$$$what's up with pricing$$$
Printed From: Carpet Cleaning Forum
Category: Carpet Cleaners Discussion
Forum Name: Carpet Cleaners Hangout
Forum Description: General discussion on anything related to carpet cleaning
URL: https://www.kleenkuip.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=4862
Printed Date: 27/April/2024 at 10:16pm
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Topic: $$$what's up with pricing$$$
Posted By: DeepScrub
Subject: $$$what's up with pricing$$$
Date Posted: 07/March/2008 at 1:14am
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I started cleaning carpet on my own in august of 07!Not to brag but I feel I do very good work.However it's starting to get difficult to keep jobs with low lifes cleaning rooms for $10 with a floor scruber and no extraction."People call and say well this guy did it for this etc"...It really is starting to piss me off!!Customers think I should clean their carpet for dirt cheap!
How do you attract customers in nice areas with money?? I only get calls for the poor areas of my city (cleveland,OH)I hand out a ton of flyers in the real nice areas and don't recieve any calls?The poor areas call and don't want to spend any money!!I won't give up though I pass out flyers every day!! ------------- "DO YOUR BEST" |
Replies:
Posted By: B Rice
Date Posted: 07/March/2008 at 2:55am
use a web ads...poor people don't have a computer ------------- http://www.PanhandleFloorCare.com - http://www.PanhandleFloorCare.com http://www.Pensacola-Carpet-Cleaning.com - http://www.Pensacola-Carpet-Cleaning.com |
Posted By: DeepScrub
Date Posted: 07/March/2008 at 8:51am
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good idea^^^^^ ------------- "DO YOUR BEST" |
Posted By: pbm
Date Posted: 07/March/2008 at 11:20am
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I started up a cleaning company 10 years ago i always bid high dont have alot of accounts but the ones i do have pay will sometimes1,000 more then other bids they get...i got a freind that does the some work bids cheap works 9 hour a night i work 3 made 30,000 more then him last year...WORK SMART NOT HARD ALWAYS STICK TO YOUR PRICES....http://www.kleenkuip.com/forum/smileys/smiley1.gif ------------- The bonnet pro |
Posted By: DCC
Date Posted: 08/March/2008 at 4:09pm
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It is an interesting phenomenon, Sears and SS get THEIR prices not matter what. And provide far inferior service. If you are good, stick to your guns. I have found price to be the hardest part of a business. ------------- |
Posted By: Superglide Ken
Date Posted: 08/March/2008 at 6:47pm
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You have it backwards. Never start out trying to make residential the core of your business. Even if you were moderatly sucessful at it, you would starve before you got them back as repeat customers. Referals will not be enough to keep you going either, unless you are very well capitalized when you start.
You need a plan, and a very regular source of income when you are starting out. Draw up a cash flow projection for the next 12 months, showing what you expect to spend in goods and services each month. It will be close to $1000/month if you are using a single truck and portable. If you use a TM, it will be closer to $2000/month. Now add to that what you need your business to pay you each month to keep going. Most will need to put at least $2000 more per month down for this. You will now have monthly expenses of $3000 to $4000 each month just to break even. If you don't do it you are out of business. So how do you cover this? You start off in the commercial side of the business FIRST. Forget the residential except what comes to you FREE from your commercial accounts. Commercial business can be set up to pay you MONTHLY. So you need to knock on doors and get the business yourself. In the begining, set aside 3 days per week to knock on business prospects in your area. Only 2 or 3 days for cleaning. Once your monthly sales reach $5000/month, and you are coving expenses every month, cut your sales days down to 2 days per week and do more cleaning.Only cut back to 1 sales day per week when your monthly sales exceed $20,000/month, and never reduce it below that number. When your cashflow is over $20,000/month, then go after the residential market. Most companies fail in this business because they starve for sales . They starve for sales because they are poor business managers, not bad carpet cleaners. As Ted would say, clean smart. A little thought would keep you in the game long enough to do well, without the need to close the doors or waste thousands on flyers that nearly always end up in the garbage. Execute your business well on the commercial side, and you will have more refferals than you can handle. Then YOU can pick and choose what you want to do.  ------------- Inventor of the Teflon Wand Glide and the Turboteck Rotary Air Duct Cleaners for TMs. |
Posted By: John L
Date Posted: 08/March/2008 at 11:35pm
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Please.. Its not going to cost a 1000 more a month using a TM vs a portable.. The Van is the major gas hog.. Go for both.. Don't wait till you make 20K month.. You may never reach that goal.. |
Posted By: Superglide Ken
Date Posted: 09/March/2008 at 12:33am
Guess you have never run a direct drive TM then John. If you look at all the costs(including depreciation) the cost is easily $1000 more per month to put out than running a portable.I took it in to account a cleaner paid Cash for the portable, but had to make payments of $600/mo on the TM. Add in the gas of a couple of hundred and insurance and you are there. ------------- Inventor of the Teflon Wand Glide and the Turboteck Rotary Air Duct Cleaners for TMs. |
John L wrote:Posted By: bryan
Date Posted: 09/March/2008 at 12:59am
| I put an add in the Yellow pages from the start and has worked well for me. I get mid income houses and 99% of the calls are residential. Started off with price lower and have slowly worked it up. |
Posted By: John L
Date Posted: 09/March/2008 at 12:43pm
Your right there Ken.. Never ran a dd.. But have had 4 diff. portys and 2 diff TM's.. OK maybe so with the dd.. But not so with my midsize TM.. I don't have the monthly payments..
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Posted By: Hammy
Date Posted: 09/March/2008 at 4:07pm
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Kenny just wants to sell his bullsh*t! ------------- Could somebody just clean my carpets! |
Posted By: Superglide Ken
Date Posted: 09/March/2008 at 4:11pm
Can I make money doing that? Please identify the buyers hammy and I will get right on it!  ------------- Inventor of the Teflon Wand Glide and the Turboteck Rotary Air Duct Cleaners for TMs. |
Posted By: Hammy
Date Posted: 09/March/2008 at 4:13pm
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Kenny you would steel from your own MOTHER! ------------- Could somebody just clean my carpets! |
Posted By: Superglide Ken
Date Posted: 09/March/2008 at 7:28pm
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Nope. I wouldn't even steal from YOUR mother, Hammy. I am toohonest a person for that. ------------- Inventor of the Teflon Wand Glide and the Turboteck Rotary Air Duct Cleaners for TMs. |
Posted By: Hammy
Date Posted: 09/March/2008 at 8:32pm
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Kenny you would steel from yourself if you knew how! ------------- Could somebody just clean my carpets! |
Posted By: FuzzSucker
Date Posted: 09/March/2008 at 8:43pm
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1000-2000 a month seems like a bit much for a one man starter operation. especially if you are advertising by knocking on doors, but I guess it depends what you consider to be company expenses. ------------- http://thepremierclean.com - http://thepremierclean.com | http://carpetcleaning-coloradosprings.com - Colorado Springs Carpet Cleaning |
Posted By: duckcountry
Date Posted: 11/March/2008 at 11:07pm
Recognized names = higher perceived value. Try taking out an ad in the schools PTA newsletter. Buys you some goodwill. Then make sure your fliers are in the neighborhoods served by that school. Name recognition. ------------- Are you in a high paying business or are you just a self employed low paid grunt who thinks this business provides dignity? |
Posted By: duckcountry
Date Posted: 11/March/2008 at 11:08pm
Read Winning Through Intimidation by Robert J Ringer. You will find Kenny in there. ------------- Are you in a high paying business or are you just a self employed low paid grunt who thinks this business provides dignity? |
Posted By: B Rice
Date Posted: 12/March/2008 at 3:07am
the phone book actually worked for you???...We've not a made a penny from it! Can't wait till its over ------------- http://www.PanhandleFloorCare.com - http://www.PanhandleFloorCare.com http://www.Pensacola-Carpet-Cleaning.com - http://www.Pensacola-Carpet-Cleaning.com |
Posted By: FuzzSucker
Date Posted: 12/March/2008 at 11:36pm
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Phone book is better for flood restoration. ------------- http://thepremierclean.com - http://thepremierclean.com | http://carpetcleaning-coloradosprings.com - Colorado Springs Carpet Cleaning |
Posted By: cmaster
Date Posted: 13/March/2008 at 3:01am
Phone book is for price shoppers. Unfortunately most of us need to be in there ------------- 
The STD Meter |
Posted By: duckcountry
Date Posted: 13/March/2008 at 1:06pm
And for those annoying telephone solicitors out to sell us on THEIR "sure to get you more business, can you handle more business?" ego building and capital shrinking song and dance. If I have never heard of them, I figure my potential customer hasn't either. Here in my area, TV ads (purchased from the local station itself and not the cable company) go for about $7/per view. Radio ads are more expensive for some reason at upwards to $70/per play. The local newspaper is the most expensive at $600 for a decent small ad, single run. Put them together with the yellow page ad so they have the can find the number they can't remember and that should be enough but fliers really kick it up. It is not where they heard of you but where they found the number they just called that explains where the yellow pages comes into play. They kinda remember the name but the phone number (no matter how many times they hear it or see it as is the case with television) evades them. They know where to look for the information. It may be that asking "where did you hear about us?" should be followed with "where did you find the phone number when you called? Was it on an ad, flier or in the phone book?" The answer will be print ad, flier, yellow pages or white pages I suspect and in that order. I'm just saying that the purpose of the yellow page ad is to help the prospect find the number they don't have in front of them (as is the case with someone driving and hearing your radio ad) or committed to memory and that the larger the ad, the easier you are to spot (rather than them finding the competitors ad and thinking bigger ad, bigger company, better service). This moment of stupidity has been brought to you by Scamly Skeemer, setting low standards, making local pros shine. Scamly Skeemer, yellow mean caution. Scamly Skeemer, we only look like carpet cleaners. ------------- Are you in a high paying business or are you just a self employed low paid grunt who thinks this business provides dignity? |
Posted By: duckcountry
Date Posted: 13/March/2008 at 1:23pm
Why did they call you and not him? Tell them he went out of business from cleaning carpet that cheap. Or tell them you don't have his number and they should look it up in the phone book. They are lying to you. You return the favor. They may have seen an ad once for that price but they want you or someone like you for that price and they will lie to get it. Clean is an action (as in to perform cleaning motions) and a state of being (as in down to the backing clean). Do they want a circus performer or a miracle worker? I still say buyers are liars. ------------- Are you in a high paying business or are you just a self employed low paid grunt who thinks this business provides dignity? |
Posted By: FuzzSucker
Date Posted: 13/March/2008 at 9:41pm
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head on, just apply to the forehead.head on, just apply to the forehead.head on, just apply to the forehead.head on, just apply to the forehead.head on, just apply to the forehead.head on, just apply to the forehead.head on, just apply to the forehead.head on, just apply to the forehead.head on, just apply to the forehead.head on, just apply to the forehead.head on, just apply to the forehead.head on, just apply to the forehead.head on, just apply to the forehead.head on, just apply to the forehead.head on, just apply to the forehead.head on, just apply to the forehead.head on, just apply to the forehead. ------------- http://thepremierclean.com - http://thepremierclean.com | http://carpetcleaning-coloradosprings.com - Colorado Springs Carpet Cleaning |
Posted By: B Rice
Date Posted: 15/March/2008 at 1:41am
WHATS THE NAME OF THAT...OH YEA HEAD ON ------------- http://www.PanhandleFloorCare.com - http://www.PanhandleFloorCare.com http://www.Pensacola-Carpet-Cleaning.com - http://www.Pensacola-Carpet-Cleaning.com |
Posted By: MBCC
Date Posted: 25/May/2008 at 1:48am
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And just who are you blaming? Are you a sole proprietor or do you have a payroll? If you are a sole proprietor you might be asking too much in your area.
I operate solo and make a 64% profit charging 12.5 cents a square foot (2 cents cleaning supplies / 2.5 cents covers insurance, gas, taxes, misc operating costs / the remaining 8 cents is profit) Of course I am in a rural area. My service area covers about 30 thousand homes and about 700 businesses. Not a wealthy area. Lowering prices in todays economy might bring in more business, if you can do it. Find ways to cut operating costs. Buy cleaners at bulk discount rates. Do your own accounting. Make a good impression on the customer. Invest in uniforms and business cards. Set an image when visiting businesses to obtain contracts. Commercial businesses are 95% of my job market. Create a business model. Start one from scratch. Find contracts! good luck... but it works! ------------- "Quality service guaranteed" |