[ianharper]

Hi Jasonl

Great layout.

I would have put much more about safe to kids and drying times, we move everthing etc on the benfit list, as you are going for mums so you must think like one. if she has a small child how is she going to move things? she will be worried if your process is safe for kids, and how quickly she can use the area again. its no fun stuck in the kitchen with the kids.

Plus I would have given added value in extra service for free and not talked about price as this might give the impression that you have high prices say Spend over £100 and get £10 off better to say if you go this way 10% off all prices until X date

Please dont take my coments the wrong way. Respect to you

Respect

Iasn Harper

[Chris Bailey]

My lealfet is not as professional as Jason's, however, I get a great response from it.  This may be because I am giving more away.. but not a bogof!

Spend between £15 & £30 - get £2 off
Spend between £30 & £50 - get £5 off
Spend between £50 & £100 - get £10 off
Spend over £100 - get £25 off

Works for me!

Chris

[ianharper]

Hi Guys

Its not what you pay for your leaflets its what they give you back in return on your investment.

Respect

ian Harper

[jasonl]

the above leaflet cost £1252  for 40000 inc design , photography, delivery and printing on 150 gram paper then 650 for delivery, most months there will be a £ 6000 return on this , is that ok?

[ianharper]

Hi Guys

Do you live in a town where some other carpet cleaner has all the estate agent and letting as clients? Well I have just come up with a way around this. I call it dive by marketing -)

Most houses that are let in any town are always having new tenants and waht happens when it changes hands? they have their carpets cleaned. As I drive up and down streets each day and I see a sign that the house it for let I get the address and put in a datbase that will have sales letters sent out addressed to the tenant. send them out each and every month and the month that that house changes hands you will be the one cleaning the carpets not the other guy.

This method can be used for many other cases, like builders, kitchen fitters, new bathrooms. if you see a van parked outside a house then send a sales letter. as most people that have an event like these will want to show off to their friends, no good if they have a nice new kitchen and dirty smelly carpets everywhere in the house.

Thes events are no differant that xmas etc, they are events. and if you talk to your customers you will find out that ther is allways a reason that they have their carperts cleaned, and it not just because they are dirty.

Plus the bonus is that they will have the money to spend on our services as they would have saved or lent the money to have the work done.

Respect

Ian Harper

[Ian Gourlay]

Ian

That is  a good one I was reading  about a similiar idea the other day, but yours is much more elaborate and a way to build a data base.

Hope you do not mind me asking but do you just do the marketing and get your staff to clean the carpets.


Regards


Ian

[ianharper]

Hi Ian

Bit of both at the moment, I have a maid service with about twenty staff and I am train some up on the carpet side. As I hace said I think taht females are the way forwards. I have had loads of experance with men and because they are the bread winners they after time start to think of ways to con and nick the work. I am saying that females dont its that they are less of a risk, and when its your money that matters.

Its one other reason that I all for these new portables taht can used from the van. it makes it easier for females. plus you can have them on part time somthing that does not go down with men very well.

Its a catch twent two, that to build your business you must focus on marketing but this is hard when you have to earn money to pay the bills. Plus you need extra money at the start of a business to build that datbase. so by splitting it you make it posable to expand and still pay you bills.

One reason that I am intersted in low cost marketing is that its low cost and you can do lots more. I want to get as many marketing systems going as i posably can. I am testing all the time. We have just testing at the moment a leaflet with ten differant offers on it and it is at the moment not doing as good as the another one that only has one offer on it. I am going to change the headline to see if that make any differance.

Setting out knowing that you want to build a business and not just be selfemployed is so important. It is the hard way of making money as so often it just easier to do it yourself and get it right the first time. but learning to deal with problems are all part of it. something that you dont expect when you set out.

Respect

Ian Harper

[ianharper]

Hi Guys

Thats about 16 so far, lets see how many we can come up with? I post list later.

Respect

Ian Harper

[Doug Holloway]

Ian,

The internet.

Cheers

Doug

[ianharper]

Doug

How do you promote your site?

Respect

Ian Harper

[ianharper]

Van Sign
Yell.com
Yellow Pages
Church Mags
Local Mags
Business Link
NCCA Referrals
Customer Referrals
B&Q
Local Business Clubs
Shop Windows
Thompson Local
5 Around
Mail Old Customers
Mail Newsletters
Leaflets
The Internet

[ianharper]

Paul

How good are the church mags with regrads return on investment? I have just had a look at my Yellow pages and ther are about three hundred in my local area. What type of responce have you had?

Its an interestning media as I should think that people look forwards to getting their copy each month and will read it. might be a good place for an additorial? Or a offer to only the worshipers at so and so church.

Might leave out the kingdom halls -) Dont have the time to stop and chat -)

Respect

Ian Harper

[terrymaloy]

Get to know your local carpet retailer and carpet fitters. Leave him your business card. I've have loads of calls to STAINGUARD newley laid carpets from these guys. A nice little earner.

[garyj]

The only 2 problems I can see with the free or low cost advertising list is they aren't free and most aren't low cost.

Booyakasha,
Gary

[neil 47]

Ian

Why have you got so much information on your website .
I find it quite overwhelming and give up reading.

Or do you find that if customers want their carpets cleaning they will read it all.
this is not a criticism just wondered

Neil

ps     Thanks for giving out so much information as I find a lot say a lot but don’t explain a lot.

PPS I  find this a well set out site 

http://www.cleaningdoctor.net/services.html

[paul_smith]

Ian,
church mags willbring in the odd job but i have only started using them recently so dont have figures.
One mag got me a job in first issue which paid for the add for the year(comes out monthly) so should do ok.
a lot of local ad mags cropping up in my area at the mo so i am giving them a go
Cheers
Paul

[Kinver_Clean]

I ad in several local community mags ie Church and village. They are about £25-35 per year and mostly pay for themselve over and over.
A lady from another village visited a cust and got my ad, I now have half a dozen regulars in that village. ( I am envious of those ccs who do not travel more than 3 miles. Living in the sticks has its advantages but increases the milage, 13000 last year, none private.) Also country lanes are accident prone, Two bumps in 3 months, waiting for the third!

Trevor

[ianharper]

Hi Guys

Gary, costs are depndant on in you get a return on your investment. for example if you spend out say, £200 on some leaflet and del, and you get one or two jobs from it and you made it back includeing your time and costs. , then you are braek evan on this investment. now later that year you get repeat or reconmendation from these leads then you are starting to get a return on your investment.

so the first visit its cost you nothing and the second you start to make on them. this is called frount end and back end. it if make money on the frount then well done, but the profit should be made on the back end.

Its no differant than a phone company giving you a phone for free. they know that they will make money out you over the contact. We give away loads to get people on our list. you can evan work out how much you can give away on the front end if you keep all your numbers on retern on the investment.

so if you spnt out £10k on some marketing if you get it back on the front end then its been free at this point. then you can go on and make money from these prospect on the back end with addons. referals, reconmandations, and second cleans.

Neil, The more you tell the more you sell. We all have differant things that will make us spend our money. so by identifying as many of these you hit the spot of as many prospects as you can.

What we have to remember is that if we take money from a customer that some of it has to go back into the business to replace the money spent getting this new customer. its not all wages. by doing this your business and marketing become easier as time goes by. because you are not chasing new customers all the time.

You would think that peole would remember you after a year? think again they will not. thats why you have to keep your name in front of them each month. using newsletters.

Respect

ian harper