Bigpoppa3346
New member
ShineShop said:This is where educating your customers and making sure you know exactly what their expectations are BEFORE you start is hugely important. Making sure you explain all the different possibilities of what you can do and how much each will cost can help avoid customers coming back and complaining about things they didn't want to pay for. I try and avoid doing these types of jobs - especially with interior jobs. I can't even begin to get into how many people come in and need a shampoo but demand just a "quickie" because they don't want to pay. That was always the #1 source of customer complaints for me when I first opened
602rwtq said:After a few hundred cars, you learn to point out the "land mines" on cars when you check the car in:
1. Scratches that reached basecoat
2. Stains that won't come out 100%
3. Dog hair that can't be completely removed.
4. Brake dust staining that is permanent.
5. Items not covered by a "cheaper" or "quickie" service.
Don't just take the keys and go to work. Do a 2 minute walkaround and realistically describe what you can achieve...every time.
Don't get me wrong, the number of times I've had issues with customers can be counted on two hands; and yes, this is over the course of several hundred cars. I should probably just chalk it up to an anomaly more than anything.
The issue with scratch removal with a wash and wax was indeed after I spent a bit of time going over things with the customer (he wanted an interior detail and wash and wax). They were fine scratches (more like isolated deep marring, removed without much fuss), but the thing was, for each "scratch" he pointed out (maybe 2 or 3 total), I saw several more on less noticable areas or on lower panels. So do I point those other ones out to him, or leave it be? To give a little context, it was on a dark blue Boxster that he was putting away for the winter, and he said (again, prior to the detail) that he would have me polish it in the spring.
The bug etching was a weird situation which I won't get into, as it wasn't a big deal, but it reminds me of another scenario I was in. I did maintenance washes on a few cars for an elderly couple, I spoke with the husband who wanted X done on two cars, I do it, he pays me, then his wife calls me ~4 hours later complaining that I didn't do Y. I ended up doing it for free (Y being the seats and dash cleaned, too) because the rest of her family are excellent customers of mine and it only required a half an hour. I kind of dislike dealing with elderly customers (particularly this one) due to things like this. I guess when one reaches their late 70s, spousal communication isn't at its peak, plus they can just forget what work they requested be done.