Weekened detailer; need some advice on prices

[Meticulous-Detail]

Decided to start a small detailing business as a side business/weekend detailer. Mostly for friends, family co-workers, neighbors..............etc. I am not really advertising but did create a free website and have business cards. Areas would include NYC and central NJ. I have done both mobile detailing and at my house. I have come up with some basic pkges and would like some price guidance. Please take it easy on me I am new to this. thanx

[FONT=&quot]The Basics[/FONT]​

Wash exterior with micro fiber mitts utilizing the grit guard bucket system. Dry vehicle with squeegee/leaf blower and apply spray wax with microfiber cloth. Clean wheels and tires and apply tire dressing.

[FONT=&quot]Fresh and Clean[/FONT]​

The basics plus interior: Vacuum entire interior and mats, apply interior dressings to dash and door panels, clean windows, mirrors, and gauges.

[FONT=&quot]Luxurious[/FONT]​

Fresh and Clean plus wax/sealant: Wax/sealant is applied for gloss and protection

[FONT=&quot]The Full Boat[/FONT]​

Includes all of the above plus: After the Basic, a clay bar is used to remove dirt and grit in the paint leaving the paint smooth and slick, then a coat of polish is applied to bring out color, gloss and shine, next a coat of wax/sealant is applied to seal and protect that shine.


I am using mostly Megs products from the detailers line. For the wash and wax I am currently using Megs cleaner wax applied with a small wax spreader 3500 rpms. For the full boat I am using Megs clay, M105 and then Collinite 476S with a PC 7424 XP. For dressings it's Megs ASD on the outside and Megs WBD on the inside. For soap I am using MJS Ultra gloss or DG 901. I am thinking of switching out the cleaner wax for DG 501 or 105. I know the Megs cleaner wax is old school and there is better stuff out there, but it does a pretty nice job for its price point.

Of course prices depend on the size, location and condition of the vehicle but what would be a good staring point for these pkges for cars, vans, SUV's, min-vans, and large SUV's? Keep in mind the clientele.

Thanx in advance

 

[Flash Gordon]

Charge by the hour and you won't have to worry about all these different prices

 

[shoeless89]

For paint correction I usually charge by the hour with a maximum. But I find it a turn off to a customer I want to charge them $20/hr to wash their car lol I feel like smaller packages like a quick wash or quick interior I charge a flat fee depending on the vehicle. I always put the disclaimer of "Neglected vehicles may incur extra charge" just in case lol I would say about 90% of my business is the wax/seal package and I do a quick interior also, including vacuum, clean all vinyl, leather, plastic. Dress interior and condition leather and clean windows. I usually just do all that after I put the wax/sealant on so I use my time while its hazing.

Most customers I deal with are daily drivers. They want a clean, shiny and protected exterior and a clean, non-smelly interior without breaking the bank. I've gotten pretty good at judging time I'm going to invest in a job so I can sell them at a flat price. I'll break down my general prices so I you can get a sense, BUT a lot to do with prices are WHO are your taget customers, what are they willing to pay? And WHERE do you live, what markets are willing to pay varies widely depending on where you live.

Interior $40-65 ~2-3hrs
Wash $40-80 ~2-4hrs
Interior, Wash, Wax $100-150 ~5hrs
Paint Correction $45/hr with a maximum
UPSELL!

Something I forgot to mention also is, what are you looking to make compared to your work? I'm fine with making ~$20/hr for just an interior or wash because its not back breaking labor for me. But I charge $45/hr for paint correction because that obviously is much more labor intensive. Now I don't do this full time at all, just on the side. But when I started doing this I tried to up sell stuff like UTTG or stuff like that. Since then I have dropped trying to up sell small things like that and I just do it as part of my process. It takes all of 5 min and it really wows the customer when I show them just the few little extra things I did. On my last 4 jobs I've gotten $25-50 tips! And even if I don't get tipped my customer is hopefully very satisfied by my work. Almost all of my work comes from word of mouth.

This is all stuff that I have found works for me. So a lot of its just abou finding what works for you! Most importantly have fun! I never want to look at it was 'work'. Good luck! :buffing: