Portfolio?

joyriide1113

joyriide1113

There is no cure!
As I've said it many times, I am not a "professional" detailer, but more of an avid enthusiast. I keep up with the new products, test them out, and really pursue the goal of perfection with different techniques. I never planned on doing this professionally, but lately Ive been getting offers and jobs from referred friends of friends that has me really busy.

Now before I continue, I wanna make it clear that I don't plan on doing this as a career, but really enjoy doing it as a hobby and getting paid while at it. But, I figured that since I'm getting steady flow of cars every weekend from persons I don't personally know, I should think about having a more established name along with an LLC.

Now again, this isn't a professional gig, but more of a paid enthusiastic gig, giving me work, experience, and hobby-time. I don't plan on making business card, flyers, or even broadcasting myself, I'll let word-of-mouth do that, But I do wanna make a readily available portfolio for me to show interested clients my prior work along with fun interesting factual articles about car detailing. Yes, its a bit overboard, especially when it is just a detail for most, but when given the chance to work on 100k show cars, I wanna make sure the opportunity is grabbed.

Do many of you guys have portfolios? What do you include in them? Whats some of the things you try to point out to the potential client.
 
You will find that your car is the best portfolio you could ever have. So keeping your portfolio clean and perfect will really make it stand out to potential customers. Other than my car I have a small gallery on my site but from the time I have been doing detailing my car has been the best card or portfolio.

Greg
 
GregCavi said:
You will find that your car is the best portfolio you could ever have. So keeping your portfolio clean and perfect will really make it stand out to potential customers. Other than my car I have a small gallery on my site but from the time I have been doing detailing my car has been the best card or portfolio.

Greg
Click to expand...

I agree 100% with Greg. Your car. Have them come over and, don't cringe, have them touch the fender and feel it. Silky smooth...LOL

I have been taking a few pics of the cars I have been doing, and I am planning, planning and doing are 2 different things LOL, on making a binder with befores and afters. I will not just show the person, I will wait until they ask for references. Though, some pics will be hard to justify what you have actually done. ie, contamination removal, claying, etc......
 
Joyride,

I am in the same situation and agree that your own car is a superb example of your workmanship. I keep mine looking at its best 24/7 and use it as an example......"This is how yours will feel and look, Mr. Smith". It is a lot of work but you don't fall into the trap of say, the plumber whose faucets leak at home or the mechanic's personal car that barely runs.

I also keep my gals car in top shape so a quick comparo between dark color and light color can be seen, mine being the dark one.

This has paid off many times while I'm doing a vehicle in the garage or driveway. Strangers stop and ask if I detail cars so I show them both of ours as an example. The one you're working on could also be used depending how far along you are with the process.

I considered doing before and after pictures of jobs but nothing seems to have the visual impact of a glass smooth, mirror reflective hood or trunk witnessed first hand. Since we both work by referral it's likely that the potential customer has already seen your work on his friend's vehicle which is what got him in contact with you.

FWIW......
 
Oh I thought you meant investement portfolio :howdy oh well.
Yeah I would do some before and after shots on all the cars you detailed.
 
for a person such as yourself what do you charge for a full detail?
wash clay polish,and seal ?just wondering as I am getting a bit of interest myself but its alot of work and want to know what is a fair estimate?
 
now back on topic, I would think having before and after photos would be great . For one to show your work and two for letting them see what they will be getting for there money.
 
I think a portoflio is a good way to show people your work when a car is not around to show them on. I dont think anything is better then showing them how great clay is. But i find when people are asking me what kind of work I do I just pull out a portfolio and their like wow. I aslo admist to only using high end cars. I do eveything but people are more impressed when a car is mroe expensive, its what they want to see. Its a good weay to advertise so i would keep a nice orginzzed clean, well put toghter portfolio
 
OCDetails.com was originally intended to just be a portfolio of my work so I could put the URL on a business card and people could see what I do. I do this as a hobby too just like most of you. I don't want to advertise much because I know I wouldn't be able to handle much volume. I'm thinking of building another site that is specifically just for portfolio pictures and then have OCDetails articles on another site. Being able to see what someone can do is very important if you are going to hire them for a job. I don't want that to get mixed up in the other stuff I use OCDetails for.
 
We have an articles section on our website and we occasionally do articles on some of the cars we do if they are quite a large job.

As a professional comapany we have been very careful to strike a balance with what kind of articles and photos we put on the site. We have a couple of Porsches and a TVR as we do lots of these, but we have been careful not to include loads of super cars as these can put customers off. The bulk of our customers have Audis and BMWs, Fords and Volkswagons etc. Pictures of supercars will put them of and make us look too exclusive and expensive. Its also a good idea to put a price to every job you show... We recently did a Porsche Carrera GT. But they only had a wash and wax and spent less than one of our average customers.

Many of our customers have said that one specific article, or secific photo sold them on comming to us.
 
My Portfolio has been awesome for me!!! My customers love it. I've been detailing on the side for about 7 years and have only had a portolio for 3 of those. It's just a leather bound portolio. I've been taking pics and putting before and after on the picture with a paint program. I print out 2 5x7" pics on a sheet and put the sheets in acid free archival safe sheet protectors. I've taking it to many potentail customers and impressed them by being able to see before and after difference. Before I told them what I did and what gets on your paint and it was greek to them, they didn't understand. Now I have the pics for them to see the difference I get a much better reaction from people. I will never get rid of mine!!

Chubs
 
I am like you. I think a clean, professional looking website with before and after pictures will knock your clients out. Also set up an e-mail adress with you company name xxx@floridacleancars.com, people dont like to see xxx@aol.com. This will cost you PEANUTS go to www.1and1.com.

www.jsatek.com is one business that I own. People cant believe that a small contractor has a website and a blackberry. I use the computer tools for both of my business, so one benefots from the other.
 
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