Clean It Up
UK Floor Cleaning Forum => Carpet Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: Paul Moss on April 10, 2014, 02:37:48 pm
-
Competition is hotting up now
https://www.facebook.com/Dipsdirtycarpetcleaners?fref=photo
-
£30 for ALL your carpets. You need to put your prices up mate. You could easily get £32. How's the arm?😃
Simon
-
Broken arm fixed in a week too ;)
-
' SCOTCHGUARDING' £5 a room or sofa
I think I worked out it cost on average £14 to protect a living room using chemspec Stain shield, wonder what he's using
But good luck to him, if he's happy who are we to scorn his endeavour :)
-
It's a she.
It just devalues our industry. Guess she's just making pocket money, all cash probably.
-
Mike he may be using the same as you just mixing it at 2000/1 ;)
-
Did you see the plastic waste tank sitting on the stairs? Wonder what mickey mouse machine
that came out of?
-
its a vax or a bissel machine she is using.
Craig is right, makes the industry a laughing stock and devalues our service.
Someone is going to say that her customers wont be our customers. BUT they might of been!
Why would she mention her arm break on her fb page? numpty. very unprofessional.
-
This is happening more and more every year . Even more so over the past 12 months.
I saw this coming a few years ago and I foresee the industry being devalued greatly in the next two years.
For this reason myself and others no longer post help on this type of forum as it is gleamed by far too many of this type of operator.
-
Mr Moss you didn't have anything to do with the broken arm did ya :o
-
"DIRTY CARPET CLEANERS"? I do at least have a wash before arriving at a job. £30 / Job? Maybe it's the future, but it's certainly not in my game plan to raise my prices to that amount :D
-
ABSOLUTELY Aidy... we can leave the likes of Simon to charge those dizzy high prices...
us common folk will stick to our £19.99 and hope they let us keep the penny change..
;D
-
They'll be selling rolls Royce cars for under a grand next! It's a matter of finding the right customer it's not a time to be lazy!
Shaun
-
Paul made a great post and he is spot on with the devaluation of our business.. :)
-
This is happening more and more every year . Even more so over the past 12 months.
Is it? Or is it just easier to spot them now ?
Do you get more flyers for cheap carpet cleaning through your door?
Do you see more of them out there on the web?
Or is it just on Facebook where its easy to advertise, free and like shooting fish in a barrel at that end of the market?
-
Its people like this that when you give a true and genuine price that cause a customer to say......"HOW much!!!!!!???????"
Its the same with office cleaning, too many `charities` out there doing work for nil profit! They must have charitable status because they certainly are not a business!
-
Its people like this that when you give a true and genuine price that cause a customer to say......"HOW much!!!!!!???????"
Its the same with office cleaning, too many `charities` out there doing work for nil profit! They must have charitable status because they certainly are not a business!
Spot on Terry. They're a pain in the backside.
-
So why give them all the answers to how to run their business and solve problems on an open forum ?
I can understand suppliers doing it to get business... But why the rest of you?
We are talking business here and not a past time forum, ,,,,ll or us it ?
-
Exactly Paul, all members on here unwittingly help their own competition, I'm happy to help others but this forum is far too public.
-
So why do you bother logging onto CIU? If you are not willing to give advice then you are just taking from the forum but not willing to give,
You must be in a sorry state if you feel so threatened by these cheap companies that you feel the need to keep your knowledge to yourself in case you might help out a cheapo company.
These companies have always been around and always will be, it's like home-clean who used to mass leaflet 'half price offer'
The world is full of customers willing to pay good prices just go out and find them rather than moan that cheapo companies are stealing all the work, the are taking a morsel of the business out there
-
"take" from here? Not read a great deal worth taking.
Still ok for chit chat, and I'll carry on thanks.
-
Craig do you not see the irony of your answer?
Plus pretty insulting to all the other member who have taken time to give advice which you don't thinks worth even taking.
-
Mike your bound to make that comment and give advice, because after all you get paid by the site to do that ;D
Craig your spot on mate, Mike just needs to post for his ego :)
-
Paul do you mean that £40 gift voucher we get at xmas ;)
Paul be honest, can you remember the last job you lost to someone who advertises on Facebook? Are these companies really harming your business?
-
Irony, no I'm well informed already, so the advice is less useful to me, unlike the new cheapos that come on here for a leg up from their own comp.
Do I recall you had someone in your own area take your advice on leaflets and even tried to pinch your leafleters?
-
Paul do you mean that £40 gift voucher we get at xmas ;)
Paul be honest, can you remember the last job you lost to someone who advertises on Facebook? Are these companies really harming your business?
:) Mike you missed the 0 off. ;)
Do they effect my business? No, but they are diluting the industry and also deflating prices. Mike I bet your carpet cleaning prices and offers are similar to what you where charging 5 years ago.
Me you and a lot of others have worked hard and spent a lot of money to perfect our skill, I did not mind passing that on in recent times to help like minded people. But now most of the people on the forum are out to make a cheap buck in a short term and don't put anything back into the industry or to help others. Yes that has always been the case, but I would say over the past couple of years that number has trebbled and also work is harder to get because they are charging or advertising stupid prices.
-
Nope my prices have risen greatly in the last 5 years :) :)
I don't think the number has increased over the last few years it's just like everything we live in a digital ages where information is more readily avalable... There are not more of them, we just now are more aware of them.
My local YPS book used to have 48 companies listed now it is less than 15, but there are still out there using different methods of finding customer.
Plus they can charge cheap prices but unless our customer see those prices it's irrelevant. we are tuned into these companies so notice them,our customers don't give a rats bum about our carpet cleaning until the time they need us. all the cheap advertising in the world is ignored by our customer..... but we see it and take notice
-
Mike what are you charging now for
Living room
Through lounge
Bedroom
H/s/l
3 piece suite
-
25% more than you, For a Job thats 50% better.... how's that for value ;) ;)
Seriously, if I was going to give a ball park figure I would say whatever equates to £100 an hour, if we are in the house for an hour we would earn over £100, (this is not to say we work 8hrs a day as most people comment when this future is mentioned)
Most jobs are priced by how long it will take, so we can do empty 2 bed house for less than a ton but did a single bedroom last week that was more as it was a nightmare to do ( 3rd floor, polished banisters, big bed to move)
-
So if some body phones you for a standard living room or a 3 piece suite on their own, what's your price.
-
I don't know, I never give a price over the phone.
Out of interest I told you my figures what price would you give ?
-
Mike change jobs now and go and be a politician for the Conservative party ;D
-
So mike if you can do a 2 bed house for under £100 then that makes you a cheapie lol del
-
Jason l works the same area as me and uses a similar method to clean does that mean we charge the same prices for everything? Looking at his website prices published on here the answer is no.
Prices are in the head if you sell to one customer at your price you then look for their demographic/friends/doppelgänger
Shaun
-
We have this issue near us. I quoted £60 to clean 1 living room 100% wool carpet (2k). Woman said why do I think that's expensive?!
I just walked away without explaining myself. Most of my customers know somethings wrong cleaning all the carpets for £50 etc.
How many carpets shrink with dodgy carpet cleaners and using hired machines!
I still win 90% of quotes that I give out. Most is referrals anyway.
-
So why do you bother logging onto CIU? If you are not willing to give advice then you are just taking from the forum but not willing to give,
You must be in a sorry state if you feel so threatened by these cheap companies that you feel the need to keep your knowledge to yourself in case you might help out a cheapo company.
These companies have always been around and always will be, it's like home-clean who used to mass leaflet 'half price offer'
The world is full of customers willing to pay good prices just go out and find them rather than moan that cheapo companies are stealing all the work, the are taking a morsel of the business out there
bang on the money mike
-
This is happening more and more every year . Even more so over the past 12 months.
I saw this coming a few years ago and I foresee the industry being devalued greatly in the next two years.
For this reason myself and others no longer post help on this type of forum as it is gleamed by far too many of this type of operator.
so does this include me paul ??? as something changed in your life ?? as when we meet a few years ago I would of said you were one of the more swiched on guys seeing all side of the industry and your like myself and have forgot more then most will ever know its a shame you have been turned into a hater ???
-
This is happening more and more every year . Even more so over the past 12 months.
I saw this coming a few years ago and I foresee the industry being devalued greatly in the next two years.
For this reason myself and others no longer post help on this type of forum as it is gleamed by far too many of this type of operator.
so does this include me paul ??? as something changed in your life ?? as when we meet a few years ago I would of said you were one of the more swiched on guys seeing all side of the industry and your like myself and have forgot more then most will ever know its a shame you have been turned into a hater ???
Susan , I'm not a hater at all .
People Like you, no,
you like me and many others have worked your way up in the game by training, by experience, by investing, testing and by sharing with like minded cleaners for many years.
I am however against people who do none of the above, they just gleam information from these type of forums / internet and go hire a machine and then work for a fast buck,usually part time from their day job for holiday money or beer money and charge stupid prices to do so.
That I'm afraid is causing the serious guys more problems along the road, even more so now as times are getting harder.
-
£30 for ALL your carpets.
Don't forget the 10% discount for having a broken arm.
I'd love to she what she quotes for a 5 bedroom house in Kings Lynn on Berber twist and coir carpet and 3 flights of stairs. She'd have to walk there to make any money!
Perhaps we should embrace these people and get them to do our work as subbies. Id love to sit at home for £300 a day profit for doing nothing (removes tongue from cheek).
In all seriousness we want to preserve our reputation and service quality by offering the best value for money not the cheapest. Since the economic downturn everyone has been looking to save on everything and people will always cash in on this fact. The number of clean your house for £x is increasing as are the number of second user carpet cleaning machines on eBay (go figure).
But people do still respect professionalism and word of mouth is still king.
Having a set of snap on tools doesn't make you a better mechanic and charging low amounts for cleaning certainly doesn't make you rich. So in 30 years time we shall all be retiring with a little money in the bank and she will still be scrubbing the same carpets until she's 90.
Personally I won't even try to compete with these people, I'd rather clean 1 carpet for £30 than 8.
And what do people glean from this forum? Does it help if we recommend a great product? I could tell everyone to use something that works great but would bleach a wool carpet. When they bleach the wool carpet what do they say to the client. Perhaps I suggest a great acid wash for flooring and they use it on Marble.
I have seen a great number of these companies and individuals come and go and they get the jobs and clients they deserve (Mostly ones I wouldn't like to provide a service for and have walked away from in the past). They turn up at the cleaning suppliers looking for a £2 bucket and some detergent and set up their cleaning company with a bissel and a mop.
So what do we do? Give them a hand up and steer them towards the standards we expect from ourselves, guide and nurture them so we all benefit or leave them in the darkness only ignorance can provide. yes, some will not bother and will fall away like autumn leaves but some will grow and progress and in years to come may even be moaning about the individuals who start up as they did.
I don't feel threatened by them, just a little peeved by those who employ them. But I know which battles to fight. Let's celebrate our own success instead of bemoaning their failure.
I always remember the old saying, "those you knife on the way up are the ones that kick you hardest on the way down".
-
Jason l works the same area as me and uses a similar method to clean does that mean we charge the same prices for everything? Looking at his website prices published on here the answer is no.
Prices are in the head if you sell to one customer at your price you then look for their demographic/friends/doppelgänger
Shaun
I do big flood jobs and commercial carpet cleans every month which means I have no need to charge much on domestics . Just ticking over 9am -2 pm taking £300 does me.
-
This is happening more and more every year . Even more so over the past 12 months.
I saw this coming a few years ago and I foresee the industry being devalued greatly in the next two years.
For this reason myself and others no longer post help on this type of forum as it is gleamed by far too many of this type of operator.
so does this include me paul ??? as something changed in your life ?? as when we meet a few years ago I would of said you were one of the more swiched on guys seeing all side of the industry and your like myself and have forgot more then most will ever know its a shame you have been turned into a hater ???
Susan , I'm not a hater at all .
People Like you, no,
you like me and many others have worked your way up in the game by training, by experience, by investing, testing and by sharing with like minded cleaners for many years.
I am however against people who do none of the above, they just gleam information from these type of forums / internet and go hire a machine and then work for a fast buck,usually part time from their day job for holiday money or beer money and charge stupid prices to do so.
That I'm afraid is causing the serious guys more problems along the road, even more so now as times are getting harder.
ok thanks paul glad the switch on one is still :P
before the haters start I am talking to paul because he can have a good debate without banging his chest like an ape unlike most on here but feel free to add your views if there good ones
as the carpet cleaning industry gone the same way as the white good fixing industry but carpet cleaners are glinging on to hope when theres no point because the good times are over ????, many years ago there were 1000s of washing mechine fixing people , they were ripping people off left right and center , banging on about how well trained they were , and how there service was the best and let stick them the highest price ect ect like many on here, where have they all gone ???? there on the dole that's where
customers got sick of paying to much so they went out and bought new ones , ok they brought the price of new units down which helped just like discount carpet places can you see where I am comeing from here
I am sure there were fourms like this one full of white goods tecs, saying " get the training " , get the new van , hit the top end markets but at the end of the day most of them went skint because the pubic said no to high prices and when this happens all the training, all the top end customers in the world wont help pay your bills
and lets face it if you shrink a carpet nobody dies but wire a washer up the wrong way and your house goes on fire and you need your white good unlike your carpet cleaning and that trade is finshed baring a few which most of them are the cow boys
-
I'd more or less agree with the last statement but some cleaners have learned how to market and sell their services, affiliations into insurance work and also different market places like high end fabrics means that's more risk so the price is linear to that.
Just like carpets can be cheaper washing machines can be but then you get the different ranges and prices so is it worth repairing or replacing? finding the repairing or even the customer that wants their high end item servicing is the challenge.
The main problem is that most cleaners advertise in the same places with varying prices and quality then complain that they are getting under cut, you have to keep evolving in any trade I mean who'd have thought the cash cow the big yellow book would have gone into the great library in the sky?!
You don't have to just work hard on cleaning carpets!
Shaun
-
People have more choice than ever before ,the internet will list them tens of thousands of cc. 128,000 results for carpet cleaners cheshire .
You have to be more than a carpet cleaner, Marketing is the No1 thing without it you're naffed ,why do you think large companies have advertising manager ,.
you have to get the work in to pay the advertisers to get the work to pay the advertisers. then hopefully at the end of the year you will have more money than you need to pay out .
You have to be different 3 for 2, free scotch guard smallest room free they have heard it all before .
sell Yourself gain trust .
This Guy has got it nailed http://www.artofclean.co.uk/ I bet hes the same as mike known all over cambridge he creates a experiance . hes made it like a family , he comes across as if he cares and hes got a team that can solve Your problems , so if its leather they will say is Marty available, he has created a connection .
Im sure that when people call him they have already made their minds up that they are booking him.
Pierre is creating connections all the time over 2500 likes on face book https://www.facebook.com/artofclean
Are they the customers who are looking to pay £20 yes the same ones but pierre isnt selling carpet cleaning hes selling Trust, experience, connections .
I do a blog and on it is a page how to start your own carpet cleaning business i get a least one a week emailing me or phoning asking what's the best way to do this or do that , what I have found is that They don't do anything and if they do they don't last .
Carpet cleaning run as a full time job to make good profit is hard work , and most people don't like it, they would rather get £300 every week than £800 one week and £300 the week after people are after certainty .
I hear people say they are ruining the industry with their cheap prices no they are not they are providing a service to customers that 80% of the time wouldn't use you anyway , as for not helping people on here well thats just plain daft if people don't share experiences that they have gained what's the point in even coming on here.
I have been on here for over a decade and i can count on one hand any good relevant information that I have been given its more of a community .
Anything thats given as advice on here is always somewhere on youtube, the best information I have been given has always come from meet ups where you create trust and people then open up.
Spread the love its the art of Reciprocity , look it up it works
"Dont Panic" evolve
ps i know some great ways of getting working but im not telling you lot :P
-
wow to great posts
what I cant understand is all l these people that go on these training corses get told the same things
so that 100s of new cleaners going after the top end markets ? every year
so what happens when they cant get no work ? they lower the prices or go bust how long can you go on until the money runs out and if the phones not ringing and the bills start pileing up what do you do ??
-
Susan, why fight it? if someone people wants to sell at a higher price let them. I'm pretty sure if you where ABLE to get a higher price then you would charge a higher price. Otherwise you'd be pretty thick (which I'm sure your not) to carrying on working for less.
Neil, I'm sure I have asked you this already but why the heck did you create an article on starting your own carpet cleaning business? I mean this is the whole point of this thread. Why would you want people phoning every week asking for advice? on setting up a carpet cleaning business? it could be people in your own area starting up!
Paul is right, the market is saturated for an already small niche service. And even though it doesn't effect your business directly now, I do think it will have an effect at some point.
Just the other day I was cleaning a one bedroom flat, (hall, lounge and bedroom) for a young girl who's sofa's I cleaned before Christmas. When I got there she was telling me how excessive my price was as the person next door was charged £60 for the same sized flat, and they apparently did a good job. What could I say too her? "oh but look at the size of my machine madam!" she doesn't care. they got their carpets cleaned half price!
She didn't question the price of the sofa clean which IMO was a decent price.
It puts the seed in peoples head to what price they should be paying.
-
Carpet dawg
How did you start ?
where did you get your info ?
what made you stick it out ?
search how to start your own carpet cleaning business you get 3.5 million results and your bothered what I do ?
alltec do it prochem do it. youtube vids abound and the ones who moan do the best vids strange that ,
these forums are the same .
I wanted to strip seal and polish a lino floor years ago where did i learn youtube ,it came up lovely .
ps im No 1 for that search result , maybe I should sell advertising ;)
remember they all come and go and always will deal with it
Susan
Your great , I could read your posts all day . but your business model is different from everyone elses .
yours relies on stupidity , in your employees creating your wealth excellent.
yours is a race to the bottom