Do you want to start a car tracking business? If YES, here is a complete guide to starting a car tracking business with NO money and no experience plus a sample car tracking business plan template.
When it comes to starting a lucrative automobile business, then the car tracking business is an ideal business to consider. The car tracking business can be a very lucrative business for any start-up entrepreneur because you don’t have to go through the challenges that come with manufacturing goods.
With a sound management practice in place, you can indeed make cool cash from this line of business. So, if you want to venture into this business but you don’t know where to start from due to lack of sufficient information about it, then this article will offer you all the necessary knowledge needed to help you build a successful business career.
Steps to Starting a Car Tracking Business
1. Understand the Industry
The emergence of GPS car tracking systems has made it very easy for fleet operators to comfortably manage their fleet of vehicles.
The car tracking device has invested in transport, haulage, logistic and ambulance services, and it is a profitable venture because the tracking device makes it possible to keep the drivers under check, and monitor distance covered and fuel consumption. It also helps to ensure the safety of the vehicle.
The car tracker makes it easier to run a public transport service company. This is because you can install GPS car tracking devices that trigger automated bus stop announcements. Nowadays, car users prefer to install car trackers against theft instead of buying car insurance as cars can easily be tracked and recovered.
Statistics show that the demand for GPS car tracking systems is on the increase due to its efficiency. Most transport operating companies would not allow their cars to start plying the roads until a GPS vehicle tracking system has been installed on it.
Steady growth is expected in the Automobile industry of which GPS car tracking services is a part of, especially in developed countries such as United States of America, United Kingdom, Germany, Australia, Canada and Italy.
There is no company in this industry that can boast of having the leading market share. Nowadays, you will rarely find any modern car in the US without a GPS car tracking device installed in it. This goes a long way to show just how booming and lucrative this business venture is.
2. Conduct Market Research and Feasibility Studies
- Demographics and Psychographics
The demographic and psychographic composition of those that need the services of a GPS car tracker is obviously private car owners, individuals and companies that hire cars for rent, public transporters, organized private sector, Corporate Executives, Business People, Car Dealership Shops, Government, Taxi and car rental companies, Haulage Companies etc.
Others that require the services of a GPS car tracker are young adults, senior citizens, working class, and all those that are financially able to procure a GPS car tracking device and new car owners.
3. Decide Which Niche to Concentrate On
The niches ideas within the Car tracking business are same as the Automobile industry. They are all closely related as it all has to do with enhancing movement from one place to another. Some of the areas of specialisation in the car tracking business are as follows;
- Individual services
- Corporate services
- Transport services
- Leisure services and any other related services
It is advisable for you to specialize in more than one niche as it will prevent you from being left behind by your competitors who could gain more customers by offering more areas of specialization.
The Level of Competition in the Industry
A car tracking business is easy to set up especially if you have been able to acquire the training, capital and the required license.
With the relative ease of starting up this business, it makes it easier for competitors to spring up in your business location. Therefore, you must ensure you set up a Business model that would make you the leading car tracking business in your location.
While small car tracking companies might find it quite easy to compete with smaller car tracking companies, they might, however, find it difficult doing so with larger car tracking companies.
As a small and start-up car tracking Company, your best shot at thriving in the business is in ensuring you provide a standard and well equipped GPS car tracking installation and maintenance service; and also build a relationship with your local customers, corporate clients and individual clients. You must also ensure that you customize your customer service to meet the needs of all your customers.
4. Know Your Major Competitors in the Industry
In every industry, there are always some brands that are well-known because they have been used over time and people have a good testimony about them. They are believed to perform better than other brands. Here are some of the well-known brands in the car tracking business in the united states:
- System Spec GPS Tech®, Inc
- Clever Devices Ltd
- TripSpark Technologies
- Satmo Vehicle Tracking
- Abbott Enterprises Inc.
- SkyTrack Inc.
- Telogis Fleet Management Software Ltd
- Meitrack Group
Economic Analysis
Before venturing into your car tracking business, you will need to carry out a feasibility study. You need to get your costing and economic analysis right from the onset. There are many factors you need to consider to enjoy success in this business.
One of the most important factors to consider is how to distinguish your business from other competitors based on the strategies you intend to put in place. You would need to draft out strategies and carve out a specific niche that would enable you to get a share for your business.
Also, ensure that you create an attractive and unique selling point that will make your customers notice you. To achieve this, you would need to draft a business plan that would enable you to ascertain whether the car tracking business is viable or not.
Another thing you need to consider before starting this business is your source of finance. This is important as most major financial institutions will prefer to lend to already established and successful car tracking businesses than a start-up business. This means your business plan must be solid and interesting enough to convince the lending institution.
When conducting the economic analysis for your car tracking business, you will need to critically examine these 3 P’s namely; place, pricing and promotion. They are all essential to the profitability and expansion of your business. In the course of the business, you would need to continually review these key factors.
As a car tracking business owner, you need have a proper understanding of your competitors’ strength and weakness and also your customers’ demands in order to maximize profits and be a key player in the industry.
5. Decide Whether to Buy a Franchise or Start from Scratch
Whatever decision you make as regards starting from scratch or buying a franchise, you are going to have to deal with the merits and demerits that come with it. For this kind of business, it might be more beneficial to buy a franchise so that you will benefit from the prior work of others and their lessons learned.
However, starting this business from scratch will help you to learn more and mould you as an entrepreneur. It will also provide you with the kind of experience that a franchise would not give you. If you decide to start from the scratch, you will have a lot of work to do to attract customers through your marketing strategies. However, this still doesn’t guarantee that this business will succeed.
However, if you are planning to buy any franchise, ensure you carry out a thorough research on the top companies offering such franchise services and decide which would be the best option for you and would also generate profit for you.
6. Know the Possible Threats and Challenges You Will Face
Every business has its ups and downs, and the way you manage the challenges determines if you will fail or succeed. One of the major threats and challenges you would encounter in running your car tracking business is bad economy. A bad economy will most likely lead to a lower disposable and per capita income. This will most likely lead to fewer people wanting to pay for a car tracker.
Another notable challenge that you might encounter in the course of starting up this business is finance required to start up or maintain the business. Finance is a key part of any business, and the lack of it can make you unable to start your business.
The location of your business can also pose another challenge to the business, as your location could determine the kind of customers you attract.
Other threats and challenges include unfavourable government policies, policy sommersault, and the emergence of new competitors within your location. To combat most of these threats, you only need to remain optimistic that things will continue to work for your good.
7. Choose the Most Suitable Legal Entity (LLC, C Corp, S Corp)
The car tracking business has a unique nature and you can’t just afford to start it with just any type of legal entity. Most of the car tracking business owners usually prefer to choose the Limited Liability Company (LLC) legal entity. A limited liability Company (LLC) will protect you from personal liability.
Should anything bad happen to the business, you will have only the money you have invested into the LLC at risk. The LLC is also popular because it comprises of the partnership and corporation legal structure so that both benefits could be enjoyed.
Incorporating a limited liability Company as a car tracking company will benefit you concerning flexibility and taxation. Choosing a limited liability Company will also make it easier for you to file your tax returns as a corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship.
This is because the United States government doesn’t recognise the limited liability Company under a federal tax classification. As a start-up entrepreneur with limited resources, you could start off with a sole proprietorship and gradually upgrade it to a limited liability Company for the benefit of your business.
8. Choose a Catchy Business Name
When it comes to choosing a name for your business, you should be creative because the name you choose will go a long way to create a perception of what your business represents If you are planning to start your own car tracking business, below are some interesting names that you can choose from;
- Maverick Vehicle Tracking Inc.
- SpotOn GPS Tech®, Inc.
- FinTech Vehicle Tracking Ltd.
- Spytech Enterprises Inc.
9. Discuss with an Agent to Know the Best Insurance Policies for You
Adequate Insurance policy is a very important aspect of a car tracking business. You won’t be allowed to start this kind of business in the United States of America without an insurance policy. It is, therefore necessary for you to create a budget to cover your insurance policy.
You could also consult an insurance broker to guide you to choose the best and most appropriate insurance policies for your car tracking business. Here are some of the basic insurance policies to consider when starting your car tracking business;
- Liability Insurance
- Personal Accident Insurance
- Personal Effects Coverage
- Workers’ Compensation
- Collision Damage Waiver
- General insurance
- Health insurance
- Equipment and Auto Insurance
- Risk Insurance
- Hazard insurance
- Payment protection insurance
- Business owner’s policy group insurance
10. Protect your Intellectual Property With Trademark, Copyrights, Patents
You will need to protect some of your hard-earned intellectual property rights which include your business logo, jingles, banners and other things that people can use to impersonate you and your business. To register your trademark and protect your intellectual properties; you can go ahead to file for intellectual property protection.
File an application with the USPTO which will be reviewed and the final approval will be made based on the attorney’s review as required by USPTO.
11. Get the Necessary Professional Certification
If you plan to start your car tracking business in the United States, you could run it without having to worry about a professional certificate. However, you would also need to ensure that you find out from your state and local authority the requirements needed to start a car tracking business.
12. Get the Necessary Legal Documents You Need to Operate
Having the necessary legal documents in place before starting your business in the United States of America is very important. You won’t be allowed to run any business in the United States without having the proper documents in place.
Below are some of the basic legal documents needed to run your car tracking business in the United States of America;
- Business Plan
- Certificate of Incorporation
- Health inspection Certificate
- Business License
- Business Incorporation Certificate
- Operating Agreement for LLCs
- Operating Agreement for LLCs
- Employment Agreement (offer letters)
- Employee’s Handbook
- Tax Payer’s ID
- Fire certificate
- Appropriate driver’s licenses for drivers
- Assistant’s licenses for assistants
- Insurance Policy
13. Raise the Needed Startup Capital
The success of every business hinges on how you can get finance to start up the business. Its importance in a business cannot be over emphasized. So also your car tracking business requires sufficient capital. This is why you need to prepare a solid business plan to finance your business.
Your business plan will also help you to attract investors and also point to you likely sources of revenue generation. Here are some of the ways to generate finance for your car tracking business;
- Financing the business from personal finance and sale of properties
- Applying for loan from banks
- Approaching specific investors
- Approaching investors with your business plan
- Raising money from venture capitalists
14. Choose a Suitable Location for your Business
The location you eventually choose to start your car tracking business is crucial to the growth and profitability of your business. There are several issues you would need to consider when choosing a location for your car tracking business.
Aside from the location you choose to site your car tracking business, you will also experience success when you ensure you only lease facilities that are affordable and appropriate for your kind of business.
This is not a type of business that can be run from your home, except you don’t intend to expand your business beyond your locality. However, if you intend to start up your car tracking business with the hope of expanding, then you would need to set up your business in a place that will favour it.
You should also take note of the type of facility you lease or purchase. It should allow you to expand comfortably. This is why a comprehensive business plan is needed to point out to you how the business is expected to grow. In choosing the location for your car tracking business, your client’s interest must be placed first.
15. Hire Employees for your Technical and Manpower Needs
Your finance determines the number of employees to start with. On the average when it comes to starting a car tracking business, you would need to employ the services of the following;
Chief Executive Officer (you can occupy this position), GPS Car Tracker Installation and Repair Engineers / Technicians, Admin and HR Manager, Accountant, Transport and Logistics Manager, Marketing and Sales Executive and Customer Care Executive/Front Desk Officer.
Averagely you would need a minimum of 7 key staff members to start with, and you can increase the number as the business thrives.
The Service Delivery Process of the Business
The process of delivering car tracking service to customers depends solely on what your customer needs at a particular time.
You are expected to have different categories of car tracker which your customers can choose from depending on their financial capability. Other processes involve customer’s satisfaction and providing other essential services such as maintenance.
16. Write a Marketing Plan Packed with ideas & Strategies
There are marketing ideas and strategies that you can utilize to advertise and market your car tracking device. One of the best approaches is to liaise with auto insurance companies and offer to become their vendors.
Most developed countries’ security departments are making it mandatory for car owners to install car tracking devices on their cars. They make it mandatory because it helps to fight organised crimes and prevents car theft. You can sign a pact with them that with a guarantee of some percentage on any deal they refer to you.
You can also sign an agreement with car dealers as they can easily refer their clients to you as long as it pays them and you offer quality service. When it has to do with advertising your car tracking business, there shouldn’t be any limit to how far you can go.
You can start your marketing strategy by;
- Distributing handbills in car parks and public places
- Placing advert on Newspapers, TV and Radio
- Place adverts about your business on your website and employ ways to pull traffic to it.
- Place advert on social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Yahoo, Google, etc.
- Partner with insurance companies
Lastly, one important thing to keep in mind is that it takes hard work to build any business.
17. Develop Iron-clad Competitive Strategies to Help You Win
With the level of competition in the car tracking industry, you would need to come up with a unique and highly creative strategy to outsmart your competitors in the industry. One of the ways to stay competitive in the industry is to continue to make available safe, quality, efficient and affordable car tracker services for your clients.
Organizations and people will prefer your service if they know that you offer a better option especially as it relates to producing an excellent car tracking device for a different range of cars. Another strategy that you can adopt is to ensure that you have within your organisation highly skilled key members to work with you as a team.
18. Brainstorm Possible Ways to Retain Clients & Customers
Customers always patronize companies that provide services that meet their expected needs and specific goals. This means that for you to attract customers and retain them, you would need to be able to anticipate their needs and match it with your excellent service.
Your ability to anticipate and provide excellent services will help to guarantee your customer’s satisfaction and help your business to stay on top among your competitors. Businesses that lack good customer care service usually have low patronage.
Another way to increase customer retention is to offer discounts and give different kinds of incentives to your customers. You could also design your services to accommodate your premium customers and lower paying customers without anyone feeling cheated.
Design different service package for each category of customers and ensure there is something unique about each car tracking package they are getting.
19. Develop Strategies to Boost Brand Awareness and Create a Corporate Identity
If you are in business, your sole aim should be about boosting your brand awareness and communicating your corporate identity.
Without having this as your aim then you should be ready to take on whatever the society portrays your business to be. One of the secrets of larger organisations is that they are always willing to spend fortunes to boost their brand awareness and communicate their corporate identity exactly the way they want people to perceive them to be.
If you intend to grow the business beyond your immediate locality to become a national and international brand, then you must be ready to invest heavily on the promotion and advertisement of your brand.
To thrive in the car tracking business which has a lot of competitors requires consistent brand awareness and promotion to remain relevant to your target market. Your corporate identity has to do with you building a profitable and lasting business.
Here are some of the means you could employ to boost your brand awareness and create a corporate identity for your car tracking business;
- Introduce your car tracking business by sending introductory letters along with your brochure to transport and logistics companies, corporate organisations, households and key stake holders
- Drop fliers and business cards in car parks, train stations, offices, libraries, public facilities, etc.
- Spread word about your business through friends and family
- Post information about your services on bulletin boards in places like car parks, schools, libraries, etc.
- Place advert in the newspaper, or local publication about your business and the services you offer
- Engage in direct marketing approach
- Make use of referral networks such as agencies to help you attract clients who would need your customised services
- Advertise your car tracking business in relevant automobile magazines, newspapers, TV stations, and radio stations
- Attend relevant automobile seminars, expos, and business fairs to market your services
- Encourage the use of Word of mouth marketing from loyal and satisfied students
- Join local chambers of commerce and industry with the sole purpose of marketing your product and services.