A TikTok user recently showed viewers a “hack” for getting customers to pay more money to get their cars detailed: If you have the right set of tools at your disposal, then you can confidently charge extra money for a service that some may find painstakingly time-consuming—even if you can handle it quite easily.
In a short video, Triple Lotus Success (@talkinglotus9) recorded themselves easily removing animal hair from a car’s interior using a brush attached to a drill. It’s assumed that the car’s owner paid extra to have the mess removed from the car.
“POV: ME UPCHARGING 100$ FOR PET HAIR THEN DRILL BRUSHING IT UP IN 10 seconds,” read text overlay on screen, followed by two laughing emojis.
@talkinglotus9 Fastest UPCHARGE in detailing?! 💵💵#cardetailing #cleaningtiktok #makingmoney #sidehustlesecrets ♬ NARCISSISTIC PERSONALITY DISORDER – Odetari
They doubled-down on the success of their methods in the video’s caption: “Fastest UPCHARGE in detailing?!”
To be sure, using enhancement tools to complete various—and seemingly time-consuming—tasks is nothing new. In fact, some podcasters are now using an artificial intelligence editing tool that turns hours of footage into a fully edited video within seconds.
But while the advent of newer gadgets might make these jobs easier for those who have those tools in their possession, the question remains on whether those with these enhancements should upcharge clients and customers who don’t own them.
In the comments section, several users applauded the detailers’ “work smarter, not harder,” approach. “I don’t think this is a scam. If they want it cheaper, they can do it themselves with their own drill brush at home,” one viewer wrote.
“You’re not paying for the time it took to do this,” said another. “You’re paying for the years of experience it took to get to this point.”
At least one pet owner agreed.
“I don’t understand why people are mad,” they said. “I have an Alaskan shepherd and I’d gladly pay the up charge because I clearly didn’t want to clean it myself.”
Other viewers, however, thought it was unfair for the detailer to charge extra money for a task that took mere seconds to complete.
“If you’re upcharging $100, I better not find 1 hair. That’s insane,” wrote one user.
“Haha never hiring a detailer thank you,” another viewer said.
The Daily Dot has reached out to @talkinglotus9 via email.
