organization to believe in someone before they believe in themselves. It’s my favorite part, getting new people exposed to being part of a larger community where they can see a career path.”

Searching Out Solutions to Business Problems

An owner who goes to a trade event with a business problem in mind will likely find a fix.

As Enns says, “Go with the desire to find a solution, and you’ll probably find one. But if you attend without an end game in mind, without a clear picture of what you’re looking to find, the event will not be as valuable.”

Maybe you’re looking for finance options that can work for your business, for instance, or maybe you have equipment needs and questions.

“You can be exposed to different product manufacturers to supply the equipment that meets the needs of your facility,” Enns says. “And they can share solutions to your issues.” 

In addition, Enns says that when Oilstop’s owners attend events, they get a better grasp of the importance of strategic planning for the future. For example, they gain new perspectives on operating a particular location, and sometimes fresh insight into how to best serve their local community.

Securing a Clearer View of the Business Road Ahead

For businesses with more than one component of service, attending industry events can help owners and employees understand the nuances of each.

Enns says Oilstop’s dual oil change and car wash components require a slightly different approach. For example, the oil change side may benefit from new technical types of information and data, whereas the car wash side may require more of a focus on soft skills, like customer service.

“Having a servant’s heart is universal across all sides of the business, though,” Enns says. “It’s serving others to meet their needs before your own. This is our business model at Oilstop, and it works well in both aspects of the business. Across the board, people love to be served.”

Realizing the Benefits of Strong Local Connection

All of the insight gained at industry events eventually circles its way back home, because tradeshows help generate great ideas. On the local level, Enns says it’s important for all businesses to be a part of local business councils, such as the Better Business Bureau. 

Involvement and investment into local schools and sports teams is also important—as well as nonprofit support.

“Showing concern to serve the local community is powerful,” Enns reiterates. “Through our initiative Oilstop Cares, we find nonprofits like She Is Hope, in Southern California, and we match donations that help get single women and children out of living in their cars.”

He adds, “We put it on our staff to come up with which organizations we’ll support locally. The team at each location is tasked with finding a niche nonprofit to support.”

Oil change businesses—like most—also benefit from creating events that forge close connection.

As Enns says, “We recently took 200 employees and their families to a Giants game. It gave CEOs the opportunity to thank them for their efforts every day. Events like this also help us create a culture of fun.”