Adwords getting abused by irrational customer

[your_good_sons]

Last September I cleaned carpet for someone that had maybe 150 or so urine stains on their carpet. I really couldn't count them all. Most were the size of a half dollar give or so. Some I found with black light, most I found with a moisture probe crawling around on my hands and knees. I really need to get a Hydrosensor. I'd probe spots, 5-6% then bam 14-20%. The salts hold moisture forever.
I mapped it out with poker chips. I ran out of chips. I had two packs with 72 each!

The dog was a Yorkie, on the small side for even a Yorkie. He had some sort of bladder infection and the owners were unwilling/unable to walk him as often as needed.

The first problem was the downstairs was already cleaned by Stan the man a week or two prior. He cleaned their wallet out of about $300 and they were not very happy. I guess Stan doesn't have a Water Claw. So they tell me they don't want to spend too much, they know they got ripped off, and somehow I was partially to blame for that. I spent over an hour examining every inch of their carpet, for nothing.
They had a black light. All the spots that Stan cleaned were still there! Tried to explain that the spots showing up under black light were from dye loss, dye color change, not necessarily failure to remove urine. They told me that sounded like "carpet cleaner bullshit" and that should have been my cue to just walk away. But I am sometimes stupid. I did just the upstairs for $200. I did a good job. The little guy pee'd in the first room I cleaned before I finished the second bedroom. He pees like a female and I caught him in the act. He pee'd on the bedskirts and walls and furniture too.
I get a callback three days later. They want a refund. They are not happy. Black light spots still everywhere. Dog still pees everywhere. I guess I was supposed to stop that too. I offered to re-clean. That was not acceptable, they wanted a refund. I told them to pound sand.
They live in a small town of about 3,000 people. The are on my Google Adwords hit list 2-3 times per day from this little town, even with the bid adjusted -25%. Cities with 20,000+, with the bid adjusted +25% don't get 2-3 hits a day. I had a call on the Google voicemail associated with this ad twice too. Both hangups. Their number.
This has been going on all week. I'm trying to figure out how to block them. They are nuts and abuse. Any thoughts? Thanks.

 

[Art Kelley]

This is the down side of internet marketing. Everything is personal including your reaction to customer feedback. I am currently operating without any knowledge of my internet presence. I am fortunate to have a deep well of various customer networks that keep me fully booked most of the year. But one can replicate this muti-decade market presence with a dedicated internet campaign. You just have to accept the downside risks and appreciate how fortunate you really are to be operating in these times of low cost customer acquisition.

 

[Clean Response]

They will get tired/bored with it and stop over time. Google should be able to give you credit when they look at the ip address that keeps clicking on it. Not sure if they can block the ip or not.

 

[Russ T.]

I'm not sure they will be effective at this for long. Google limits this kind of thing for the benefit of the ones who pay them...US. Ask Hoody what he thinks. I talked to him the other day about this as well as talking directly to Google. I suggest you do the same, it will put your mind at ease.


The Clean Machine

 

[jcooper]

Here ya go, Pete!

Invalid clicks

https://support.google.com/adwords/answer/42995?hl=en

 

[OneBlueSummer]

Under settings u can block ip addresses, I have a bunch of them blocked, including most other local cleaners.

 

[your_good_sons]

I just made some huge bid adjustments. By demographics, if you are in the bottom 50% you just got cut by 10-15% of the bid price. This particular small town, 25%. I know these people are likely to to fall into that lower level. I did nothing for the top 10%, I can't get through to them. 11-20% you just got a 10% bump. 21-30% a 5% bump, if it was a very wealthy area, like average income is over $130,000 I pulled that down a little so the 21-30% got the 10% bump and the 31-40% got the 5%. Strange, you could be making $120,000 and very possibly be in the lower 50% in more than a handful of communities here. Must suck to be considered "poor" and have a $100,000 income! I think fine tuning is going to help in the long run.

I'm also pulling away from carpets more and putting more effort into rugs. I think rugs are my future, maybe wood floors, but if you screen and recoat, you will never see them again for years. I think that glorified mop n glo is a scam. Went to a Basic Coatings session, saw an overpriced CRB autoscrubber and they were slapping it down with a mop! If the housewife can do it, why are they going to pay you? People aren't that dumb, least not around here. I do about 1 screen and recoat per month and would like to do more. I have over $1000 tied up in a Mercury LB-9000 that can basically only do screen and recoat, but it is so simple, and newb could do this. I think the hardest part is getting the finish down without bubbles, you have to be so slow...

I used to think commercial was my future, but I am not sure. I know residential wall-to-wall is dead here. Browsing photos on Zillow, many houses over $250,000 (which is nothing around here) show little wall-to-wall in the photos. Get up to about $400,000 and you see basically none.

 

[Mike Draper]

Always follow your first instinct. On urine jobs like that where there is piss every other inch I tell them straight up front that my process will make it worse for a couple days and after that it may die down a little, but not to expect a lot. I tell them the only true way to get rid of that much piss it to replace the pad or replace everything. No guarantees. People expect to much from you but dont give a shit if their dog pisses all over the house for years and years. I hate to be the bearer of bad news in these situations, but it just seems from experience that if I dont tell them how it is they will ASSume that I will fix their problem, then their double pissed when its not fixed.

 

[Mikey P]

Great advice from Draper.

Quite watching George Grivalja and CTI videos on how to be a urine superhero.

Only a retailer can do that.

That $300 seems like a bargain now, eh?


What a pita situation but like you said, it was your fault fit taking on the job in the 1st place.


Welcome to MB!

 

[your_good_sons]

There is no such thing as a piss super hero in wall to wall. I've never walked into a situation where there was "only a little" most of the time, they've tried something and failed and it is overwhelming. I have been 100% successful on many polypropylene area rugs, but nothing else has even close to 100% success. Fortunately, most people will settle for 75% success. I thought I had this couple pre-qualified, but they were pretty argumentative during the estimate, but at the same time, didn't want me to walk away.
I walked into a foreclosure flip where it might have been animal and human piss on the floor, but it was too nasty to even estimate. I drove by the house a few weeks later and it looked like it was being gutted. No surprise there.