When is someone considered a Professional Detailer?

I think Mike describes it well in this thread

http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/how-make-money-detailing-cars/105543-pro-detailer-wanted-southeastern-michigan-detroit-area.html

"Someone that has taken my 3-day Competition Ready class is preferred but any professional, qualified detailer with a stellar reputation can apply."

I feel a "Professional Detailer" is someone with a lot of experience (qualified), uses quality auto detailing specific tools and products (qualified) and earns a reputation of performing high quality work should be considered a professional detailer.

Just because someone has a certification or works in a detailing business doesn't mean they will deliver "professional" results. I do auto detailing on the weekends for friends, family members and referrals and take pride in my work. I believe the results I achieve are much higher than a lot of the detailing businesses in my area but I wouldn't consider myself a professional.

Anyone on this forum that has a passion for what they do, continues to learn, cares about the end result and finishes a detail to the best of their ability is a professional in my eyes. Some people may be better at detailing than me but that's why I am on this site - to learn and share with others so we can all produce "professional" results.
 
Mike Moore said:
Certifications and degrees mean you have a basic knowledge.
If I had to have surgery, I would like to know the "doctor" has a degree.
I've seen hacked up work by plastic surgeons, cardiologists and neurosurgeons.
Have you ever seen the TV show "botched". This surgery is done by licensed doctors.
On another note: IMHO When a surgeon has a scalpel in his hand he thinks he's a god.
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I have, and I get that, which is why I say they are all worthless IMO. Regardless of how many degrees or knowledge one has it still doesn't mean they won't do shoddy work. When I look for someone to do a job for me I don't look for accreditation's or certifications, I base it on referrals and reviews. Word of mouth has far more value IMO.

The hacked up work I saw was from an award winning member of the IDA.
 
Well that's sad to know
Award winning IDA hack..
I was tempted to do The IDA, but reading Mike Lamberts insights I decided against it

And as for certifications being worthless, I can see it.
Those are the guys that prob just did it to get the piece of paper..

With that being said, I got 2 as I love to learn and improve
 
I think it comes down to a professional is someone who does it for a living so he or she will continue to invest in themselves time and money to become better at their craft. More importantly, they deliver what they advertise and treat their craft with the respect ir deserves. More importantly a professional may make a living from detailing but their passion and their technical skills should enable them to at least earn them a mention if they were to enter a concours event. Which isn't necessarily to say professional detailers spend their time entering shows and the like but rather that they are capable of a true show car finish. The difference between a professional detailer and any of us is at the end of the day, they have turned their passion into their living. Whether or not they do a wash and wax or a multi step paint correction and pro grade coating, their passion to better their own craft as well as better the profession as a whole is what separates them from some corner car wash. You see it here all the time, the pro detailers sharing their experiences and their tips so everyone who is passionate about this can better themselves.
It's their living yes but look at how much free information Mike Philips has imparted on the community as a whole. Look at Renny Doyle who was proud of the fact that more and more detailers are coming together whether it's autogeek or autopia to share their insight and experiences. There's dozens of pro detailers on autogeek who share with us their works, their experiences with products and more importantly their failures with products. Look at Richy and his attempts to make essence work for him and the combination he found that finally worked for him. Look at some of the product reps who try the hardest they can so we can make their products do what it was intended to do. There are a lot of people who make money from detailing but the professional are the ones sharing their insight with the whole industry so that automotive detailing as a whole can improve and continue moving forward.
 
Man I do not know you but that is the most Called out in accurate post I have ever read. I do believe a professional detailer should Have and Use quality products and equipment. Nothing makes me more angry when I see a professional detailer call themself that and turn around every other weekHiring different people with no experience to carry out the task that they are claiming they are doing as a professional but really all they have done is go and get certificates calling themself professional when in reality they are doing itJust to get customers in there and let someone that shouldn't be touching Any vehicle especially a High end vehicle. Now is it OK to hire Someone with no experience and train them absolutely. Just don't turn them loose on a vehicle making them seem like they are a professional. I think I kind of got off the subject but I just want to let you know I think that is a great definition
 
It comes down to knowledge, I never considered myself a professional detailer, even when I did it for money. I always thought of myself as a decently knowledgeable detailer. I took the 2 free day classes @ Meguiar's in So Cal. Mike Stoops is a professional detailer, forget that he's high up at Meguiars. Just listening to him talk it was crazy how much he knew about everything detailing. I'm about to start doing it full time, and I know it'll still be ages until I'd call myself a professional detailer.

I disagree on the IDA thing not meaning much, it's at least an indication that a person was able to complete courses and obtain a certificate. That doesn't instantly equal a professional detailer I would absolutely trust. But, if it comes down to someone with no recommendations and no IDA or an IDA guy with no recommendations. I'd take the certified one. Word of mouth for detailing can be kind of iffy too, because I know one of the most recommended guys in my area does pretty crummy work, but he's booked forever now. He's cheap and quick, and a lot of people are perfectly happy if their car just looks clean. A recommendation from an AGO member's worlds different than a detailer recommendation from my next door neighbor (uses the crummy guy)
 
This was argued to death many years ago on Autopia.

IMO it depends on the context of using the term professional. There's not one meaning that covers every situation.

If you do something for your source of income, you are considered a professional. You detail cars for a living so you're a professional detailer, whether you're good or not is irrelevant.

If you are really good at something you do, you're considered a "pro" at it, or professional. If you are really good at detailing cars, you can be considered a "pro" at it, it's irrelevant if that's what you do for a living or just a hobby.

As mentioned before, I've seen professional detailers who do terrible work, and I've seen amateur detailers do pro work. It all depends on how you're using the term professional or pro.
 
A professional is someone who makes their living detailing. Plenty of people won’t like that simple of an answer, but that is the correct one.

Colloquially, maybe people consider professional to have a different meaning. That’s fine. But if someone is making their living detailing, everything else is secondary and basically irrelevant.

I do believe there’s a difference between an amateur and an expert, and I think THAT is the question people are really asking when I see a thread like this.

Two separate businesses can exist, with one putting out production work that the other business would call garbage because they only deal in $4000 coating jobs and spend 40 hours on one vehicle. They’re both professionals.

Who you determine to be professional will likely come down to your own cognitive biases, but I think it’s more important to learn to recognize the difference between an amateur and an expert.


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You can drill it down to this

Professionals get paid for what they do-- amateurs do not, its all about the benjamins.

That being said, most folks equate the term with a level or standard of expertise, and in some fields/trades there are certifications that MUST be met, but not in all areas / fields
 
If you can wash a car, you can call yourself a professional detailer. This is how everyone in SoCal markets themselves.
 
mckobe said:
If you can wash a car, you can call yourself a professional detailer. This is how everyone in SoCal markets themselves.
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I second this! All the cars I deal with have smeared windows and every other mobile detailer is using a brush and bath towels on cars.


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As a guy who knew next nothing about actual detailing, and read, asked, and learned from this forum to become proficient enough to make my personal vehicles to my liking, I will say this much:


Any man or woman that can do this job on several (hundreds?) of different types of paint, trim, colors, interiors, has to be not only experienced to be good, but adaptive as well.

A "Pro" is someone who has seen it all. From great success, to a few epic fails. Just the nature of learning ANY profession.

In my own field of expertise, it has taken me over 37 years and counting to be the "expert" I think I am. And I am STILL learning.

Hobby detailing is a bit of work, but fun.

Pro detailing is among the hardest work, and not just for the body but the mind as well.
 
To me a professional detailer is someone who shows passion, pride and always ends the day with exemplary results. This person can consistently achieve these results on a regular basis and will never return a vehicle to a customer until it is perfect in his or her eyes. We have the good fortune of admiring the results of true professionals on this forum who are kind enough to share their work with us. I consider myself fair to middlin' when it comes to detailing and I am in awe of people like Justin, Mr. Tommy, Ric, Monica, Scott, Dan, Aaryn, Mike Phillips and many others. I don't know if I will ever get to the level of these folks, but that is the eventual goal.
 
I think you guys are mixing up the words professional and expert. You're a professional when you earn a living (or in some cases simply making money) doing something, be it playing golf or detailing. You can be an expert at something without being a professional. I mean it's right in the name. PROFESSIONal.

And I take exception to the SoCal comment. First, Palm Springs is not SoCal any more than Santa Barbara is. In directional name only. There's tons of good detailers here in SoCal. Tons. Likely the best because unlike most we get to practice our craft 360 days a year. If those guys are really that bad at detailing, I would think that the laws of supply and demand would eventually take over and force them out of the business.
 
sudsmobile said:
There's tons of good detailers here in SoCal. Tons. Likely the best because unlike most we get to practice our craft 360 days a year. If those guys are really that bad at detailing, I would think that the laws of supply and demand would eventually take over and force them out of the business.
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Depends on what you consider "good". Everyone will have a different view of what is "good"
I wouldn't call a car washer a detailer, but tons of people in SoCal drive around washing cars with a simple vac calling it a detail. The $25 guys, who don't even know what paint correction is, so it's safe to wash, wax and vac. Majority of customers just want a cleaner car vs what it currently is. They will always stay in business because of this hence the $25 guys
 
"Professional" detailer is a nebulously applied descriptor. The closest I can come up with to determine pro vs. amateur includes some qualifiers. 1.) complete some type of accepted standard of training 2.) completing IDA certification, the only recognized standard to my knowledge 3.) completing a minimum of time for experience. Should that be 3 years? 5 years? 4.) getting paid to do it full time.

Now, even after completing those "qualifiers", who gets to say you are now a professional. An analogy to pro athletes comes to mind. Pro athletes have risen to a level where they have been scrutinized by other professionals, managers, coaches, scouting staff, team execs etc, to determine whether they are ready for the big leagues. No one does that for detailers.

It remains a nebulous label. I am happy with some of my clients referring to me as a very good and thorough detailer.

Before some of you start shouting "hypocrite" because my business name is Anderson Pro Auto Detail, remember, a lot of this business is marketing!
 
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