Customer selection

[SMRBAP]

I'll start with this - this is NOT about race, approximately half of the areas I don't want to serve are in majority white - and that not including ads to certain zip codes isn't an option because we do citywide mailings. My sole determining factor is income level.

Also - I am not an O/O - so unfortunately, I have to develop policy that staff can effectively implement. I don't have the luxury of "touching" every customer so to speak to make the judgement call if I will "over quote" to purposely avoid the job.

Pondering requiring a non-refundable $50 deposit in select zip codes, made by credit card at the time of booking to reserve an appointment (which will go towards job cost).

Line of thinking: 98% of my problematic customers fall into the lowest income categories. Those problems being #1, no shows, #2 nsf checks, #3 literally using keeping the appointment slot as means to get freebies. #4 not purchasing what they need service wise, then berating us online.

That category typically pays in cash, in large part because they can't have a bank account, nor credit card due to their previous financial mis-handlings.

Suggestions, comments, questions ?

 

[steve_64]

hire someone from the hood to do those jobs.

 

[Mikey P]

How are "these people" finding you?
Coupons/fliers/Val Pak?
Word of mouth?

like I said, yesterday...we reap what we sow..

 

[Shane Deubell]

Must be an indy thing...

Torrey was talking about this exact same thing earlier in the year, the $50 "ghetto" deposit. You have to use the same policy for every customer, remember when it comes to lawsuits winning/losing the suit is only part of the problem. Still would be absurdly expensive just to defend yourself, while the plantiff pays nothing.

Our shop is dead center in the ghetto so we do have some jobs, maybe i have thicker skin or am used to it. Not anymore problems then the prozac queen in the million dollar house. They all just kind of blend in...

 

[Shawn Abbey]

How are "these people" finding you?
Coupons/fliers/Val Pak?
Word of mouth?

like I said, yesterday...we reap what we sow..

I know in my market, NO ONE will give their credit card over the phone comfortably..... yet alone spend $50 as a deposit. Most Customers like to have the element, at least an illusion, of control over the cleaning project. Its a bad idea. At least in MY market.

IMHO, I think you're overthinking it, and looking in the wrong direction. At least by the information I'm hearing. Mike has a great question, and has said it simply in the other thread. You need to raise your prices considerably, and that will price you out of the ghetto market. Are you pricing by room or, square foot? Are you doing estimates over the phone, or personal on site estimates? Are you comparing your price by your competition, or by a profit margin? Do you have a representative that networks? What is your vision for the business? Who is your ideal Customer?

Alot of questions......

 

[Lee Stockwell]

I've gone out in Indianapolis with the Bane family to observe a unit in action. Very nice neighborhood, awesome results and presentation.

It depends on presentation whether you even get into that market...not easy.

 

[FB7777]

I haven't have a bounced check in over 5 years , a credit chargeback ever, or a bad check not get covered in over 10 years

Confirming appointments 48 hours in advance avoids 99.9% of no shows and is a proactive method of rescheduling those that forgot or have a habit of last minute canceling

You gotta train your customer base and take affirmative actions to protect your scheduled appointments . You can't get that time back, and that's what customers are buying from you

Sounds also like your chasing the wrong customers

 

[Zee]

*
That category typically pays in cash, in large part because they can't have a bank account, nor credit card due to their previous financial mis-handlings.?

So if they pay cash, how are you going to get that deposit? Since they don't have credit cards or bank accounts with debit cards.. are you simply going to deny their attempt to schedule with you if they can't electronicly deposit with you at the time of the phone call?

 

[hogjowl]

I sometimes forget that there are people out "there" who aren't as fortunate to have a market like mine. Seriously, I seldom ... I mean like hardly ever ... have problems with my customers. The worst thing I have to put up with is having to wait until they answer the front door.

 

[Dolly Llama]

#4 not purchasing what they need service wise,

?

Help me with that one, Anthony , cause i have visions of ,

"well Ma'an, the $19.95 price is for our basic cleaning.
but if you want it cleaned right, it will be $69.96"


..L.T.A.

 

[Jimmy L]

All of those delays, cancellations, no shows, bad checks are affecting your bottom line with wasted time.

Time is money.

You are not in business to service everybody.

You choose which market by your pricing and evidently your prices are too LOW.

Change marketing tactics to attract better cliental.

You can have 5 trucks out there doing ghetto jobs or you can scale back and develop the better market.

BUT!

You have to up your game by hiring better people who can conduct themselves in a better environment.

Wear sharp uniforms....speak EnGLiSH and not some hip hop lingo.
Clean sharp trucks and equipment.

Just like those who do apartments and then try to do high end residential.
They just don't get it when you explain to them you can't wear T-shirts and speak like low life trash when dealing with a better class of people.

Raise those prices and forget that val pak, living social,groupon crap

Let somebody else service those "Marty" neighborhoods.

 

[hogjowl]

A white hoodie with KKK on it is a "uniform"?

 

[Jimmy L]

Stoopie that's called subliminal "Marketing"

Those people don't call me and you will never see ME.............in those "marty" neighborHOODS!

And GEORGIA ST.......................really?

Never heard of them...............is that a high school?

 

[hogjowl]

Are you watching the Auburn-Ole Miss game?

 

[SMRBAP]

How are "these people" finding you?
Coupons/fliers/Val Pak?
Word of mouth?

like I said, yesterday...we reap what we sow..

Coupon mailings. I don't direct mail to these zips, nor any other direct marketing efforts there.

I did respond to that yesterday and my ads show two sets of prices. Standard cleaning costs & restorative cleaning costs. Standard costs are in the mid range (when looking at competing ads). Restorative pricing is the highest pricing in any ad in the city.

 

[Mikey P]

Coupons/valpak are going to continue to invite pita customers.

Hold monthly seminars for your employees on how to predict these sorry of situations coming and how to deal with them until you decide to fish in a nicer pond.

 

[SMRBAP]

Thanks guys - without typing in the entire business plan - you'll have to trust me that the situation is, I have to mail to these zones or not mail at all (cost breaks for citywide is why). Also - where we are size wise - it's tough to implement anything effective unless it's simple and across the board. Having leeway/judgement in protocol at this point, ends up to having someone in my office double guessing options 30 times daily.

Mikey - In the process of swinging towards more referral based jobs and other means to get the bigger fish - however - the print venues likely won't be going anywhere anytime soon - they'll be needed for the growth I'm shooting for. The majority of our customers are good customers. It's the small minority however that eats into profitability. It doesn't take much to do so month to month. And why I'm looking to cut the line on the fish likely to pose problems before I even pull them to shore.

Shane - if I raise the high end of the pricing any more - coupons will be useless - I'm at $90 for two rooms (traffic area) from a $120 regular cost.

Fred, we confirm appointments 48 out. If we can't confirm - they come off the schedule. Still, we have 4-10 no shows weekly.

Shawn - been testing it in a limited fashion - with a quick explanation "due to a high number of customers no showing us, it's required" - so far, we have lost far less work to that, than we have nsf checks, and no shows. Plus that loss came at no actual out of pocket loss. The lesser of two evils I am willing to accept.

LTA - I do offer multiple levels of service, because I won't subsidize costs for rotovac for someone that needs it, from those that don't paying the same rate and not getting it. Our customers are very well informed and absolutely know what they are signing up for. Though some do debate this in home (the we weren't told this or that game) - we have the recorded booking call available for them to listen to upon debate. They get upset, and that's fine - it's not the customer we want to retain at that point anyway.


We have all been selective about the jobs we don't want in the past, and will until we are retired - who hasn't quoted a $300 job at $600 to not get the job - and if you do - it's worth it. Unfortunately - I can't do that call by call at the volume we are working with anymore.

Mostly put this up to see if anyone else has implemented a way to achieve the same by default built in to your operational protocol.

Thanks again fellers

 

[Shane Deubell]

I see your point now, thanks for explanation.

Anyway you can have the techs call before they leave the previous job site? or have the csr call every morning?
Don't know just asking.

 

[Jimmy L]

I refuse to acknowledge that the rotovac is a upgrade in cleaning and charged extra for.

 

[The Great Oz]

Not that this is the best answer for you, but you can refuse to service any area or any address without incurring a lawsuit. I thought my old neighborhood was a pretty normal college-area part of town until I could no longer get pizza delivered. They explained that the neighborhood had a too-high incedence of prank address calls, orders stolen from delivery vehicles, claims that delivered pizza wasn't what was ordered, and refusals to pay. It didn't matter that I was a prior customer with no complaints, and it didn't matter what pizza delivery I called.

Could have been mostly the college kids trying to get free pizza, but I decided it was time to sell before the average home buyer figured out what the pizza places already knew.

 

[SMRBAP]

Shane - we do that - but I still lost a job on that route/van for the day. We are usually booked 3-5 days out. Someone else would have been scheduled at that time, and we'd have provided a service and cashed a check.

Jimmy - ? - shouldn't be charging more for rotary tools - or they aren't a better clean?

Bryan - one thing that has never ceased to amaze me since I have owned a service oriented business - is the number of people that lack the funds to cover a $300 check....... that somehow have $1000 for a lawyer....lol

 

[lust1kiddo]

Its funny because i was just going to post a new thread until I saw this one. I have refused to service 2 potential customers in 4 years..both times they were super rude on the phone and I didnt want to sink below their level ( cause thats what the hell I do ). So I was wondering, how do you turn people away. I had one lady who was so nasty that when she wanted a love seat cleaned I tried to price myself out and said " ok..it will be 350.00." and she was like great...when can you come ? needless to say she complained and was a pain in the ass. SO guys..how do you say politely no.

 

[SMRBAP]

When we have a standout pita from go - we ask when they need service, and let them know we are booked out a half month and refer them to the local bait and switch firm.

 

[Bruce Humphrey]

Its funny because i was just going to post a new thread until I saw this one. I have refused to service 2 potential customers in 4 years..both times they were super rude on the phone and I didnt want to sink below their level ( cause thats what the hell I do ). So I was wondering, how do you turn people away. I had one lady who was so nasty that when she wanted a love seat cleaned I tried to price myself out and said " ok..it will be 350.00." and she was like great...when can you come ? needless to say she complained and was a pain in the ass. SO guys..how do you say politely no.

We had this problem with one customer , he was so rude and said he would never use us again. The next year he had his wife call to set up the cleaning , my wife simply told her we would no longer be cleaning for them. Then he called and tried to apologize and wifey told him the same thing.

Just tell them you wont be cleaning for them any longer , don't make up excuses.

 

[Mardie]

I had a job to do on a Wednesday and had to re-schedule so I called them on Sunday 4 days before the appointment to re-schedule and the guy told me that he already had all the rooms cleared out and that if I am not their on Wednesday that he would never use us again. So I thought screw you and never showed up on Wednesday and his wife called around 11 am and I apologised to her and told her that her husband was very rood on the phone and I would never work for someone like that and that I would not even waste my time on a phone call to a person like that to tell him that I will not be doing the job. She said very comely and politely said that she understood. Note: When I was giving them a quote he was a total A-Hole to his wife and even put me in the middle of his disagreement that he had with his wife about weather or not to get a rug done or not. I just hope he did not take it out on his wife that the cleaning was not done. A guy like that needs to be taken out back a have a good liken thrown on him. Upper middle class home.