Using Automatic Car Wash May Do Your Paint Work More Harm

Automatic car washes can be found dotted around many places and are used quite often by many to get their cars cleaned. Given the busy lifestyles that many of us pursue, using an automatic car wash may seem a very sensible way of keeping our cars in clean condition. Others use these due to cost as what you pay at these places tend to be a fraction of what you will pay engaging the services of a professional valeter or car cleaning company

Whilst many of us may have very good reason for using an automatic car wash, what we don’t realise is the damage some of these could cause to the paintwork of our cars 

The possibility of filthy brushes

There is no doubt that many of these can wash and clean cars well. Many of these auto car washes could be washing tens, if not, hundreds of cars every day. The possibility of the huge brushes picking debris could be very high. Many of these machines do not have pre-rinse facilities and there is the high possibility you could end up having your car washed with dirty brushes.

The type of shampoo used

Many of these use shampoos with high chemical contents. This gives them the ability to perform a good job on the cars. Unfortunately the continuous use of these chemicals on your car could end up fading your paint work in the long run. You could end up with the possibility of needing a paint restoration job on your car to bring it back to acceptable condition

Recycled water

Recycled water is increasingly being used in many of these machines. While on the face, the water may seem clean, we cannot discount the fact that they could still contain harmful bacteria, gems and other pollutants. Recycled microscopic dust particles could still remain in the water, even after recycling and these could all end up on your car

Washing may not be very thorough

There is no denying of the fact that a lot of these machines try to do a good job. Unfortunately, cars have certain areas that are quite difficult to clean. Such areas may include the wheel aches, around mouldings, alloy wheels with many spokes, etc. Such areas are quite difficult to reach or may require the use of small brushes, water jets, etc. to reach. Professional car cleaners will, in many cases, have the right equipment and machinery to reach these areas.

You could end up with scratches on your car

Many of the rollers leave very light scratches on cars  and over time these continuously eat deeper into the paintwork. If you take your car to one of these car washes, we will encourage you to look closely at your paint work, especially with the car sitting outside in a very clear weather. There is the high possibility of seeing lots of circular lines (scratches) on the car. This is usually very prominent on the bonnet and boot. It shows the damage you could be doing to your paint work as a result of using the automatic car wash.

There is no denying the fact that these automatic car washes serve a good purpose. However, we believe they should be used with caution and on very limited basis, if at all. Using the services of a car valet company or a professional valeter could be mean paying a little more. But if you have spent thousands of pounds to acquire a motor vehicle, paying a 2 figure sum to get it washed with the knowledge that the right equipment and the proper chemicals will be used should be a price worth paying for

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Techniques For Building Client Trust

All relationships thrive on trust. Without trust, there is a lot of misunderstanding and a lot of question marks over many things we do, no matter how good our intentions are. Thus cultivating a high level of trust with the clients and businesses we deal with is a must for the survival of any business

Building client trust must be seen as an on-going business 

Building client trust must be seen as an on-going process and should be pursued on a daily basis. Below are a number of methods we can use to enable us to cultivate a high level of trust with both our existing and new businesses we deal with.

Building client trust - some recommended strategies

Do not promise what you can’t deliver:

In order to “keep the client sweet”, you could fall into the trap of agreeing to any request and or promise to deliver without seriously considering whether what the client is asking for can be achieved or delivered within the time frame. It will be better to make it clear to the customer if a particular request will be difficult to achieve than to promise to deliver and fail.

Deliver what you promise

It is always good to make sure you fulfil whatever promise you make.  If you promise to complete a particular task on a particular day and time, make sure it happens. This is very important as your clients may rely on your word to enable them to meet the requirements of their customers. Breaking your promises would end up breaking the trust of your clients and could put your contract into question.

Let the customer know how you do things

While we all like to protect our trade secrets, it is sometimes necessary to make some of our clients understand the way we do and go about things. This is particularly true in cases of outsourcing, for example, to car cleaning contractors, maintenance and IT contractors, web design and Internet marketing firms and even general cleaning contractors. This will give them an insight as to what to expect and the time frames.

Don’t give your clients false hopes

It is necessary to set boundaries, especially when negotiating the contract. There is the tendency to say yes to anything in an attempt to win the contract only to start dragging your feet later. It will be good to let the client know what is chargeable and what is not, right from the word go, rather than springing unexpected invoices on the client

Let your clients understand your plans and strategies

Keep the client informed of how you intend to execute a particular project. If as a a car valet company, you have 100 car valets to complete for an auction on a particular day, keep your client assured by keeping them informed of how you  intend to meet the deadline. This will give the client more confidence and raise the level of trust, especially if you are able to deliver as planned.

Set boundaries

It is good to let both parties know and understand what is expected of each other. This will avoid stepping on each other’s toes and creating misunderstanding. Make the client aware of what they have to supply or provide to enable you to fulfil your part of the contract. If provided facilities are not adequate to enable you to carry out the contract to the best of your ability, it may be necessary to make the client aware and where possible work with them to put the right facilities in place, or extend the hours required for the completion of a particular task

Keep the client informed of problems

Problems do occur and are sometimes unavoidable. Make sure you inform the customer as soon as they happen, instead of waiting for the customer to stumble upon it. Keeping the client informed will build trust better

Make the client feel valuable

Never make the client feel stupid under any circumstances. Choose your language carefully and control your thoughts. If you start thinking negatively about your client, it is bound to show at some point. It is very important to always cultivate good thoughts about your clients and it will show in your actions, your services and your relationship with your client.

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