I'm thinking of doing detailing for extra cash and honestly have no idea what a company or person usually charges for such services. I used to do some detailing at a car dealership, and was paid per car, but not sure what the dealership or business might actually charge.

I know it depends on what is being done, but I'm just kinda throwing this out here for ideas. Also the best way to advertise and/or gain clients?

 

its really a "what the market will bear" type of thing-
also depends on your process (for example, very few detailers do zaino cause its time intensive)...
if you steam clean the carpets, vacuum out every nook & cranny, wash the car, use a machine to polish then wax or synthetic the car and detail the wheels (on the car) you would charge more than if you just wash the car, wipe out the interior and maybe slap a quick coat of wax on it...
also prices would be completely diff where you are from where i am.
if you are planning to do this for dealers, you wont get paid much (they arent into high quality details usually- just decent looks- and they need to mark up what you charge) as if you can find some loyal customers who you can impress and ask them to tell their friends...

 

I work full time, coupled with shift work at my regular job. On the side, I detail cars, trucks and motorcycles. What started out as a hobby, and a helping hand for friends, evolved into a hobby-business of sorts. I don't do a lot of advertising, since I don't have all that much time for it to become a full time endeavour. One or two cars a day suffices for me. Over 90% of my business is generated through word of mouth. That said, I did find that placing banners on local auto-forums, and other local interest sites will generate a lot of business, and isn't all that expensive.

As for pricing, there is a plethora of shops out there, and prices vary significantly. I started out with lower than average industry pricing. I soon realised, that I was imparting my own anal-retentiveness common with my own cars, to that of customer cars. Attention to detail was something that I built my business on. That said, I now price on par with most other local shops, despite the fact that all the work gets done out of my garage on an acreage. The work, as customers will attest to, is far more superior than that pumped out my 16 year old teenagers working part time at the local car wash. I use only premium products such as Zaino, and do all the detailing myself.

For a little indepth information regarding what I do, visit www.pebblebeachauto.com

Hope that helps!
Asif
www.pebblebeachauto.com

 

I just started.. I wanted to hone my PC skills before doing it.. wanna bring me your car

 

hey vtextc i sent ya a pm

 

Pres,

PM replied to. Lemme know if you need anything else!

Asif

 

Well...here's my story....

My friend and I started detailing cars in high-school. Both of us started out super-anal on our own cars and translated that to neibors cars, which went to thier friends cars, which went to those friend's neibor's cars, which went to......you get the idea.

To make what is a 10-12 year story short, I always did this while keeping a "regular" full-time job and at times school/college. I kept a half a dozen customers for almost that full 10 years and went up and down depending on circumstances but typically spent most all of my Saturday's and Sundays making cash on the side. I stopped when I found myself not enjoying it anymore, it had gone from something I loved doing (which translated into VERY loyal customers that wanted nothing more than to give me more and more business) to a chore so I knew it was time to quit. I went back to just detailing my own cars and refound that joy in the process.

The way I see it you can approach this from 2 angles, either a legitimate full-time business, you need either a shop or a mobile setup, business license, etc..... Or, an on the side thing using the minimum of overhead. You will have to charge accordingly, I used to charge about $50 for a typical full-detail and wax (not including shampooing, buffing, special circumstances, etc) but I had aquaintences in the business with shops that charged $150-200 for the same thing.

One thing I will say, you won't get ANYWHERE if you half-ass anything, people recognize quality, even if they can't put thier finger on just what you did or didn't do they know when it's right and when it's not.

Feel free to PM me if you want specifics on anything, I know everyone here doesn't necessarily want to read a book on the subject

good luck, Travis

 

Thanks for the help. i will be starting with word of mouth and just kinda gettin it out that I will be doing it.

My plan is to give each car the attention I'd give my own S2000. I think that will be the key in keeping loyal customers.