RR_v65-3.indd - PPG Industries

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zer T A K I N G C A R E O F B U S I N E S S CertifiedFirst ® Network’s Online Precision Marketing— moving your customer profiles from ‘guesses’ to ‘knowledge’ CertifiedFirst Network participants can log on to www.certifiedfirst.com/ participants and gain access to a Precision Marketing Report tailored to their specific location. The Report offers a wealth of information, including a Collision Repair Potential (CRPI) map (above) that shows the likelihood of consumers in the area to use a body shop. You probably already know that, in today’s competitive collision repair market, with its high capacities and educated consumers, attracting and keeping customers is practically a full-time job. You probably also know that you don’t have to go it alone. With the CertifiedFirst Network, you get the quality reputation and high-end resources of a national network… working just for you and your business’ success. But did you know that, as a participant of the CertifiedFirst Network, you have access to the PPG Online Precision Marketing Program, a sophisticated e-tool (valued at more than $1,200) that lets you zero in on valuable customer information in the areas where you are currently doing business or where you plan to do business? The Online Precision Marketing Report is based on the adage that “birds of a feather flock together.” In other words, people often choose to live near others who have similar lifestyles, beliefs and customs. These groups of individuals are called “clusters.” By combining data about these clusters with specific information about the collision repair industry, this report brings you insight into each group’s collision repair buying habits. It also lets you see which clusters are high-use when it comes to collision repair services, perhaps because they typically have more drivers in the family, own newer model vehicles, or because they simply tend to drive more miles on average - resulting in more collisions. “There are other services—some of them quite costly—that can give you basic census and demographic information about population movement and household income,” says Georgina Sweeney, Director– Refinish Alliance Programs. “But only the Online Precision Marketing Report can combine that information with PPG’s own Collision Repair Potential Index (CRPI), for powerful marketplace intelligence that points to your best business prospects.” And you don’t have to be a marketing guru—or a computer guru—to use this powerful tool. As a CertifiedFirst Network participant, all you need to do is go online to www. certifiedfirst.com/participants and enter the site with your shop’s unique user name and password. Click the in “Precision Marketing” tab on the web page that opens, and then click the line that says “Click Here For Your Precision Marketing Report.” That opens on a page with two options. The first, “Determine Market Size and Growth,” allows you to look at an area (centered on an address, an intersection, or even a latitude-and-longitude readout from a GPS unit), and generate a report that includes: • a Collision Repair Potential (CRPI) map • an estimated sales map • top customers location by ZIP code spreadsheet • a 5-year market growth report, and • an executive summary that explains it all Want to zero in even further? Click the second option on the page, “Retrieve Advanced Cluster Information,” enter a ZIP code, and you can generate reports that tell you the top five cluster “types” living in that area, and an executive summary providing demographic information and trends. Reports are generated as Adobe Acrobat documents that you can print out for use in meetings, save for future reference, or view onscreen with widely and freely available software. Click on a cluster name while you’re online, and that opens to a page telling you what that particular customer group is like—from income, age range, education, employment and median income, to lifestyle and leisure preferences. “If you’re planning your advertising schedules, the Advanced Cluster Information will tell you not only what sort of radio stations your target customers listen to, but what times they are most apt to be listening, and what parts of the newspaper they are apt to spend the most time in,” says Sweeney. The Precision Marketing Report is designed to work with what you already know about the area where you do business. It can reassure you that you are correctly gauging the business potential of an area, help you zero in on particular parts of that area that are most apt to use your services, or provide valuable intelligence—including growth trends—when you’re considering relocation or expansion to an additional location. And the professional reports provide valuable substantiation for presentations to financial partners, zoning or planning commissions, or other stakeholder organizations. “The Online Precision Marketing Program helps you base your business decisions, not on hunches, or even educated guesses, but on measured and professionally accumulated facts,” says Sweeney. “The best collision repair professionals don’t guess on their estimates or their paint formulas. They calculate, using professional Marketing Reports, you can apply a similar technology when it comes to market analysis and customer types.” For more information on Online Precision Marketing, please call 1- 800-647-6050, option 4 (8 a.m.–5 p.m. EST). ■ The Online Precision Marketing Report provides you with information on the collision repair buying habits of potential customers in your target market area. 12 13
14 T E C H T A L K Avoiding the A ‘mottle,’ ‘blotchy’ or ‘patchy’ type appearance can sometimes result after spraying a metallic finish, particularly in lighter colors. So, what is it, why does it happen and how can it be prevented? At one time or another virtually every refinish painter will have come across the ‘mottle’ effect. It describes the appearance of light and dark areas within a metallic finish and is also referred to as ‘patchiness.’ These light and dark patches appear due to the incorrect orientation of the aluminum particles within the paint film. It’s a problem that’s almost impossible to detect at the basecoat stage since most basecoats dry to a silky matte finish. That means the effect doesn’t become evident until after the clearcoat is applied. Naturally, at that point it’s way too late to rectify the problem, and the only course of action is a re-do which can lead to serious film build problems. Cause and cure There are two main contributing factors—incorrect thinning of the paint and the application technique. The first scenario results from an insufficient thinning ratio or using a thinner that’s too fast for the prevailing conditions—for instance, when trying to push a job through quickly. After application the solvents in the thinner evaporate too rapidly and the paint film sets so quickly that it doesn’t let the metallic particles lay down smoothly, resulting in a mottle effect. Using compatible thinners is also vital. PPG thinners are specifically designed for use with PPG products in the correct thinning ratio and according to the ambient air temperature. Following these guidelines can assist in dramatically reducing the mottle effect. While working with individual bodyshops to help them with mottle control, PPG technical staff came across the following examples. One shop was thinning all colors to 1:1. This was working fine with dark colors, but with light colors there was mottle. It was discovered that the air pressure was around 45–55 psi which is too high for basecoat and is a major mottle contributor because it doesn’t allow the metallic basecoat to be applied in a wet, even film. After reducing the air pressure to 25–35 psi, mottle was dramatically reduced. Application technique is another important factor in reducing mottle and it’s here that modern metallic paint finishes (such as in PPG’s Deltron ® and GRS paint systems) require a modern technique. Previously, the final technique or pattern coat may have been applied over a dry film. However, this can cause mottle due to the paint film setting too quickly which prevents the metallic particles from laying down smoothly. In addition, because this final coat tends to be dry and dusty it can result in clearcoat adhesion problems and reduced gloss levels. Applied correctly, the basecoat will appear very smooth and, when tack ragged, there will be no or minimal color on the tack rag. To minimize the chance of mottle, the basecoat should be applied to give an even, uniformly dull appearance and left for the recommended flash times between coats. Proper application technique is critical when spraying light high metallic colors. Make sure to maintain a good 50% overlap and allow each coat to flash for the recommended time. Also, make sure to pick the appropriate reducer for the size and temperature of the job. Another method is the crosscoating technique—this is where the second coat is applied at right angles to the first and immediately following the first coat. The first coat cannot be allowed to flash or the cross coat will not be able to re-flow and orientate the first coat metallics. It’s a fact of life that most light colors will have a degree of mottle and that repairing light colors will always be more difficult than dark colors. However, using the above tips and the following guidelines should help to avoid mottling: • Reduce the paint to the recommended thinning ratio and, depending on your equipment, more thinner may be required. • Use the specified thinner for the spraying temperature. • Avoid using high air pressure— 25–35 psi maximum. • Allow the paint to flash off properly between coats. Multiple coats without a f lash off will make the paint film very ‘wet’ and cause mottle. • Don’t spray in very cold conditions. This will slow down the flash off time of the paint and increase the chances of mottle. • Don’t apply the clearcoat too soon. If the basecoat hasn’t set up fully, the clearcoat may cause the basecoat to dissolve and disturb the aluminum flakes, giving a mottled appearance. • Ensure that your spray gun has a good spray pattern and, when spraying, overlap the strokes of the gun the correct amount to ensure an even appearance. Keeping the gun back from the job will make the effective fan width larger and overlapping the gun strokes will be easier. • Develop a technique that works for you. • Remember, if you do reduce the pressure, to make the same allowance on your spray out card. ■ 15
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RR_v65-3.indd - PPG Industries

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