Clean It Up

UK Floor Cleaning Forum => Carpet Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: ian harper on July 22, 2014, 04:42:14 pm

Title: Repeat Business
Post by: ian harper on July 22, 2014, 04:42:14 pm
How Much Of Your Monthly Turnover Is From Repeat Business? (Please No BS)
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: ian harper on July 23, 2014, 07:03:23 am
so how do you get over 75% repeat?
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: Shaun_Ashmore on July 23, 2014, 07:13:19 am
Do a very good job, sell yourself as the best and keep in contact.

Shaun
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: *Hector* on July 23, 2014, 07:19:41 am
as Shaun said ..... and have been doing it for 15-20 years...

Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: Mike Halliday on July 23, 2014, 07:25:19 am
Polls on this subject are very misleading as they are often used as a gauge for how successful a company is,   But who is busier and making the most money someone who only gets 10% repeat business or someone who gets 75%?

You do get BS about getting all their work from repeat & reccomend business, like it's some badge of honour that they spend nothing on marketing. I know a couple of guys who are in this category, they are happy to tell you how little they spend on marketing ........but fall silent when prices are discussed or don't mention they only work 1 or 2 jobs a day.

Very few people are hitting +75% repeat business on 3-4 jobs/ 6 days a week charging premium prices,
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: david@zap-clean on July 23, 2014, 07:48:47 am
Very few people are hitting +75% repeat business on 3-4 jobs/ 6 days a week charging premium prices,

Based on my current average price per job (and ONLY that statistic), that would give me a turnover of around £126,000 per year.  And probably a profit of £100,000 (pre-tax).

I wish!

Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: Mike Halliday on July 23, 2014, 07:56:03 am
It's just me then ;D ;D
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: Shaun_Ashmore on July 23, 2014, 03:12:16 pm
You're a scaliwag Mike I would buy from you  ;D

Shaun
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: Shaun_Ashmore on July 23, 2014, 03:33:37 pm
If it wasn't for repeats I'd be done for, the longer you are in business the more chance you have of repeats I've had customers that use me every 6 months and every 10 years people do still keep my number.

Shaun
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: adrian marsh on July 23, 2014, 05:41:40 pm
It's just me then ;D ;D

And what's wrong with 1 or 2 jobs a day Mike? I have one coming up beginning of August which will take 4 days to complete. So that's 0.25 jobs a day ;D As long as the cheque at the end of the job is big enough I'd be happy with one job a year.
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: Shaun_Ashmore on July 23, 2014, 07:24:26 pm
Is that a hard floor job?

A 4 day carpet clean means you need a truck mount.

Shaun
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: simonmnickson on July 23, 2014, 08:38:48 pm
Anyone who put over 75% repeat should be named and shamed and taken out in the street and shot like (not a dog- I love dogs) A RAT !!!!!! ;)
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: elliott cleaning on July 23, 2014, 08:53:32 pm
Polls on this subject are very misleading as they are often used as a gauge for how successful a company is,   But who is busier and making the most money someone who only gets 10% repeat business or someone who gets 75%?

You do get BS about getting all their work from repeat & reccomend business, like it's some badge of honour that they spend nothing on marketing. I know a couple of guys who are in this category, they are happy to tell you how little they spend on marketing ........but fall silent when prices are discussed or don't mention they only work 1 or 2 jobs a day.

Very few people are hitting +75% repeat business on 3-4 jobs/ 6 days a week charging premium prices,

Mike - your making assumptions which you can't back up with facts.

Yes, I do have a repeat/recommendations in excess of 75% - No. I don't do 3-4 jobs a day/6 days a week.  2 , sometimes 3 a day and 90% of the time 5 days a week.  Yes the turnover does reach 6 figures but alas David@zap whatever's  notion of only 20% overheads on that level of turnover is unrealistic despite the fact that advertising/marketing costs are insignificant.

Now, I accept that the prices we charge in London and the South East may be somewhat different from other parts of the country - but am I a BS'er because that is the way my business works.

There ain't nothing special about me - so I am convinced that there are plenty of others who run their business similarly and probably a number who are way beyond our level
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: Mike Halliday on July 23, 2014, 09:08:06 pm
Read the start of my last paragraph ;)

"Very few people....."

I'm not saying it's not possible but it's a rare find, but you are right  I am making assumptions, but they are based on knowing a lot of carpet cleaners,

all we can do is make assumption based on personal knowledge and my knowledge tells me it's not common to find the perfect scenario that I described
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: dan paton on July 23, 2014, 09:11:33 pm
Elliot out of curiosity are you the company based in Aldershot?
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: elliott cleaning on July 23, 2014, 09:13:12 pm
Mike  - Fair enough - accepted :)  - and in all fairness I have to say that ca 30% of the business is stone floor cleaning/restoration


Dan - No
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: Carpet Dawg on July 23, 2014, 09:28:01 pm
if marketing and advertising aren't aren't the biggest expenses what else do you spend your turnover on?

I think £26k in expenses (or 20%) on a £126K turnover is pretty friggin high.

Apart from chemical which is very insignificant all your other expenses should stay the same (within reason) doesn't matter what level of turnover you have.

Diesel maybe? but then you say your only doing 2 - 3 jobs a day  :)
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: stuart_clark on July 23, 2014, 09:52:17 pm
I have a four day job in August but definately dont want a truckmount, Dont want to slow the job up !  ;D
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: Carpet Dawg on July 23, 2014, 09:54:43 pm
I have a four day job in August but definately dont want a truckmount, Dont want to slow the job up !  ;D

four days in the same place must be boring  ;D
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: Shaun_Ashmore on July 23, 2014, 10:47:58 pm
Stuart loves his bucket he's named it Bob and it sleeps with him it's had a new handle and a new pale but as he sees it a lot it's become love ;D

I'm guessing that Elliott cleans over heads for his hard floor cleaning (30%) is more for his solutions than the 70% carpet cleaning.

I'd say that £26k is about the same as mine (but obviously I'm poorer)

Shaun
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: elliott cleaning on July 23, 2014, 10:56:12 pm


.......Apart from chemical which is very insignificant all your other expenses should stay the same (within reason) doesn't matter what level of turnover you have.

Diesel maybe? but then you say your only doing 2 - 3 jobs a day  :)

Carpet Dwag - you are confusing overheads (I.e. Indirect costs) with direct costs the likes of chemicals etc.

Now you might well run your business from the draining board of your kitchen sink ( and I have no criticism of that)  - but once you start to realistically account for the likes of rent, rates, utilities, depreciation, insurance, accounting  etc, etc you will soon see where your overheads mount up

Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: Carpet Dawg on July 23, 2014, 11:09:08 pm
I think you have a very good accountant  ;) ;) or your calculator is broken.

Sorry but if your doing 2 jobs a day, 5 days a week (sometimes), do you really need premises?

rent, rates, utilities, depreciation, insurance, accounting (will go up if your vat reg but not a crazy amount). Again these should all really stay about the same regardless of turnover or how busy you are.

Shaun, your expenses about the same as that?

I must be doing it wrong  :'(
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: francis on July 23, 2014, 11:20:11 pm
Well I guess we all run our businesses in different ways to suit our personal taxation requirements.  Maybe my accountant is worth his fees :-\ ;) ;)
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: Carpet Dawg on July 23, 2014, 11:24:51 pm
Well I guess we all run our businesses in different ways to suit our personal taxation requirements.  Maybe my accountant is worth his fees :-\ ;) ;)

that's nice to know  pal ???  ::)roll
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: ian harper on July 25, 2014, 08:04:43 am
Mike

well said

Still no one out of the over 75% going to let on how they do it?
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: COLIN BRIGHT on July 25, 2014, 05:49:51 pm
100%
But I only do 1 job a week
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: derek west on July 25, 2014, 06:18:40 pm
Mike

well said

Still no one out of the over 75% going to let on how they do it?

if you aim for the low end of the market you'll never retain 75% of your customers, cos there is always someone cheaper and thats why they use you. however if you service high end clients and do an amazing job then they have no need to look else where and this is how you retain your client base with regular newsletters and reminders you can't fail to get them using you time after time.

make sense?
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: Shaun_Ashmore on July 25, 2014, 06:56:32 pm
I'm at the 50-75% infact this week it's been more of the 75% new customers are quiet ATM

Shaun
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: from edge2edge on July 25, 2014, 07:54:47 pm
Gotta agree with Derek re high end customers as they appreciate your efforts more when money isnt the issue(and yes they pay more so why not court them it makes sense really)................Alan
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: elliott cleaning on July 26, 2014, 08:25:20 pm
Derek - thank you for stating the obvious.  I was to reluctant to imply that those who can't attain a three quarter repeat rate are just pitching at the wrong - dare I say it - low end - of the market and not just for repeats but also for price. So if you work that market - no the repeat and referral rate is much lower and you won't attain six figure turnover
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: Shaun_Ashmore on July 26, 2014, 10:36:35 pm
Believe it or not (ha ha) price can dictate how much the customer will value you, the more you are valued the more that you have the chance of repeat and referrals.

Shaun
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: ian harper on July 27, 2014, 10:08:38 am
I would love to see some data on ROI on big turnover. as big turnover does not equal high profit? as low price does not equal low profit
Title: Re: Repeat Business
Post by: Shaun_Ashmore on July 27, 2014, 12:09:39 pm
No but you have to have consistent high volume, if you get high volume because it's been built up over years with a higher price then you get a super charged income although you need patience and consistency.

Shaun