Your opinions on my pricing structure and your perspective.

[MichaelM]

...I know what my work is worth...

What hourly rate do you need to be profitable? That`s really all that matters when you try to figure out your pricing.



I do agree with the other comments though. If you have to explain your pricing and give examples of it in action in your ad then it`s going to be too complicated or require more attention then the average shopper will be willing to devote to an ad.

[rustytruck]

The Craigslist ad is bad. Keep it simple. I find the forums somewhat interesting because the guys on here want to share way to much info with the customers. Ask the customer what they want their car to look like then shoot them a fair price. Talking about clay will not mean anything to customers.

[J Young]

What shows up on google...



"Royal Finish Detailing - Cheap, fast detailing for every make and model." + your dealership experience. Maybe this isn`t the right forum for your business model?

So what? what`s your point? It attracts the customer. "Cheap, fast, every make and model" is what they want to hear. Open your perspective, I`m reconditioning from my folks home and transitioning to a business. With that being said and the CL ad running for 2 years now I have yet to receive huge conversion from the cheap prices. Now raising prices to what I`m worth would beget no business.



I have seen your page and your work. I`m impressed however I believe you would have more impact on your documentation if you did the before and after vs. just an after. Where`s the night and day difference in your work, it`s like a gallery of cool clean cars, wow!



Would you expound on why this isn`t the right forum for me since I have already said I`m here to gain new perspectives and change a few as well. Also as I spend more time in the forums I see the contrary, I see folks speaking on doing volume vs. specialty details.

[J Young]

It`s a sad state of affairs if 13 years of experience justifies that pricing structure. But what do you expect from a Craigs List ad?



Way too complicated/busy to understand

The ad doesn`t bring you in and keep you interested



I`m a firm believer in giving low/general prices and then upselling/catering to the client`s/vehicle`s needs when they call and/or you can see the vehicle.

What really is sad is that having a college degree or credentials mean little to nothing in this economy. As Americans we all want quality at the cheapest price. A prospect that has never had their vehicle detailed will always go for the cheaper service. A prospect that has had detailing services will continue to shop for the best service at the best price. How do you satisfy both? You charge a price in comparison and under the local shops.

[safetyman2010]

So what? what`s your point? It attracts the customer. "Cheap, fast, every make and model" is what they want to hear. Open your perspective, I`m reconditioning from my folks home and transitioning to a business. With that being said and the CL ad running for 2 years now I have yet to receive huge conversion from the cheap prices. Now raising prices to what I`m worth would beget no business.



I have seen your page and your work. I`m impressed however I believe you would have more impact on your documentation if you did the before and after vs. just an after. Where`s the night and day difference in your work, it`s like a gallery of cool clean cars, wow!



Would you expound on why this isn`t the right forum for me since I have already said I`m here to gain new perspectives and change a few as well. Also as I spend more time in the forums I see the contrary, I see folks speaking on doing volume vs. specialty details.

Depends on who you`re trying to attract. I know my costs and I know what I have to charge in order to cover them including running a reputable, fully insured business and have a shot at making a profit. You point out you are working out of your parents home - are you insured? If not, why not? Is that for your benefit or your customers? I`ll leave this with some words of wisdom: "Good work isn`t cheap. Cheap work isn`t good".

[J Young]

Scotty, I`m here to network. Currently this is a hobby that I`m transitioning into a business. I`m educating myself in this forum on the steps and realize I will have to take baby steps. Now that we have talked about that, I would like to thank you for words of wisdom. Really I haven`t advertised much but on CL. It`s a difficult balance because I like my freedom and in the past I have done 2-3 cars a day. I only am shooting for 1 a day and really don`t want to get burnt out as I have in the past.



As a business owner who runs a reputable, fully insured detailing business that has great credentials may I ask you a question to be answered in a PM? The answer would bring me to a sharper decision on my future. The question is what was your gross profit for 2011. I`m asking this humbly and respectfully since I`m undecided in where to focus my efforts, which are detailing cars or to be selling them.

[Jpostal]

I`m asking this humbly and respectfully since I`m undecided in where to focus my efforts, which are detailing cars or to be selling them.

Do both. I just added samll car sales division to my detail shop. If all the car dealers can "detail" why cant a detail shop sell cars? I ran a small car lot for a few years so I wasn`t completely new to the car sales game, and the cost of running the lot adds very little to my overhead.

[imported_Quenga]

Way too much writing and complication. I agree with everyone else, you need to keep it as simple as possible. Think about it this way, human beings are resistant to change and seek out the path of least resistance ($ being a resistant).



When marketing/advertising (which includes pricing), try to think this way (motivated by your Craigslist ad):



1. People on Craigslist are looking for cheap work only.

2. People Craigslist scroll quickly to prices, if they don`t see it, they don`t care about the photos.

3. People don`t care about the stuff we know, they just want to know we know it. Explaining too much bores the crap out of them.

4. Post photos with you in them, it shows people you are real and human beings are "book cover" judges. We know better, but we will pick better looking people over sloppy or invisible people instantly. (make sure you have a "uniform", I have nice performance PGA polo shirts I got for $15 at Marshall`s, they are usually $30!)

5. If you are going to be cheap, be a little cheaper; too cheap and you attract cheap people that won`t appreciate your work anyway. When they don`t appreciate your work, it`s instantly demotivating for people like us who take so much pride in it.



I hope this helps.

[safetyman2010]

Scotty, I`m here to network. Currently this is a hobby that I`m transitioning into a business. I`m educating myself in this forum on the steps and realize I will have to take baby steps. Now that we have talked about that, I would like to thank you for words of wisdom. Really I haven`t advertised much but on CL. It`s a difficult balance because I like my freedom and in the past I have done 2-3 cars a day. I only am shooting for 1 a day and really don`t want to get burnt out as I have in the past.



As a business owner who runs a reputable, fully insured detailing business that has great credentials may I ask you a question to be answered in a PM? The answer would bring me to a sharper decision on my future. The question is what was your gross profit for 2011. I`m asking this humbly and respectfully since I`m undecided in where to focus my efforts, which are detailing cars or to be selling them.

My profits won`t really have anything to do with your business as you are not only in a completely different area than I am but a different country where a huge amount of factors affect profitability. I will say that the last 3 years have been probably my best in almost 19 years despite our cost factors getting to be what I would consider to be extremely high with respect to wages etc. There is profit to be made in this business but in my opinion you have to be really busy to have a shot at making any money. Last year we did very well but even then we still only ended up with a year end profit of around 10% of gross sales but as I stated earlier I am in Canada and the cost of doing business here is exponentially higher than in the US.

[Buffautodetail]

How did you make an ad like that just curious?

[J Young]

How did you make an ad like that just curious?

It`s done in HTML coding.

[J Young]

Way too much writing and complication. I agree with everyone else, you need to keep it as simple as possible. Think about it this way, human beings are resistant to change and seek out the path of least resistance ($ being a resistant).



When marketing/advertising (which includes pricing), try to think this way (motivated by your Craigslist ad):



1. People on Craigslist are looking for cheap work only.

2. People Craigslist scroll quickly to prices, if they don`t see it, they don`t care about the photos.

3. People don`t care about the stuff we know, they just want to know we know it. Explaining too much bores the crap out of them.

4. Post photos with you in them, it shows people you are real and human beings are "book cover" judges. We know better, but we will pick better looking people over sloppy or invisible people instantly. (make sure you have a "uniform", I have nice performance PGA polo shirts I got for $15 at Marshall`s, they are usually $30!)

5. If you are going to be cheap, be a little cheaper; too cheap and you attract cheap people that won`t appreciate your work anyway. When they don`t appreciate your work, it`s instantly demotivating for people like us who take so much pride in it.



I hope this helps.

Yes it does and Thank you very much. It makes sense and the vision has manifested into delivery...off to create, will share later.

[J Young]

The Craigslist ad is bad. Keep it simple. I find the forums somewhat interesting because the guys on here want to share way to much info with the customers. Ask the customer what they want their car to look like then shoot them a fair price. Talking about clay will not mean anything to customers.

Mike you should try to change your perspective. Talking about clay builds value to your services. Maybe you`re just not explaining how it will remove all surface contaminants bringing back the new smooth feel and look. Whether you`re over the phone or when they drop the vehicle off this is a great time to illustrate the importance of clay bar application. I make it standard for all vehicles I wax to be clay bar washed. Tell your prospect to place fingers in a plastic bag and rub the clear coat slowly after they washed their vehicle to understand the reason why a vehicle needs to be clay bar washed. Then close your prospect over the phone or in person. Also in my perspective sharing a glimpse of what we do generates curiosity and an understanding of the level of work that separates a drive-way home owner wash vs a professional detail. If you have a customer still asking questions then that means the next no could be the next yes whilst instilling confidence in your services to your prospect.

[J Young]

What hourly rate do you need to be profitable? That`s really all that matters when you try to figure out your pricing.



I do agree with the other comments though. If you have to explain your pricing and give examples of it in action in your ad then it`s going to be too complicated or require more attention then the average shopper will be willing to devote to an ad.

Law of averages. Why do I need an hourly rate when I can rely on the law of averages and commit to volume. I disagree with the other posters because the more questions = more curiosity and an opportunity to instill confidence in your services. If someone cares about a detail, be a salesman and sell the service. Give them the vision and want to do business with you versus the cold shoulder hard priced menu. Further if a prospect doesn`t want to talk with me about their car what motivates me to accept the job? Basically what I`m magnetizing is repeat customers who refer and proudly drive off with a smile every-time. I aim to omit prospects who are unappreciative of my services, time and effort.

[imported_Quenga]

J Young - Although some of the advice seems to go against your beliefs I would suggest you take into consideration their experience. I know because I started out like you and learned real quick. Most people don`t care what you say to them. I`ve tried explaining stuff and most cut me off and say, "yeah, sounds great...so how much?". Even people that want high-end detailing normally don`t care. What matters is that you look like you know what you`re doing, you sound interested in it and most importantly, you do a good job.



Only a suggestion and coming from experience. I wanted to start out detailing a certain way, but I adapt pretty quickly to what I see in the environment. In general, customers are not interested in the process, they are interested in the price and end result. Especially us Americans, we don`t want the journey, we want the vacation.





And with what RustyTruck said, he should be reminded that most detailers start out this way. Enthusiasts can`t help but to be enthused. However, the quicker you train your mind to a businessman rather than a detailer, the quicker you`ll make money.



Heck, I`m still a new and still learning, but I draw from others experience instead of waiting for it to happen to me. I thought my website was simple, I posted it up and found out how not simple it was, lol. That`s the power of forum members. If they are all saying it......it might just be true.



Good luck!!