2016 Detailing Plans

Bunky

Bunky

Detailing Gnosis
2016 plans

1. Try out some new polishes (BOSS creams and Rupes)
2. Sell / trade my Flex (just do not need two polishers)
3. Go through my stuff and discard a lot of older stuff
4. New detailing space set up (maybe more on this later)
5. Maybe get some new quick disconnects (those made by Rapidreel)
 
1. garage reorganization (cleanup, shelving, paint?, more lights, hang signs)--got a lot of research to do into other people's designs so I can get some good ideas for storage etc
2. work on basic website design
3. rupes mini or that new rupes device coming soon
4. trade some of the supplies i'm not using anymore
 
My plans all hinge on trying to pick up some paid details this year- I'm shooting for 10.

As part of that, I want to get more and more comfortable with the rotary, and I'll be leaning on the Rupes UHS system for general swirl removal and finishing.

I also plan to remove PBL v2 from my vehicle and replace it with gloss coat.
 
1. Finish personal detailing website
2. Correct and coat the new motorcycle
3. More time behind a rotary
4. Attend more detailing projects with Mike Phillips
5. Increase organization at the dealership for all my tools/products
6. Keep up to date spreadsheets on cost of products used per detail
7. Run more giveaways on Autopia.org
8. Run a raffle on Autopia
9. Post more glorious food pics in the Lunch/Dinner thread.
 
1) Pick up enough paid details to get as close as possible to paying for our family trip to Disney World in November

2) Get my GTO in shape to go to a few car shows

3) Unload some stuff that has been collecting dust in my cabinet

4) Continue my garage organizing/finishing
 
1. Use up the stuff I am not so impressed with
2. Beat last years # of details/washes 20 + 14 from my dealer friend
3. Narrow down the amount of products that do the same thing.
4. Learn as much as I can about detailing
5. Finish the switch to LED in the garage
 
Get paid details lol
Im new to the game and only did two customer cars that wernt family nor friends last summer
Sale more rivstar wax and gord polish
With last sale i got everything i could ever need

Only thing i have left to buy is a steamer, working platform, and a Rupes mini and Rupes nano
 
nothingface5384 said:
Get paid details lol
Im new to the game and only did two customer cars that wernt family nor friends last summer
Sale more rivstar wax and gord polish
With last sale i got everything i could ever need

Only thing i have left to buy is a steamer, working platform, and a Rupes mini and Rupes nano
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Same boat here with the paid details. What's your strategy to get more? I'm going after coworker's, but that's tough because I have a coworker that does so so polishing work practically for free. My $20 an hour sounds expensive lol. Might try and post something on Craigslist to get a few.
 
Same, co workers, neighbors, fam, friends
Craigslist...though i don't expect much from that site for reasons..
Build a website with good Meta tags so webcrawlers may list and tank it on their results
Hand out flyers at the local car shows
Other then that not sure
 
nothingface5384 said:
Same, co workers, neighbors, fam, friends
Craigslist...though i don't expect much from that site for reasons..
Build a website with good Meta tags so webcrawlers may list and tank it on their results
Hand out flyers at the local car shows
Other then that not sure
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When I started up in business first I new the work wasn't going to come to me but I had a plan,what I did was walk into dealers and offer to do a free detail on a car to show them what could be done,now I have 5 or 6 dealers that use me and along with my private work I fill my weeks,now what I did was take their worst car and do a full exterior detail so that they could see what can be done,then I would break it down for them for example one garage had a roof sign that got taken by the wind and left a heap of scratches on a brand new car so I got called in spent 2 hours with my rotary and bingo job done and that cost them 150 euro,the one thing I will say as a bit of advice is not to sell yourself to cheap imo 20 dollars per hour is to cheap,any detailer worth his salt is worth at least 40-50 per hour,its not as if anyone can do what we do and take responsibility for the vehicles that we work on,between sanding down their paint and attacking it with machines and compounds the buck stops with you at the end of the day,get it wrong and its your name over the door,just my twopence worth.
 
I want to speed up the maintenance washes without compromising the end-result. Finding a way to make it job easier would be good too, but cutting down the time is what I'd really appreciate. Though I've sped it up quite a bit in the last year or so, I'm still around five hours minimum (for the easiest vehicle), working as fast as I can without doing anything wrong or missing anything.
 
Accumulator said:
I want to speed up the maintenance washes without compromising the end-result. Finding a way to make it job easier would be good too, but cutting down the time is what I'd really appreciate. Though I've sped it up quite a bit in the last year or so, I'm still around five hours minimum (for the easiest vehicle), working as fast as I can without doing anything wrong or missing anything.
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What do you take in when you do a service wash accumulator,just curious mate.
 
jerry r said:
What do you take in when you do a service wash accumulator,just curious mate.
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By "take in", do you mean "how much do I charge"?

I'm not a Pro, only do my own vehicles. Though every now and then I prep a friend's old Jag for the Concours Season (for free, takes me a good many days). Judging by what my pals in the Jag Club do, my "maintenance washes" are a bit more involved than the average concours prep :o
 
Accumulator said:
By "take in", do you mean "how much do I charge"?

I'm not a Pro, only do my own vehicles. Though every now and then I prep a friend's old Jag for the Concours Season (for free, takes me a good many days). Judging by what my pals in the Jag Club do, my "maintenance washes" are a bit more involved than the average concours prep :o
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No what I meant was in relation to what you do on a maintenance wash,just trying to get a picture of where the 5 hours are being used up,and I know only to well that 5 hours can go by in the blink of an eye when detailing a car,cheers mate.
 
jrock645 said:
Same boat here with the paid details. What's your strategy to get more? I'm going after coworker's, but that's tough because I have a coworker that does so so polishing work practically for free. My $20 an hour sounds expensive lol. Might try and post something on Craigslist to get a few.
Click to expand...

What worked for me was to first off, not expect it to happen overnight. My first year I got maybe 10 jobs at best. Nothing major. I made a website, Facebook page, and promoted my business to family and friends. That was all year one. This year (my second) I was averaging 3-4 jobs a week at times. Things have slowed considerably now that it's winter but my phone still rings a couple times a week.

Focus us on getting a website up and running. Make sure it looks professional and clean and doesn't overload potential customers with info. They aren't so much interested in every step it takes as much as they just want a quick summary they can understand. Do your research on tags for the site and work to make sure your business name comes up first in Google (without paying for an ad). Over the past year my website has gone from about 5th down the list on Google to first now. Even infront of the other businesses that have been around longer. I just search "auto detailing canton mi" and see where I'm at. Being first is huge because many times that means people call you first.

Like i I said though, don't expect it to happen overnight. Never stop looking for new ways to get your name out there
 
My goals next year

1. Finish the new website
2. Turn my business into a full time job and quit my job at the bowling alley
3. Purchase a van to have a more effective mobile rig (Chevy sonic barely cuts it!)
4. Outfit new van with water tank, pump and generator to be 100% mobile and not require customer water/power anymore
5. Possibly convert home garage into a detail shop and outfit with a wash tub, hot water heater, 20amp outlets, lighting, refinish walls and floor and install a heater for winter detailing.
6. Find more high end clients
7. Also get more time with the rotary
8. Possibly begin to offer coatings to my customers
 
jerry r said:
No what I meant was in relation to what you do on a maintenance wash,just trying to get a picture of where the 5 hours are being used up...
Click to expand...

Seems like I spend a *lot* of time of stuff that many might not consider part of a "maintenance wash"- undercarriage, engine compartment, hinges, etc. I basically get *everything* white-glove clean every time, and then spray-wax/etc. it all too. Some areas seem like a big PIA to do, especially underneath. I keep thinking that some time I'll find that certain areas don't really need done, but that hasn't happened yet.
 
1. Purge old products that aren't being used
2. Streamline product use across all packages
3. Reformat webpage to simplify
4. Adjust pricing :)
5. Obtain larger extractor
6. Obtain pro coating authorization
7. Do more work with my rotaries
 


  • Reorganize my garage and setup (Shelves in the wall, better hanging of stuff, banners finally up, products organized in totes)
  • -
  • Minimize my detailing chemical collection (trade, sell, toss)
  • -
  • Possibly a new pressure washer and another polisher. (Rupes21 II, 3401)
  • -
  • Research and selectively try some new products
  • -
  • Set up with only 1 or 2 of the best product in each category to minimize overlap and extra stuff.



  • New car parts and performance upgrades


 
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