Detail Package/Service Names

S

Shawn F.

New member
I wanted to get some of your guys' opinions on detail service names as far as what you think works and doesn't work and is easier for the customer to follow. As of right now I have my packages starting at Wash and Vac, Maintenance Detail, Economy Detail, Complete Signature Detail then of course my other services and paint correction packages.

Most people have no clue which one is which unless they go to my site and look at them to know which is bottom line and top of the line. Most say they figured Complete Signature is my top of the line one and Wash and Vac is pretty self explanatory.

What I am thinking of doing is keeping W&V of course and then have Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum. I see a handful of detail companies with this line up and from the handful of people I asked locally, they like that idea better and easier to remember and know which is which from bottom to top. Now that I have a fixed location I have worked out my pricing a bit better and took some things out of my lower end packages, etc. My plan is to make my Maintenance detail package the Bronze, Economy the Silver, Signature the Gold and then Platinum my top of the line detail with more of an exterior focused package (at least a 2 step to 4 or 5 step compound/polish).



Opinions here? I am working on changing it now and will add it to my website in the next few hours to see what you guys think. I do not mind anyone critiquing my site or ideas, that is why I am posting my questions here so I promise not to get offended! Keep in mind that I am a fixed location and my focus is on nicer daily drivers, luxury vehicles, classics, etc and not so much daily driver soccer mom vans and work trucks covered in mud inside and out (I still do them once in a blue moon when work is slow).
 
Shawn F. said:
Do you think Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum falls under the KISS method?
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Yeah, I think most people can grasp the concept of that, especially with the Olympics going on right now. ;)
 
I used to really struggle with my service levels but I've tried hard to simply it recently, while keeping enough services to cover most things. I also like to separate exterior from interior, for the most part. Here's a link to my service page so you can look at it and maybe get some ideas: Services
 
I am wondering if I have too many detail services aside from my paint correction side of things. I have 4 detail services plus the wash and vac. In reality the maintenance detail package is more for vehicles I have done full details on and keep up with so not sure if I should name that the bronze detail and keep it as a maintenance and just have Silver, Gold and Platinum... Mike, I like how you have your services setup. I am going to look into it a bit more and see what ideas I can get from it, thanks!
 
By the way Mike, I like how you have the exterior services as Stages like StageI, II and so forth. I will sleep on it another night but right now that actually sounds better than the Silver, Gold Platinum idea.
 
Shawn, thanks for the kind words. I've personally never been a fan of the gold/silver/bronze thing for detailing service levels (hope I don't offend anyone here). Looking at your services, I think it'd be easier to understand if you separated things out a bit (exterior, interior, maintenance). I also decided to add "options" for adding a service to certain levels instead of creating additional levels (if that makes sense). For example, on my Exterior Express, I have the option to add a vac & interior wipe-down for an additional charge.



On my exterior's, I list the first one as an "Express" because I don't touch my DA. It's basically ONR + Opti-Seal. The Stage I is the first level with any DA work. Basically ONR, clay, & Optimum GPS (or similar). And then obviously Stage II & III are more oriented towards paint correction (1 vs. 2 true polishing steps).



I used to have 3 different maintenance services - Wash only, Wash/Vac, & Wash/Vac/Wax. I realized it was way too complicated so now I just have the one Maintenance level (Wash/Vac) and I list an option for adding OCW without adding an entirely new level.



Interior is setup the same way, as you can see.



Thanks again for the kind words and good luck with it all.
 
Quick question, In your stage1 package are you using an AIO? Also why as of 2012 are you no longer offering services on mid/full-size trucks & SUV's or any vehicle with three rows of seating?
 
Time 2 Shine said:
Quick question, In your stage1 package are you using an AIO? Also why as of 2012 are you no longer offering services on mid/full-size trucks & SUV's or any vehicle with three rows of seating?
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Yes, the Stage I is an AIO (typically Optimum GPS). The reason I don't do large vehicles is because I've had 5 back surgeries and the most recent one this past December left me with nerve damage in my legs (ie - numbness & weakness). It's not a good idea for me to be working on ladder at this point. Plus, I only do this part-time now days so I can pick & choose the work I take on.
 
Thanks for the insight! I am completely changing my services now... I keep going back and forth now and can't decide what the heck to do! I agree, now that I have slept on the whole bronze, silver, gold thing for a few days, it sounds a bit cheesy. My plan is to have about 4 steps of details such as Maintenance Detail, Protection Detail, Basic Detail and Premium Detail. Then for the paint correction I am thinking having a Single Step Paint Correction, Multi Step Paint Correction and then some kind of full out correction more for trailer queens, show cars, etc (not sure of a name yet). I am thinking about getting rid of my Wash and Vac service because of two reasons...

1.) I do not make any money on them.

2.) I RARELY get anyone asking about getting it done.



What do you guys think?...
 
Ok I did a little updating and added a Premium package... What do you guys think? Please critique! I won't get offended I promise. Spelling may be off and grammar since it's late but I will fix that tomorrow. Also I know the entire site needs work as far as pictures and cleaning up goes, etc but it's my first site that I did myself for free. I plan to spend a ton of money on a nice site next year built by a professional but had to have something for now.
 
Ok, here's my ideas. They are worth all of what you're paying for them. :dance



Shawn F. said:
Thanks for the insight! I am completely changing my services now... I keep going back and forth now and can't decide what the heck to do! I agree, now that I have slept on the whole bronze, silver, gold thing for a few days, it sounds a bit cheesy. My plan is to have about 4 steps of details such as Maintenance Detail, Protection Detail, Basic Detail and Premium Detail. Then for the paint correction I am thinking having a Single Step Paint Correction, Multi Step Paint Correction and then some kind of full out correction more for trailer queens, show cars, etc (not sure of a name yet). I am thinking about getting rid of my Wash and Vac service because of two reasons...

1.) I do not make any money on them.

2.) I RARELY get anyone asking about getting it done.
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In reading this, you're talking about potentially having 4 exterior detail levels, plus 3 paint correction levels. Is it really necessary to have 7 different levels for the outside? I think you need to scale it back. I have 4 exterior packages and I feel like it's plenty to choose from. Maybe like this for yours:



1-Basic (AIO)

2-Light Correction (1 step polish)

3-Heavy Correction (2 step compound/polish)

4-Concours (however many compound/polish steps it takes).



You want to make sure you have a "volume" seller to keep your bills paid since you're in a shop. My Express & Stage I packages are the most popular, they are quick & easy jobs for me, AND I make more money per hour on those than I do the Stage II & III levels (I know, it sounds backwards, but it's just how it's worked out for me).



Also, I would NOT get rid of your basic Wash & Vac service. Maybe you're just not pricing it appropriately. If you don't list it, people won't inquire. How long does it really take to wash & vac a previously detailed vehicle? An hour? I don't know what you're rate is, but maybe charge $50 for it and there's $50 for one hour of work. Plus, it's an opportunity to up-sell a sealant or something else.



Shawn F. said:
Ok I did a little updating and added a Premium package... What do you guys think? Please critique! I won't get offended I promise. Spelling may be off and grammar since it's late but I will fix that tomorrow. Also I know the entire site needs work as far as pictures and cleaning up goes, etc but it's my first site that I did myself for free. I plan to spend a ton of money on a nice site next year built by a professional but had to have something for now.
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A) I think you should separate your interior & exterior services (& create a maintenance service area). What happens when someone wants a Signature Detail, but they only want something light on the inside or vice versa? Separating the two sides, IMO, gives the customer more options & makes choosing the correct services, easier. Plus, in my experience, someone that wants a "Signature" level exterior detail doesn't need a full detail on the inside. However, the person looking at a "Basic" level exterior, probably does want & need a full interior detail. Again, that's how it's been in my experiences.



B) To build off what I said above, offer maybe 2 services for the interior - Quick or Basic & Full. Not everyone needs a full interior detail just like not everyone needs a Signature detail on the exterior.



C) When you click on "Services", you have pic/links to "Detail Services & Paint Correction" along with "Additional Services". To me, it's confusing. Again, I think separating your interior, exterior, & maintenance services would be beneficial on this landing page. You can have pic/links to all 3 areas, or 4 areas if you want to do a "Ala Carte" or "Miscellanous" category. If you do this, keep the labels simple. For example, list your exterior services just as that, Exterior - not "Exterior & Paint Correction". To me, it's all one area.



D) I think you should simplify your service level descriptions. Instead of talking about HOW you're going to do something, just say WHAT you're going to do. Example:



# Vehicle is pre-rinsed and hand washed with PH neutral soap using the two bucket method

# Vehicle is dried with proper microfiber towels and all jambs/crevasses blown dry with compressed air

# Wheels are hand washed

# Wheel wells and tires are thoroughly cleaned and dressed



That's a lot of to read just to find out that the entire car gets thoroughly washed, top to bottom, which customers would expect if they are having their car detailed. When I look at it, I'm totally overwhelmed with all the text. And I "speak" detail language, haha! Instead, create a totally separate page to talk about your processes/techniques. This way, you're customer can still find out HOW you do things (if they care to) & it makes reading through your different service levels that much easier.



Those are my major thoughts. My overall point is to give your customers options, but make it SIMPLE to understand. If you read your site from a customer's perspective, is it easy to understand? If not, you're probably getting too technical. :)
 
Another quick thought. I'd drop the "Time Required" info. If you were doing things on-site, it may be helpful to the customer to have an idea of how long you'd be there, but since you're in a shop, it doesn't really matter, IMO. You might just say something like...



"Drop off by 9am. Done by 6pm."

"Requires 24/48/xx turn-around time."



I think most people are smart enough to know that they're going to need to drop their car off for at least a full day. Obviously, you're heavy correction details might require a couple days with the vehicle.



On the interior services, instead of saying you're going to clean/treat cup holders, door panels, etc. just say you're going to clean/treat plastic/vinyl or leather surfaces. That way, you don't have to list all the different areas of the interior.
 
Mike, that is JUST the critiquing I am looking for, thanks! I am going to take it all into consideration and work on that tonight. I used to think the same thing about listing everything down like that because for myself it was a lot to read and weed out to compare each service/package. Others said that it was good to explain each step for each one but I didn't really think so even though I ended up keeping it for now. I think what I may do is list the first one like the Basic detail out then for the others I will just say: Same as Basic Plus: then list the extras to show what is on top of the basic with the Premium. Make sense?



I really appreciate you taking the time to go through this for me! Hopefully by next week I can have it wrapped up and something cleaned up and simplified on it. As for the interior exterior deal. I think I plan to keep the interior on the details but instead of full interior on the Signature I will drop it back to the basic wipe down like the rest have and if they want an interior detail then it will be a certain amount on top like you mentioned.
 
Shawn F. said:
Mike, that is JUST the critiquing I am looking for, thanks! I am going to take it all into consideration and work on that tonight. I used to think the same thing about listing everything down like that because for myself it was a lot to read and weed out to compare each service/package. Others said that it was good to explain each step for each one but I didn't really think so even though I ended up keeping it for now. I think what I may do is list the first one like the Basic detail out then for the others I will just say: Same as Basic Plus: then list the extras to show what is on top of the basic with the Premium. Make sense?
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Glad to help! Yep, I think that would make it much easier to read/understand! And yes, I used to think the same thing about listing all the "How's" of each of my steps. Now I realize I was an idiot back then, haha! :)
 
Mike, I put the time required because most customers were asking how long for each service they will need to leave the vehicle for so I did that so they know what to expect. I have had multiple comments on it and how they like that they do not have to question the amount of time it takes for each service.
 
mshu7 said:
Yes, the Stage I is an AIO (typically Optimum GPS). The reason I don't do large vehicles is because I've had 5 back surgeries and the most recent one this past December left me with nerve damage in my legs (ie - numbness & weakness). It's not a good idea for me to be working on ladder at this point. Plus, I only do this part-time now days so I can pick & choose the work I take on.
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Wow, 5 back surgeries. Sorry to here about the back problems. I probably wouldn't even be still detailing (on the side) with a bad back like that but kudos to you for keeping it going.
 
Shawn F. said:
Mike, I put the time required because most customers were asking how long for each service they will need to leave the vehicle for so I did that so they know what to expect. I have had multiple comments on it and how they like that they do not have to question the amount of time it takes for each service.
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Hmm...yeah I guess you should leave it. When I had my shop, even if the actual work time was only 6 hours, I'd tell them a day to allow for phone calls, walk-in's, breaks, or for those unforeseen's that sometimes comes along while you're working on a car. I always wanted to make sure I had more than enough time to get it done so they didn't come back & the vehicle not be finished.



Anyway, thanks for sharing the insight on that.
 
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