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WHO’S THERE TO TAKE YOUR CALLS

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=91
Printed Date: 23/February/2025 at 3:24am
Software Version: Web Wiz Forums 12.06 - https://www.webwizforums.com


Topic: WHO’S THERE TO TAKE YOUR CALLS
Posted By: nightrider
Subject: WHO’S THERE TO TAKE YOUR CALLS
Date Posted: 15/March/2004 at 3:02am
WHO HAS SOMEONE TO MAN THE PHONE WHEN A CUSTOMER CALLS. DOES YOUR WIFE DO IT, ONE OF YOUR KIDS IN THE SUMMER MONTHS, AN ANSWERING MACHINE, OR DO YOU HAVE A CELL AND ALL CALLS ARE TRANSFERED TO YOUR CELL LINE AND YOU ANSWER ALL CALLS.



Replies:
Posted By: PadMan
Date Posted: 15/March/2004 at 10:09am

We man our phones all the time, my wife usually handles the carpet cleaning calls and some of the Carpet Care Systems calls for machinery as well. It is imperative to have a PERSON answer your calls.

 



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Converting HWE customer to VLM customers for 30 Years!


Posted By: Steaminpile
Date Posted: 15/March/2004 at 10:54am
all calls go to my cel ph.


Posted By: MR. STEAMER
Date Posted: 15/March/2004 at 2:04pm

I have a voice mail box yanno press 1 for Blank  press 2 for blank blank

if you really need to talk to a live person press 4 ...the call is then transfered to my cell....

I wear the ear piece...my phone has voice record ....so when they give the info(while i'm working) I just record it on my phone......and take it down later..

one man show.....

Plus the customer knows who they are dealing with....

They call Steamer....

They talk to Steamer....

Steamer gives them an over the phone quote...or sets up an appointment for a in house quote...

Steamer comes to their door

Steamer does the JOB....

I promote me MR. STEAMER

They Just looooooooooooove me...they should call me Dr. LOVE...

                                              

Mr. Steamer Carpet Cleaner



Posted By: PRINCE
Date Posted: 16/March/2004 at 3:10am
I have 3 office girls taking calls and booking appointments. 1 of those girls is my wife and yes she is on the payroll

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We have the cleaning solution that's right for you


Posted By: adcc007
Date Posted: 04/July/2004 at 2:36pm
any quick tips on how to get my phone to ring?  I put out flyers and stuff like that.  Can any of you remember how you made your phones ring when you first started?


Posted By: surroundings
Date Posted: 04/July/2004 at 8:46pm
Originally posted by adcc007 adcc007 wrote:

any quick tips on how to get my phone to ring?  I put out flyers and stuff like that.  Can any of you remember how you made your phones ring when you first started?


We started in February.  Missed the local Yellow Pages.  Put in local newspaper ads, and mailed out 4,000 letters with flyers to local businesses.  Why a business?  Because some will get it done more then the once per year that Mr. & Mrs. Smythe should get it.

Called back as many of those businesses as possible, because only two responded, but most people I called remembered 'something' like that in the mail and 'meant' to call me.

Kept a high price in my own area, but to get work I bastardised my rate for a large property manager in another area. 

Cold called the pubs & clubs, restaraunts, winerys, and other high traffic companies.  If I wasn't cleaning carpets, I was on the phone, or knocking on doors.  Newspaper ads started working after 4 weeks, but barely paid for themselves.  Still knocking on doors and calling people.

Cleaning for businesses exposed more people to the work I do.  A get a lot of people calling me to say that we had cleaned the carpets at their work, could they get a quote from me for thier home.

If you're not cleaning, then market yourself.  See ALL the businesses you deal with regularly, tell everyone you've ever worked for or with, but don't let them give you that, "You can practice on my carpet...." line.

I quote most jobs in person, as that gets me the job more often when I explain the process we use.

Good luck, have fun, and be professional.

-Allen


Posted By: adcc007
Date Posted: 05/July/2004 at 1:49am
hey thanks allen!!!  So far you are the second person who has really given me any real advice.  so i assume that you ment Feb. of this year?  how are things going for you?  are you doing this part time or full time?  well, anymore advice that you can come up with and would like to share with me would be great!


Posted By: surroundings
Date Posted: 05/July/2004 at 4:21am
I've been doing business to business sales for 11 years, but the past three I've been doing 'special projects' that included some sales, handling difficult customers, marketing, research, business development, and advertising.

I've got a couple of ideas.  Not all of them will work.  Not all of them will work for you in your area.  Use every resorce you can: the internet, this forum, your distributor, your competition, your contacts....

Who is your ideal customer?  Figure that out.  Don't give me that stuff about, "Anyone with a carpet" because we all have the IDEAL.  Write down the qualities of your ideal.  This will change as you learn and progress.  The ideal includes the area, financial situation, quality expected, age group, WHATEVER defines your ideal.  Heck, add favorate sport and music taste if you feel it's important and defines the perfect customer. 

Next, how do you answer your phone?  What is your script?  You'd better have a script for making calls, receiving calls, cold calling, and in-home presentations.  Anyone can learn sales.  I've trained sales reps, telemarketers, and secretaries how to answer phones and make calls and do sales for different industries.  Once we figure out WHO you want to speak to, then we figure out HOW you will speak to them.  I am better with businesses then homeowners when it comes to marketing.  They are different fields.

How you clean carpets only counts if you want repeat business and reccomendations... and I want repeat business and reccomendations.   It makes business sense, and gives me a warm fuzzy feeling inside.  I hope you want these  too. 

What add on sales can you offer?  I've sold a couple of vacuum cleaners so far.  Made an extra $100 each time.   I mention it EACH time: "This is the best vacuum cleaner on the market, and I am a distributor.  What are you using right now?"

Don't wait for your phone to ring.  You want work?  Go out there and fight for it.  Do you expect the whole world to beat down your door on the strengh of your ad?  Wake up and get a job.

If you don't want to talk in this forum, then e-mail me:  shubin@drugsmakemecool.com  (it's a real e-mail address, and a private joke for my friends) or speak to me here.  Let me know what you are currently doing.  Let me know your background. Let me know what you are planning on doing.

I'm doing ok.... after 3 months, the loan money ran out, and we're operating on our own steam (so to speak!).  Most bills get paid on time, and I've only once had to cancel out paying myself.  Yesterday I only had $200 worth of work booked in for this week, but I had three quotes this morning, and I'll pull a minimum of $800 bucks if nothing else comes up.... and nobody cancels.  That's Australian dollars.  It's not enough for me, I need at LEAST $1,200, but it's only Monday.  It's the middle of winter, and if it wasn't for my cold calling and the  reccomendations I recieve, I'd be starving.  I couldn't live off the people that call from my ads.

I'm working on four big quotes, the smallest will be worth about $12,000 over the next 12 months, and the biggest will be worth $40,000 over the same time.  If I don't get them, that's ok, because I'll find out why I missed out... and NOT make the same mistake next time.

Quote as many jobs in person as you can.  You will learn more about what the customer (or client) expects, and have a higher success rate.  If you just started up, you've got nothing better to do anyway, right?  Tell 'em what you do on the phone, tell 'em what you do in person, then tell 'em what you do in your quote.

If I can try to help, let me know.

-Allen





Posted By: PadMan
Date Posted: 06/July/2004 at 6:38pm

When I moved here in '92 to Kentucky I didn't know one person in the state, so I started by cleaning some apartment complexes, no I don't much care for the work ,but  a guy can make 300-400 a day at it if he is willing to work.

 

I mailed out 107 letters to the apartment complexes offering 1 free apartment cleaning BUT it had to have JUST been cleaned or told it COULDN"T be cleaned by thier present cleaner.

 

I only recieved 6 calls, did 6 demos, got 6 complexes and within a year word of mouth had me up to 28 complexes.

After a couple years we dropped the apartments and concentrated on residential and commercial work.



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Converting HWE customer to VLM customers for 30 Years!



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