Getting a semi-annual client to go for quarterly - BACKFIRES!

[Derek]

well in trying to increase business i have been slowly working on some Clients to increase them from annual or semi annual to quarterly. so far no dice.

this morning i wake up to an email, "i talked with the boss and he thinks once a year is fine." - the problem is that they have always been twice per year! i call and point this out, he says, "well the boss said he thinks once a year will work so price it for that." ....



be careful what ya ask for lol

don't ya ever wish you could deal with the REAL decision maker instead of someone further down the pipe line?? that sure would be nice!

any one ever tried to go over the head of their contact and speak with the president / owner of the biz? is it worth it from your experience, or have you lost the account because it ticks off the contact?

[encapman]

Perhaps you could explain that less doesn't usually equal more.

Less care in the short run may save money it's true. But in the long run, it's another story.

Less care will leave them with dirtier carpet year round. That will negatively impact their worker productivity and the appearance for their customers. And when the carpet is neglected the longevity of the carpet will be reduced. Replacing the carpet prematurely will cost a lot more than maintaining it. Proper maintenance is a no brainer. Of course, that's assuming they have a brain



Rick Gelinas
The Encapman
1-800-330-1888
Encap Supplies: http://www.Excellent-Supply.com
Encap Message Board: http://www.EncapBoard.com
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[DON ELDRED]

Seems to me this is happening a lot lately. Companies are cutting back or holding off spending right now. Not sure about the thinking behind it as sooner or later they will need to pay the piper.
A lot has to do with shareholders demanding a better return on their investments etc etc..

[TheCleaningDude]

This is absolutely true. Especially publicly traded companies. If they don't show quarter over quarter growth they're in trouble.

So what do they do? Increase revenue or cut costs. Or both.

Derek, personally I think our service is seriously undervalued and there is not a lot that we can do about it. They look at cleaning as a cost of doing business, not as an investment in their business. Trying to push for more cleanings may have irritated the DM. Could have been a bad day, maybe business is slow, who knows.

IMO this is why having a couple of other services might be a good idea for commercial. Windows, restroom sanitation, office cleaning, etc.

Seems to me this is happening a lot lately. Companies are cutting back or holding off spending right now. Not sure about the thinking behind it as sooner or later they will need to pay the piper.
A lot has to do with shareholders demanding a better return on their investments etc etc..

[MikeB]

One of my nursing homes, the one my wife works for actually, went back to having housekeeping do carpets with their old crappy extractor.
I'm currently pitching the perpetual clean system from ricks CMS program to them but since my wife is in management there it's kind of a sticky deal. I don't want her in the middle of it since its a county facility with board members and a bunch of women / co-workers who like to stir up controversy

[MikeB]

Btw, I feel for you Derek. That stinks. One of my property managers called last minute this week to cancel a cigarette smoke smelling apartment this week. Going to have the manager clean walls with pinesol. I told her to call back when that doesn't work and I'll try to work you in.

[Derek]

tx for the replies fellas!

the Windows add-on service is an interesting idea Damon!! i mean, we all already deal with the contact or decision maker at all of the commercial facility's we service.

anyone else doing windows?

---

just to update on the original topic, i emailed my contact the info below this morning...he then replied later this afternoon that they are sticking with the semi-annual schedule...PHEW!

BTW, this place manufactures a lot of clay type products. clay dust is EVERY where. after Shawna pre-vac's the measly 4500 sq.ft with the Dyson, the trash bag that she empty's the dust cup into weighs 12-15 pounds...every 6 months. once per year would be crazy, i wasn't exaggerating

"Hi xxx,


Attached is the original Quote for twice per year (I edited it to add in the new Offices that were built in 2011), that price is still good.

Also the new Quote for once per year. This is higher due to the fact that your carpet will be much dirtier and will take us more time and effort to clean properly.

I will also say ahead of time that with the HIGH volume of soil/dust in the air, if we lower our frequency to once per year, that will not be often enough to bring the carpet back to it's original state. It will slowly grow dirtier and dirtier. It needs regular maintenance to uphold it's appearance. I just have to state this to you ahead of time, that is my job as your professional service provider.


Thanks --- Derek."

i am glad he listened to reason

tx again for the replies fellas

[MikeB]

Glad it worked out for you Derek!

[rlord]

I have been so LUCKY in this biz. My primary account is certainly one of the largest if not the largest in the Area. Two things happened to increase my business by leaps and bounds. I donated two cleanings to a charity auction they were running. Go to one of the houses to do the cleaning very nice lady, got along great. We're in cleaning at the largest account location, she comes up and starts chatting. I ask where here office is, she tells me, huh she's the big boss in charge of everything (she didn't tell me I just knew where the office was). She went to my contact (a director) and told him she wanted us doing all the bathrooms T&G on a monthly schedule as we do a much better job then their people in addition to the carpet. I was shocked. Now she is always stopping to chat and last time she wanted to make sure they were keeping us busy enough. My point here is you would never have thought this lady was anything more than a clerk. Treat everybody like they are the decision maker, cause they just might be.
Glad you kept the account at least on the same schedule!

[BGCD]

Derek how much did you reduce your price to get them to try quarterly?

[David-Hebert]

We keep growing, but a lot of our growth has been doing other surfaces rather then carpets. Just finished with a small schools gym and hall floors all are wood, more and more T&G seems do be cropping up. Acid staining concrete floors is beginning to be more popular latly

[Derek]

BGCD, i never reduced the price for Quarterly

we never got that far, i just had recommended twice that they should go that route. i wouldn't have lowered it much, it is a 50 minute drive and heavily impacted with the dust.

[leofry@1966]

I tell clients its like buying a brand new car/truck and saying i love but i can't afford to change the oil in it... I even send them a card that has a photo of that on there..