What makes a great Click N Brag???

[911fanatic]

She sent me a nice letter with a picture and stated that she smiles everytime she walks by the car and that is what it is about for me that no C&B thread could provide.



Randy

^^This. I said it before and I'll say it again. When a client can't describe their car without using profanity, I'm a happy camper. Keeps me going to work. I post my C & B's so that maybe someone can learn something or find something that they can use in their detailing. Same reason I read others C & Bs. NOBODY knows everything. As stated, I don't need to see before and after of swirls on every panel. Show before and afters on one panel. We get the hint. Listing products is good as we can't possibly try everything. If something works well for you, let us know. As well, if something doesn't, say so. Help us avoid wasting money.

 

[Concours.John]

This could boil down to its not necessarily the vehicle but the work it took to get to doing certain vehicles.



Some are great at conveying everything in a write up some are not. Some may think its just bragging about what they worked on vs. not having the time or are reserved-to present everything.



There are many good posts on what everyone would like to see. I know I've been taking notes.



Exotics and collections are tough crowds. Collections can be no different than fleet accounts. (Money wise) People who do them can get rubbed the wrong way when dismissed because it takes effort to even get "in". Trust me you pay your dues to get there.



Those who have talked to me on the phone know I can talk to you all day about rare vehicles. They also know its not a cash cow. It does take serious work. Someone who has an eye and sits and stares at "their baby" is more critical than someone who just drives their car. This doesn't mean anyone's work is less important. What the client wants is. It's just different markets.



When your doing the "top cars" there is always someone looking to cut you out. When you lose a client it's not one or two vehicles it can be 20 or more. I can understand why people get a little "hot".



Some may post much of the process others may keep some things to themselves. I always enjoy a nice turnaround though regardless of the vehicle.

 

[autoconcierge]

This could boil down to its not necessarily the vehicle but the work it took to get to doing certain vehicles.



Some are great at conveying everything in a write up some are not. Some may think its just bragging about what they worked on vs. not having the time or are reserved-to present everything.



There are many good posts on what everyone would like to see. I know I've been taking notes.



Exotics and collections are tough crowds. Collections can be no different than fleet accounts. (Money wise) People who do them can get rubbed the wrong way when dismissed because it takes effort to even get "in". Trust me you pay your dues to get there.



Those who have talked to me on the phone know I can talk to you all day about rare vehicles. They also know its not a cash cow. It does take serious work. Someone who has an eye and sits and stares at "their baby" is more critical than someone who just drives their car. This doesn't mean anyone's work is less important. What the client wants is. It's just different markets.



When your doing the "top cars" there is always someone looking to cut you out. When you lose a client it's not one or two vehicles it can be 20 or more. I can understand why people get a little "hot".



Some may post much of the process others may keep some things to themselves. I always enjoy a nice turnaround though regardless of the vehicle.

Good to see some really understand, and to the others that that are "Salty" ....................................... I will never understand how someone feels they are owed anything, I would never approach a wealthy person and say something like " You have so much ........give me some as you would not miss it" well when everyone approaches you "For something" you get your guard up...................and keep it there.



The whole "What are your hot buttons" had nothing to do with what really makes a good write up, come on now......................... it allowed guys who had and have a ax to grind turn on the grinder pure and simple. The first sentence in the quote above says it all as what was done to put yourself into the position to attract clients with nice cars and who are passionate enough to pay the freight to have them done correctly, I will tell you in my case it was hard work and consistancy of doing the car right over and over again under any conditions.



Some forget or do not know or worse do not care I was mobile grinding it out for YEARS, no internet........................no forums to learn from, very few guys to interact with at a moment's notice if you were stuck on a nightmare job, no Facebook to show what you were doing in realtime............................ my pics had to be DEVELOPED then I could see them(This thing called film kids) but all the click n instant results crowd does not care.



Dave you want to improve this section, allow people to put their best effort and leave it that instead of asking a question(s) that have been asked and answered till "The cow's come home".

 

[David Fermani]

this was def directed to get me to open up. i had a good convo with Da Ferminator a few weeks back on the phone about this. i read his other thread many times & tried to absorb the feedback to mold my writeups to make them better. i have studied the writeups as they are called & have been following many talented detailers from around the country. there are some very talented people out there but they are hard to come by.



i try to put together pictures that tell the story from start to finish. lets get down to business & cut out all the silly pics of cleaning wheels bc really, people are most curious to see how you handle various kinds of paint defects with your hands & or with your polisher.



i have developed a basic outline for my presentions with a few simple things i keep in mind to protect myself.



heres a few tips if you are doing this for a living:



1. date your work.

it doesnt have to be the exact day you took in the job but at least the month & year. this is the first step in protecting your work. put the date on the first pic, thats all you need to do.



2. watermark all pics with your logo or bus name. if you have a website it would be smart to include that next to or under that watermark.



3. action pics.

be brave & take a few pics of you working on the car. this puts a face to your name & helps connect the dots with the date. it says (who) you did that car & when, simple as that.



4. good photos!

if your not good at taking pics or you break things often like me then find someone to at least take nice after/completed work photos for you. you would be surprised how many good photographers are out there fresh out of college or still in college, just looking to take pics of cars to help get theyre name out there. working with a photographer if you can afford it will give you another mouth to promote your name. your work becomes his/her work & suddenly people start to think of you as a team. this is me & my team, my own network that im building. share the love & try to hand select only good people to be surrounded by.



i noticed the most pics you can include in one single post on a forum ranges from 10-25.

to decrease the amount of posts i was doing on forums i figured i would try to put them together in 3 or 4 posts (50-75 pics sounds nice).



a few sentences to explain the job being done is enough.



- before pics to show the condition of the car. if the sun is out use it to your advantage.

- a few pics after prep & tape. alot of people skimp on the prep step but its very important.

- some 50/50 shots if the job calls for a full correction. i like the halogen shots bc i use halogens for full correction jobs.

- a few pics of you in action. nobody wants to see a dude washing a car. unless you have a pair of breasts i dont want to see you dipping your hand in a bucket of soap suds, sorry. pics of you using a rotary or da machine showing proper form with your body while polishing i think holds good value.

- if there were a few tricky areas like some wetsanding fun for a deep scratch it would be a good idea to include a few pics of that.

- good after photos! no cell phone shots & please try not to take blurry pics!



all writeups are done with different intentions. if you detail for a living i understand the reasons why some dont explain everything. thats fine with me. if you detail for a living & also sell products & tools then the writeups are going to be about showing off the work being done as well as everything thats on the plate for sale & there is nothing wrong with that at all.



i learned by making mistakes as an apprentice in a body shop. its differnt now you have guys using the internet to look at pics, read & watch videos. where were these tools to learn for me 15 years ago?

Good to know that people are always willing to have an open mind to improving their skills. Your points are very well received and feel help this thread. Thanks for opening up to the discussion Big A!

The whole "What are your hot buttons" had nothing to do with what really makes a good write up, come on now......................... it allowed guys who had and have a ax to grind turn on the grinder pure and simple.



Dave you want to improve this section, allow people to put their best effort and leave it that instead of asking a question(s) that have been asked and answered till "The cow's come home".

Honestly Bob, I haven’t stopped anyone from doing as they wish on this sub-section as well as the ENTIRE forum. If anything, I’m the one who’s been interfered with more than anyone else. I’m simply bringing up a very easily digestible question that may not only improve someone’s regiment, but also this forum. Anyone that is not only considering making, but browsing a CnB should find this as acceptable as well as helpful and hopefully be willing to give some feedback. How I should be looked down for this (especially when so many people have given their praise) isn’t necessary if you choose to consider this at face value and not as some conspiracy theory.



At the end of the day, I’m all about helping people and the forum while advancing the industry as best I can. I help do this by creating fun and interesting threads that challenge members to discuss their opinions in a respectful way. I think I’ve proven this countless times since joining back in 2004. Many others obviously have other motives here which I totally respect and understand. Thanks again for everyone’s input on my thread and hopefully it can stay on topic…..

 

[lostdaytomorrow]

1. Steps and products, including machines and pads.

2. Good pics in good lighting. No need for 100+ pics of one vehicle though.

3. I don't like a whole thread with a hyperlink or video as the whole OP. That is dumb and should be probatable/bannable.

 

[JSFM35X]

I hate to say it but the pros who post and share explicit details and answer questions on their click and brags make this forum for me. I am here to learn and perhaps share and possible teach those who come after me.



I am a car guy, love the exotic car posts and appreciate the info. These pro's like Bob, Dave, David, Kevin, Paul and Scott all have taught me a lot. I would have had a much steeper learning curve without them.



This and every detailing board needs the pro's to survive and keep the new ideas flowing.



The hobbyists like myself can fill in and even get good enough to help others ( not talking about me) but there is nothing to substitute for experience. If you polish 6-8 cars a week you better able to recommend a product or process than a guy like me that polished 5 cars per year.





I the land of the blind the one eyed man is king..............

 

[David Fermani]

I appreciate your feedback JSFM35X. What makes this forum challenging/interesting at times is the chemistry of our members ranging from complete new comers, hobbyists, enthusiasts, weekend warriors and full time professionals. I totally respect and understand why people don’t want to share their secrets and don’t want anyone looking down on them because of it. They obviously do this for a not just their livelihood, but to feed and provide for their family and have every right not withhold valuable information. Others, just don't have time to answer questions. Some on the other hand like to give back to the community differently and that is fine too. There is tons of great information and people here always willing to help so keep on looking to find what fits your appetite.

 

[Bunky]

I like to learn something from the C&B's so process (product, technique, etc.) is important to me but recognize the C&B poster may other expected motives: mutual admiration, bragging/ego, business marketing (establishing a name), etc. I have no idea if C&B;s are something that draws members/guests to the web site which I guess Dave believes since the effort to counter the jump the shark idea.



For example, an overdone shot is an up close shot of a Race Glaze brush cleaning the fuel filler area that demonstrates nothing.

 

[JSFM35X]

On the whole I have been blown away with the help and constructive criticism I have received over the past few years. I found this forum and others when I purchased my first black car and quickly discovered the dealer prep was not the detail I was hoping it would be. I really though I messed up the car but later learned that all I did was wash the glaze out of the swirls.



And that started me on the journey to correction perfection.

I appreciate your feedback JSFM35X. What makes this forum challenging/interesting at times is the chemistry of our members ranging from complete new comers, hobbyists, enthusiasts, weekend warriors and full time professionals. I totally respect and understand why people don’t want to share their secrets and don’t want anyone looking down on them because of it. They obviously do this for a not just their livelihood, but to feed and provide for their family and have every right not withhold valuable information. Others, just don't have time to answer questions. Some on the other hand like to give back to the community differently and that is fine too. There is tons of great information and people here always willing to help so keep on looking to find what fits your appetite.

 

[Nth Degree]

I like to learn something from the C&B's so process (product, technique, etc.) is important to me...

Great point here, Al.



I think many of us have forgotten just how helpful these threads can be for a NOOB. With experience we learn less and less useful information from these posts and for that reason I think they become boring. Just like JSFM35X demonstrates in the post above.



I wish were getting more feedback from the lurkers. Hopefully we can all learn from this thread how to appeal to the target audience, whether it be other pros, potential customers, or eager DIYers.

 

[Scottwax]

More interested in the process and transformation than the actual vehicle.

 

[David Fermani]

I wish were getting more feedback from the lurkers. Hopefully we can all learn from this thread how to appeal to the target audience, whether it be other pros, potential customers, or eager DIYers.

X2 - Good observation. I've love to know what's on the minds of 100's, if not 1000's of viewers that check out each CnB. Why they do/don't comment and so forth?

 

[JSFM35X]

When I first came around I did not post for fear of saying something stupid. When you first arrive it is like you are on a different planet. Use 2 buckets 2BM ***? Grit guards? LSP ? Looking for defects with a super bright light? Plus everyone else seems to know what the OP is talking about but you.



It takes a while before you CAN ask and intelligent question.

X2 - Good observation. I've love to know what's on the minds of 100's, if not 1000's of viewers that check out each CnB. Why they do/don't comment and so forth?

 

[imported_01GreyStangGT1]

Coming from a long time lurker...



Things I like seeing:

• Daily drivers with dramatic before-and-after pictures. We can all gawk at high end exotics. But typically those cars are already in pretty decent condition to begin with. Show me the neglected daily driver that gets properly detailed.
  
• A couple of 50/50 pictures of paint correction
  
• Explanation of process and products used, and why a particular process and/or product
  
• Background story of client and/or car
  
• Total time spent on the detail
  

Things that I'm neutral towards:

• Videos. I like them for instructional purposes (e.g., for techniques), but they don't translate well into showing a "Wow" factor for the post-detail effect.
  
• Cost. Your money is your business.
  
• Too many higher-end and/or exotic cars -- usually not as dramatic due to detailing.
  

Things I don't like:

• More than a couple of pictures of minute scratches which were polished away. A couple of pictures are fine; I get it.
  
• More than a couple of pictures of paint correction. See previous bullet.
  

Just my 2 cents...

My thoughts exactly.

 

[Levidg]

I'll keep it in my mind when posting here

 

[nddfjjian]

Start to finish without beating you over the head with 200 pictures of the swirls.

 

[AndrewBigA]

i think it helps to have some eye candy in the final presentation. the girl has to be sexy & dressed well. i see alot of ugly girls try to model, they are wasting the detailers time by being ugly. an ugly girl doesn't help sell the work.

 

[Scottwax]

I can tell you what makes a bad click and brag for me. Posting a video without any pictures. I can read and look through a thread in a minute or two. Unless its a video of hot chicks, I'm not watching a 10 minute video.

 

[David Fermani]

I totally agree Scott. People like to see something here and now right in front of their face. They don't always want to be pestered into being locked down for a video.

 

[mborner]

What I like to see: First time efforts. Also, aged, well worn transformations on daily drivers with lots of miles.


 


What I don't like to see: Brand new 2013 / 2014 cars being buffed and polished right off the delivery truck. I'm tired of exotics and black BMW's, Audis, Mercedes Benz's, and Porsche's.