falling on the grenade...

[512detail]

I have never ran my business the way it should have been run...

that changes soon...

wish me luck

website in the works, business plan being revised, full focus on where I`d like to be...

Honestly, I don`t care if I never get another paid job, but I simply can`t sell myself short anymore...it was eating me alive and I had lost respect for my craft (and most importantly, myself)...

cheers to 2018...gonna be an interesting year to say the least

I`m blowing just about everything up short of product selection and logo...




anyone with any valid suggestions/criticism feel free to sound off...I obviously need it

[LEDetailng]

Brandt,

That is an awesome logo. Good luck with the future and your more focused business plan. Your work is always top notch!

Bob

[atgonzales]

512, the Angels will assist you...look forward to your changes

[DOdetailing]

Such a humble first step. Proud of your initiative and renewing your vigor. Detailing for me has been a side job, and I am getting to the point I need to stop growing, hire someone and grow, or let it go and focus on job 1. That being said, what I learned here from this group of men and women taught me to do it right the first time. I charge more than most, and take extreme pride in my work. That means I lose a lot of sales.... but when you produce quality, and you can step back after a great detail and be fired up, and your client gets fired up and shares the passion, there is not a downside to that.
The reason I know you will succeed, and be the best you can be, is because you are making a plan. Setting goals and keeping your vision forward.
I bet that most detailers here, and every person in the world, that is not where they want to be, or not seeing positive results and change in life, is because they have no goal, no target, no plan to get there.

Tbis post has me fired up for your new changes! And the logo, BADASS!!

2018, Brandt has your name, and is coming to collect!!

[SWETM]

The logo is awesome!
Good luck and I think you will be successfull.

[TheMeanGreen]

Maybe go a dark blue with the lettering on the negative of the original. Personally and this is just my opinion that you can take as a grain of sand, I have realized that when I am handed a business card with red as a primary color, I am less likely to view the card again. In color theory, reds and blacks give off a more negative impression, whilst other colors when paired with black give off a more positive vibe. Now I know that this is probably just me nitpicking and you can make the decision on your own, however the more successful businesses that I have actually done some type of business with, don`t have red as a primary color and have limited red to some type of accent color.

That`s my comment on the color, design-wise, I love it!!!!

A business card should do two things: 1) provide me with the pertinent information that I need, and 2) make me want to conduct business with the entity, i.e., leave a very good impression.

If you really want to keep the red/black theme on the second card, maybe tone the black to a dark grey or grey, and slightly brighten up the red? Or If you do keep the red and black, maybe make the colors shinny? I think shinny letters would give the red and black a cool flair.

[House of Wax]

Logos look awesome. Good luck on whatever changes you make

Sent from my Nexus 10 using Tapatalk

[Justins00ss]

Good to hear bud! Your work is always top notch. Your pricing and overhead is non of my business but if you are planning on continuing to use Polish Angel as your main product line up then I hope your charging damn good money as they are very pricey for the amount you get. As you get busier you will start to realize that bulk product (gallons) definitely helps with overhead. IGL isn`t consider cheap either but I make sure I charge a hell of a markup when using one of there coatings etc.

I love the logo you designed! Good luck in 2018!

[nickclark08]

Brandt -

I`ll second the dark blue on the dark background. I really like the logo.

Your work and passion speak for themselves - Don`t price yourself out of your marketbase, but definitely don`t sell yourself short. You`ve got this.

[512detail]

Thanks everyone.

I finally did an entire inventory, and I think I have enough stuff to detail all next year without needing to replace anything as lots of my polishes etc are somewhat redundant. I mean if I run out of one finishung polish O will just try out a different one I own.

Maybe cosmic spritz but that`s a good thing as it means I`m selling coatings.

I have started the slow process of cleaning out my garage which as it turns out starts with reorganizing my two spare bedrooms so I can bring more stuff inside.

As far as the logo, I can pretty much change it to any color but will have to give the blue a shot.

Pricing and packages are being tweaked. I still struggle with trying to offer too many packages.

I am not really sure about pricing myself out of the market as I really don`t get much business from within 50 miles of my house. Most of my clients drive 60+ miles from San Antonio to bring their cars here.

I had to finally sit down and think about how long every process of each job takes and how much product I`m using and figure out what that job is really worth to me. At the end of the day this is still just a part time thing right now but I might as well make it worth my time. No worse feeling than being halfway through a job and feeling like you should have charged more to make it worth your time, skill and resources.

I also realize I need to study up on marketing/advertising and try to see if I can tap into this local market here.

[BudgetPlan1]

I finally did an entire inventory, and I think I have enough stuff to detail all next year without needing to replace anything

PA`s ears musta been burning...tempting you already?

[512detail]

PA`s ears musta been burning...tempting you already?

haha. I`m waiting for some of their US debut products coming next year.

But now that cosmic spritz bottle looks even lower

[heisenberg]

I`m going to write a novel out out because I struggled with the same thing for a very long time and I can tell you some things that really shifted my perspective and changed my approach to this whole thing. I`m sorry if this doesn`t apply to you, and I definitely am not writing because you do these things, these are just situations I faced when I came to a similar conclusion as you.

• Going through inventory and selling off excess supplies was an important step because I realized how much stuff I was buying. It was easy for me to write off purchases because I would tell myself "that`s just one job" or I`d immediately spend something I got on a quick wash & wax. It was almost like I was just detailing part-time to be able to buy detailing supplies which is absurd. It`s so nice to have everything quickly labeled, within reach, and available out of gallons. My profit margins are much better just from being organized and knowing what works for me. I resupply when I`m low, not just when I see a sale or something. I haven`t really purchased anything in months and I am in no danger of running out of supplies. That indicates that there was a huge problem with me overbuying.

• You can`t be everything for everybody. I have tweaked and changed my packages and pricing a few times now and I`ve finally found what works for me and the clients I want to serve. I am not a four/five figure concours detailer and those are not the clients I am after because I think a fully dedicated shop with full-time staff can serve them better. I like to do quality affordable work for people who otherwise might not be able to find what they`re looking for. I always underpromise and overdeliver but not at my own expense. It`s a very fine line to walk, and I know that so many detailers struggle with chasing what they perceive to be huge issues that customers otherwise might not even care about. You have to know your audience. One of the first questions I`ll ask prospective clients is "So is there something that`s been bothering you about the car lately?" because I`ve found that a large number of people decide that rather than having one specific problem addressed with a car(a scratch, bug guts, tar, swirls, smells, stains, etc.) they decide to just "get it detailed" and they often have a sore spot that motivates them to take action and schedule a detail. This obviously doesn`t apply to new car preps, people who want to baby a show car, etc. but it works. Also helps you truly execute a good job since you can devote a little more time to whatever area they are having the issue with.

• I stopped reading every post on online forums. The detailing industry is kind of a rat race. Everyone is trying to one up the other person and there is a gross amount of showing off that gets done on social media. You end up thinking you need Product X or you have to do things the way this guy did them because that car he did looks amazing(even though the picture is likely edited) I now focus more on helping new people or explaining things to others. This helps me in a variety of ways, but the best part is that you have to understand the logic behind a process and be able to explain it to someone that doesn`t know all the acronyms and lingo that we do. This helps my customer service so much - people do not care why we do what we do most of the time. They just want the end result. We are the ones who love it, not them. It also makes me reevaluate my own steps because I am constantly thinking about what I do and sometimes I realize I`m being redundant or something.

You do top notch work. Really. Any time I see someone on other sites asking for detailers in Texas I immediately think of you and a couple other guys and find out if they are within your area. My only honest criticism as an outsider(and I don`t know you at all, so please don`t take offense to this) and without knowing your pricing or packages... you are probably overcomplicating things for yourself. I have seen posts where you say you were working at all hours of the night to finish something that was bugging you or you are doing 3 layers of one product and 2 of another and then you still have to resist topping a car with something from PA that`s probably north of $60-70 a bottle.

The bottom line is that that last 5% that you may or may not get from layering or using so many products(I cannot personally observe a change in appearance from layering) is simply not worth your time and money because non-autopians would be literally just as happy with a highly skilled paint correction and 1 or 2 coats of an LSP. You just have to decide if you`re doing that for your own benefit/satisfaction or if it`s actually an added value for your clients. Identify your true target market, do some true self-evaluation of your strengths and weaknesses vs. your competitors and document it so you can constantly be thinking about it. Treat yourself like an employee and hold yourself accountable when things don`t work the way you want them to.

Your logo and your company branding are not a problem, IMO. You will be just fine. Sorry about the length of this post, but I hope it helps some.

[Justins00ss]

I`m going to write a novel out out because I struggled with the same thing for a very long time and I can tell you some things that really shifted my perspective and changed my approach to this whole thing. I`m sorry if this doesn`t apply to you, and I definitely am not writing because you do these things, these are just situations I faced when I came to a similar conclusion as you.

• Going through inventory and selling off excess supplies was an important step because I realized how much stuff I was buying. It was easy for me to write off purchases because I would tell myself "that`s just one job" or I`d immediately spend something I got on a quick wash & wax. It was almost like I was just detailing part-time to be able to buy detailing supplies which is absurd. It`s so nice to have everything quickly labeled, within reach, and available out of gallons. My profit margins are much better just from being organized and knowing what works for me. I resupply when I`m low, not just when I see a sale or something. I haven`t really purchased anything in months and I am in no danger of running out of supplies. That indicates that there was a huge problem with me overbuying.

• You can`t be everything for everybody. I have tweaked and changed my packages and pricing a few times now and I`ve finally found what works for me and the clients I want to serve. I am not a four/five figure concours detailer and those are not the clients I am after because I think a fully dedicated shop with full-time staff can serve them better. I like to do quality affordable work for people who otherwise might not be able to find what they`re looking for. I always underpromise and overdeliver but not at my own expense. It`s a very fine line to walk, and I know that so many detailers struggle with chasing what they perceive to be huge issues that customers otherwise might not even care about. You have to know your audience. One of the first questions I`ll ask prospective clients is "So is there something that`s been bothering you about the car lately?" because I`ve found that a large number of people decide that rather than having one specific problem addressed with a car(a scratch, bug guts, tar, swirls, smells, stains, etc.) they decide to just "get it detailed" and they often have a sore spot that motivates them to take action and schedule a detail. This obviously doesn`t apply to new car preps, people who want to baby a show car, etc. but it works. Also helps you truly execute a good job since you can devote a little more time to whatever area they are having the issue with.

• I stopped reading every post on online forums. The detailing industry is kind of a rat race. Everyone is trying to one up the other person and there is a gross amount of showing off that gets done on social media. You end up thinking you need Product X or you have to do things the way this guy did them because that car he did looks amazing(even though the picture is likely edited) I now focus more on helping new people or explaining things to others. This helps me in a variety of ways, but the best part is that you have to understand the logic behind a process and be able to explain it to someone that doesn`t know all the acronyms and lingo that we do. This helps my customer service so much - people do not care why we do what we do most of the time. They just want the end result. We are the ones who love it, not them. It also makes me reevaluate my own steps because I am constantly thinking about what I do and sometimes I realize I`m being redundant or something.

You do top notch work. Really. Any time I see someone on other sites asking for detailers in Texas I immediately think of you and a couple other guys and find out if they are within your area. My only honest criticism as an outsider(and I don`t know you at all, so please don`t take offense to this) and without knowing your pricing or packages... you are probably overcomplicating things for yourself. I have seen posts where you say you were working at all hours of the night to finish something that was bugging you or you are doing 3 layers of one product and 2 of another and then you still have to resist topping a car with something from PA that`s probably north of $60-70 a bottle.

The bottom line is that that last 5% that you may or may not get from layering or using so many products(I cannot personally observe a change in appearance from layering) is simply not worth your time and money because non-autopians would be literally just as happy with a highly skilled paint correction and 1 or 2 coats of an LSP. You just have to decide if you`re doing that for your own benefit/satisfaction or if it`s actually an added value for your clients. Identify your true target market, do some true self-evaluation of your strengths and weaknesses vs. your competitors and document it so you can constantly be thinking about it. Treat yourself like an employee and hold yourself accountable when things don`t work the way you want them to.

Your logo and your company branding are not a problem, IMO. You will be just fine. Sorry about the length of this post, but I hope it helps some.

I think this sums up things perfectly. That`s why I love being here. A lot of good people who don`t mind sharing there experience with others.

[JustJesus]

... and figure out what that job is really worth to me. At the end of the day this is still just a part time thing right now but I might as well make it worth my time.

^ This. I feel this is most important. What is a job worth to you? As I`m spending more time with my wife and stepdaughter, I have less time to detail. I haven`t taken any jobs in about 5 months. And jobs I`ll be taking moving forward, I`ll charge more. Nowadays, my time is worth more.

No worse feeling than being halfway through a job and feeling like you should have charged more to make it worth your time, skill and resources.

Yeah, I know that feeling. For me, it goes back to "what is that job worth to me?" - I know I`ll lose potential jobs, and I`m okay with that. This is just a side gig for me, anyway.

Good luck, Brandt. Don`t sell yourself short. Enjoy this "hobby" and keep in mind what every job you take on is worth to you!