Clean It Up
UK Floor Cleaning Forum => Carpet Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: Chris Galloway on October 10, 2008, 04:53:22 pm
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Howdy.
Im currently working as a full time Window Cleaner, but im looking to expand the company so that my partner can make a go at End of Tenancy Cleaning, and someone had suggested Carpet cleaning to go along with that.
Can you give a lil bit of advise for a newbie in this field about the best way to start.
many thanks.
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A good start would be to go on some carpet cleaning courses.
S
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Hi Chris me again! if you have a look at www.prochem.co.uk they show you the dates of the courses. My husband went on the course first then he knew everything he had to buy for the job.
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Certainly do the courses!
I would do the NCCA if you are absolutely positive about undertaking carpet cleaning. That way you will get a Certifcate on completion of course/exam. The only trouble with company driven courses is they want to sell you THEIR equipment etc. The NCCA will give you an unbiased view.
Regards
Gary
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Also the NCCA membership will give people in your area more reason to use you if
they are considering a few quotes.
S
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Training is a must if your going to take up cc professionally.
The prochem will show you the basics, you will need a decent machine and all risks insurance.
What area are you going to work in, your profile needs filling in properly.
Someone on here may be willing for you to tag along with them for a couple of days to get a hands on feel for the job.
Good luck Mark
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I've read posts on here saying they thought being a member of the NCCA was generally a waste of money, that custys don't even know what NCCA even is. Prochem may try to sell their products, but you don't have to buy them.
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You always get knockers
I have got jobs directly because I am a memeber of the NCCA - paid for my first years membership and some of next years.
Potential clients have type in carpet cleaning on Google and the NCCA site is no2 - try it.
They go to the site and look at the map for their area and given a list of members. Bingo.
But you can promote your membership just as you promote other services and advantages you offer over the other carpet cleaners. - sell yourself in other words.
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in reply to Joe,
You will also get members on here praising the benifits and how well they are doing out of the ncca,
you will get alot more who dont get any work from them
Make your own mind up ;)
Only once have I ever been asked if I was a member of any organision.
geoff
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Like I said - some things YOU need to promote yourself - make YOU stand out from your competitors.
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Dont do it.......................................at the moment
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Good training is the 1st thing, personally I wouldn't join the NCCA you will be leaking money as it is, then try a marketing course because the first thing you will do with your competitors is compete on price and then you'll go bust!
Loads and loads of cheap shops go bust but not that many who sell quality at the right price and I don't mean expensive, to start try £95 a suite and £50 a carpet you can always discount or if you are getting loads of work up it.
Shaun
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Thanks for the replies. ;D
I have already done marketing courses, and training courses based in Window Cleaning and found them valuable. I dont compete on price, i offer my services and present myself like Joe Hatton said.
Being trained by or members of associations may be in customers eyes a case of "who are they, what do they do" but if you have more training, and member associations than other people/companies in your field then they are more likely to think you are more the professional in your field, if at very least you can fall back on the experience the training gave should you need it.
This is not something im about to jump into, I want to look at this as a positive approach to a better livelihood for my partner and myself, so of course the 2 main things ive taken so far from the replies are get training (in order to understand the theory and learn what type of equipment we are likely to require), and look to join the NCCA.
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Chris,
Unlike many people who start up, you've got the most vital thing already....
A customer base.
People already use your services. They want to deal with someone they know and trust.
Garry
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Don't advertise 3 piece suite cleaning at £95, you'll be sat at home all day.
John
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Loads and loads of cheap shops go bust but not that many who sell quality at the right price and I don't mean expensive, to start try £95 a suite and £50 a carpet you can always discount or if you are getting loads of work up it.
Shaun
I reckon Shaun normally charges more then £95, he quoted £95 as a "to start try".....
I have frequently charged and got £125.
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I charge £55 and people round here baulk at that price.
We talking normal 3 piece here or leather/suede??
How long does it take you??
I do one in about 1hr 40mins.
John
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£55 is a silly price, no one will go to work for that, it not worth setting up for!
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wish I could do a 3 piece in 1 hour 40mins , takes me 3 hours with a truckmount.
John
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16 months ago I used to charge about the £55 you charge.
Then I joined this and other forums and realised that quality carpet cleaners were charging much more (I reckon Shaun will charge a few £10's more then the £125 I charge)
I started to raise my price because what I learned more about being self employed.
Who pays the NI stamp, who pays for sickness, who pays for holidays, who has to put away money for the "rainy day" (who knows what this credit crunch may lead to), who puts money away to repair the machines we use, or to replace them, who pays for the training courses we need to go on to keep up to date, who pays for the vans we need to get back and to the job and the road tax, the insurance, the petrol/diesel, the time it takes.
Whats the answer? - YOU DO
So you need to charge a reasonable amount.
Sure it may be 1hr 40 min on the job - but there is a lot more going on then that.
Yes you will get people who baulk at £55, but thats because there is someone willing do to it for £45.
and actually some clients if you quote £55 for a normal 3 piece suite, will turn it down because they deem you are not going to do a decent job on their expensive suite.
You might not get as many suites at £95 as you did at £55, but you will probably not be worse off financially but have more time on your hand to do marketing, more suites or take time out - whatever takes your fancy.
Try it, listen to the experianced guys like Shaun - I did and I find it works
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I charge £55 and people round here baulk at that price.
We talking normal 3 piece here or leather/suede??
How long does it take you??
I do one in about 1hr 40mins.
John
John
Where you from by the way - your profile is a bit sparce.
How long does it take for me to do a 3 piece? - a good 2 hours plus a bit
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John, how does it take you 3 hours? Usually takes 1.5 to 2 max with a truckmount. Secret is to work methodically. We used to remove all the cushions, do tests on the inside of a chair, then pre-spray chair, agitate and rinse off with handtool. Then next chair frame, then sofa frame. Then the cushions, stacking them on the sofa until all finished them any grooming and leave cushions pyramided to aid drying.
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John, how does it take you 3 hours? Usually takes 1.5 to 2 max with a truckmount. Secret is to work methodically. We used to remove all the cushions, do tests on the inside of a chair, then pre-spray chair, agitate and rinse off with handtool. Then next chair frame, then sofa frame. Then the cushions, stacking them on the sofa until all finished them any grooming and leave cushions pyramided to aid drying.
I must be a bit slow . pre vac test , only got a drimaster hand tool at the moment saving up for either the new hydramaster tool or prochem 1
John
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Joe
Am from W.Yorks just outside Leeds.
The standard of living where you live must be better because I've even lost jobs quoting £55.
"£55 is a silly price, no one will go to work for that, it not worth setting up for!"
What a stupid quote.
Your telling me that no one will go to work for £27.50 an hour.
4 of those in a day £220 for the day.
For domestic work in the current climate that's pretty good.
You must live in an affluent part of the country.
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I get the feeling, but may be wrong John, that you are into domestic and/or office cleaning? So am I.
If so, then £27 per hour may seem a lot (and it is)
I dont think Warrington is any different to Leeds in respect of potential clients.
There are very affluent areas and others not so affluent and everything inbetween.
I am sure Leeds is the same.
You may be suprised where the £95 clients will come from.
However, if you want to get EVERY job from clients who contact you, then you would have to be the right price every time. A lot of the time you will have to be dirt cheap - probably less then your £55, as you have found out. Do you want that?
Probably most on here have found a comfort zone where clients are prepared to pay a price for a quality service - that maybe £55 for someone, £75 for another, £95 for another, £125 for me, and more for Shaun. All are acceptable to the carpet cleaner.
But a lot of us have been just where you are now. Not getting every enquiry at £55, then someone pops up and suggests you could get £95 or £125 or more. And logically you say"yikes, cant do that, wont get any work". Been there, done that (but dont wear the t-shirt).
IT IS POSSIBLE - and where you live.
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4 of those in a day £220 for the day.
4 suites in a day, yep that's how i want to work to earn my daily wage!
I get £140-£160 in Hull (voted crappiest town in England) if there is no money in Leeds obviously there aren't any BMW dealerships (or Merc's).
but if you get and are happy with £55 then I won't knock it, each to there own.
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Don't forget what you are offering for their money, if it's wet through or badly done then at £55 or £155 you are offering poor value for money.
Suite cleaning offers poor value for money for most customers until you sell it well, ask Mike Halliday he sells a good story ;D sorry Mike.
Shaun
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Don't mean I clean 4 a day.
Try to mix them in as I'm not keen on doing them anyway at any price.
Can make a lot more on the carpet side.
Might even try quoting £95 then if I do get them I'll be that bit happier.
2 questions:
What do you find works best as a pre spray and extraction chemical.
I use Prochem Fabric Restorer and follow up with Fibre and Fabric Rinse but don't find these 2 chemicals as good as there carpet cleaning range so any other thoughts appreciated.
What you think about advertising outside your area?
I have static caravan in York and was thinking of an ad in the local rag up there so I could spend more time there especially in Summer.
Would having an ad with a non local area code put people of you think?
Regards
John
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Caravan cleaning would be dependant on the site manager as that is where you will get the most from and also some sites will only let you use their tradesmen.
A mobile number would do and I would leaflet them.
Shaun
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No I meant domestic carpet cleaning.
John ;D
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John
Were you the guy that was doing someb site marketing with rabby ???
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John I think an 0800 number would be better than an out of town number, and you can get them quite cheap.
prochm FR is a good chemical perhaps a bit more dwell time might help, and a good scrub is always helpful ;)
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And the extractor.
By the way why does my keyboard not always type the letters I hit.
have to hit some letters about 3 times
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Forget the keyboard just realised it's cordless and requires batteries from time to time.
Had it about 2 years and never had to do it.
???
John
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Never charged as low fo £55 for 3pc , from the very start of my c/c life I charged from £85 upwards , always a little hesitant to go over the £100 mark , but as Mike pointed out over the £100 mark is the norm now and yes I also live in the same area :) as Mike "the crapiest town " ;) yet only half a mile for me a road exsits were actual house prices have continued to rise The only road in the country I believe" People still have money where ever you are, I am busier than ever and had to work untill 12 .30 last night to accomodate at prices way above the £27 per hour mark , infact a total of £960 for the day.
5 floors of corridor L/profile @ £130 per floor Encap. £650.00
1 small entance of block paving to same building power washed £60.00
Removal of tar spots from custy brand new carpet £50.00
and finaly cleaning an office L/profile £200.00
A good day, with a 3 hrs break in the evening and although this amount is unusual it is not an exception by any means in fact not far of what I will be doing over a few days in the next couple of weeks. Yes its great , makes up for those quieter days before people point this out ::)
J & S if your happy with your rate good for you, but I suggest you increase , I get the feeling some of the c/c on hear are been scarmongered by all the news :-\
Geoff
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why are some people so blinkered in business.
ErrrrErrr £55 quid a suite, 2 hours, Errr errr thats £27.50 an hour, WOW!!!!! i'll be rich, stacking shelves at tesco's doesn't pay anywhere near that amount.
sorry, not having ago, its just annoying when people charge so little for work and end up folding after a year cos theyve not done there sums right.
£55 quid a suite, you'll be lucky to break even with out a wage. 4 jobs a day, where they gonna come from? jobs don't appear out of thin air ya know, ya have to pay a lot of money to get someone to ring you never mind 4 a day, and you have to work hard to get them to ring you back the following year.
you have to drive there, unless you can fly. you have to have equipment, chemicals, you have to repair the equipment, you have to insure things, you have to buy new equipment, you have to pay tax, phone bills, mobile phone bills, internet fees. accountants fees, van tax, tyres, van repairs,
if your charging £55 a suite and not doing it in under an hour then you won't make any money, and if you are doing it in under an hour then you can forget repeat customers
joe
£55 is not a silly price for a suite its a suicidal (business related) price for a suite.
ps
this is my opinion and i could well be wrong, but seriously though, i'm not, but i could be, but i'm not,
derek
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Only clea 1 or 2 suites a week and don't travel more than 10 or 12 mles to do them and usually done in conjunction with another job.
£27.50 is not a kings ransom but it pays the bills.
You state tha £55 is too little yet on another thread you quote £1 per sq metre for cleaning 150 sq metres of office carpet that's suicidal
Think some people on here big themselves up a little bit, not everyone but some.
Just rung 6 local carpet cleaners and the dearest was £60 and the cheapest£48 so come on guys.
I suppose it comes down to how many others are out there as well, in my case a lot.
"and just to make you feel super fast, i did a large living room on my own today, took me 2 hours, but that included bacon and egg butties several cups of coffee and several roll ups from the owner, had nothing else on so made a morning of it."
Just made me wonder whose prices get the work.
John
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Only clea 1 or 2 suites a week and don't travel more than 10 or 12 mles to do them and usually done in conjunction with another job.
£27.50 is not a kings ransom but it pays the bills.
You state tha £55 is too little yet on another thread you quote £1 per sq metre for cleaning 150 sq metres of office carpet that's suicidal
Think some people on here big themselves up a little bit, not everyone but some.
Just rung 6 local carpet cleaners and the dearest was £60 and the cheapest£48 so come on guys.
I suppose it comes down to how many others are out there as well, in my case a lot.
"and just to make you feel super fast, i did a large living room on my own today, took me 2 hours, but that included bacon and egg butties several cups of coffee and several roll ups from the owner, had nothing else on so made a morning of it."
Just made me wonder whose prices get the work.
John
buddy i was the same as you only two years ago but alot cheaper ! a im still only getting 60 pounds for a suit i realy cant go into deal tails on here as my spelling is not the best how ever im more then happy to spk to you buy phone for an hour and talk you though any probs you are thinking about .......
or and ive just spent a poop load ogf cash on a new van and kitting it out for my t.m. so belive me when these guys tell you to up your game i did and have never looked back ! trust me
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£1per metre isnt bad for commercial if its large enough area,
considering around 250 sq metres can be acheived an hour , already stated above 5 floors of corridors 130 sq metre @ £1per m each floor taking around 3/4 an hr .
As for your question , who,s prices gets the work?
obviously yours :-\ so you work your B****cks of all day to earn the same who perhaps does 2 jobs for less work, .
I know what I would do
But everbody to their own, work hard all day for the same as others who have an easier day, and can afford to choose their jobs.
geoff
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Susan ,
I remeber your posts well from a couple of years ago, pleased to hear you took note and doing well,
geoff
whilst I remember . J & s the other cleaners you have just phoned for prices, out of interest did you pick them out of the local free press " no offence to c/c who advertise in them " or did you choose at random from y/p or internet ?
and how strange every cleaner you have phoned gave you a price over the phone ;) makes you wonder what type of c/c youre phoning !!!! " again , no offence to c/c who phone price "
Geoff
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Question is are they getting the work?
250sq metres an hour of commercial?? Leave it out.
Obviously carpet prices round here are dearer than suite prices.
I've just quoted at £3 per sq metre for commercial and they bit my hand off.
I wouldnt pay £125 myself for my suite cleaning and I don't think some of you out there get what you say.
If I quoted say £95 for every suite I got asked to clean I don't think I'd get to clean one again.
Regarding your phone question I picked 6 at random from the Thomson's where I advertise and everyone gave me a phone quote, no problem.
Try it yourself you may be suprised
Nearly all my quotes for dometics are phone qoutes.
John
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John,
I dont imagine for one minute you are calling me a liar, yes 250 sq m an hr ,
I pasted this from cimex site, ok we all know manufactures may exagerate a little , but believe me 250 an hr is done with ease.
High Productivity
Traditional carpet cleaning methods can be time consuming and quite hard work. Cimex-Encap exploits the benefits of the Cimex Cyclone to maximise ease of use and productivity
High Productivity
Clean up to 300m2 per hour
Low Moisture
Instant Clean
Cost Effective
Prevents re-soiling
Geoff
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cant remember saying a £1 a sq metre for 150 commercial. did 121sq m yesterday for £200, took 2 an half hours, bout the same time it takes to do a good job on a tough suite, see where i'm going with this, listen the fact is, if you dont get to clean another suit again in your life then so what, clean carpets, if i cant get £120 for a suite then i dont want to clean it, i'd rather stay at home than devalue and wear out my eqiupment.
and as for today, i got £60 for the living room, would of done it in 40 mins but once i smelt those bacon butties it was tools down.
j&s if you wanna go head to head with the sloggers then go for it mate, not knocking ya, just think your mad, i'm worth more than that,
are you????
derek
ps your missing the point about the £27.50 an hour, its not £27.50 an hour, youve got overheads, bloody lots of them.
pps
50 sq meters an hour with a 12 inch wand is not far off the mark.
as for 250, even with an rx20 i think you'd be pushing it.
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"not how long you take but how much you make, on my own that sounds about how long it would take me, with my mate helping i could half that. either way i'd of charged around £135 to £155 depending on furniture"
With you on the 250 sq m per hour.
Think even 50 is a bit high myself, depending on where your water supply is.
My machine holds 50 litres and last night I was working on the ground floor with nearly 150 foot walk to the first floor to the nearest water supply.
Anyway off there again now to hopefully fnish off the job by about 7 catch you all later.
John
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Derick,
you may be getting the reply,s a little mixed up .
It is I who said 250m an hour , at £1 a m , achieved with cimex not rx, bonnet, or any other l/m
I cleaned nearly 2,000 sq m in under two days only a couple of months ago using cimex,
results were the best the manager had seen ," his words, not mine" after using C/D for a number of years.
It might sound if I am blowing my own trumpet :), be assured I am not , I am mearling trying to point out what can be achieved at times. In other words , dont work for peanuts, because in the long term that is what you will be doing all the time.
that statment is meant for John, by the way.
just added this, as seen johns reply.
John, please study my replys.
I never mentioned h/w/e , never mentioned running backs and forwards filling machines, what I did mention is l/m cimex
Geoff
geoff
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i have a 60 GALLON tank so water supply is not to much of a problem for me.
hey if you can do that much in an hour then who am i to argue, just letting you know what i can do with a wand, i'll let ya know what i can do with an rx20 when i get round to it. who knows, might even snatch your world record. fastest cc in the west, ;D get it! west! fastest! derek west! in the west! awww forget it. ;D
derek
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hey thats my record am the fasstest c cleaner in the west 8)
OOps i ment the fastest milkman ;D
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Why rush around like a lunatic earning not much an hour. Over the last couple of years I have more than doubled my prices and still have people saying is that all? I now work 3 days aweek as I get my pension but find I am making as much PROFIT as before with less work.
Many more small businesses go out of existance because of poor bookeeping and loss of contol of expenses than by poor work standards. Work out how much your van, mc, chemicals, diesel, repairs, phone, ADVERTISING and everything else costs. Then add on how much you need for living divide it all by 48 (assuming you want a holiday) and add around 35% tax and then you have a weekly average of how much you need. It wil be much more than 27 / hr.
I don't think I have ever cleaned a suite in less than 2 1/2 hrs usually 3 1/2-4. I get repeat business and secure customers that way. I have not advertised for a long while now and still get new customers.
Provide a top service and you will get top customers willing to pay over the odds for you to do their cleaning.
End of rant, I'm off for a Bathams.
Trevor
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Susan ,
I remeber your posts well from a couple of years ago, pleased to hear you took note and doing well,
geoff
whilst I remember . J & s the other cleaners you have just phoned for prices, out of interest did you pick them out of the local free press " no offence to c/c who advertise in them " or did you choose at random from y/p or internet ?
and how strange every cleaner you have phoned gave you a price over the phone ;) makes you wonder what type of c/c youre phoning !!!! " again , no offence to c/c who phone price "
Geoff
thanks greoff im doing well at the moment upping the prices and not loseing so many custys. i have now moved away from sometimes haveing 5 portys out aday to haveing two t.m.s out seven days aweek and earning much more cash
i will be upping the suite prices soon and if i never clean anthor suite then so be it i have had a belly full of them over the years ... i would much rather do carpets with the t.m. any way
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I see, Susan, you are another cc that does not like cleaning fabric suites. Me too.
I like cleaning leather ones though, but dont get enough of them.
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I wouldnt pay £125 myself for my suite cleaning and I don't think some of you out there get what you say.
If I quoted say £95 for every suite I got asked to clean I don't think I'd get to clean one again.
John
Did an on site quote last night for a reasonably clean 3 seater + 2 seater .... £125 .... got the job - no problem.
They are out there waiting for you.
Just need the confidence and the talk to go with it (not bull - but sell your quality service)
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My problem in the past, which I think is what Susan was also saying (and many others) is it us, the c/c's, who have the problem with perceptions as to what is expensive, and this is magnified as your prices approach natural break-points.
I was charging £96 for a 3+1+1 suite but had to really convince myself that I wouldn't loose business just because I wanted to charge an extra £6. In itself it's nothing (just under 6%-inflation then about 4%) but I thought customers would baulk at prices over £100. Never did lose a job that I really wanted and have subsequently upped my prices even further once I had got over the psychological hurdle.
But consider. A fairly typical lounge might be about 14x11 feet. 80/20 twist, cost fitted c£600. Cost for cleaning say around £60. (10% value of the carpet!) Many would not have a problem charging that but then we have a problem with suite prices. The suite can easily cost £1500, takes at least as twice as long to clean, is physically harder work with more attention to detail required, yet some c/cers have problems charging a price twice as much as that of cleaning the carpet. (£120 or 8% value or the suite!)
Having said all that some customers seem to attach more importance and value to their carpets than the suite. Perhaps because it's as simple as the suite being a more expensive ticket item to clean (or the custy doesn't realise the extra that goes into suite cleaning).
Just a few musings for everybody this morning.
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Have rung 3 more cc's today in the area from YP and Thompsons and the maximum price now as gone up to £65.
People round here won't pay more than that for 3 piece but the thing is they will pay anything for their carpets doing.
Perhaps they perceive that they get more done for there money without realising that carpets, especially domestic, are actually quite easy to clean. You can get in, start up and away you go, especially if they have been good enough to virtually clear the room barring the 3 piece.
Also think a carpet shows it's been cleaned more than a suite.
Some suites I've done have been so old and worn they look virtually the same when finished, until you show them the poop in the waste tank.
Quick question.
I use Fibre and Fabric rinse by Prochem but it is one of there products I have never been really keen on. Any better extraction chemicals you people have used??
Just been lazy at the mo and stuck with all Prochem chemicals, mainly due to there availability in abundance at the local Prochem shop.
John
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did a suite today, acrylic, 3 seater + 1 and a pough/puff (not sure how you spell it) charged £90, come up looking fantastic, used 35 gallons of water (but i'm guessing half of that was dumped) took 1 hour (with 2 of us) and honestly you could sit on it when we'd finished, just a few damp patches, custy was over the moon with the job, now thats value for money, i got what i deserved and the custy got a beautiful clean suite that she can sit on pretty much straight away. £90 for that, who wouldn't pay that much for that kind of service. its how you sell yourself not what price you charge. smart witty confident (which i am now when it comes to suites) professional, thats all it takes, i'm sure i could go to leeds or anywhere and convince custys to get value for money. not everyone but yeah some. and i gaurantee they'd have me back again.
and like i said, if they don't like the price then i don't wanna do it.
a lot of people seem to think there getting paid for cleaning carpets and upholstery, (in which case £27.50 is a good wage) but what they forget is they should also be getting paid for being the marketing manager, for being the sales advisor, for being the accounts manager, for being the artwork designer, logistics and ordering of stock, the mechanic, phone operative. blah blah blah.
you do everything so don't sell yourself short.
derek
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Just booked a 3rd 3 piece clean in for next week and even she queried why it costs so much.
However I got it.
What do you honestly want me to do when that is the going rate round here.
Tell her it's £95 and sit here with an empty diary or tell it's £55 and keep the work coming in.
Couple of questions though.
What is your average distance from home to a job?
And the extraction question above what is your preferred extraction chemical.
Whatever happened to cleaning leather suites?
Used to average 2-3 a month but none for last 8 months.
Is it all the DIY kits you can buy?
John
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jands
try hydramasters clearwater rinse, i used to use fib fab but i'm converted now to clearwater, and its a lot cheaper.
yes sit at home with an empty book and concentrate on marketing, do you have dryers? if not get one, do you use a drimaster hand tool or similar? if not get one, are you uniformed? if not a logo'd polo shirt goes a long way, don't quote over the phone, get round there and sell the job, sell yourself with this equipment.
and if you still can't get suites then concentrate on carpets, the strain your putting on your equipment for £55 a suite is counter productive. but thats just my opinion.
i maybe new but i'm a quick learner.
ps today was my first suite, ive had a lot of knock backs but that was all down to confidence in cleaning suites, after the result i got today i'm sure i'll get a few more, not everyone but they'll come.
and like i said, i'm not firing up my truckmount for an 1hr to 2 hrs (depending if i have help) for £55,
pps, don't take advice from anyone including me, we're al different, just listen anylise and make your own mind up, thats what i do.
derek
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I won't clean a suite below £135 they can whistle
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Just booked a 3rd 3 piece clean in for next week and even she queried why it costs so much.
However I got it.
What do you honestly want me to do when that is the going rate round here.
Tell her it's £95 and sit here with an empty diary or tell it's £55 and keep the work coming in.
Couple of questions though.
What is your average distance from home to a job?
And the extraction question above what is your preferred extraction chemical.
Whatever happened to cleaning leather suites?
Used to average 2-3 a month but none for last 8 months.
Is it all the DIY kits you can buy?
John
nail on head you are pooping yourself that the phone wont ring !!! been there done that and two years later i couldnt give a monkeys as im not running brand new vans for bugger all any more ! and as from today suite have just gone up to 75 - 100 pounds ! going rate round here is 35 pounds for a suite
julian (boyfriend) as just cleaned 2 x 2 setters in a dump of a houseing estate , the bottom cushions were split and the zips broke the house smelt of wee due to haveing three young ones running around in nappyes only and guess what they still payed 80 pounds for the suite to be cleaned and one small carpet
well if people that look like they are on the so called bread line pay this then everybody can
p.s. im not a snob just trying to paint a picture on the house and what they paid . all my custys get a top job weather there on the dole or rolling in cash same chems same end result weather we there 1 hour on ten !
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We are charging about £ 90 + at the moment. In fairness, the bulk of the work is recommendations.
I did a suite recently for £ 95. The client said she would want it done again regularly. Talking about prices, she said she saw all the leaflets offering to do it for £ 35-55 and wouldn't touch them with a barge pole.
She said in her case it was a simple decision. Spend £ 1000 on a new one or have the existing one brought back like new for £ 95.
You have to understand the mindset here. £ 95 appeared dirt cheap to her.
She was getting more or less a brand new suite for 10% of replacement cost.
Let's face it, suites are horrible, back breaking jobs compared to carpet cleaning. Realistically, assuming they are done right (including sheeting up etc ), how many do you expect to do in a day (and still have some energy left for life outside work)?
Don't be scared to raise your prices.
Garry
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To be honest I should put the price up.
Not because they are hard work but because I find them boring to do.
Thanks for the constructive comments especially from Derek, Susan and Garry.
Sorry Derek didn't realise you had a TM, that would put the price up.
I have 2 portables so a lot easier.
Sorry to pick your brains again Derek but what do you use as a pre spray.
As I said I'm a Prochem junkie due to the availability but I find some of there fabric treatments not up to scratch.
And this bloody keyboard keeps missing leters
John
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jand s
couldn't give advice on fabric presprays, as ive said, that was my first today, used fabric restorer and was happy with the result, extracted with clearwater rinse.
carpets i use,
prespray gold on wool
multi pro 1 to 8 on normal soiled man mades, + wool if a bit soled
multi pro 1 to 4 on dirty man made soiled + traffic lane wool
powerburst on mingers
and citrus boost added to powerburst for "not fit for human habitation" ones
still a newcomer and learning all the time but when it comes to sales and marketing i can hold my own, still willing to learn more though, thats why i'm on here a lot. theres a lot of knowledgable guys on here, theres some d heads as well but ya filter out the bowlocks. unless ive had a few then i join in.
practice your sales pitch and yur prices will follow, only started 5 months ago and my prices have gone up by a good 40%. my wage is good but i need a lot more work. if my prices were low i'd be earning the same but with no hours left to earn more. all i need now is to get the next stage of my marketing up and running and then wait for my repeat customers next year. roll on the good times.
god i love this job, can't beat a bit of rug munchin, i mean cleaning ahhh hem.
derek
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Cheers for that Derek.
Got the advertising nailed I think but any tips on sales and marketing appreciated.
Only been full time at this myself for 9 months.
Regards
John
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jand s
do you quote over the phone?
derek
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Derek do you inhouse quote most jobs?
What forms of advertising have you out at the moment? I ask because in relitively a short space of time you are up and running.
Shaun
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in house all my quotes, very rarely get turned down to do this, allthough got turned down today funnily enough, he'd rang 6 before me so just price shopping, i don't compete on price, only on quality Vs price.
advertising.
free local
paid local
some leaflets in free paper, scrapped
leaflets posted by us
yellow pages, wont be going there again
google adwords
yell.com, got money back in 6 weeks so well happy with that
van livery obviously
business update magazine
adds pending
a free adds mag
a posh free adds mag
thompson internet
10k of pink cheesy leaflets allthough john gotts says there not cheesy so there not. coming friday
future adds pending
SEO
direct marketing (business)
brochure posting with chaser call (business)
well into the future adds
database marketing
thats about it really, but i'm open to other suggestions,
derek
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Great ethics that is why you are succeeding.
Like to see John Gotts leaflet any chance?
How big is your normal service area?
Shaun
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shaun
thats a bit personal isn't it, oooooh you mean! riiiight.
ahh hem
not sure really, if the jobs big enough i'll travel to sheffield. ;D
furthest ive travelled to do a job is 35 miles, did an emergency extraction in a blockbuster store for a maintenance company, 40 mins work, £100 but an hour travelling so not too bad.
its my leaflet not jay gees, i thought it was cheesy. emailed it to john and he said otherwise, its the pink one,
show ya
cheeeesy or what?
derek
files tooo big, won't let me uplaod it
nevermind
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No problem
In a few months time there will be an event that I'll be going to in the Midlands and I'd advise you to go but it wouldn't be right to advertise it on here, I'll contact you nearer teh time or someone may tell you about it.
Shaun
PS Mods I'm not pushing this event just mentioning in passing
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Hi Jim
Is this a record? We're upto page 4 of comments and you seem to be the only regular not to have chipped in yet?
(I suppose you'll now have to respond? ???)
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:)
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Hi Derek.
Yes, I do about 85% of my domestic quotes over the phone.
Get a lot of people saying give me a rough estimate over the phone and we'll fine tune it on the day if you think it's going to be more.
Most of the time I've got it right 'cos the customers measured up right, where I've underestimated it'nearly always there bad measurements
and they have had no problem with the revised price.
Saying that the most I've had to add on is £40.
Most of my problems come from working for Asian families of which we have a lot round here.
You quote for say L Room and D Room and when you have done it they will say can you just zip up the hallway and stairs while you've got your gear out it won't take you a minute. Of course they expect this for free.
Having said that on the run up and wind down to Ramadan I was kept busy by them and they were willing to pay top dollar to get me there.
John
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Hi Derek.
Yes, I do about 85% of my domestic quotes over the phone.
Get a lot of people saying give me a rough estimate over the phone and we'll fine tune it on the day if you think it's going to be more.
Most of the time I've got it right 'cos the customers measured up right, where I've underestimated it'nearly always there bad measurements
and they have had no problem with the revised price.
Saying that the most I've had to add on is £40.
Most of my problems come from working for Asian families of which we have a lot round here.
You quote for say L Room and D Room and when you have done it they will say can you just zip up the hallway and stairs while you've got your gear out it won't take you a minute. Of course they expect this for free.
Having said that on the run up and wind down to Ramadan I was kept busy by them and they were willing to pay top dollar to get me there.
John
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rammadam eh , had a few my self , found they tried to knock me down on price !
Then i was asked by some older chap (ASIAN) to look at 5 diff houses and give them all a price .
1st one was ok no probs then the 2nd tried knock me down so i said sorry thats the price and started to leave she then came up closer to my quote and i just left to go next house, on the way I phoned
old chap to tell him what happened , He said add some to the next quotes so they cud knock me down a
bit .
said its something to do with there culture and they always like to think they have had a bargin!!
It worked well and in Dec now going to price a Mosque , Turns out old chap is high ranking in the praying depatment.
R.T
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laundery engineer that comes in our shop says that when he has completed a job for Asian businessmen he takes the money and has to give them some (ha ha) of it back as it's traditional.
Shaun
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Yes Derek, was told that about putting a bit on so they could knock you down a bit by an Asian businessman who's carpets I was cleaning.
His job? He owned a wholesale carpet shop, sold carpets by the dozen.
Strange life is sometimes.
John
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Jands
Is it leeds area you live mate ???
Why not try just an extra 5 or ten pounds on your next few jobs and see how it goes :)
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Hi roger
Any more thoughts of geting a meet up for us local c cleaning guys in our area.
cheers clinton
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It is their culture to try and drive a bargain. If they can get something knocked off then they have satisfied their need. Always over quote and come down to your normal price. Nothing immoral in that as they are still getting the job at the normal rate.
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Clinton
Going to put suites up to £60 in line with a couple more cleaners in the area.
It's alright these people on here saying they charge £125 for suites but I'd never touch one again at those prices.
Think some others on here don't charge as much as they say they do.
I average 2-3 a week at £55 a throw which I don't personally think is a bad price.
For the carpets however I can get really good prices.
John
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Hi JandS,
Think you said you in Hull ?
I cover stoke-on-trent and thats a poo pit as well !!
You every thought bout pricing suite by the seat ie 1x3 £15 per seat= £45
so sell the procedure to them then say its £__ per seat
Lesson shown to me b4 : Build it up to be out of there price range, let them know your not cheap and reasons why, Then hit them with price they can afford . this has worked for me
Find out the area they live in then you know Quality of the custy and price accordingly
I cud be very wrong but its working for me at the min
R.T
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£XXX per seat...
Would you charge the same for cleaning 5 armchairs as you would for a 3-seat and 2-seat sofa?
There's 6 more arms!
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Jim,
yes I wud but its rare that situation cums up , well its just a guide that works for me .
R.T
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I charge £55 and people round here baulk at that price.
We talking normal 3 piece here or leather/suede??
How long does it take you??
I do one in about 1hr 40mins.
John
i work in the march cambs area, easily get 100-120 a suite, and 25-30p per square foot carpets, i've generally found the cheaper you go, the less work you get, you need to sell to people, you tell them the price, 55 quid is silly, if we all charged that, then i dont think thier would be any carpet cleaners about!!
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How is it silly if that's the going rate??
Rang 9 round here from various adverts and they ranged between £48 and £65 I think it was.
Yet I can quote £3.50 - £4.00 a sq metre for carpets and nobody's bothered.
First thing they ask after price is how long will it take you.
Oh under 2 hours love for £120 I'll ring round first and get a few quotes.
John
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theres your mistake,
when custys ask me how long it will take i say "with the quality and power of the equipment i use about 2 hours, if i used the rubbish equpment some carpet cleaners used i'd be here all day, and the carpets wouldn't be dry for weeks"
if you don't explain, how do you expect them to understand.
derek
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Never tell them exactly how long it takes. Think of your normal suite cleaning time and add a bit more on, then vaguely give an estimate of between X and Y hours to cover it.
Obviously they divide the time by the hours and think that you are putting 60 quid an hour in your pocket, when as we all know it's not the case. Don't give them the opportunity to do that.
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Customer...."how long will it take you"
Me..... "I'm going to allow a full half day to clean it, it probably won't take me that long but until I start I don't know how difficult it will be to remove the soiling, half a day allows me enough time to do the job properly, no matter how hard it is to clean".
the customer now thinks they are paying for half a days work so whether it takes an hour or 3hrs I'm covered.
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Jands
i think the point (no matter how different) we are trying to make is, dont give a straight answer, they'll never understand, make the answer work in your favour, as long as you do a number one top notch super duper job then when she or he see's the results they wont be bothered if you did it in ten minutes.
derek
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Customer...."how long will it take you"
Me..... "I'm going to allow a full half day to clean it, it probably won't take me that long but until I start I don't know how difficult it will be to remove the soiling, half a day allows me enough time to do the job properly, no matter how hard it is to clean".
the customer now thinks they are paying for half a days work so whether it takes an hour or 3hrs I'm covered.
I like that approach.
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the only problem is when they ask you if you could fit in another small carpet, if you've only been a couple of hours then they know you have some spare time, and even worse if they think they are paying for half a day they might want it including in the price :o :o
the way to get out of this is to tell them you need to flush out all the pipes because a different solution is used, so you'll have to charge, this also work when they ask if you could just run over a 'few' small rugs ( expecting them for free) if you explain the extra work involved ( flushing out the pipes) they usually don't mind paying or tell you not to bother :)
mike
mike