The infamous question: "How much do you charge for a detail?"

**ScubaCougr** · 04-23-2015, 01:01 PM

You might try asking these people what they want done. If the answer leads to a "splash and dash" kind of detail, you can at least give them your price for their desired service.

**Natron** · 04-23-2015, 02:32 PM

I think offering a package at each price point and KNOWING what my competitors are doing is helping us. Nathan

**BitterGreg** · 04-23-2015, 02:42 PM

You need to have a target customer. Its all well and good to say your target customer is everyone, but in reality, thats not very practical.

There are many different ways to determine what your target customer is, but in this instance i would build it around what you are good at. There are many different items to detail, and many different levels of what you are starting with, and what you can end with.

In service heavy businesses you charge what you feel you are worth. Your market will let you know if that is where it should be.

You should not worry so much about what other business are doing that are not your direct competition. They have a different target customer than you.

Being an entrepreneur is not just starting your own business, but also doing it differently than anyone else out there. At the very least you need to be able to speak to how you are different.

Money should be the result of the work you put in, not the goal you set out for.

Last 2 pieces before I stop rambling. In the long run, the market sets your target customer, not you. You may start out wanting to do X, or have X type of clients, but you may come to the point where that is not the work you are getting. You will have to make the decision, which is more important, sticking to what you set out to do, but may compromise your ability to grow, or adapt to the changes, and change your plan. Neither is specifically good or bad, it is all about what is important to you.

Finally, all these business experts/books/resources will tell you that you need to build you plan, your brand, look 1-5-10 years out. While that is immensely important, I will leave you with one of my favorite quotes.
"Everyone has a plan, until they get punched in the mouth" - Mike Tyson

**House of Wax** · 04-23-2015, 02:54 PM

I have the same issue and I see a lot of good points already brought up.

Probably the biggest issue I have is a lot of people aren't really sure what they want, and then when you try to explain all of their options and the pros/cons of each they just give a blank stare and you aren't any closer to an answer.

The nicest thing about being in the position that I am (just doing it on the side) is that I don't care about losing sales to cheepskates since I don't rely on income from detailing

**2011 Kona Blue** · 04-23-2015, 04:19 PM

Originally Posted by House of Wax

I have the same issue and I see a lot of good points already brought up.

Probably the biggest issue I have is a lot of people aren't really sure what they want, and then when you try to explain all of their options and the pros/cons of each they just give a blank stare and you aren't any closer to an answer.

The nicest thing about being in the position that I am (just doing it on the side) is that I don't care about losing sales to cheepskates since I don't rely on income from detailing

I'm in the same boat. Detailing is just a side business for me so if someone can find a detailer that will charge less than my price, I'll gladly let the customer walk. I charge $ 20 hour for my detailing services and personally think that's on the low side.

**FinishingTouchA** · 04-24-2015, 12:29 AM

Sorry I would like to reply to everyone but I put in 15 hours today and Kona, your comment is the easiest to respond to.

Originally Posted by 2011 Kona Blue

I'm in the same boat. Detailing is just a side business for me so if someone can find a detailer that will charge less than my price, I'll gladly let the customer walk. I charge $ 20 hour for my detailing services and personally think that's on the low side.

$20 an hour? Yeah if I think back 3 years that's exactly where I was. Now I look back and feel like that's an absurd number. Of course my overhead is a lot higher now and it is my full time job plus I'm a lot quicker now than I was then. When I quote I aim for $50 an hour.

**Kengo123** · 04-24-2015, 08:49 AM

Great thread! I struggle with this too at times.

Over the past year, I've noticed that there are 3 main services that people want when they ask for the price of a "detail":

1.Complete interior shampoo
2. Wax job
3. Buffing, polishing, swirl removal, defect removal, paint correction, etc (make the paint better than just a wax)

So here's some questions I ask to find out their expectations:

1. inside or outside?
2. Does the inside need "shampooing"? If so, this tells me it needs a complete interior detail and not a quick vacuum. Also, I find that customers can't really lie to me about the condition of their interior that much with this question. If its dirty , it needs "shampooing"
3. Do you want the outside to just be a little shinier (wax) or as new as possible (swirl removal), or somewhere in between (aio)?

Sometimes I find it helps to ask what their budget is. But with these questions and also knowing what the year , make, model of the I car is, I can give most people atleast a ballpark price

**BitterGreg** · 04-24-2015, 08:57 AM

I just do a few jobs on the side. Does anyone else require certain items to be purchased if others are wanted? So if you want me to wash the car, I have to treat it for bugs, or if you want me to wax your car, I first have to clay it?

I would think most clients assume washing their car means getting everything off, but if this is a first time client, the bugs and contamination could take hours to get off.

**FinishingTouchA** · 04-24-2015, 09:05 AM

Originally Posted by Kengo123

Great thread! I struggle with this too at times.

Over the past year, I've noticed that there are 3 main services that people want when they ask for the price of a "detail":

1.Complete interior shampoo
2. Wax job
3. Buffing, polishing, swirl removal, defect removal, paint correction, etc (make the paint better than just a wax)

So here's some questions I ask to find out their expectations:

1. inside or outside?
2. Does the inside need "shampooing"? If so, this tells me it needs a complete interior detail and not a quick vacuum. Also, I find that customers can't really lie to me about the condition of their interior that much with this question. If its dirty , it needs "shampooing"
3. Do you want the outside to just be a little shinier (wax) or as new as possible (swirl removal), or somewhere in between (aio)?

Sometimes I find it helps to ask what their budget is. But with these questions and also knowing what the year , make, model of the I car is, I can give most people atleast a ballpark price

This is almost spot on with how I've been thinking and responding to the question.. But so far I've found success in upselling AIO by telling them a wax is really only good to layer on top of a maintained finish and only lasts about a month where as AIO lightens up the swirl scratches, removes oxidation, and leaves a more durable high gloss finish. It's really quite fun to use your detailing knowledge to be a sales person and upsell better services. Like yesterday I had an appt. for a Crew Cab Dually Wash and Wax and vac/wipe for 185, When he came in I upsold Leatherique treatment for 60 and once I got it washed up I called him and mentioned how the AIO would deepen the paint because it had lots of swirls and give a lot longer protection. That tacked on another 75 to the bill. When he picked it up he was happy with how much better it looked. I handed him a CarPro brochure and mentioned the self cleaning and hardening benefits of a coating and got the idea in his head for next time. I'm constantly learning to be less passive and more active as far as marketing and its paying off nearly 200%

**FinishingTouchA** · 04-24-2015, 09:09 AM

Originally Posted by BitterGreg

I just do a few jobs on the side. Does anyone else require certain items to be purchased if others are wanted? So if you want me to wash the car, I have to treat it for bugs, or if you want me to wax your car, I first have to clay it?

I would think most clients assume washing their car means getting everything off, but if this is a first time client, the bugs and contamination could take hours to get off.

If the bugs are caked on that bad I use a good degreaser and let it dwell for 20-30 seconds then hit it with a bug scrubber and usually 95% will be gone. None of us want to be a production detailer but if the customer lets bugs cook into the surface they surely wont mind using a more aggressive chemical to get the remains off.