Posting Detail Threads > have to pay now for advertising?

T

Thats Fresh

New member
i post the same detail thread on several forums. on this one particular site, i get a pm from one of the moderaters asking me to be a site sponsor since its evident that 'im advertising on the site'. they haved talked it over among the other administrators. they say that im advertising and i should be paying for it. i understand their point and would commit but i do the same like every other site and i just mention "PM for prices" since i only do this on the side. i never mention any pricing in the thread. and the posts that ask how much do i charge, etc. i dont reply to in thread. only some that i talk thru PMs.



ive been a member of that site for 7yrs now and ive known the owner for over 14yrs now. im sure its not to bash me but i already run my own photography company and id hate to do paperwork just for this.



what do you think?
 
Are you contributing to the forum in any other sections or ways besides detailing? If I was a forum owner or sponsor, I'd also be upset if someone was financially benefitting from not paying when others are. If you're contributing by posting work to teach is one thing, but advertising by saying "PM for prices" is clearly advertising. Maybe your approach/delivery is too strong. Would it be beneficial to become a sponsor?



On a side note, it erks me here when the only time people post is in the Click n Brags. The only thing they bring to this site is showcasing their work, but nothing to the main content; which is the discussion of detailing. Seems worthless to me.
 
thanks david. yeah, people ask some those common questions, what materials do you use, where do i buy them, how do i clean the engine bay without shorting my electrical system, whats ONR, how to care for yellow headlights, etc. ( you know the common ones).and i reply to every question in detail so that they can do it themselves next time.



the responses/comments on that site reaches 2 pages sometimes 3. great feedback is always good. but i see your point, depending on the price i have to pay to become a sponsor i may take a look into it. hard to pay for advertising when i only do this as hobby. then id have to get into taxes, bix license etc.



i agree with you how people only post their work and just wait for feedback in their threads. they dont help the site at all esp when they dont ever post back in that thread.
 
I think I would contact the Admin's and have a pow wow with them all. Let them know this is nothing more than a side hobby for you and you're not in this for the money. I think it would be more than fair to have to change your wording. Skip out on the prices all together. If they are interested in your work they'll come to you asking. Sounds to me like it's just a little confusion on the wording. I mean pay if you want if you think it will help net you come paying clients. But if not then change up the wording to comply with the rules they have and continue to educate as needed.
 
this is what i put:



hey. thanks for bringing this to my attention. i totally understand your point and i know its not out to bash me. of all the boards i post on this is the only one asking me to pay. i see how it is advertising esp with my sig saying 'PM me for prices'. i run my own photography business and i understand how i may be getting business from other local detailers (which in no way is my intention). ive been detailing on the side for the past 7 years and do it more as hobby since my schedule doesnt allow for full details.



if you have access to my pms, you can see that i write in each reply that i dont charge to make money, only enough to cover materials i use on the car. it just helps with the $40 wheel cleaner, $250 wax, $25 drying towel i put on their cars etc. i also make use of the whole day, sometimes two so i can take my time on their car since i dont charge by the hour. i schedule the details on my days off so i def dont try to make a detail as a source of income.



my ultimate goal i would say to have on here as well as the other forums im on, are to provide help, educate car owners of the proper maintenance for vehicles. if they want to start fresh, they can come by for a detail so i can get it looking good again and from then on, they can keep it looking new. i post on here hoping to show that paint can be saved and for those jobs that need repaint, touchups etc. i point them shops that are sponsors on here like and so and so.



im hosting a detailing bbq/meet/detail demo for a local BMWCCA chapter this saturday and im providing all the materials. for the 8 or so signed up, they mentioned to donate but im not there to make a profit, just to properly educate and show them first hand what it takes, rather than pictures online. and im demoing on cars the two people that showed interest first.



sorry the writeup. just let me know what my options are as being a sponsor (cost benefits) or just keeping my regular status as member (whether its deleting my sig or not posting anymore) i would like to be the person to go to for detailing FAQs on here like "......" is the fender rolling guy to go to. either just let me know."





i can either change my wording like you said jake or just become a site sponsor. i should be fine either way. but id hate to become a sponsor and amount all the pms. im so busy with work now that im only able to schedule once a week or even one car every two weeks. i still need to detail 5 cars including an NSX for a car show this saturday. i work 60+ hrs a week with photography. and as much i love detailing, id hate to turn them down or tell them to wait another month or even our worse yet, have them go do another detailer and have them do a bad job. *bc i have yet to find one here in this area
 
i got booted from another website...never got a reason why even though I asked about 4 times and tried PMing a mod...I assume its from me posting my click and brags, WITH NO BUSINESS CONTENT just like I was told to, then someone publicly thanked me from florida for helping out his friend out here and I responded...next time I went to log in, it said "we would love to have you back when you become a sponsor" WAJ that is...
 
Yea it really dosen't sound like your in any position to become a paid sponsor in hopes of landing some new business. I would stick with changing the wording and just remain a regular member.



I don't get a lot of sites out there that honestly think they are the holy grail to the internets or something. I guess there are some legit gripes with trolls and spammers (we get them here alot with shoes LOL) but a forum is a forum. A place where people should be able to go with like interest and get some knowledge... Not paid sponsored knowledge but real hands on unbiased knowledge. Some Forum owners get this... Sadly others don't. I like how DavidB runs it here. There are paid sponsors but he dosen't automatically run others off (like Danase) as long as they just offer up good advice and such it's all cool.
 
Car enthusiast forums have become flooded with detailers lately, and it is their way to keep the forum sponsors happy. I also had a thread removed from a forum a while back because it had my pics water marked with my business name. I only shared it on that forum because of the make and model car it was, and to establish myself as a trusted detailer to answer questions.



I too am only part time but I can understand where they are coming from.
 
im the go to detailer in my area. i get about 5-10 PMs a week and are able to schedule most of them within a months time. i could understand if there was another paying detailer sponsor but there isnt.



they havent responded to my PM and i txted my boy who actually owns it and he said he'll look into it. oh yeah and they deleted my threads )=
 
David Fermani said:
On a side note, it erks me here when the only time people post is in the Click n Brags. The only thing they bring to this site is showcasing their work, but nothing to the main content; which is the discussion of detailing. Seems worthless to me.
Click to expand...



agreed.....
 
Hey thats fresh I'm local to you and know what forum your talking about. I think it really sucks because as much back and forth and bickering they do on that site I believe what you were bringing was knowledge to the car community in that area. I'm doing the same as you work so much so just detail when I can. When and where is the bmw demo that you are hosting if you don't mind me looking over your shoulder a little. Hope you get it all worked out with the site
 
whats going on. its a small meet that a few members from BMWCCA will be there. in hampton near langley air force base. yeah i seen that site go up and down since 2002. it got worse with all the trash talking etc and then a bunch of high school kids running around doing stupid stuff that always called out the cops. thats why i left the site for a few years but recently started posting again a few months ago. i only come back to the same drama. i know a good amount of people from the site but its those certain people that would say something and they happen to be mods, go figure, well everyone is a mod haha. if you know me personally, im easy to get along with, with a great network in this area blah blah, end rant.



757motoring, what kinda work does your shop do? thanks for agreeing. haha
 
haha yeah 757motoring was something me and my cousin had in the works a few years ago but never got off the ground. Vizion Autosport is my detailing company. pm me the info for the bmw meet will love to join. Yeah as far as the site goes I still go up there to see what the locals do with there cars but i skip thru all the b.s. talk
 
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