I.B. Washincars
Car Washer Emeritus
I would buy it if it is "electrostatically bonded" to the paint.
Car Wash Forum
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Ceramic wax
- Thread starter Leee
- Start date
washnshine
Well-known member
I’d buy it if it came with a real cake.
AnalyticWash
Well-known member
This is a great move. $5 add on drives that top package to sky high pricing with very little increased costs. What % are buying the add-on?
The car wash industry is strange. What I tend to see is a lot of "Old men owners/operators/vendors" who are ignorant and resistant to change. I'd love to hear how you guys market to Gen X and Millennials.
"Hot Birthday Cake Scented Ceramic Sanitizing Sealant" is a good start & a lot better than "Carnauba"...
washnshine
Well-known member
This is a great move. $5 add on drives that top package to sky high pricing with very little increased costs. What % are buying the add-on?
The car wash industry is strange. What I tend to see is a lot of "Old men owners/operators/vendors" who are ignorant and resistant to change. I'd love to hear how you guys market to Gen X and Millennials.
"Hot Birthday Cake Scented Ceramic Sanitizing Sealant" is a good start & a lot better than "Carnauba"...
Where is your wash located? I’m sure a lot of the ignorant old guys (myself included) who frequent this forum would love to see how it’s done.
Seriously- let us know where your wash is and what product you are using - I am sure anyone on the forum that is not too far away would love to see the cutting edge work you are doing in terms of marketing and delivering a truly outstanding product. The nice thing about this forum is so that we share our knowledge and have no problem backing it up.
Oh - I almost forgot -by definition, “ceramics” are made with clay and hardened by heat. Some of the oldest ceramics date back to 25,000 b.c. Sounds like that term might be even older than “carnauba wax”
Looking forward to more meaningful and concrete information from you - and don’t forget to share your wash location!
AnalyticWash
Well-known member
Where is your wash located? I’m sure a lot of the ignorant old guys (myself included) who frequent this forum would love to see how it’s done.
Seriously- let us know where your wash is and what product you are using - I am sure anyone on the forum that is not too far away would love to see the cutting edge work you are doing in terms of marketing and delivering a truly outstanding product. The nice thing about this forum is so that we share our knowledge and have no problem backing it up.
Oh - I almost forgot -by definition, “ceramics” are made with clay and hardened by heat. Some of the oldest ceramics date back to 25,000 b.c. Sounds like that term might be even older than “carnauba wax”
Looking forward to more meaningful and concrete information from you - and don’t forget to share your wash location!
Let me know when you have digested the attached picture and we can talk. Axxlrod spells out exactly why you should make the move. I am not here to have you evaluate and critique the way I do things at my wash and to be honest I don't intend to ever share the exact way that I do things with anyone (at least not for free). I'm trying to give you advice here based on my first hand experiences with available ceramic products vs others. If you can understand what is going on in the industry you might see where you should be moving with your product offerings...
I let data drive my wash...not intuition.
soapy
Senior Member
I have checked and the ceramic wax for a IBA application is actually a bit cheaper than the Rain X. Rain X has the better name recognition at this time. I will say that I applied real ceramic coating to my Hellcat by hand last year and I just ran through one of my washes tonight and it still beads and shines after the soap is rinsed off before any wax or drying agents are applied.
AnalyticWash I believe ceramic is the way to go.
How did you get the numbers to come up with the graph?
Because the graph though is not compelling for making my decision nor is your attitude.
This industry has changed LARGELY since early 2000’s BECAUSE of new investors who were more open to discussing with other operators (veterans).
Trust me when I say this but when you talk about not sharing ideas and info you sound like the operators from the 60’s-90’s. Not what is moving this industry now. I know this cause I’ve been around a long time.
I’ve been a data guy all my life and I can tell you this industry has benefited greatly from open conversations.
I wish you Good Luck and hope you a successful life in the future.
How did you get the numbers to come up with the graph?
Because the graph though is not compelling for making my decision nor is your attitude.
This industry has changed LARGELY since early 2000’s BECAUSE of new investors who were more open to discussing with other operators (veterans).
Trust me when I say this but when you talk about not sharing ideas and info you sound like the operators from the 60’s-90’s. Not what is moving this industry now. I know this cause I’ve been around a long time.
I’ve been a data guy all my life and I can tell you this industry has benefited greatly from open conversations.
I wish you Good Luck and hope you a successful life in the future.
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AnalyticWash
Well-known member
minimal. This is going to variable depending on many factors but I have seen ceramics applied on an IBA for .25 to .35/car
When it comes to IBA and SS...This is the exact mindset that I believe has plagued this industry. I have seen owners switch chemicals to save a couple thousand dollars a year or cut down on soap application to save money...and end up losing customers.
My comment before about how I see all these car wash owners who step over dollars to pick up pennies is only reinforced by this. What does the cost per car matter if you can educate and market a new product to increase sales? In the grand scheme of things car wash chemicals are cheap and the margins are nuts...a quarter here, a penny there...who cares? get more sales and you wont care what you spend on chemicals.
Anyone here who agrees/disagrees is welcome to chime in. Or PM me.
Numbers are from Google
Who is to say some of those ideas have not hurt the industry? the Express business has killed many IBA/SS washes. I have no desire to help Express tunnel owners/corporations with anything (they tend to be the most arrogant). I will help owners with IBA/SS all day long and give my opinion on everything. They might not agree with my opinion but I have experience doubling revenue on multiple sites in less than 4 years.
I will share ideas to an extent but my wash is not located in a 1 wash town. I have a lot of competition and I'm not about to give them the recipe for my secret sauce.
But I might tell you an ingredient.
Well I don’t use either product as of now so figured I’d ask to see what the difference was, my apologies for asking such a stupid question. I guess I’ll get back to stepping over those dollars I have lying around. Geez.
Sheesh, guys. Progress and change are always on the horizon. Ceramic products are the current "hot item".
Were some of you guys so against the Rain-X products when they were introduced last decade?
It's a new chemical option that customers can see/feel for themselves that will make you more money.
Not sure why so many of you are against this. But whatever... doesn't affect me any.
Were some of you guys so against the Rain-X products when they were introduced last decade?
It's a new chemical option that customers can see/feel for themselves that will make you more money.
Not sure why so many of you are against this. But whatever... doesn't affect me any.
soapy
Senior Member
My Blue COral chemical rep dropped by today and he is going to send me out 5 gallons of their ceramic so I can compare it to the RainX that they also sell me. I think I will put it in one of my automatics and give it a good side by side comparison. It is slightly more expensive than the RainX in cost but the first 5 gallons is free for me to try.
I’m pretty sure it’s because as you say you’re using it in your tunnel not your self serv.
I am in the process of redoing my tunnel and will definitely be using it.
It’s my self services that I’m also thinking about adding it too. I‘m pretty sure many of the self service operators here are thinking the same thing.
With the right signage I’m sure it will be successful.
But at what cost. Can I make a profit in the self servs is the question?
I am in the process of redoing my tunnel and will definitely be using it.
It’s my self services that I’m also thinking about adding it too. I‘m pretty sure many of the self service operators here are thinking the same thing.
With the right signage I’m sure it will be successful.
But at what cost. Can I make a profit in the self servs is the question?
We just swapped out Rain Shield for Reflection in our Softgloss. I'm not sure if it's considered a ceramic product. The product beads water well and smells nice. If it doesn't build up in the lines like the Rain Shield does I will be happy.
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washnshine
Well-known member
I hear you Axxlrod. I get offering the latest and greatest. - I jumped right onboard with rain x because it promised and delivered something new - a bright shine and longer water repellency that we had not seen before - on all surfaces of the car. Plus it didn’t have any mso in it.
Jumped right on Hot wax too - offered a gloss and smooth/slick feeling to the paint- again - that we had not had before. Also came along with a unique application process - if you wanted.
Not saying I won’t ever use ceramics - probably will try them some day, but just in the initial sell sheets and product descriptions, I am failing to see what it is promising that is New and we currently do not offer other than the name.
If a customer came up to me and said what does this do that your rain x and hot wax don’t already do - I would like to give an honest answer - not some bs. And if the sell sheet said something like “repels water for 45 days, at least I could say that. But again, I fail to see the New and improved attributes from the actual manufacturers of these products.
Forget the name or what it is called - we can all market them as anything. You can call ceramic “wax” you can call wax “sealer” Or whatever. I just need to see and offer a tangible difference to justify it to my customers. Maybe not so much if it is included or thrown in with the top package, but if I am asking for $4-$5 more for an application, they are going to have to see something beyond what rain x and hot wax do. Those products are still successful for tons of operators because they deliver something that had not been offered before they came along. I know many operators who already add hot wax for $4-$5.
If ceramic sealants offer something new and improved other than the name. I’ll try it in a minute.
soonermajic
Well-known member
it took me less than 2 years to completely double my business, & it is looking like I may be climbing towards 120---130% more on yr 3. Not sure I'd wanna wait 4 years to do that. Maybe if you used Carnauba, you could've accomplished that in half the time...?!
My college coach told me once "you learn the most after you already know it all, & i think you're about to reach effin genius level" !!! Ha.
My college coach told me once "you learn the most after you already know it all, & i think you're about to reach effin genius level" !!! Ha.
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