About to go mobile....

[slp123]

I am working on my business plan right now and will be going mobile in less than a month. My focus will be on motorcycles because as everyone knows there are more and more on the road every day and not many people in my area have the time to clean them themselves, a niche in the market. I am asking for any advice anyone can give me in he following areas:

-pricing for washes, waxes, full details on bikes

-best products to use

-best equipment to outfit my trailer with

-ideas on how to best advertise/promote my new business



any advice you can provide will be very appreciated. I am not new to this but do realize that I do not know everything there is to know on this subject.

Thank you very much,

Shaun

[coupe]

Considering your first 2 questions im concerned you are not ready for such a venture quite yet.

[slp123]

What I am looking for is an idea what everyone else would charge to get a feel for the market in other areas, I have a good idea of what to charge and just about all of the products I plan to use and where to get them. My question was not your opinion on if I should start my business or not but to give me a better understanding of someone else`s point of view on what products I should use and my pricing structure. That is all i`m asking for.

[coupe]

How would we know what is a proper price for YOUR area?



If you have products you already know how to use and what they can accomplish why ask?

Who cares what others would use? What do you use and what works for you? There is your answer.

[slp123]

once again i did not ask what a proper price is for my area........what i am looking for is pricing in all areas. About the products, only a fool would think that what they use and how they do it is the best possible. One rule to life....there is always something better-that is what i`m looking for. The person who knows how or what to use to get better results is the person I am trying to contact with these messages. I posted on this site thinking that this is a forum of professionals who would not look down on or criticize someone for asking a question. Apparently I found the "unprofessional"

[PTRon]

Sorry, but but I have to agree with the previous posters. Part of a good business plan is knowing what your expenses will be (products to use, equipment to use, misc. overhead [including licensing and insurance]). Another component of a good business plan is your marketing plan (where and how to advertise, the difference between marketing and advertising, etc.). Sounds to me that you`re probably getting a little ahead of yourself if you`re going to begin next month. I`ve been working on my business plan for 2 months and I figure I`ll be ready to begin in September. You also left out some very important information in your original post - such as what your original budget (approximately) will be, if it`s full time (you`ll need operating capital), etc. My advice to you is - do alot more research on the business side of your future business. There are many great detailers out there but not all of them make good business owners. Believe me, there isn`t one person in this forum that wishes you anything but the best and everyone here is willing to help once you`ve come up with a plan. I, for one, would love to read that (in a year or two) you became the motorcycle detailer that people travel across the state to get to! Just remember - If you don`t have a good, sound plan, you have a plan to fail. Best of luck in your new venture.

[kapinnn]

slp123, I do agree with the 2 previous posters but will not beat on a dead horse.



Here is what I use to detail motorcycles.



- ONR diluted to QD strength or regular ONR wash. I never hose down bikes.

- Plexus for all clear plastics (headlights, tailights)

- Prima Nero for tires and rubber/vinyl trim. Clean look, not shiny. (PB`s Natural Look looks great as well)

- Safe D-greaser diluted to appropriate concentrion depending on area and task

- I don`t really care for the LSP as much since there isn`t much of a surface. I use - sealants mostly or CIW 845 for the protection and longevity. They will both look good anyway and if desired you can top with a wetter LSP

- Repsol chain lube if needed. Doesn`t fling much.

I haven`t found anything I really like for chrome. I used to use Never Dull but it induces micromarring. I use Mothers now, but still not 100% happy.



I don`t usually polish bikes but when I do I use whatever I use for cars. PB SSR1, SSR2.5; Menzerna SIP, IP, PO106FF; Prima Cut, Swirl, Finish. Whatever is appropriate...



In other words... You can`t really go wrong with most products you will find in this forum. It`s mostly all in the application.



As far as prices it`s whatever you think you are worth. I only have 2 packages. Starting at $119 for wash/vac/wax and $99 for full interior with a 20% fee for large vehicles. Everything else is an add-on based roughly on the time I`ll be spending. So, claying will be like a $30-50 add on depending on if it`s a Miata or a Hummer. I don`t polish cars for less than $50/hr. I do the estimate when I see the car/bike and will not charge more than I estimate. If I spend 4 hours with the wash/vac/wax ($119 about 2 hrs) and 2 hours polishing ($100) it will be $219 and I won`t charge any more even if I stay longer, which I usually do.



Hope this helps a bit.



PS: I hate bikes... I try not to do them unless it`s a current customer or someone with multiple ones. I just use ONR, Plexus, Natural Look, and DG AW on mine.

[slp123]

Thanks for the advice guys. About the planning side of my business I know that there are a lot of people out there that are like " i do a pretty good job detailing and maybe I should start a business." I am not one of those people. I have a degree in entrepreneurship and have had to write many business plans in my college career. The planning and writing of the plan is cake. I can churn out a great plan in less than a week, given ample time to spend out it during that week of course. I appreciate the advice of planning ahead of time and am very familiar of the age old quote: " failing to plan is planning to fail." I have been working on this business plan ever since I began college, hence the entrepreneurship concentration. I have great professors that have agreed to revise my plan when i complete it before sending it to banks searching for a loan.

-Kapinn- thank you for finally answering some of my questions. I already have an arsenal of products to use and a pricing structure that I have been using for the past year at the shop i am currently employed. I just wanted to see if anyone could give me some advice that has had ALOT of experience detailing motorcycles. The prices I have set now are making me money and the products are producing decent results, just looking for anyone who could say, "I like to use this product" or "The prices I charge for a full detail on a motorcycle are...." Catch my drift?

Thank you