Side project advice required - UK Car Check Service

Hi All - I'm an IT professional running a side project, and I need some honest business advice on how to break into a heavily dominated market.

The Background (The Tech & Cost) I coded the entire platform myself, keeping running costs minimal at only £25 per month. I had to open a Limited Company to comply with Meta/WhatsApp’s API requirements (that was painful process!)

The Product (chexanddriveco.uk)

  • The USP: It’s an instant vehicle history check service delivered entirely via WhatsApp. No app downloads, no registration—you send the plate, and the report comes back.
  • The Value: The key check is the Outstanding Finance Check, which is vital for UK buyers (debt sticks with the car, a lot of people unaware of this - if you see a car that is way below the retail price - that can be why, lots of scammers about).
  • The Advantage: It is priced to be the absolute cheapest service available for this key check.

The Problem: Zero Traction We compete with giants, but being the cheapest is irrelevant if no one knows we exist...

I'm at a crossroads and need to know which path is viable. I have two specific questions:

1. Marketing vs. Price Tactic

I pay per API call for the finance check, so I cannot offer it for free.

  • Option A (Marketing Focus): Should I spend my limited budget trying to penetrate highly targeted motoring forums/local trade groups? (Organic SEO is too slow/expensive). I do have instagram, but unsure on my options for advertising, but trying to build followers (slow).
  • Option B (Price Tactic Focus): Given I'm already the cheapest, should I drop the price of the key finance check to an aggressive nominal fee (e.g., £1.50) to make it an irresistible impulse buy, even if the margin is razor thin? The goal would be pure volume and brand building.

2. Is it Time to Stop?

The £25/month cost is low, but nothing is really happening. With the massive competition and the difficulty of finding a viable low-cost marketing channel, am I chasing a project that simply cannot scale? When do you decide to pull the plug on a technically sound project with poor market access? I wonder if someone else could use this product and make a go of it?

Any advice from fellow UK business owners on getting that initial foothold against giants would be hugely appreciated.

Thanks!

Author: Disastrous-Look-7295