Getting new customers

[Pureshine]

Time! Do great work and customers will come. All I've ever done is website,Facebook and word of mouth. I wouldn't do flyers a lot of cities don't allow them on car and most people hate them on their cars.

[andy2485]

Network, network, network! give deals to first time customers, and or ones who refer new people to you. it's all about word of mouth. Use the internet, you dont necessarily need a website, a facebook one will do just fine. use social media, facebook as stated, instagram, twitter, linkedin.

[Ebg18t]

Manateemark - where are you? Sometimes certain types of advertising works better in certain areas.

[manateemark]

Within like 25 miles of Wilmington NC. There is one neighborhood in particular that has literally everything from BMW's to 918 to csx to F40 to Bugatti Veyron SS. That is literally only one neighborhood though. I want to become a big enough detailer that I'll get business from them. There's not even a big detailer in this area though. I don't know who is detailing these million dollar super cars.

[chet31]

I have made a good living in sales for 30 years. OP, you are correct to worry about acquiring new customers.

I know nothing about marketing a detailing business. However, if I had to start one tomorrow, I think I would hit parking lots and ramps.

Develop a flyer, the main message is "give me your keys on your way in to work, when you return to your car after work, your car will be transformed." Put the flyer on 500 cars per day. The harder you work, the luckier you'll get.

Lots/ramps are attractive because you can hit a lot of cars in a short period of time, you can choose lots/ramps of successful companies, and you can choose vehicles (put the flyer on the dirty BMW, skip the rusted out Astro van.

Anyway, just a thought, but my instincts usually aren't too bad.

[thebamboo23]

- http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/...ce-needed.html

- http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/...customers.html

- http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/...-business.html

[Ebg18t]

I have made a good living in sales for 30 years. OP, you are correct to worry about acquiring new customers.

I know nothing about marketing a detailing business. However, if I had to start one tomorrow, I think I would hit parking lots and ramps.

Develop a flyer, the main message is "give me your keys on your way in to work, when you return to your car after work, your car will be transformed." Put the flyer on 500 cars per day. The harder you work, the luckier you'll get.

Lots/ramps are attractive because you can hit a lot of cars in a short period of time, you can choose lots/ramps of successful companies, and you can choose vehicles (put the flyer on the dirty BMW, skip the rusted out Astro van.

Anyway, just a thought, but my instincts usually aren't too bad.

Within like 25 miles of Wilmington NC. There is one neighborhood in particular that has literally everything from BMW's to 918 to csx to F40 to Bugatti Veyron SS. That is literally only one neighborhood though. I want to become a big enough detailer that I'll get business from them. There's not even a big detailer in this area though. I don't know who is detailing these million dollar super cars.

Just have to be careful what lots you hit. Many are private property and depending on the owner you can end up facing trespassing charges. Our lot at work has a lot of average priced cars ($50-80k Cars). A local auto repair place decided to have an employee put advertising postcards under the windshield wipers in our lot. During the time the employee was putting cards on cars the office called and had him arrested for trespassing. He ended up being charged with felony trespassing and the company was charged with something related. This situation sparked an investigation/inspection of the auto repair place by several state agencies (proper licensing, remittance of sales tax, doc stamps, unlicensed financing on car deals, etc..) and needless to say the auto repair shop is no longer in business.

[rbdetail]

OP mentioned he is still in high school. Could this be a concern to potential new customers?

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[LavJordan]

I am in college right now and just started doing detailing recently. What I did was if you can find a few buy sell trade groups on facebook, post up your flyers, and then bump the post once every 2 hours to keep it on top, you will get a lot of attention. I posted in about 6 buy sell trade groups with a flyer saying interior details starting at 100 and wash and wax starting at 85 and that brought me my first 5 appointments. 4 of which are scheduled and finished the first one today. Its free and easy marketing. I would check it out.