Certified Professional Detailer?

[VWR32]

How does one achieve this coveted status? I have read of many "professional classes", but none that offer such a name. Id it a program offered at a trade schools? What are your thoughts?

[RTexasF]

First I've ever heard of it.

[Mike Phillips]

Certifications for detailing are a popular topic the problem is getting some kind of agreement in the industry is tough to do.

Besides that, whose to say a person can attend a class, get certified by whoever is holding the class, but then go back and do shoddy work?

Factory paint is thin, that's a issue.

A mechanic can be certified and bold on a starter motor but he doesn't have to contend with thin paint, just a couple of bolts and a wrench. Polishing paint takes more "care" and "passion" than can be guaranteed by a certification.

The certificate we provide is modeled after the certificate I used while at Meguiar's and that's a "Certificate of Participation", not accomplishment because there's no way to control the kind of quality work a person turns out after attending a class.


Just some thoughts on the topic...


:)

[Mike Phillips]

If I were looking for a detailer to work on my car, I would trust the write-ups of the detailers work and the feedback provided about them on a forum like this as it's kind of like Angie's List in that it's self-policing.


Forums are great because everything is out in the public...


:)

[Dr Oldz]

I find word of mouth is better than any kind of certificate. It may take doing some jobs in the begining fairly cheap to gain someone's trust. But after a few people have faith in you to take care of their vehicle, they will tell others!

Personally, I would rather have someone tell me "he/she did a great job and I would go there again" then to go to someone who just has a bunch of papers on the wall!

[rwright]

I have inquired about a certain program out there and to this date I have not received a response. If this is such a great thing then why do those who push it not appear on the list? I'm not attempting to start trouble or anything, I honestly just want a response. I am interested but need a justification.


Sent using Tapatalk

[nickelanddime]

To me its a little like being a tattoo artist there isn't any certification, its exacting work and its not always the same, but if you are good you have a portfolio to show customers its more an art than something that can be taught

[silverfox]

There are so many types of paint and conditions to influence the proper solution that it would be near impossible to get a certification that meant anything. Conditions in a controlled class situation may not necessarily be duplicated. Nothing replaces passion and experience.

I'd love to take a class but I'd prefer even more...hanging out with prominent detailers picking their brains and experiencing what they face on any given day. That would be worth more to me than a piece of paper.

[dtuna42]

To me its a little like being a tattoo artist there isn't any certification, its exacting work and its not always the same, but if you are good you have a portfolio to show customers its more an art than something that can be taught

I believe most states require licensing for tattooist's. Doesn't mean they're good, I think it has more to do with the laws requiring sanitizing and/or disposal of different equipment, insurance, etc...

[opie_7afe]

imo id rather there be no certifications for detailing. seems like every industry now wants you to have a piece of paper saying your certified. that piece of paper is worthless, as if your a great detailer it shows in the quality of your work and how you explain stuff to your clients.people should grade you on the quality of work you do not a silly piece of paper...real world experience is worth way more then that piece of paper. hope i helped with my opinion

[Cosmin]

come in tx for a week , deal with day by day details and you will be Certified :))

[Flannigan]

This always confuses me of why people think that there needs to be a certification/school for detailing. In this day and age with the massive amounts of information on the internet why would anyone pay to have someone teach them how to detail? A little trial and error and LOTS of practice is all that is needed. IMHO these certification courses and schools popping up all over the place are one step up from scams. Spend your money on supplies and tools, and go teach yourself. You'll feel better about it in the end if you do it on your own. Just my .02

[BobbyG]

I find word of mouth is better than any kind of certificate. It may take doing some jobs in the begining fairly cheap to gain someone's trust. But after a few people have faith in you to take care of their vehicle, they will tell others!

:iagree:

The quality of your work is your certificate and solidifies your reputation.

For the most part your customers are within a 10 mile radius and the your advertising will be the job itself, ie the quality of your work, and by word of mouth.. Many of these customers will become regulars and their satisfaction goes a long way..

[Mike Phillips]

This always confuses me of why people think that there needs to be a certification/school for detailing.



At Meguiar's, when I first brought up the Saturday Detailing 101 and Saturday Detailing 102 classes coordinated via discussion forums we did NOT offer a certificate.

The people attending the classes continually asked for a certificates so after a couple of years of not offering one for either class Mike Pennington surprised me one day with a "Certificate of Participation" for the reasons I outlined in my previous post.

When I stepped down from my position at Meguiar's and joined the Autogeek team I figured people are pretty much the same, that is you and I have more things in common than we do have differences, in other words if the "people" that attended all the classes I taught from 2002 to 2009 at Meguiar's wanted a certificate then that's a pretty good indicator that the "people" attending my classes here at Autogeek will likely also want a certificate and that's one of the reasons we award a certificate to anyone that attends the class and asks for one.

To date, about 99.9% of everyone that has attended my classes at both companies asks for the signed certificate after the class.

So from my point of view, at least in my experience, the certificate is strongly driven by the people that are interested enough in learning about detailing cars that they will do what it takes to attend a detailing class and that's a lot of people over the years.






In this day and age with the massive amounts of information on the Internet why would anyone pay to have someone teach them how to detail?



That makes sense as you type it out... but in the real world I'm here to tell you from my experience, that nothing beats hands-on training. When I say hands-on... I mean... hands-on...



http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/722/HandsOn002.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/722/HandsOn003.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/722/HandsOn004.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/722/HandsOn005.jpg


I cannot even begin to count how many times in my life someone has said these words...

Reading and watching videos is good, but nothing beats seeing how it's done in person

Or

After attending the class today, I finally learned what I was doing wrong


Again, from my own personal experience, and I have a lot of it when it comes to hands-on training, the people that attend my classes leave knowing first-hand, how to use a buffer, or a sander, or even just their hands to accomplish a task.

Speaking of hands, what I wrote above goes double for working by hand. I can't count how many people I've taught the correct way to use their hands to remove defects out of hard clear coats. This is HUGE. Most people apply a paint cleaner, polish or compound like they would a finishing wax, that is soft and gentle. When they watch me "move my hand" to remove defects out of a modern clear coat they always say the same thing...

I've been doing it all wrong


There's no way on earth I can count how many times I've heard that after I use my hand to remove a scratch or bird dropping etching in front of 60 eyeballs.

Technique is everything...

I think most of you agree that is a correct and accurate statement?
(Can I get a witness?)


Here's something else I type and say often,

It takes less skill to use a machine than it does to work by hand as it relates to removing below surface defects like swirls, scratches and etchings out of modern clear coat paints. I'll stick by that statement too...





A little trial and error and LOTS of practice is all that is needed.



Recommending to others to read, watch videos, and do some trial and error and lots of practice is a great recommendation and something I've been recommending online since 1994 before discussion forums were invented.

That said, I also recommend to people to attend any type of detailing class you find because if the Instructor is any good at all then chances are good, if you pay attention, you'll pick up some tips and techniques that you didn't know about and that will help you the rest of your life.





IMHO these certification courses and schools popping up all over the place are one step up from scams. Spend your money on supplies and tools, and go teach yourself. You'll feel better about it in the end if you do it on your own. Just my .02




I have some very good friends that teach detailing classes and they are professionals in ever sense of the word and anyone that attends their classes comes out of them know a lot more then before they attended and they leave with both knowledge and skills that will help them to be more successful than had they not attended the classes.

I have a lot of friends that are GREAT detailers, but for whatever reasons, they cannot relate or teach what they know in their head or how to do with their hands live in front of a large group of people, so there's a market for both types of people.

Each person can read through this thread and decide for themselves if taking a detailing class is right for them. One thing I always do is recommend to people to always be open to new ideas, product and techniques and one of the best places to learn about techniques is to attend a class taught by someone with a good reputation in this industry as a good Instructor.


I try to lead by example and that's why I'm always open to new ideas, products and techniques no matter who I learn about them from, that means I'm open to learning from a Newbie just as much as I'm open to learning from a seasoned professional.


Just my 2 cents...


:xyxthumbs:

[Mike Phillips]

come in tx for a week , deal with day by day details and you will be Certified :))

I agree... spending a day with Cosmin would be an opportunity of a lifetime...

Spending a week with him would ensure you're able to tackle anything that comes you're way...


:xyxthumbs: