Finished my first official week.

[Tanner Krabill]

Hey everyone, so I just finished my first official week as a "business" 5/9 - 5/16. It was a lot of fun and enjoy doing this quite a bit.

I finished with 16 cars total. All of them were basic "maintenance" washes so nothing crazy.

My question is, how can I get more business doing details?

[Gearhead]

Hey I think your off to a great start! I have been in business (part-time) for 2 months now and still have not done 16 cars. If I may ask what are you doing for advertising? Keep up the good work.

[BlackRam]

In on thread

[Andr3wilson]

Focus on word of mouth. That really is a staple of our industry. Offering a package deal and/or referral incentives really helps!

[dcjredline]

CONGRATS!!! How well could you do if you had 16 washes EVERY week? Would that be OK as far as the bills and $ for you?

[Tanner Krabill]

I only charge $20 for a wash. Most people tip and i averaged $24 per car . Competition is southern california is rough. For advertising I paid $15 bucks for a 3 day FB add - dont think it was worth it though... I also have car magnets on my truck so people can see that im a business and i also have a sandwich sign with my info on it i set up. A facebook an google places page. Ive had a few calls from craigslist too.

Andrew - do you have any suggestions for a good referal program?

[MattPersman]

Do living social or groupon deal people eat it up.

[VP Mark]

Do living social or groupon deal people eat it up.

Yeah they will eat up your profits. There is NO money to be had in these deals. Many detailers have really ate their pride and profits because of these deals.

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[MshawnBauer]

Yeah they will eat up your profits. There is NO money to be had in these deals. Many detailers have really ate their pride and profits because of these deals.

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I agree, I did marketing for many years. The groupon/coupon ads don't promote faithfulness, they promote the cheap coupon clippers. They will leave your services for the next coupon/deal as soon as it's out. Word of mouth and return customer promotions is where it's at. Get email addresses, create a Facebook page and Blast your customers with facts and tips as well as seasonal appropriate detailing packages. Don't thrown out coupons..

[Tanner Krabill]

Doesn't groupon require you to have 50% off deals and then take 50% of your profits?

[statusdetailing]

Yeah they will eat up your profits. There is NO money to be had in these deals. Many detailers have really ate their pride and profits because of these deals.

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I'm here to tell you from experience a few year ago, that these are not a good idea for a small detailing business. A guy in my city actually put himself out of business with groupon. He didn't set a limit and sold hundreds at half price. Had to hire people to keep up. Couldn't afford payroll and still got behind. A lot of people ended up not ever getting their car done or getting their money back. He ruined his reputation and went out of business.

I set a pretty low limit so it was more of an annoyance for me. I made no money off it and these type of people never come back or refer their friends. They are cheap.

[refreshauto]

i would suggest you get some friends or friends of friends to let you correct a vehicle for them. i have done this for a few friends and all i do is get them to cover my product costs. get a few vehicles out there and get some referrals that way. word of mouth is a powerful thing. i just recently got another customer by them stopping by as i was detailing my friends brand new Lexus IS 250. they had a few questions, i told them to stop back by after i was done and once they saw the end results they are bringing me their brand new Lexus GS 350

http://i1214.photobucket.com/albums/cc500/refreshauto/lexusIS250_zpseaaee366.jpg (http://s1214.photobucket.com/user/refreshauto/media/lexusIS250_zpseaaee366.jpg.html)

[MilesTeg]

One suggestion. If you work in a car parts store, and a customer comes in and starts looking at waxes/etc. and you come over to that customer and say "I have a detailing business, I can help you find something!" then make sure when said customer asks "can you suggest a good black car wax", then don't point to a bottle of spray bottle quick wax in a black bottle (and then have the gall to hand out a business card).

It tends to shake the confidence of a potential customer. ;)

[Pureshine]

I'm here to tell you from experience a few year ago, that these are not a good idea for a small detailing business. A guy in my city actually put himself out of business with groupon. He didn't set a limit and sold hundreds at half price. Had to hire people to keep up. Couldn't afford payroll and still got behind. A lot of people ended up not ever getting their car done or getting their money back. He ruined his reputation and went out of business.

I set a pretty low limit so it was more of an annoyance for me. I made no money off it and these type of people never come back or refer their friends. They are cheap.

:iagree: Never sell your self short to make a quick $$$ it will bite you in the end. Make sure you always get what you worth. Me and Jeremy are speaking from experience and don't want anyone else getting burned.