Selecting a Professional Detailer[

If you are considering having someone detail your car, I would urge you to use the same judgement you would in any other area of your car`s maintenance, and treat with suspicion anybody offering a really low price. Don’t automatically assume that anyone that calls themselves a professional detailer is in fact a pro. Some have passed themselves off as competent professionals by stealing images of work done by others without their permission.



It may well be in your best interest to talk to a detailer who has proven track record of satisfied customers as well as the relevant insurances, and someone offering a lower quote might not.



Request a reputable detailer’s name (s) on one of the detailing forums. Once you’ve selected a detailer be specific about what services you require (i.e. full vehicle detail, exterior paint renovation, interior detailing, etc) It requires an exchange of information between the consumer and the shop so that the extent of each detail and the estimated cost, a vehicle drop-off and collection time are clearly established before work commences.

A successful outcome will rely on good communication between you and the chosen professional. You want someone that makes you feel at ease with the process, someone that you can easily trust. They should be able to answer your questions in simple easy to understand terms, not techno speak, so that you understand what needs to be done, and the benefits.



Listen to their suggestions. The more that things can be explained and agreed upon, the more at ease that they can make you feel, and the more confident that you can be in their ability to meet or exceed your expectations.



An accurate estimate can only be given when the professional is able to see the vehicle and ascertain your expectations, a phone-quote can only be a ball-park figure. Many professionals will need 10+ hours of work to transform your vehicle back to like-new condition



Some things you may want to consider



• Look for a courteous staff willing to answer all of your questions.

• Look for policies regarding estimates, labour rates or pricing, guarantees, acceptable methods of payment, etc.

• A Professional Detailer should have been in (full-time) business for at least one year

• Should have business licensed and be state registered

• Ensure they have adequate insurance cover (including Public Liability) and that they are a registered business

• Obtain (telephone number) references from three recent clients and check them

• How long they have been in business

• Check with the local Better Business Bureau

• Ask them where they received their training and what products they use.

• Ask the prospective detailer for photographs of vehicles they have done recently (most detailers have a portfolio) or they may have photos posted on detailing forums of their work on similar models

• Ask them their detailing ‘steps’ this will indicate exactly what you are paying for

• Ask them what detailing products they use (known brand names are preferable)

• Do they offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee?

• Discuss a price and if satisfied set-up an appointment

• If they quote a very low price it could reflect the quality of service offered.



After Care



Provide tips on avoiding scratches by proper washing and drying techniques and any other tips they can give to maintain the finish on your vehicle. Client education in the aesthetic care of their vehicle should be equally as important as the detailing. The most common cause of surface scratches is washing the car improperly, or using unsuitable washing media, so I would suggest they explain or demonstrate the correct vehicle paint washing technique.



Detailing Pricing Guide



As with most other things, the price of automotive detailing varies by quite a wide margin. Many more people are concerned with perceived value (a cheap price) as opposed to quality; the secret is to sell quality over price, while keeping in mind client needs.



The cost of having a professional perform a detailing job on your vehicle will vary by geographical region, the experience and reputation of the detailer, and the condition of your vehicle, and your expectations of the finished detail, among other factors. Most detailers will offer a specified package of services that are included in their standard prices, and generally will provide additional services on request for an additional fee.



Detailing



Exterior (8 hours)



• Wash and dry exterior paint – 1.5

• Detailer’s clay – 1.0

• Tyres and Wheel surfaces – 0.5

• Clean exterior glass – 0.5

• Clean and lightly polish paint – 1.5

• Wax or seal paint -1.0

• Clean and protect rubber seals – 0.5

• Exhaust, tyres and trim etc 1.5 hours





Interior (4.5 hours)



• Brush and Vacuum carpets – 0.5

• Shampoo mats – 0.5

• Shampoo / extract carpet – 1.0

• Clean upholstery – 1.0

• Apply protection to vinyl and leather – 0.5

• Clean interior glass -0.5

• Deodorize interior - 10 min

• Protect carpet and upholstery – 0.5



This level of detail on an average sized and condition vehicle would take approx 13 hours, a larger vehicle will obviously take more time, most professional detailers will charge between $400 and $550 to do this level of work. Depending on location / skill level / /reputation, to transform a vehicle back to ‘like-new condition; so expect to pay a fair price for the amount of work involved.



Detailing Checklist



1. Inspect the vehicle

2. Note any serious scratches, stains or tears to interior materials

3. Adhesive residue, tree sap, bug spatters

4. Leaves, debris in jambs and cowlings

5. Remove all trash from interior including trunk, ashtray (place small change in Ziploc bag) and seat folds

6. Note stains or heavily soiled carpet or upholstery

7. Pre-spot and brush stained or heavily soiled areas

8. Clean wheels and wheel wells

9. Clean engine

10. Remove tar and/or adhesive residue

11. Wash vehicle

12. Clay vehicle if needed

13. Remove tree sap if needed

14. Polish and apply paint protection

15. Remove any polish residue

16. Dress tires

17. Interior cleaning:

18. Remove all items from interior and place in a Ziploc bag

19. Vacuum all surfaces

20. Pre-soak carpet and upholstery stains

21. Scrub stained areas with brush

22. Finish cleaning carpet and upholstery and apply fabric guard

23. Clean all interior surfaces, vinyl, and leather

24. Dress all interior surfaces

25. Clean interior and exterior glass

26. Replace all items in vehicle (Ziploc bag)

27. Final vehicle inspection



Paint Renovation / Restoration



Surface preparation for polish / compounding



• Wash 1 – 1.5 hours

• Paint surface decontamination 2 -2.5 hours

• Detailer’s clay 1.5 hours

• Rinse and dry surface 2 -2.5



Paint correction details- as a basic guide for each stage



• Test panel – 2-3 hours

• Compound 8 – 10 hours

• Polishing 10 – 12 hours per stage

• Wipe down process 2 -3 hours

• Finishing 8 – 10 hours

• Wet-sanding 3 – 4 hours per panel.



Sanding a paint surface is a very labour intensive way to eliminate orange peel or other paint surface problems; this method can take an entire day to sand and polish a vehicle properly (~$1200 +)

Authors Profile

Sorry, but for the professional detailer to actually have a business that will grow in most markets,"way off".

Not to the Autopia standards, which are beyound normal expectations, but if it takes more than 4 to 5 hours to do a complete, using the "legal requirements" that must be met by a business in the USA, most would never make it past their "start up money" to get going.

Based upon your posted standards, of hours required, using a low dollar number per hour (insurance, shop rent, equipment, materials, etc) requires a low of $40 per hour charged to make a minimum profit for the owner/operator.

If one takes the "low side" of your numbers it is 33 hours to do a vehicle.

At $40 per hour, that is $1320.00 USD to do a detail.

Should one make a choice to work for $20 USD per hour, and not just figure in materials, wear and tear on equipment, cost of heat and electricity, etc, they would still require a fee of $660.00 for a detail.

Just don`t make sense to any business person to do so.

My over 4 decades (for you younger ones without the schooling of how to do any math without a computer/etc. that`s 40 years) has shown that the best of time is 4 hours or 7hours of work at tops, that the majority of potential clients will accept for a cost.

I await your reply regarding how a person who choses to make detailing a profession is going to survive, grow a business, etc based upon these time allowances.

Grumpy

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Ron Ketcham

Sorry, but for the professional detailer to actually have a business that will grow in most markets,"way off".

Not to the Autopia standards, which are beyound normal expectations, but if it takes more than 4 to 5 hours to do a complete, using the "legal requirements" that must be met by a business in the USA, most would never make it past their "start up money" to get going.

Based upon your posted standards, of hours required, using a low dollar number per hour (insurance, shop rent, equipment, materials, etc) requires a low of $40 per hour charged to make a minimum profit for the owner/operator.

If one takes the "low side" of your numbers it is 33 hours to do a vehicle.

At $40 per hour, that is $1320.00 USD to do a detail.

Should one make a choice to work for $20 USD per hour, and not just figure in materials, wear and tear on equipment, cost of heat and electricity, etc, they would still require a fee of $660.00 for a detail.

Just don`t make sense to any business person to do so.

My over 4 decades (for you younger ones without the schooling of how to do any math without a computer/etc. that`s 40 years) has shown that the best of time is 4 hours or 7hours of work at tops, that the majority of potential clients will accept for a cost.

I await your reply regarding how a person who choses to make detailing a profession is going to survive, grow a business, etc based upon these time allowances.

Grumpy

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I respectfully disagree. There are many here who have made a living ONLY doing Autopian-level detailing. Bob Willis, Marc Harris, Todd Helme, Rick Nelson, Todd Cooperrider, Eric Schuster, Ken@Autowerkes, etc. Maybe they can chime in here as to how they have been able to survive and grow catering only to the high-end crowd.

I have the HIGHEST respect for Jon.

I am not intending to disrespect his view or post.

And while you do point out that there are a few detailers who have been able to sell their professional services to a target market and make the business last, not "real world" in my opinion.

Each year, around the planet, there are between 33 million and 36 million vehicles produced and sold (depending on the economy), and the last numbers I hav found as to a close number of vehicles in use around the planet are so diverse as to just give up and take a shot at maybe 8 million or so.

So, what does this mean?

Well, go find the sales numbers for the exotics, the high dollar vehicles, like in the US for those sales, combined over a sales period of 10 years???



My point is simple, "it is great to have dreams, but for the majority dreams don`t put food on the table or a roof over the heads of one`s family"



There is a market for the "high dollar detail", I know, made some good bucks off of doing such when I lived in SoCal.





However, reality is not there for most.



For most, it`s the getting one at a time, vehicle owners, to pay a price for a service, of which don`t really have any clue of what they are buying is, other than what they think is what they want or need.

The carwash industry and it`s business owners, spend a lot of money on marketing to car owners, as do the chemical suppliers to the industry through "co-op" dollars in each major market.

This marketing of getting one`s vehicle clean and to the "purchasers expectations" is what most vehicle owners see as "all they need to do".

The remarkable detailers you mentioned are less than .0003% of those who offer or provide "detailing services which are sold".

It is just simple, most vehicle owners could care less about having their vehicles cared for to the extent that most of this forum consider acceptable.

The average detail customer has been pre-sold on how to care for their vehicle from the day the salesman sells it, to the owner`s manual, to the car wash industry, to many website`s and car enthusists magazines,and TV shows.

Those who do at least have their vehicles washed, maybe some wax or such put on once a year, go to the local chain auto parts store, after seeing a TV ad or magazine ad for a product are happy with and wipe it on or have the kid next door do it, are happy as well with what they get.

Shocking! Is it not?

But it is "reality".

Grumpy

I think Ron has a good point here in that we Autopians are really a niche within a niche; and the guys who are making a living only doing that level of work tend to be able to do so for a few specific reasons:



1. Location - If you`re not in an area that is saturated with high end vehicles and/or "monied up" people (as Bob Willis calls them) you`re not going to be able to thrive on that sort of business model no matter what you do. Sure, there are people who are willing to travel to get work done by one of the top pros, but I`m willing to bet that`s a very small percentage of these guys` sales.



2. Marketing - If you can`t convince your target customers that they need what you`re selling (show them it`s worth the extra cash) they`re not going to buy it.



3. Presentation - Once you have hooked a customer, it`s vital to present a consistent professional image at all times. If you`re charging this kind of money, the client will expect you to look and act accordingly. Otherwise you won`t be able to build a positive reputation or retain your clients long term.



In the grand scheme, most people either don`t have a location advantage, or lack the skills/instinct/talent to pull off the marketing part of the equation. There`s a reason those guys` write-up threads are always raising the bar in terms of how they word things, compose and present images, etc.

I have to agree with the above statements. For every multi day detail we post on the forums, there are way more wash/clay waxes that are done but are not posted. There are very few markets that will support those kinds of details day in and day out and there are probably detailers in those markets that don`t get a chance to do that kind of work as the number of people willing to pay the big dollars are few and far between. Having said that, I charge more for a wash/clay/wax then most guys in my area get for a full detail, but its been 20 years of educating people on the differences between a good job and a great job and most of my work is repeat business.

While I’ll agree that a detailer must select his market, most of the (non-Autopian) forum contributors that are looking for a detailer ask two main questions: “I’m looking for a detailer in X State� and “What should I look for in a detailer�

Most of the time when not on the fourms, I normally speak with your average detailer. Most of the time, 95% are looking for fast and good looks. Their clientele will not pay more than a few hundred for a complete detail. They need to be fast and efficient to make money. Most people do not have the money for $1200 detail or understand how much time it takes nor will they appreciate the results.



Autopia is truly a nitche. Even among detailers. Many detailers are in Ron Ketcham`s shoes. They do quick details to make a living while trying to find more high end jobs.



I guess the most important thing is to teach the customer the difference between the $250 detail and a $1200 one. Your marketing & presentation may upsell some to a more complete detail. (If you clients can afford it of course.)



Oh, and excellent post as always Jon!

[I guess the most important thing is to teach the customer the difference between the $250 detail and a $1200 one. Your marketing & presentation may upsell some to a more complete detail. (If you clients can afford it of course.)]





There no standard within this industry of what a detail consists of in this industry; detailers from different locations charge a wide spectrum of fees depending on their experience, geographical location, scope of work (i.e. their interpretation of what a detail should consist of) and the type of products used and cars they`re working on.



You also need to decide what niche market you want to concentrate on.



Paint correction - catering to higher end clients, usually ‘exotic’ or specialised automobiles, this market sector provides lower cash flow and higher profit.



Volume type work – aimed towards the average vehicle owner, which caters to ‘wash & wax’ type clients, this market sector provides a higher cash flow but small profit margins. High turnover (volume) provides the biggest profits



If you think that detailing is just a job think again, because it isn’t. It’s more like a lifestyle choice, and the spirit of what it involves will need to run deep in your veins if you are to succeed and thrive as a detailer.



The ultimate question is this: are you trying to open and invest in a properly functioning business or just trying to creating a job. Usually a business needs to operate for a period of months before it breaks even, so it’s a very poorly paid job. You could be the best detailer the world has ever seen but unless you learn how to correctly operate a business properly you`re just setting yourself up for failure



If you know deep inside that you will work as hard as it takes no matter what, and that paying attention to minute details day after day and vehicle after vehicle appeals to you even though it will be extremely challenging then this type of commitment will help you to succeed



Volume detailing



Volume detailing is where the most money is to be made, catering towards people who don’t care about paint correction, or detailing, but just want their vehicle clean and shiny. But be cognizant that vehicle dealership work is very much bottom-line driven and the lowest bidder will almost always be successful winning it. This is partly the reason so many dealership and high volume production shop detailers suffer from a bad reputation.



Do not make the mistake of treating this work like you would detailing vehicles for our regular customers as volume work is all about speed, cost effective products and working efficiency while still producing a reasonable end product in the time allocated. You can’t spend 6 or 8 hours on a vehicle detail that you’re being paid $100 and expect to make a reasonable profit from. You will need to work smarter (efficiently) not harder as you’ll need to process several vehicles per day



Becoming a High-end Detailer



Customer expectations are constantly rising and your competitors aren’t going to slow down. Now is the time to raise your game.



Advanced detailing; comes about with plenty of experience and when someone becomes so in tune with their craft it becomes art. High end A-list vehicles and prestige concourse entrants; customers in this type of niche market will have their vehicles detailed on a fairly regular basis, especially during the concourse show season.



More time and care along with specialised products is required to detail a high-end or super car than it takes to do a minivan or daily driver.