How did you get your first customer?

P

PX2

New member
Okay fellas, I have everything I need to get started except for my cards but they are on the way. It's time to get out there and find some customers!!

Can some of you tell me how you landed your first customer? How did you get that office park job? Did you leave a brochure?

I guess I'm just nervous about how I am going to go about putting my name out there and really doing that "first" car!
 
Start looking at neighbors, friends and family to get started. That's assuming you've not done this already. This gives you practice with interfacing with the customer. pricing and detailing. You can use them as references later, but this will start you on the way
 
Beemerboy said:
Start looking at neighbors, friends and family to get started. That's assuming you've not done this already. This gives you practice with interfacing with the customer. pricing and detailing. You can use them as references later, but this will start you on the way
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This is what I did. My Dad always let me help him on the family cars and painting projects or whatever since I was old enough to use a water hose or shop vac, so I had a considerable amount of experience by the time I was 14 or 15. Friends, family, neighbors etc started calling wanting their cars done, so I just rolled with it and made a pretty decent amount of money through high school. Fast forward 17 years, and Im still at it and still do work for many of my first clients.
 
Well, one car led to another.

But the truth of the matter its all about who you know, all of my most profitable jobs had that in common.

Its a shame theres very little of fair unbiased chance in the business world.
 
my first job was a guy who saw my crappy (1st draft) business card (with different company name)...i had to go to walmart early in the morning to get a sprayer for a water hose because i wanted to make sure i had that in case the ONR i was using did not do enough....trust me i was nervous but after that its all been downhill and i really enjoy picking up new customers
 
My first customer was myself. I always helped my dad with the family vehicles, but never truly appreciated a job well done until I was polishing my own. Along through the years of different vehicles, forums and what not, paint correction was learned. Now I have a few friends, family and coworkers that adore my work. Which is great for me, I'm only a part-timer.
 
I was doing paint correction on my old Mazda 626. A neighbor wandered over to snoop. Once he witnessed the hood go from caca to a mirror finish he asked about doing his Camry. From the Camry it went to his brother's truck then their Mom's Jeep. The three of them told people and so it went. A paid hack was born :D
 
Labor day special for a buddy. $100 for exterior and interior. Pretty basic though, just a polish and Coll 845 on the exterior after claying and some tar removal. Basic interior: vacuum, cleaned and conditioned leather, cleaned windows. That led to a mutual friend calling me...during that first detail no less, and I had him booked for the next weekend. Had 2-3 per month since then (friends and family still for now)
 
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