Why Behavioral Economics Might Be the Most Underrated Tool in Car Wash Marketing

What Rory Sutherland Taught Me About Marketing in the Car Wash Industry

If you spend any time reading Rory Sutherland, one thing becomes clear: People don’t make decisions the way spreadsheets think they do. Rory is one of my all-time favorites as I become an honorary Behavioral Economist.

Over the last few years, I’ve applied his behavioral economics lens to the car wash world—from loyalty programs to signage to CRM strategy—and I’ve realized: Most car wash marketing is built for rational buyers… but most buyers aren’t rational.

That’s not a criticism. That’s human nature. And when you learn to design for it, everything changes—from revenue to retention to EBITDA. I believe that not all business decisions concerning innovation in site layout, menu design, etc, should be made by the finance team.

“We tend to believe something is important if we can measure it, and we disregard it if we can’t.”

In car washing, we track the hell out of numbers. Volume, ticket average, churn, member conversion rate, labor %. And especially EBITDA—it’s the king of performance metrics, especially in a private equity-fueled industry.

But the most powerful loyalty drivers I’ve seen? They rarely show up in a report:

• That weird pause before someone pulls into the tunnel: “This looks scary… does my tire go on the yellow line?”
• The vacuum lot with no signage, leaving a first-time customer confused
• The moment they leave wondering if the wash felt worth it

These are emotional cues. And they shape behavior every day.

We can’t track them easily, so we ignore them. But they still roll up to the P&L—just quietly.

“The interface is the product.”

Your tunnel might be spotless. Your chemistry top-of-the-line. Your vacuums powerful and free (#USA!).

But if your pay station is confusing, your menu overwhelming, or your process unclear… That is the product to the customer.

People don’t evaluate every part—they evaluate what they interact with. And in most cases, that means your signage, your onboarding, your first impression.

Marketing doesn’t stop at the ad. It lives in every decision a customer has to make—especially when they’re in a hurry, distracted, or unsure.

“A change in design is often cheaper than a change in behavior.”

We spend thousands trying to train customers to act differently. Scripts for staff. Flyers. Loyalty emails. But often the real problem isn’t the customer—it’s the environment.

If customers keep skipping the vacuums, don’t upsell, or fail to convert to membership, maybe it’s not that they “don’t get it.”

Maybe the path isn’t clear.

Good marketing doesn’t just tell people what to do. It makes doing it easier than not doing it.

“There is no such thing as a ‘neutral’ choice architecture.”

Every design decision nudges behavior. If your single wash is the first button on the screen, people buy it. If your cancellation is easier than pausing, people churn harder. If your membership names sound vague, people hesitate.

There are no neutral layouts or “just fine” menus. Everything influences someone.

The question is whether that influence is intentional—or just inherited from your POS system.

“Value is not a number. It’s a feeling.”

Ever had a customer pay $30 and rave about the wash… Then another one pay $12 and leave a bad review?

That’s the illusion of logic.

Value isn’t about what they got—it’s about how they felt getting it.

• Did they feel confident pulling in?
• Did they understand what they paid for?
• Did they feel recognized, rewarded, or remembered?

Consumers should receive instant satisfaction following a purchase. If they buy on-site, they get the wash & welcome kit straight away. Why can't you take customers who buy online to a special landing page with a welcome video, wash instructions, and benefits, asking them to swing by this evening for their first wash?

When those feelings are strong, loyalty builds. And when they’re missing, discounts won’t fix it.

“The opposite of a good idea can also be a good idea.”

One of my favorite things Rory says, because it frees us to test counterintuitive ideas.

In car washing, everyone does the same 4th of July sale. Same messaging. Same offer. Same timing.

But maybe the best campaign is the one that shows up two weeks after the holiday. Maybe your winback message doesn’t need a discount—it needs a thank you. Maybe your best membership upsell is to offer fewer options, not more.

Behavioral economics doesn’t give you formulas. It gives you permission to question the defaults.

Final Thought

Car wash marketing isn’t just about impressions, CPMs, or open rates. It’s about emotion, habit, friction, context, and perception.

And those things don’t always fit neatly in a spreadsheet. But they do drive repeat visits. They do increase tenure. And yes—they do grow EBITDA.

As Rory says:

“The human mind does not run on logic any more than a horse runs on petrol.”

Let’s stop marketing to robots—and start designing for people.