I figured I'd throw out my experience and what I've learned over the last few years from owning a separate business and working on a detailing related business at the same time.

First off, Social Media has helped land some jobs, but it easily becomes a place to spend way too much time watching what everyone else is doing and comparing myself to others who are in totally different life situations. I sold my main business a few months ago and I've slowly become accustomed to doing mobile work. Side Note: Not having a place for people to drop off cars or not being able to control the elements has been difficult.

Now when I think of myself, the words social and outgoing are not at the top of my list. Somehow I've slowly come out of my comfort zone a little at a time. During this rainy weather, I've been grateful enough to have several jobs thrown my way from other business owners. Some of them I haven't talked to or seen in months/years. Networking with other business owners unlocks a lot of potential for anyone who is starting out or wants to turn up the wick on their volume.

I don't have anywhere near a significant following on my IG of Facebook, but some of the people I networked with in the past do have a decent audience. Being successful in business, and life in general comes down to who you know and how you use that information/connection.

For example one of my contacts is a mechanic. I've used a part of his small shop to do basic details when the weather is bad or the customer doesn't have a solid place. During my last detail, one of his customers needed a headlight restoration. So of course I went ahead and knocked it out after my scheduled job. It was another $60 I wasn't expecting to make. On another occasion, I've run into some of his customers I haven't seen since I sold my other business and started mobile. Boom, another "full interior" detail because I was in the right place at the right time. I had one drive 2.5 hours to get their brand new Corolla paint corrected/protected because they trusted the word of their friend. Keep in mind that many of the seeds you plant today may not sprout for months or years down the road.


So this is just one example of a connection. Imagine if you have a dozen of these solid connections. Your connections learn the quality of the work you do so they can help weed out people you may not want to service.
If you are working by yourself and need to increase your volume, I suggest spending some time in the community and talking to people. I've heard people say this before but it took a while for it to connect with me.
Yes I've gotten work through messaging people online, but my bigger paying jobs come through my word of mouth network. Build up a reputation and network that people can trust, and they will accept your pricing and value your time.

So forget about the saturation in your area, the bad weather, the cheaper operators. It doesn't take skill to make excuses. I am constantly working on my procrastination and excuse making. I'm aware of it and that's a good start...haha... Seriously just get out of your comfort zone and network. Create your spiderweb of opportunities. Remember to get out and network when it's slow, BUT also when it's busy. Soon the big dips and waves will even out and your workflow will continue to rise.

Stay balanced, love life, treat everyone with respect.

-Rob