wash,clay and seal detailers??? NO WONDER PEOPLE FLIPP WHEN YOU TELL THE $350 $450

Danube said:
Taking a short cut in this instance seems funny to me.

No paint correction at all ?!

:wowwow::wowwow:
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Why is it a "short cut" if that is all the customer wants LOL. Cause its not what your EGO thinks is right?
 
DanaDetailingPros said:
Lately I have been watching allot of smaller You tubers talk/advertise there wash & clay sealant package! I can't wrap my head around it? And these are NOT NEW CARS! Even on a new car I at least use a light polish like Essence. Then I will apply a ceramic spray of some sort. Lately been really liking the Adam's advanced spray. Easy on and off! But has any of you guys seen theses random detailers lately. They have 3-400 videos and maybe once using a buffer:wowwow:
My Clay and Seal Package - Tony's Professional Touch - YouTube
Exterior Detail with a Clay and Seal Package - Top Class Detail - YouTube
I can understand it if the car is regular maintained after a full enhancement or correction. But this is a common $250 package on cars that have never been previously detailed on most occasions.
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If the customer doesnt require or want their car polished why does it matter to you? The paint is cleaned and protected. Not every one wants their car polished (wearing the clear coat down)
 
dcjredline said:
If the customer doesnt require or want their car polished why does it matter to you? The paint is cleaned and protected. Not every one wants their car polished (wearing the clear coat down)
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But some detailers don’t want to offer low budget services and in their world this is subpar work.

Clay barring, of all things, a gloss black GM truck and not following it with an AIO is leaving that Escalade marred. Guys who have the eye for nice paint will ask ‘who detailed this thing??’. Your reputation takes a hit.

It’s the guys with an eye for details, like nice paint, that I want as my customers.

There are instances in fact where I will not give the customer what they want because once you start offering ‘less than great’ you open your work up to criticism.


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If you can be so true to yourself that you turn down paint correction before a quality LSP, more power to YOU On the other hand, the other detailer offers a package that's he's ok with, it works for him.

If I were doing it as a business, I'd turn down the quick buck, even though I've done wash & waxes before.

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Eric7810 said:
But some detailers don’t want to offer low budget services and in their world this is subpar work.

Clay barring, of all things, a gloss black GM truck and not following it with an AIO is leaving that Escalade marred. Guys who have the eye for nice paint will ask ‘who detailed this thing??’. Your reputation takes a hit.

It’s the guys with an eye for details, like nice paint, that I want as my customers.

There are instances in fact where I will not give the customer what they want because once you start offering ‘less than great’ you open your work up to criticism.

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Klasse Act said:
If you can be so true to yourself that you turn down paint correction before a quality LSP, more power to YOU On the other hand, the other detailer offers a package that's he's ok with, it works for him.

If I were doing it as a business, I'd turn down the quick buck, even though I've done wash & waxes before.

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Technically, I don't detail for a living, but I can draw comparison to my own industry.

There was a time when I said yes to everyone, even the "walk ups" who see me mowing, usually from the house across the street, and ask me if I can do theirs next. These people always want the job done immediately, want it for the less than I have asked for, then expect me to do a bunch of "while you're here's" for the same price. This situation never, ever, leads to both parties getting what they want. I end up taking on a job I didn't have time in my schedule to do, for less money and often the job takes waaay too long because of neglect that I don't make a cent from it. The customer then either gets the deal of a century or ends up disgruntled because I can't/didn't make silk purse out of a sows ear.

In some cases, the above would lead to a regular, scheduled job. And again, it leads to trouble. On one, the owners of this property lived out of town, it then became a situation where I was being called on Sunday evenings over trivial issues that really weren't my responsibility.

On another, the lady bartered me down from what was already a low price, would call me to schedule a cut once a month with a day's notice. What should have been a 15-minute job would end up being a 45-minute job due to length she would let the grass grow, meaning I was basically paying her to mow her lawns.

After mentioning my maintenance business to one of my nursery customers, somehow my number was exchanged with the idea I could "potentially" do some work for her in the future, but no promises were made. Last year, while the bloody town was flooded, she started sending me messages and phone calls demanding that I come around and clean her pond pump filter because she "doesn't like getting her hands wet and dirty", all while large portions of the town were under water, and I was trying to manage the nursery while my three managers were dealing with flooded homes. She then got p.ssed off with me because I wouldn't drop everything for her or make an afterhours visit to fit it in. I then got lip because no one in town would help her. All over a small piece of foam in her stupid duck pond.

My policy for a long time now has been NO WALK UPS, they are never worth the bother, nor can I deliver the result I want my name next to. I simply just tell them that I'm fully booked, not taking on new customers or that I simply don't have the time.
 
I'm not in it for the money. I detail for two reasons: 1) It relaxes me, kind of like a "Zen" thing, and 2) I'm retired (bored) and looking for something I enjoy to occupy my time. For family/CLOSE friends, price is never mentioned, although most slip me $100 for a detailed wash, paint correction (as involved as need be to get the best look possible), a good spray sealant or paste/liquid wax and of course windows in & out. For the average person, I'll quote: "Starting at $150 - $175 - depending on the condition of the car & size." I even show them my Camaro or the wife's Escape as an example of how their car will look when I'm finished. I DON'T get many (if any) cars, even at that price.

I'm not in a rich area, nor is it a poor area. I've just found, like other have said, MOST people JUST want clean and shiny - for UNDER $50, and they could care less how the car ACTUALLY looks. I mention in my videos on YouTube that without PREP WORK, you can wax a crappy-looking car without doing the prep, but all you're going to end up with is a crappy-looking SHINY car.

Personally, if someone asks me to "detail" their car, but tells me "No paint correction," I won't do it. Because ultimately, it will fall back on me and MY reputation if someone who KNOWS what they're looking at sees the end results and concludes that I did a crappy job (because the paint is still full of swirls and defects and tell the owner of the car that I am a hack and ripped him off). I find it almost comical that people will listen to a non-detailer's opinion VS a detailer's opinion when it comes to the condition or appearance of their car's finish.
 
Don M said:
Personally, if someone asks me to "detail" their car, but tells me "No paint correction," I won't do it. Because ultimately, it will fall back on me and MY reputation if someone who KNOWS what they're looking at sees the end results and concludes that I did a crappy job (because the paint is still full of swirls and defects and tell the owner of the car that I am a hack and ripped him off). I find it almost comical that people will listen to a non-detailer's opinion VS a detailer's opinion when it comes to the condition or appearance of their car's finish.
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This.

I can’t remember the last time I clayed a vehicle and didn’t polish it afterwards.

The last time I had a customer tell me he wanted a vehicle clayed but didn’t mention wanting it polished [that Lincoln limousine] I went ahead and made the decision to polish it anyways and charged accordingly.

As a detailer I take it upon myself to make certain decisions that override a customers desires if what they had in mind is just flat out wrong. I’m not going to simply wash and “wax” your rough ass car that hasn’t been cleaned in almost a year. I have OCD when it comes to that type of sh1tlol.
 
Eric7810 said:
But some detailers don’t want to offer low budget services and in their world this is subpar work.

Clay barring, of all things, a gloss black GM truck and not following it with an AIO is leaving that Escalade marred. Guys who have the eye for nice paint will ask ‘who detailed this thing??’. Your reputation takes a hit.

It’s the guys with an eye for details, like nice paint, that I want as my customers.

There are instances in fact where I will not give the customer what they want because once you start offering ‘less than great’ you open your work up to criticism.


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"Clay barring"? What, do you still live in the 2000s? The perforated synthetic decon towel from DIY doesnt mar the paint lol. But if your ego makes you have to polish a car even though the customer didnt pay for it or turn down business more power to you.
 
I was going to add to this thread, but some dickkhead above me with a hardasss attitude had to turn me off to posting on this thread or even skimming through the rest of the threads.

Always THAT one guy in the room.

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DFB said:
Technically, I don't detail for a living, but I can draw comparison to my own industry.

There was a time when I said yes to everyone, even the "walk ups" who see me mowing, usually from the house across the street, and ask me if I can do theirs next. These people always want the job done immediately, want it for the less than I have asked for, then expect me to do a bunch of "while you're here's" for the same price. This situation never, ever, leads to both parties getting what they want. I end up taking on a job I didn't have time in my schedule to do, for less money and often the job takes waaay too long because of neglect that I don't make a cent from it. The customer then either gets the deal of a century or ends up disgruntled because I can't/didn't make silk purse out of a sows ear.

In some cases, the above would lead to a regular, scheduled job. And again, it leads to trouble. On one, the owners of this property lived out of town, it then became a situation where I was being called on Sunday evenings over trivial issues that really weren't my responsibility.

On another, the lady bartered me down from what was already a low price, would call me to schedule a cut once a month with a day's notice. What should have been a 15-minute job would end up being a 45-minute job due to length she would let the grass grow, meaning I was basically paying her to mow her lawns.

After mentioning my maintenance business to one of my nursery customers, somehow my number was exchanged with the idea I could "potentially" do some work for her in the future, but no promises were made. Last year, while the bloody town was flooded, she started sending me messages and phone calls demanding that I come around and clean her pond pump filter because she "doesn't like getting her hands wet and dirty", all while large portions of the town were under water, and I was trying to manage the nursery while my three managers were dealing with flooded homes. She then got p.ssed off with me because I wouldn't drop everything for her or make an afterhours visit to fit it in. I then got lip because no one in town would help her. All over a small piece of foam in her stupid duck pond.

My policy for a long time now has been NO WALK UPS, they are never worth the bother, nor can I deliver the result I want my name next to. I simply just tell them that I'm fully booked, not taking on new customers or that I simply don't have the time.
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This was a great read.
 
Eldorado2k said:
This was a great read.
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I could write a book about the nut jobs I have dealt with in both my own business and the business I work for. I was once told by someone that "dealing with the general public is murder"...............at the time I didn't fully comprehend that, but certainly know about it now.
 
DFB said:
I could write a book about the nut jobs I have dealt with in both my own business and the business I work for. I was once told by someone that "dealing with the general public is murder"...............at the time I didn't fully comprehend that, but certainly know about it now.
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And it's worse with a full moon.
 
Prange said:
And it's worse with a full moon.
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Absolutely!

Rainy Friday afternoons seem to bring out all the neurotic farmers, often wanting that one thing hidden right down the back in pouring rain.

During school holidays, we get a stream of schoolteachers coming through. You can tell they are a teacher because of the constant stream of seemingly obvious little questions. I swear, these people really struggle to comprehend even simple instructions or information, and yet they are "teaching" the next generation. :doh:

We also have a small neighboring town about 30 minutes away, think sleepy/isolated little country town. Again, Friday's seem to be their shopping day, coming to town for the wider variety of shops. You can tell they are from that town by their neurotic and dim-witted thinking. Often, they will tell you where they are from, and all I can do is smile because I sort of already picked that. :D

And then there are the days when every single nut job ever born seems to come through the door. These people are demanding, entitled, over thinkers, have no idea how much time they are soaking up vs the sale they gave us, don't listen to a word you say but continue to ask questions, never value the information you provide but complain about the price or ask for discount, turn up 2 minutes before close and want special attention, answer their phone while you are speaking with them, let their children run wild through the place creating a mess in their wake, vocally complain about the price of our ultra-high quality stock, belittle staff and discredit our chosen profession, be rude and snarky for simply asking if they require some assistance...........................

All this happens on a regular basis. What annoys me is the entitlement that so many people have as a customer. Just because you are the buyer, that doesn't mean it gives you the right to be rude, insulting, belittle my chosen profession, ask me to hold on while they answer their phone or in general, act like a jackass. I'm probably not suited for retail, to be frank, I'm only there for the plants, customers are a necessary evil.
 
I don't 100% buy it's what the customer wants argument. The detailer should be the expert in the situation and draw the line on what they will or won't do by what's in the best interest of the customer. If someone went to an oil change place and said they just wanted the oil changed and not the oil filter, then the shop should say no. If shop did only change the oil and justified it by saying that's what the customer wanted, then they are doing the customer a disservice.

With that being said, I'm not saying a detailer should always polish the paint before applying a coating. Some situations, the paint may not need to be polished so it should be decided on a case-by-case basis.
 
I don’t disagree in giving the customer what they want. But as the one providing the service results should be explained.

“No problem claying and waxing your car. It will brighten up the paint work. It will not hide, remove or improve the swirls and scratches to your paint. If that is acceptable for you and you like the price I can proceed.

Polishing the paint will not only make a significant visual difference but will allow the LSP that I apply last longer thus reduce the contamination build up in the future which is what I am removing in the clay process you want.

What I would recommend is allow me to polish a small section so ye can see the visual difference in the paint me polishing will do. If you like it we can add on for (price).

If a do the basic process polishing is not something you can choose after without it resulting in me having to redo several steps which will result in costing more.”

At that point you either (A) get to polish and paid for it. (B) if their not happy you can point out it was their choice. You just have to be blatantly clear in the reults they will get with THERE choice.


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opie said:
I was going to add to this thread, but some dickkhead above me with a hardasss attitude had to turn me off to posting on this thread or even skimming through the rest of the threads.

Always THAT one guy in the room.

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Don’t let that one guy affect you sharing your knowledge with the good folk that are apart of the forum. Not only does it help us but helps the thousands of “lurkers” who read your post.

We butt head’s occasionally but I can tell you when it comes to your detail knowledge and posts absolutely respect and like to here your opinions.

And I can tell you that it’s not just me….

Happened with [mention]chilly [/mention] and he took time away and we and the detailing community don’t need that.


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I have been wanting to detail my neighbors Black Dodge Charger. Mainly for the gratification of making a trashed car look amazing again! She notices me detailing cars in front of my house daily and finally asked me if I could do her car. When I told her I would do it for $350 and that was a hundred off my usual rate for her being a long time neighbor as well as I've been wanting to do it for the simple fact that it would be a fun make over! While she must of went with a clay and seal detailer because I was watching her look over her car and following it with a towel. I was blown away that she went the route of saving a $100-$200 to have it done while she was obviously not happy with the results. I walked my dog by that same night with my swirl finder light just to discover it looked no different in my eyes! She would of just been as well off taking it to a drive through!
 
opie said:
I was going to add to this thread, but some guy hiding behind his computer above me with a hardasss attitude had to turn me off to posting on this thread or even skimming through the rest of the threads.

Always THAT one guy in the room.

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Don't let any keyboard cowboys get under your skin, Opie.

These type of people do this as a free attack on another persons opinion/situation because it has no immediate repercussions. They can just "type and run."

In other words, just snarky jerk-offs who would never say these things to your face. Cowards in a nutshell.

I actually get a pretty good laugh out of these sniveling little dickwads.......... You should too. :cheers:
 
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