Check Out Kukui?

[Joe Marconi]

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[Jeff]

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[Joe Marconi]

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[CARMandP]

Looking into this right now. Will give you an update when I get the chance to see it better.

[Sean]

Hi guys,

I had a great phone call with them and it seems cost would be around 1000 a month. They require you use RO writer as far as I can tell and for that cost you get a website, SEO(search engine optimization), marketing etc. They seem pretty friendly and put together.

[CARMandP]

They use mitchell1 as well. I am in the process of having them setup for me. I will let you guys know how well they work as I have my experiences.

[nmikmik]

Thank you for the research and of course for spending the $$$ on that research!

 

I would be interested to find out how they justify the $1k price and if they can prove the following statement:

"300% Higher Conversion Rates Than Industry Average"

Who's industry is it? SEO? Website building and hosting? Marketing?

Sounds like an easy statement to make but not to substantiate

It's like we are #1 in town for brakes! imo, even that is better.

[mspecperformance]

I am having a presentation tomorrow. $1000 a month is steep. I wonder if they have any type of guarantee or trial period. I'm wary of what companies I chose to work with for marketing. Right now I am paying this company called mainstreethub to help with my social media stuff. I am actually pretty good at staying on top of it. I think their main benefit is that they set up a mobile site for me that I think has gotten some good responses. I might just revamp my marketing efforts to focus solely on SEO and handle all the social media efforts myself.

[dantheman]

I am having a presentation tomorrow. $1000 a month is steep. I wonder if they have any type of guarantee or trial period. I'm wary of what companies I chose to work with for marketing. Right now I am paying this company called mainstreethub to help with my social media stuff. I am actually pretty good at staying on top of it. I think their main benefit is that they set up a mobile site for me that I think has gotten some good responses. I might just revamp my marketing efforts to focus solely on SEO and handle all the social media efforts myself.

1k can be steep for sure. Interesting about mainstreethub. they look like they do some good things. Have you noticed any real business coming from their "HubTargeter" ?

 

 

If you do strike it on your own and you still want to keep track of your reputation there's http://www.reviewtrackers.com and http://www.reviewpush.com/ at least, both are two relatively cheap ways to stay on top of it

 

how'd the presentation go?

[mspecperformance]

1k can be steep for sure. Interesting about mainstreethub. they look like they do some good things. Have you noticed any real business coming from their "HubTargeter" ?

 

 

If you do strike it on your own and you still want to keep track of your reputation there's http://www.reviewtrackers.com and http://www.reviewpush.com/ at least, both are two relatively cheap ways to stay on top of it

 

how'd the presentation go?

 

I should have subscribed to this thread I didn't know I had a reply!

 

The presentation went really well, there is a lot of info to absorb for sure. It looks like they do a lot of things somewhat similar to demandforce which I have tried. They however seem to be more all inclusive with an in depth website design and google analytics stuff to keep you high on the search engines. They also seem to do a better job tracking where your business is coming from. The way it was explained to me was that it is real data vs the inflated numbers the demandforce portal dashboard would show. If you ever used demandforce you would know what I am talking about. I also had a serious problem with the customer service I was getting with demandforce. The gentleman I spoke to said this was a huge concern for kukui and they take customer service as their top priority. He also said he used to work for demandforce and basically jumped shipped when changes were happening and they were bought by intuit... but anyway it definitely looks enticing and I think I am going to give them a shot either this month or next.

 

 

In regards to mainstreethub, I think its a pretty great service for those who are really NOT in tune with online reviews and social media. Its a lot cheaper than paying someone who doesn't really know what it takes to keep up with their customers through social media and take care of their online reputation. I opted to cancel my service with them in preparation to pay the guys over at kukui my monthly house rent LOL. They do what they advertise, however is it going to drive a ton of business to you? I am not so sure (partially because I couldnt track what was coming in due to MSB). Will it help you from potentially damaging your reputation and also build your online reputation in a positive way over time, definitely.

 

The people over at mainstreethub also treated me a lot better than those snakes over at demandforce.

[nmikmik]

I would still ask them to give you a couple, three shop names that they are working with right now so you can call them and ask how they are REALLY doing.

CARMandP should have it for about a month now, any updates?

Real data v. inflated data, sounds a little "inflating" to me, just like anything else it's in the eyes of the beholder, what the real data is.

I prefer to have my own site and pay for the maintenance rather than paying for someone to build and host it. What if it goes all hunky-dory and they double the price? What if they go out of business?

I really see more value in mainstreethub v kukui (never used either) because it's 1/3 the price (unless you go premium) and you still can have your own site to drive the traffic to. You can put google analytics on your site now and then compare in a month or two how much more (hopefully) you are getting with whatever you decide to do.

GL

[mspecperformance]

I would still ask them to give you a couple, three shop names that they are working with right now so you can call them and ask how they are REALLY doing.

CARMandP should have it for about a month now, any updates?

Real data v. inflated data, sounds a little "inflating" to me, just like anything else it's in the eyes of the beholder, what the real data is.

I prefer to have my own site and pay for the maintenance rather than paying for someone to build and host it. What if it goes all hunky-dory and they double the price? What if they go out of business?

I really see more value in mainstreethub v kukui (never used either) because it's 1/3 the price (unless you go premium) and you still can have your own site to drive the traffic to. You can put google analytics on your site now and then compare in a month or two how much more (hopefully) you are getting with whatever you decide to do.

GL

 

 

I think if (big if) Kukui does as promised which is take care of all the SEO for the site they build you along with the CRM and tracking info its not a bad deal. I would love hear 1st hand unbias reviews. There is a video of Buckley's auto who was a DemandForce guy for a while if I remember correctly. He is according to the video giving an unbias review of the service.

 

Main Street Hub is pretty good at what they do which is respond to social media stuff that most people especially the old foggies in the Repair Industry do not have time for. Fortunately for myself I do keep on top of my facebook page with posts every day. They also respond to reviews made on Yelp and Google+ which can be a big help but again I do scan my yelp and google+ page weekly. They are easy to work with and a "set it and forget it" service so I'm sure a lot of shop owners can benefit from it.

[CARMandP]

The site went live this week. It took about 2 weeks to get the information to them and get all the stuff setup. So far I have been impressed with what I have seen but time will tell. I have seen enough of this type of stuff (between Demandforce and CustomerLink) to know if they are working the numbers. We will see. I will give you guys an unbiased update as we go along.

[mspecperformance]

CARMandP,

 

Thanks for the update, I look forward to hearing the progress. I was thinking about giving them a try next month but I guess I'll wait until you have a little better idea of how well the system works. I had a helluva time with DemandForce. Nice service I can definitely see the potential in it however their customer service sucked and their company as a whole. I would never recommend anyone to those crooks.

[CARMandP]

I had exactly the same experience with Demandforce. I had much better service and luck with Customerlink but they still don't do as much as I wanted done.

[Sean]

Do you have a link to your site CARMandP? I would love to see it?

Thanks

[nmikmik]

The site went live this week. It took about 2 weeks to get the information to them and get all the stuff setup. So far I have been impressed with what I have seen but time will tell. I have seen enough of this type of stuff (between Demandforce and CustomerLink) to know if they are working the numbers. We will see. I will give you guys an unbiased update as we go along.

Thank you!

[nmikmik]

Do you have a link to your site CARMandP? I would love to see it?

Thanks

i think it's in his signature

[mspecperformance]

Hey CarMandP, any updates? Anyone else try these guys out yet?

 

I have been having trouble contacting Linh @ Kukui, the person who first contacted me about a demo. Wanted to get some more first hand accounts and was trying to get a list of shops from them but so far I have not heard a response. Weird.

[CARMandP]

I spoke with Lance Howard (877-659-9353) when I talked to the rep. The site has been open about two weeks and is just now starting to see results. They told me it would take a few weeks. No complaints so far.

[mspecperformance]

Been with KuKui for about 5 weeks now. Didn't really kick into gear until about 2 weeks ago when the website was finally done. Seeing some results, I was told takes 2-3 months until the website becomes Search Engine Optimized etc etc.

 

Anyone else with any feedback? I am really liking the analytics and I have added a tracking phone number to my facebook page which has worked out well so far. Can't wait to see the results in 2-3 months i'm homing it'll be tremendous.

[Dustin Rutkowski]

I was just curious if there are any updates/experiences with KuKui?

[RyanGMW]

Signed up 2 weeks ago. My website is launching on Monday. I have been happy so far! I will see how things go. I have been aggressive with Internet marketing so I know quite a bit about it. Time will tell. Mspec- you happy? We have similar shops on opposite coasts. Hopefully they are doing well for you!

[mspecperformance]

Signed up 2 weeks ago. My website is launching on Monday. I have been happy so far! I will see how things go. I have been aggressive with Internet marketing so I know quite a bit about it. Time will tell. Mspec- you happy? We have similar shops on opposite coasts. Hopefully they are doing well for you!

 

 

We have been signed up with Kukui for 2-3 months. Has been working well for us. The price is steep but I feel I get what I need out of their service opposed to DemandForce. The customer service at Kukui has been far greater than DemandForce.

[Jeff]

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[RyanGMW]

Are you generating enough revenue from the service to pay for it. At $1000 a month that would equate to 12 customers a month at avg ro.

I Have tried several internet services thru the years and have yet had one that would carry its own. I have had a "Top Shop" listing with Repair Pal for 6 months. It has yet generate enough revenue to pay for itself. It gets old paying for this crap and not seeing the claimed returns that are used to promote it.

Repairpal didn't work for me either. I have Kukui up and running, it is really cool. Time will tell. I was already paying close to this much for a service that didn't show me exactly what I was getting so I feel there is more value here, and they can't fake anything since it's all real data. Helps to differentiate from what actually works to what is just sold to you with hopes it will work. The websites are very nice looking and have specific landing pages so you can hone in on the customers you really want.

[mspecperformance]

We are covering our monthly ransom with the service which is great I have seen a huge boost in customers coming and saying, "I found you on the web, you have great reviews!" when Kukui took over opposed to when I had DemandForce but to be fair I only had DF working for about 2 months before the poop hit the wall with that garbage company. Customer service has been great so far, I hope they improve their CRM portion, that seems like it could use a little more work but I am not complaining!

[Jeff]

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[mspecperformance]

Jeff,

 

 

I definitely think it has a lot to do with region, population etc. In a large metro area, everyone is on their phones looking at review sites etc so it definitely works a lot better for shops in big cities.

[ATLAuto]

I definitely think it has a lot to do with region, population etc. In a large metro area, everyone is on their phones looking at review sites etc so it definitely works a lot better for shops in big cities.

 

Agree 100%.

 

Word-of-mouth is king in small towns.

 

In cities, the internet and review sites are king. It's strange that with so many people, they cannot talk to one another ....

[mspecperformance]

 

Agree 100%.

 

Word-of-mouth is king in small towns.

 

In cities, the internet and review sites are king. It's strange that with so many people, they cannot talk to one another ....

 

 

Everyone is hostile here in NYC. Its a terrible thing, I much rather be around people outside of this city. Its a huge plus if you can come across genuine and knowledgeable since a lot of people deal with shadiness with every aspect of their daily lives here.

[mmotley]

I don't know why, but for some reason I can't seem to wrap my head around this. Maybe I'm missing something, but what does Kukui do that Customerlink doesn't? Also, what does Kukui do extra/better than Customerlink that justifies such a price difference?

[CARMandP]

Kukui for me does all my website and online advertising as well as my customer retention. I have a dedicated customer service person that I talk two every two weeks whos job is to make sure that the google ads, bing ads, yahoo ads and facebook ads are done correctly. They do all that for me as well as the reviews, customer retention and emails. Part of what I pay every month covers the cost of these ads as well. Kukui doesn't yet do mailings but they have parterned with Mudlick Mail to do their mailers so that should be coming soon. I had customerlink and although I was happy with what they did, by upgrading to Kukui I found a company that doesnt everything for me so I don't have to be bothered. Take a look at my website and see for your self.

 

Or google auto repair, white house, tn and see what comes up

Edited January 29, 2014 by CARMandP

[mspecperformance]

mmotley,

 

 

As to my knowledge CustomerLink is a CRM program meaning it does the e-mail marketing, customer retention through e-mails and texts, appointment reminders through e-mail and text etc. CRM is also a portion of KuKui's service. They have a part were e-mail reminders, appointments, marketing campaigns can be done. That is really only a small percentage of what they do. What you are really paying for is their internet marketing and their numbers tracking. They build a full website for you and optimize everything for SEO. They also budget $200 per month for Google Adwords. They assign tracking phone numbers (different phone numbers that still link to your main line) to every internet marketing avenue (website, yelp, google+, direct mailers if you do them, facebook, e-mail campaigns etc) so you can actually see real results. All this data is collected and presented on their control panel which is web based. This allows you to actually track how well your marketing efforts are. This is real data and real numbers. Its much different from every other service out that I know of. I heard it i is likened to something the dealer network uses. I would check out their site and get some info from a rep before you pass judgement. I like it so far, its a hefty ransom but it works for me.

[mmotley]

It sounds to me then that the main difference is that Kukui will redesign your website (visiting CL website, they seem to offer website design)? They do a very good job at that, I like your site M&P. Correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't customer link also do google ads, bing ads, yahoo ads and facebook ads (I don't see it now on their website, but I thought they did)? And don't they also handle the customer reviews, retention, and emails too?

 

Again, I think they do a great job with the website design (I'm already wondering if I could give them a one-time payment to design mine), and I'm really impressed with yours, M&P. I'm really not trying to sound like a CL sales rep, and I haven't passed judgment on either one yet. I'm just not far off from being able to budget a service like this, so I'm trying to really understand the differences between the 2. And let's face it, what better way to get an idea for a product or service than through others experience with them.

 

I really feel like I'm missing something here, since 2 guys have left CL and gone to Kukui and like it. I'll try another cup of coffee and re-read. It might have something to do with this 20 degree weather in Texas...

[mspecperformance]

mmotley, CL and KuKui are really very different. Think of it this way... CL is a shop that only offers brakes and oil changes while KuKui is a full service one stop shop. I don't want to sound mean and compare CL with a bottom feeder shop but KuKui is much more than Customer Retention, they are a NEW CUSTOMER marketing service.

[mspecperformance]

mmotley, the important part is not the web design which is subjective to a person's taste but rather it is that they optimize their sites for search engines and are constantly monitoring and adjusting their sites to make your site the most searched site for auto repair in your area. Anyone can make you a fantastic looking website, making it work for you and getting customers through the door is something else. Your website is a tool to get customers through the door, if its not working for you 24/7, if people are not visiting your site and opting in for appointments or calling your shop via your website then its worthless to you.

[Pjauto]

Please keep updating us. I'm very tempted to use this company. They seem legit.

[GermanCArDEpot.com]

CAn i get a follow up on http://www.kukui.com/ spoke with them dont know what to think. Main street hub does a fair job not sure yet . Please post your opinions on both.

[Gary A]

Just curious about the SEO stuff. To those that are familiar with web results please google auto repair in Little Falls NJ and tell me what you think about the results and take a look at my website. I feel that I have good results and it's nowhere near 1K a month

Edited February 10, 2014 by Gary A

[mspecperformance]

Just curious about the SEO stuff. To those that are familiar with web results please google auto repair in Little Falls NJ and tell me what you think about the results and take a look at my website. I feel that I have good results and it's nowhere near 1K a month

 

Looks like you have great results and a nice website! Who designs and manages your SEO?

 

Just to add, Kukui may or may not be a better option for those who are in a larger metro area due to more competition, web searches, etc. What also comes with your service is the CRM components as well as complete track-ability of all leads coming from your website as well as other avenues of internet marketing that you can see with real numbers. I am sounding like a rep all of a sudden!

 

 

CAn i get a follow up on http://www.kukui.com/ spoke with them dont know what to think. Main street hub does a fair job not sure yet . Please post your opinions on both.

 

Main street hub and kukui are 2 very different services. MSB manages yours social media stuff so it basically posts on facebook and twitter for you if you are not the internet savvy type. Kukui (as far as I know) is the only program that does web marketing, CRM and some light social media features with all 100% transparency with their analytical data that you can view on your control panel. They are also the only NEW CUSTOMER acquisition program that seemed to work in my experience. The other programs seem to focus on CRM to help generate return business and hopefully happier customers for some indirect new business.

[dantheman]

Just curious about the SEO stuff. To those that are familiar with web results please google auto repair in Little Falls NJ and tell me what you think about the results and take a look at my website. I feel that I have good results and it's nowhere near 1K a month

Hey I have some feedback about your ranking/site. Want to make sure you'll notice if I post though. WIll you?

[Gary A]

Sure

 

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

 

 

[GermanCArDEpot.com]

no responsive sites 50% of our traffic is mobile, Kukui sites seem basic. Plagiarism #s a little high among their sights . Anyone Have firm # of % of new customers since using Kukui . I really like what they offer but no one I have found have the results of their work.

[CARMandP]

Since Sept 2013. 252 leads, 66 customers have used either the phone numbers or website confirmations and 24 new customers--$21k worth of revenue. We are in a very small town so these numbers won't quite give you a very good feedback necessarily. 2982 leads to website, 250 phone calls, 30 online form used which resulted in 66 customers. Not sure if that's good or bad. If it wasn't for the fact that the price includes all the website optimization, google, yahoo and bing ads and a bunch of other things I would have a hard time paying what I am. Its the most expensive thing I do every month for advertising and since business has been way off the last 6 months I have struggled with if its worth it...We run a car count of around 130 a month, at least we did

[AlexAviles]

They use mitchell1 as well. I am in the process of having them setup for me. I will let you guys know how well they work as I have my experiences.

How did it worked so far?

[Hands On]

Since Sept 2013. 252 leads, 66 customers have used either the phone numbers or website confirmations and 24 new customers--$21k worth of revenue. We are in a very small town so these numbers won't quite give you a very good feedback necessarily. 2982 leads to website, 250 phone calls, 30 online form used which resulted in 66 customers. Not sure if that's good or bad. If it wasn't for the fact that the price includes all the website optimization, google, yahoo and bing ads and a bunch of other things I would have a hard time paying what I am. Its the most expensive thing I do every month for advertising and since business has been way off the last 6 months I have struggled with if its worth it...We run a car count of around 130 a month, at least we did

Did you stick wit it? seeing any better results?

[mspecperformance]

Kukui has been kicking butt for me for close to 2 years now. PM me if you need any advise.

[5 Star Auto Spa]

M-Spec...I tried to send you a private message but it states that you cannot receive any more private messages. Can you PM me, I have some questions about your experiences with Kukui...

[Handson]

I am signed up with them. My site goes live next week. Would like to keep this thread going to know how it is still working for folks.