Clean It Up

UK Floor Cleaning Forum => Carpet Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: Jamie Lindsay on November 18, 2011, 04:50:53 pm

Title: min call out
Post by: Jamie Lindsay on November 18, 2011, 04:50:53 pm
how much do yous guys charge min for carpet cleaning... I was thinking of putting a £60 min on my flyer whats your views ??? cheers
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: Jim_77 on November 18, 2011, 04:58:36 pm
Sounds about right.  I can't be arsed running round for peanuts!
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: Carpet2Clean on November 18, 2011, 05:02:26 pm
Hi Jamie..My min call out is £25 it was £35..The work die off when it was £35..It all depends on the area you live in.....(Richard)
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: Steve Gunn on November 18, 2011, 05:03:51 pm
Mines £45 which puts a few off who can get 3 carpets for £29 ::)
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: craignozza on November 18, 2011, 05:25:31 pm
Mines £45 aswell  :)
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: mark_roberts on November 18, 2011, 05:34:20 pm
Tough call.

Lost one today when I said £60.  Previous customer 20miles away who only wanted a vomit stain removing.  Only one carpet in the house.

Did a job today for a lady who has referred me several times.  Couldnt remove the apple juice stain she steamed.  Was there 30mins and charged a £10 for diesel.

Depends on who it is and how much hassle it is.  If its easy and small its and easy £30-£60 for up to an hours work can be fitted around larger jobs.

What Id really like to do is re-arrange all of next weeks jobs around my needs and not the needs of the customer.  Id probably have an extra 1/2 day.

Mark
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: markpowell on November 18, 2011, 06:38:05 pm
Stain removal £29.00 standard charge, only charge if removal 100% successful.
Min charge £50 for all other work.
Mark
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: AshWhite on November 18, 2011, 06:40:56 pm
When I started, I had a min. charge of £40, and I was charging £29 for a lounge.  I would get calls asking for prices of doing a lounge, and when I explained that the cost was £29, but a £40 min. charge I would get loads of "OK, I'll get back to you".

So I increased my lounge price to £39, and reduced my min. charge to £39, now hardly anybody gives me that line.

And, before anyone chips in - I'm well aware that £39 is far less than a lot of you charge - but I live in the middle of Terraced house city, there's not enough room to swing a cat in half the rooms I do.
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: Dennis B on November 18, 2011, 06:59:48 pm
Hi Jamie..My min call out is £25 it was £35..The work die off when it was £35..It all depends on the area you live in.....(Richard)

Having a miinimum call out any higher than £35 and i may as well wave good bye to potential customers, up selling is a lot easier with a lower min call out rate, as mentioned above your location makes a big difference.
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: Tony Rowley on November 18, 2011, 07:10:09 pm
I try to stick to a minimum of £50 but if a previous customer wants something done that I would usually charge less for then I compromise with them, if it is really small and you feel bad saying its £x minimum just ask them is there anything else that could be included, most people understand that you need to make a living, if they don't it's probably more trouble than it's worth.

Tony
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: Shaun_Ashmore on November 18, 2011, 07:33:21 pm
£59.00 for me,

Shaun
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: Andrew Briscoe on November 18, 2011, 07:38:19 pm
I charge a minimum 45 + vat if in town
50 + just out of town and 55+ elsewhere

Andrew
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: Shaun_Ashmore on November 18, 2011, 08:02:44 pm
Min charge only applies on the smallest of jobs you may be surprised how much cleaning you don't get done for a min charge.

Shaun
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: Neil Williams on November 18, 2011, 08:23:47 pm
£50 + vat for new customers, less for regular customers.

Although I will break that rule dependant on circumstances, like one coming up where she has two very young children, one of which had a stroke at 3 days old and is mentaly handicapped, the other child also has a mental handicap and suffers from seizures (and some people think their lives are tough). Also her mother in law is due for Christmas and expects everything to be clean. AND just when you think this would be a candicate for help from children in need, oh no she raises money for the cause not takes from it.
I've told her £40 but I'm thinking of giving that money to children in need.
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: justin 88 on November 18, 2011, 09:39:39 pm
£80 min call out. was going to put it up to £125 ???
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: shine services on November 18, 2011, 09:58:04 pm
£125!! R u bein serious????
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: Simon Moat on November 18, 2011, 10:05:34 pm
No minimum call out for me, going by what people state they charge on here I'd say I'm pretty mid price in all honesty, but without shouting from the rooftops, fortunately, we stay busy and earn a very decent living.

Every job is worthwhile!
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: Shaun_Ashmore on November 18, 2011, 10:06:13 pm
My mate in the NW has a could be £99 call out, in the US it's not unusual to see $100 but that could be for 3 rooms and their rooms are bigger but the distance between jobs are far greater so the costing are far different.

Shaun
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: Colin Day on November 18, 2011, 10:17:21 pm
No minimum call out for me, going by what people state they charge on here I'd say I'm pretty mid price in all honesty, but without shouting from the rooftops, fortunately, we stay busy and earn a very decent living.

Every job is worthwhile!

I think most of us are the same. You'd get laughed out of Cornwall if you said your minimum charge was £125....

Title: Re: min call out
Post by: justin 88 on November 18, 2011, 10:18:01 pm
deadly serious.............anything to put price shoppers off!!!
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: justin 88 on November 18, 2011, 10:21:21 pm
but im not in cornwall!!!!!! Obvioulsy it depends on who your target market is and your locations. There are others on here who charge similar
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: Colin Day on November 18, 2011, 10:26:47 pm
but im not in cornwall!!!!!! Obvioulsy it depends on who your target market is and your locations. There are others on here who charge similar

Definitely a geographical thing.

I'm not knocking you or your prices mate, I've gone in with high quotes when I first started up (with the "Reassuringly Expensive" mind-set) and have literally been told to leave..... ;D
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: justin 88 on November 18, 2011, 10:34:59 pm
no worries colin. i have made my own database and constantly target the affluent customers. not saying this is right but it's the market i choose and like. have lost work before though. esp with groupon about!!
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: Jamie Lindsay on November 18, 2011, 11:12:19 pm
I mean time you travel to job set up eqp pack away eqp get hot water etc calculate you avarage time doing this and you will be surprised... times money as they say haha... thats why I was talking about the first carpet x amount any after x amount
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: John Kelly on November 19, 2011, 09:38:47 am
Up in the "depressed North East" we have cleaners with £69, £80 and £65 min charges and they are all multi van operations. One of them is a Chem Dry.
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: MAX Carpets on November 20, 2011, 03:40:23 pm
£55
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: Ian Rochester on November 20, 2011, 06:53:53 pm
£48, (£40 +vat)
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: Wayne Boardman on November 20, 2011, 09:56:34 pm
£45.00

Normal turns out to be more once you get the foot in the door
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: Ian Gourlay on November 21, 2011, 09:00:51 am
According to you Website  your minimum charge is £25   They invite you round it goes to minimum charge £45  then you apply even more pressure and you live in the part of England where you should get £100 for a lounge
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: clinton on November 21, 2011, 04:44:18 pm
I try and keep it at the 50 pound mark ..
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: PaulKing on November 22, 2011, 07:05:02 am
Cost it out if anyone is doing more than break even on 40 I'd be surprised. Time and diesel,alone are going to be 50% of that unless your working for minimum wage in which case get a job at McDonald and get free grub.
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: PaulKing on November 22, 2011, 07:07:31 am
£80 min call out. was going to put it up to £125 ???

You know I was thinking something similar, maybe a reduced stain removal rate but only when we are in the area
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: Jamie Pearson on November 22, 2011, 04:26:16 pm
Just had a call for floor cleaning in Edinburgh (okay not carpets)

I explained our minimum charge for hard flooring work is £195.00 + VAT.

She claimed that was a "disgusting amount to be charging"

I asked her how she heard about us and she told me Yellow Pages.
She phoned us because we have the smallest advert which she believed to be misleading.
Not the content of the add just the size.
She didnt want to pay the huge prices the "big ad" people were charging so phoned one of the little ads looking for a better price.
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: Steve Gunn on November 22, 2011, 07:04:51 pm
Cost it out if anyone is doing more than break even on 40 I'd be surprised. Time and diesel,alone are going to be 50% of that unless your working for minimum wage in which case get a job at McDonald and get free grub.

Everyone's costs are different,I know a franchisee who spends over £1200 a month on advertising,then his premises to pay for,van,employees etc etc. Now he needs to charge accordingly to make a profit.

Me on the other hand don't pay for any advertising apart from my websites,rent for my unit,van/fuel etc etc.
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: PaulKing on November 23, 2011, 09:28:01 pm
watch out for those ect ect they mount up!
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: Mike Halliday on November 23, 2011, 09:39:42 pm
most business cost are fixed, it cost the company the same for you to do nothing or a small job....... apart for the cost of the diesel to get there.

I can sit at home and the unit will still cost the same, so will all the insurances 

the only time the amount of your min charge makes a difference is if you are busy all the time then if that £25 minumum charge job stops you doing a bigger £80 you lose out......... but if that minimum charge jobs replaces you watching Jeremy Kyle in a morning then once the diesel is paid most of the rest is profit
Title: Re: min call out
Post by: chrisjohn on November 24, 2011, 08:21:53 am
£45 within 2 or 3 miles,any further £55.

Chris