giving away my service to dealers?!

[GregCavi]

hello all

I have seen posts on people getting the shaft from dealers who want service really cheap. I do details for our ford detailer in our tiny town. He has always given me 10 an hour. That was ok for me before i started my detailing business. Now it is like i will do a package on his cars for 30 bucks that would cost a customer 80 bucks. I really dont want to get ripped off here. Am i overracting.

Any thoughts or solutions? :huh

Greg

[MS22]

The selling price for a car that has just been washed and dried as opposed to being detailed is going to be lower. This gap increases with every stain removed from the interior and every scratch/swirl buffed out of the paint. Let the dealer know that you know this and then tell him that your normal prices are roughly say $150 and you`ll cut him a deal for $100 if he gets you a minimum of say 6 cars per month. At 30 dollars he isnt going to get much done to get the cars looking great and you certainly arent going to work hard for 30 dollars. Have him pay the extra for the quality and he will make it back on the sale.

[Below Reality]

It would depend on the circumstances I`d say.

I`d not encourage you or anyone to under sell their work, however, if this dealership is continuing to provide you with details on a pretty consistant basis, then I certainly would not mind cutting them a slightly better price.

If said dealership starts to offer customer detailing as a service they provide with you doing the work, then I`d personally drawn the line there.

Not only would they be low balling you, but they would also be competition for your customers.

[Below Reality]

The selling price for a car that has just been washed and dried as opposed to being detailed is going to be lower. This gap increases with every stain removed from the interior and every scratch/swirl buffed out of the paint. Let the dealer know that you know this and then tell him that your normal prices are roughly say $150 and you`ll cut him a deal for $100 if he gets you a minimum of say 6 cars per month. At 30 dollars he isnt going to get much done to get the cars looking great and you certainly arent going to work hard for 30 dollars. Have him pay the extra for the quality and he will make it back on the sale.


Exactly!

If $30 is all the dealer is willing to pay for a "full detail;" then provide him a full detail worthy of $30.00 Pay.

It`s a get what you pay for world.

[kimwallace]

One question you have to ask yourself is do you have enough business, that will pay the bills, if you don`t do work for the dealership. If the dealership is providing you a place to do the work and supplying the materials, then 10.00 isn`t great but it isn`t minimum wage either. If he brings the cars to you, that is another story. Maybe the best approach is to talk to the dealer, explain your position, and see if you can negociate a higher price. There is something to be said for having some steady work ... You just don`t want it to cost you money.

[shotime]

Tell him the more you get paid, the better of a job you can do, thus his cars will be in better condition. If he wants a $30 detail, give him a $30 detail. To me that would be nothing more than a wash, vac, wax. For a full detail I wouldn`t take less than $75. Don`t waste your time on the exterior where most of your time is spent, just give it a one step (Meg`s Speed Glaze) and throw on what ever wax is cheap. 99% of people can`t see what we see so as long as you put a shine in it they`ll think it`s great.

[dannys415]

How much detailing are you doing for him, how long does it take you to detail one car, on average? I think this is a result of the low pay you received when you first started doing work for him. But as a new businessman, you should go to him and negotiate a new deal. If you are a valued resource for him, he`ll have to negotiate. But I do not think giving him a lower quality of work is the solution...but something has to be changed because you are getting ripped. :angry Good luck!

Dan

[GregCavi]

hello

to answer some questions and go into more depth i will try again.

It get the cars that are filthy.. so not washing is out of the question. He usually says just put the wax over the dirt :bigscream no way ... so i wash and then use a megs wax to top the vehicles.. dress tires.. wash the windows... this can all be done to a vehilce in about 2 hours.. Sometimes i will have to vaccum inside which doesnt take to long. I have to pick up the cars and use my companys supplies.. also the go to my shop. :bsflag. He usually can give me about 5-10 cars per month excluding winter. I dont want to give my work away and i dont want to do a hack job. Would asking 15 an hour still be to low?

Any further thoughts? :dunno

Greg

[scottabi]

Is 15 to low? That is up to you and your expenses. Is it worth your time and your products to make that? What kind of profit are you making on $15 p/hr?
Only you can answer these of course. On 5-10 cars a month you make what at most $300 ($450 @ $45x10)? Is that time worth spending putting out some flyers or other advertising methods and getting 2 full details that make up the $300? I suppose in the winter if you get that slow $300 is $300 but in *MY* opinion and it is only my opinion (you know your bills not me) I would spend the time trying to get more regulars that appreciate your services and are willing to spend the money for quality work.

[Luv-N-It]

IMO, I think you need to consider your travel time and expense should get a factor into the equation of overhead and profit too. After all, you are using your time, gas, and wear/tear of your own vehicle to do this too. So, if you are driving for example, 20 miles round trip per car x 5 per month, then that is an additional 100 miles of use on your vehicle he does not pay for too! You are paying for it.

I would try to get more. Doesn`t hurt to ask and it shows this dealership your business awareness/savvy too. Dealership says no and you want to continue doing it at the same price, its up to you. I think you are getting some great advice from everyone. :)

[shotime]

Under those circumstances, if you own your business it`s not worth you doing that work yourself unless there is nothing else to do. Hire some kid and pay him $6/hr and let him do the dealer accounts. A business will never survive at $15/hr. Remember not only do you have to make money, your business does too. You should concentrate on bringing in customers and setting up more accounts at other dealerships/body shops/etc. I`m structuring my business so that I have dealer accounts to cover expenses and pay me what I need to personally cover my bills + 10% and all my paying customers are profit on top of that. Never be affraid to turn down a dealer who doesn`t want to pay anything. Let someone else choke on them.

[GregCavi]

HEllo again

Thanks everyone for giving me some great responses. I read alot of good points. I figured that i would just do the work. I did a filthy expedition today.

I took me about 4 hours. I figure its Minnesota and there wasnt any other work today after my first detail. The dealer is about 3 minutes away so i guess its 40 dollars i would not have had by sitting around today. Its a good thing i love detailing! thanks again everyone

Greg

[Antonio Wright]

Tell him the more you get paid, the better of a job you can do, thus his cars will be in better condition. If he wants a $30 detail, give him a $30 detail. To me that would be nothing more than a wash, vac, wax. For a full detail I wouldn`t take less than $75. Don`t waste your time on the exterior where most of your time is spent, just give it a one step (Meg`s Speed Glaze) and throw on what ever wax is cheap. 99% of people can`t see what we see so as long as you put a shine in it they`ll think it`s great.

This post is comical. I am glad people like you think like this. Brings more money in to my pocket.

[derek37]

This post is comical. I am glad people like you think like this. Brings more money in to my pocket.

Better be nice. Santa is watching!