Cheap People Suck

R

RAG

New member
Just a little peeve of mine...wondering if I'm in the majority here:



For living in a very expensive area, where the average house is nearly a million dollars, I can't believe how many cheap people there are. Personally, I think there is a time to bargin hunt and a time to pay for quality...getting your car detailed isn't a time to bargin hunt. Would you hire a group of misfits to build your house because they said they could save you $20,000? No, cause who can guess how many corners they'll be cutting. It just baffles me on how many people don't want to pay more than $150 for a complete detail - go to the car wash and get your detail...we all know what kind of work you'll get there for your "discount special" detail. Fortunately I'm in a place where I can carefully steer these people elsewhere, but this wasn't always the case.



In detailing, as with most other service-related areas, cheap people cost themselves money by not having it done right the first time.





My other peeve is how 95% of people don't give a crap about their vehicles, letting them go to hell. In fact, I think less than 1% of vehicles on the road today are swirl-free. This one another day...
 
Hey, priorities, man. I don't get how some people treat their second largest investment like it's a hand-me-down shirt...but then I don't get a lot of things.
 
RAG said:
For living in a very expensive area, where the average house is nearly a million dollars, I can't believe how many cheap people there are.
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I've often noticed that people who seem to "have money" are far more stingy than others. Maybe they got where they are being tightwads? LOL :grinno:



I don't know how some can let their cars get in the shape they do either. Although what bothers me more than that is when they take their lack of respect further with the careless attitude in parking lots :mad:
 
Exactly Twitch.



Point is...people who pay for cheap washes get swirls, people who pay for cheap details get stained plastic, buffer halograms, etc.



I started offering washing services (used to detail only) at a business because I knew there were a lot of nice cars there...and there are. But I've been baffled at how few people (maybe 2% of the cars) have actually inquired about what I charge for a wash...it isn't like they think my prices are too high...they haven't even asked. And there is no way more than 15% of these people wash their own car. I guess they are just stuck in their routine of going to the local scratch bucket, but I'm baffled - really, what's their time worth (I'll save them at least an hour). Crimeny, the average person here probably makes $120K.



Don't get me wrong, the cars that I do wash and detail here have been telling their co-workers/friends and thus my work at this location is rapidly growing - I just figured I'd be 300% overwhelmed with inquiries. Is saving $10 really worth an hour or so of their time going to the local wash, where they sure do a lousy job btw?
 
RAG said:
Exactly Twitch.



Point is...people who pay for cheap washes get swirls, people who pay for cheap details get stained plastic, buffer halograms, etc.



I started offering washing services (used to detail only) at a business because I knew there were a lot of nice cars there...and there are. But I've been baffled at how few people (maybe 2% of the cars) have actually inquired about what I charge for a wash...it isn't like they think my prices are too high...they haven't even asked. And there is no way more than 15% of these people wash their own car. I guess they are just stuck in their routine of going to the local scratch bucket, but I'm baffled - really, what's their time worth (I'll save them at least an hour). Crimeny, the average person here probably makes $120K.



Don't get me wrong, the cars that I do wash and detail here have been telling their co-workers/friends and thus my work at this location is rapidly growing - I just figured I'd be 300% overwhelmed with inquiries. Is saving $10 really worth an hour or so of their time going to the local wash, where they sure do a lousy job btw?
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The trick is to upsell your wash customers on a full detail, however I can set a day and push washes and pocket $400. so nothing wrong with it.



you need to market to what they want and not what you want.
 
RAG said:
For living in a very expensive area, where the average house is nearly a million dollars, I can't believe how many cheap people there are.
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Just because someone lives in an expensive area does not mean they have money.



People who actually have money to spend on detailing are usually professional people, such as doctors, dentists, lawyers and owners of small businesses. Those people are the core target market of people who know the importance of keeping their vehicles looking good and also have the money to get it detailed on a regular basis.
 
Five Star said:
The trick is to upsell your wash customers on a full detail, however I can set a day and push washes and pocket $400. so nothing wrong with it.



you need to market to what they want and not what you want.
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This is exactly what I do. I was against the wash-only deal at first, but it has been generating a ton of details. Basically I just can't believe more people would want to use my washing services (it's a giant business complex I've been given exclusive rights to) - it isn't like I'm gouging them...I'm only charging $25 (for a proper wash of course).
 
RAG said:
This is exactly what I do. I was against the wash-only deal at first, but it has been generating a ton of details. Basically I just can't believe more people would want to use my washing services (it's a giant business complex I've been given exclusive rights to) - it isn't like I'm gouging them...I'm only charging $25 (for a proper wash of course).
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$25 - What does you wash consist of?
 
[quote name='mirrorfinishman']Just because someone lives in an expensive area does not mean they have money.



Like me. But seriously, this place is loaded with porches, BMWs, Mercedes', Lexus', etc. Loaded.
 
Joshua312 said:
$25 - What does you wash consist of?
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Wash, vacuum, dust off dash, and dress tires. Oh yeah, and I clean the heck out of their rims the first time I clean their can, making in easy to maintain the rims their after - most of the time people tell me their rims havent' been that clean since it was new.



I'm not sure if you think $25 is cheap or expensive, but around here a full serve wash at a facility typically ranges from $12-$23, depending on what options one selects.
 
I think it is a good deal! I was just wondering what you included for your basic wash service. I like looking at people's websites/business cards/packages and pricing (Rag shoot me a pm if you have a website I can look at) Thanks! :)
 
Full service "autopian style" washes are very complicated to market...unless you are like sa mobile wash in san antonio who does it almost exclusively and makes a ton of money from it. The reason they are complicated is due to two conflicting items - the word "wash" & the high price....to most people those two things don't mix. People are used to the $4.95 tunnel wash and the $17.95 super de-duper inside and outside wash. When they see prices in the $25-$45 range for a regular size vehicle...they flee. With this type of service, you have to really, really market it because it will not sell on it's own. You have to sell the benefits and clearly have a distinction between you and the local car wash as far as what you do with your wash service, how much you charge (never go too low for washes - especially if you are mobile), and ultimately the final results must look very superior over any wash most people are used to getting.



To sum it up, in order to sell a higher priced full service car wash, you have market it very well.
 
Funny, you live on the other side of the country, but seem to be experiencing the same thing. I live in one of the wealthiest counties in the country. Seems like everybody drives a luxury car or SUV. Lot of exotics too. Seems as if many do not care about their cars being clean. Those that do, take their cars to the a commercial car wash and get scratches and half clean paint. I try to offer a range of services, starting with a hand wash all the way to a full restoration type detail. Many just want their car 'clean', and are not interested in perfection, nor are they willing to pay for it. The housing in my area is also really expensive. I sometimes think, despite the high per capita incomes, that many people do not have a lot of disposable income. With a high mortgage, two and three new car payments, and IPODS and X-BOXES for the kids, there is not money left over for details. I can drive an hour to Maryland, where people have much less money but take very good care of their cars. It is frustrating for me also.
 
yea most people just want a quickie wash, perhaps paying $10 for a touchless.



the funny thing is you'll often wait 1/2 hour line-up before you get in!



there's a "touchless" wash in my area where they hand dry the car on the way out!! its not 100% clean, and then they have 4 guys wiping down the car ... ugh



also they always have the owners car (bmw 7 series) parked outside. I took a close look and there was water floating in the lights ... talk about high water pressure!!
 
RAG said:
….Would you hire a group of misfits to build your house because they said they could save you $20,000? No, cause who can guess how many corners they'll be cutting....
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Funny, these days it seems people pay more for houses built by misfits and slackers. I see tons of new million dollar houses that are big and supposedly flashy but are falling apart because they’re built like crap. The concepts of physical quality and craftsmanship completely elude many people.





twitch said:
I've often noticed that people who seem to "have money" are far more stingy than others…
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I get the impression that many people who seem to have money don’t really. I see lots of people who push what money they do have to the absolute limit. They have no margin the inevitable realities.





PC.
 
ajbarnes said:
Full service "autopian style" washes are very complicated to market...unless you are like sa mobile wash in san antonio who does it almost exclusively and makes a ton of money from it. The reason they are complicated is due to two conflicting items - the word "wash" & the high price....to most people those two things don't mix. People are used to the $4.95 tunnel wash and the $17.95 super de-duper inside and outside wash. When they see prices in the $25-$45 range for a regular size vehicle...they flee. With this type of service, you have to really, really market it because it will not sell on it's own. You have to sell the benefits and clearly have a distinction between you and the local car wash as far as what you do with your wash service, how much you charge (never go too low for washes - especially if you are mobile), and ultimately the final results must look very superior over any wash most people are used to getting.



To sum it up, in order to sell a higher priced full service car wash, you have market it very well.
Click to expand...



What really complicates it, and makes it time-consuming here is the fact that you are required by law to reclaim your own wash water. I invested in a system and use it to my advantage, but it's a real pain and I'll go to great lenghts to not have to use it.
 
RAG said:
[quote name='mirrorfinishman']Just because someone lives in an expensive area does not mean they have money.



Like me. But seriously, this place is loaded with porches, BMWs, Mercedes', Lexus', etc. Loaded.
Click to expand...



It is the people who truely have money such as the doctors, dentists, lawyers and owners of small businesses that you have to aim your marketing at.



Just because someone drives a Porsche, BMW, Mercedes or Lexus still does not mean they have money. The most successful marketing strategy will be aimed at people, not cars.
 
It is true that not everybody that drives a luxury car is a good prospective client. Most of the people that keep their cars very clean drive average cars. This goes along with the example that people in the lower per capita areas seem to take much better care of their cars than the wealthy people in my area. I guess the hardest part is correctly positioning your product within the correct target market.
 
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