Does it bother you when...

**Charisma** · 01-03-2007, 07:58 AM

You have people locally around you who are `detailing` cars for $50 inside and out; acting like what they do is THE ****, and the general populous believes them?

Their method includes "dash wipe, leather wipe, vacuum, glass cleaner, wash, wax, quick detail, rim cleaner & tire shine.

Honestly, this is a huge peeve of mine because it completely undermines the reputation we as `autopians` have built. As well, the uneducated seem to fall into their trap and believe that in some cases, paying less is actually worth it.

Maybe it`s just me, but some times this topic makes me :hairpull :nixweiss

**BobD** · 01-03-2007, 08:26 AM

I have a bunch of local shops that do a "Full Detail" for around $115. It used to bother me but I do something most autopians won`t think about. I stoop to the shops level. What I mean is that I sort of do what the shop does.

I stored a car in a warehouse one year and inside the warehouse was a full detail shop. The owner of the shop actually owned the warehouse. I used to go in monthly to pay my storage fee and I would watch what his "detailers" did. Basically they washed the car, threw on a one step polish/glaze/wax and dressed the trim and tires. The interior was a quick vacuum, window cleaning and wipe down. The funny thing is I was doing a home inspection, my other job, one day and some neighbor kid came over to the guys house I was at. The kid was telling him about his new job and how awesome it was. It was at this shop and he was saying that he made $15 per car. So the owner gets about $100 per car for doing nothing. Not a bad gig.

Anyway, what I started doing is offering a "cheap" service. I will do the one step, usually Four Star One Step, dress the trim and tires, vacuum and clean the interior. I go a little further because I will shampoo the carpets if needed. This killed me when I started doing this. BUT the customer is always happy with the job. And these are the same customers that would be going to the local shop for a cheap job anyway. I had so many people, when we first started, say "I can go down to XXXX and get it done for half that!" These are also the same people that are going through an automatic car wash a week after the detail.

I guess you sort of have to look at it in a business sense if you are in it for business. If you work in an area where people will pay top dollar for quality work then by all means stick to it. But if you live in an area where the majority just wants a clean car for the cheapest price you should probably offer a cheap job as well as the higher price/quality jobs and let them choose. Make sure you educate them on the difference of the jobs and why spending more is better.

**coupe** · 01-03-2007, 09:17 AM

I market myself differently.

I dont like being called a detailer.

**imported_flatstick** · 01-03-2007, 10:40 AM

Originally Posted by Charisma

You have people locally around you who are `detailing` cars for $50 inside and out; acting like what they do is THE ****, and the general populous believes them?

Their method includes "dash wipe, leather wipe, vacuum, glass cleaner, wash, wax, quick detail, rim cleaner & tire shine.

Honestly, this is a huge peeve of mine because it completely undermines the reputation we as `autopians` have built. As well, the uneducated seem to fall into their trap and believe that in some cases, paying less is actually worth it.

Maybe it`s just me, but some times this topic makes me :hairpull :nixweiss

If that makes you nuts you had better not read my reply here. there is a guy I pass all the time on my way to and from work. he has his driveway lined up all year long with cars. he washes, dries, applies wax ( very heavy of course lol ) vacums and does the windows. I have seen some newer there Vettes from time to time. found out he charges $25 for a car and $35 for a truck

to me it is not worth it as he uses towels on my finish that I would not use on my customers wheels. people look at his price and go hog wild I guess. they look shiny when he is done but I can still see swirls from the road. if somebody spends $50,000 on a vette and is happy with the price for him to do his thing, that is their choice. if they came to me I would inform them of how things really should be done. one of the cars I see him do has some nasty cc failure on the roof so apparently the money saved will be used to repaint their roof

**Scottwax** · 01-03-2007, 10:55 AM

I don`t compete for the same customers, in fact, they can have all the cheap people they want. There is a more than large enough customer pool of people who appreciate quality work that I can go after.

**imported_Yal** · 01-03-2007, 11:01 AM

Originally Posted by Charisma

Their method includes "dash wipe, leather wipe, vacuum, glass cleaner, wash, wax, quick detail, rim cleaner & tire shine.

You mean like the various car washes I see around here that provide a Deluxe or Premium service. Basically they get your car out of the automatic wash pull it aside sometimes under a "special" tent and do all the above you mentioned. The customer feels quite special because his car is under "the tent" unlike all the other cars being dried in the open and his car is being worked on by one guy who looks like he means serious business. Half an hour to an hour later he is the proud owner of a Deluxe detailed car, complete with swirls and glass streaks

**mose** · 01-03-2007, 11:03 AM

I market myself differently.

I dont like being called a detailer.

So what do you call yourself?

I am just starting out in this business so I obviously don`t have all the answers, nor will I pretend to.....but....I have been around for over 40 years and do know what I want when someone is detialing my car. That is what I try to give my customers.

If they balk at my pricing I ask them what it is they are looking for. If they tell me that they just want a clean shiny car, I ask, "How shiny?" If they want just a wash and quick wax I tell them that that is what they are going to get but that I can make the car look so much better if they ever want to. This usually peaks their interest and leads me to the education part of my sales pitch. It`s worked so far.

I talked to a guy at a party on New Years Eve who wanted me to do his wifes Jaguar. He said it had been a while and he just wanted to clean it up a little. Hmmm....interesting. So I asked him the particulars, what color, model and year. We actually walked down to his house after about 20 minutes of talkng cuz he was pushing me for a quote. Upon walking into a poorly lit garage the car looked dirty but in pretty good shape. I asked him for a flashlight and showed him what I had been talking about.....swirl marks. He asked how they got there and how I got them off. I told him what the cause was, what I did to get them off and what he needed to do to make sure they didn`t come back. That way I wouldn`t have to charge him as much next time to "detail" his car. I told him that I would come to hus house every weekend and do what his "detailer" was charging his $50 a pop for.quick wash, dry and sprayed with a spray wax. I can do that all day long and make a lot of money.......but he wasn`t ever gonna be happy.

Upon further inspection I actually lowered my price a little just to get him to give me a shot at the car. He agreed to $375 and scheduled the detail for a few weeks from now.

I have driven past detailing shops that have a line of cars down the street and watch in horror as their workers drop towels, pick them up and keep drying the car. Get in and out of cars with huge key rings on their belts. Use the same towels to wipe down the interior that they used to dry the car and tires with and just generally jack up the cars they are working on. Makes me feel even better about the service that I give my customers!!!

**imported_GregCavi** · 01-03-2007, 11:04 AM

Does it bother me? Nope.

I know, and my clients know that my work is in another league from the other guys, and are willing to pay for it.

Greg

**imported_ajbarnes** · 01-03-2007, 11:31 AM

I just raised my prices and I am currently one of the most expensive around and I`m one of only a few (there are a ton of cheapo shops and mobile operations around). There is a local shop not far from me that charges $115 for a "full" detail, and my starting price is $250 for a full detail. Even my basic two step detail costs more at a $150 starting price. It doesn`t bother me one bit. I attract all the customer`s who appreciate this work and are far from being cheap.....better cars too.

The volume may be down, but the profit is way up...and that`s the bottom line...profit.

**coupe** · 01-03-2007, 11:45 AM

I market myself to enthusiasts, car collectors, people who love their vehicles etc.

How do i do this?

Well, i started by doing vehicles in my car club. They told their freinds and family, and they told their freinds and family and so on and so on. I have gotten turned down ALOT by Joe Shmoe and i tell them all the same thing, if what you want is a wash and wax im not the guy to call since i specialize in paint correction and restoration.

I dont market myself to the mom and dad with 3 kids or Joe Shmoe who could care less.

This is also not my career either, i have a career in CAD that is full time and pays a crap ton more. Becuase of that it dont bother me to turn people down or for them to turn me down.

Like ajbarnes said, profit is way up and so is the rides i work on.

**Tasty** · 01-06-2007, 10:52 AM

Originally Posted by Danase

I have a bunch of local shops that do a "Full Detail" for around $115. It used to bother me but I do something most autopians won`t think about. I stoop to the shops level. What I mean is that I sort of do what the shop does.

I stored a car in a warehouse one year and inside the warehouse was a full detail shop. The owner of the shop actually owned the warehouse. I used to go in monthly to pay my storage fee and I would watch what his "detailers" did. Basically they washed the car, threw on a one step polish/glaze/wax and dressed the trim and tires. The interior was a quick vacuum, window cleaning and wipe down. The funny thing is I was doing a home inspection, my other job, one day and some neighbor kid came over to the guys house I was at. The kid was telling him about his new job and how awesome it was. It was at this shop and he was saying that he made $15 per car. So the owner gets about $100 per car for doing nothing. Not a bad gig.

Anyway, what I started doing is offering a "cheap" service. I will do the one step, usually Four Star One Step, dress the trim and tires, vacuum and clean the interior. I go a little further because I will shampoo the carpets if needed. This killed me when I started doing this. BUT the customer is always happy with the job. And these are the same customers that would be going to the local shop for a cheap job anyway. I had so many people, when we first started, say "I can go down to XXXX and get it done for half that!" These are also the same people that are going through an automatic car wash a week after the detail.

I guess you sort of have to look at it in a business sense if you are in it for business. If you work in an area where people will pay top dollar for quality work then by all means stick to it. But if you live in an area where the majority just wants a clean car for the cheapest price you should probably offer a cheap job as well as the higher price/quality jobs and let them choose. Make sure you educate them on the difference of the jobs and why spending more is better.

One of the best posts I have read on Autopia in quite a while. Most people just want it to "shine" and don`t care about swirls and all the other stuff we despise. If the local automatic car wash next to the gas pump gets the dirt off, then it`s good enough for most of the general public.

**Aguilar** · 01-06-2007, 11:55 AM

I feel for you guys. I took this picture a couple weeks ago on my trip to Miami. This car wash place is always busy, you should see the wash mitts these guys use... suffice to say they`re not their original color anymore.

And yes, that`s an expensive Benz up there, getting swirled!

**imported_Surfer** · 01-06-2007, 01:43 PM

I deal with the same thing in my business, I`m part owner of a Real Estate Finance company here. I`ve have to put up with all the other sleaze bags and get rich quick kids who don`t know sh!t and will bait and switch people to death. But like Scott said there`s always a better customer, like one lady I have now my Realtor referred, she orginally called DiTech, all it took was one meeting with me and she`s only dealing with me know after I explained everything. I`m gonna put a little saying on my biz cards "Got another loan from DiTech" b/c unlike their commercials I`ve never lost a deal to them, I`ve taken deals from them b/c honestly they suck and can`t compete, people fall for their commercials. You know how many times I`ve talked to somebody that thought they got a good deal with them, then I went through everything adn explained their deal and they weren`t very happy LOL.

Any service type business is always going to have somebody willing to cut down on prices to compete, IMO that`s wrong b/c it cheapens the value that "your" offering. Well he`s doing it for 50 why are you charging 300? Show what your offering as value and why you cost more and generally customers will understand, I have to do this everyday in my biz. If your a detailer, "well he wipes down my leather"...really "does he prep it for cleaning, does he condition it and apply a dressing protectant?" etc.

**mikebai1990** · 01-06-2007, 02:11 PM

It kinda annoys me even though I don`t detail for money. I see those "hand wash" places and those "professional 5 step detailing" or something like that. And when the cars come out of the wash, yea it seems nice and shiny, but the swirls are there. Some people think that all cars are "supposed" to have swirls and it`s the norm. I mean, how many cars are out there that are actually 95% swirl free? Very, very, very few.

I can completely understand how regular people aren`t willing to pay hundreds of dollars for a good detailing. But they just don`t understand how much labor and work and details the detailer has to pay attention to. My parents grill me over the fact that I spend too much time making the car look good and that they really don`t care how good the car looks. But I care, and enjoy making it look good, so that`s all that matters.