NobleCarpetCleaners
Member
- Joined
- May 16, 2010
- Messages
- 1,191
- Name
- Noble Carpet Cleaners
Aside from Steve Marsh, who out there targets owner operators with a marketing strategy?
Marketing
- Thread starter NobleCarpetCleaners
- Start date
Mikey P
Administrator
Terje Brevik is your man.
LisaWagnerCRS
Member
Steve Marsh has some good content, and he is an excellent instructor. I worked with him in CFI for years, and he was in our Platinum program for 4 years, and a Piranha Member for as long as I can remember.
Piranha does not specifically target owner-operators - but we have a number of them as members. Though most, like Steve, are husband-wife teams and not completely 1-man shows.
Robert Peters has 1 1/2 vans, doing $500K+ a year, with 2 others - one doing all the in-field work, one doing all the estimates, and he handles the day-to-day office operation. Works for him. He used to have 30+ vans, and he prefers what he has now.
One of the best things to make sure you do is position yourself as a high price company, so that you have the margins to invest in growth, if you want to, or simply pocket it and roll around in the piles of dollars on the weekends (like Terje does...)
I wrote an article for Cleanfax on "higher prices, better clients" that might spark some ideas for you
http://www.cleanfax.com/article.asp?IndexID=6636960
Otherwise, Steve's stuff is good.
Lisa
Piranha does not specifically target owner-operators - but we have a number of them as members. Though most, like Steve, are husband-wife teams and not completely 1-man shows.
Robert Peters has 1 1/2 vans, doing $500K+ a year, with 2 others - one doing all the in-field work, one doing all the estimates, and he handles the day-to-day office operation. Works for him. He used to have 30+ vans, and he prefers what he has now.
One of the best things to make sure you do is position yourself as a high price company, so that you have the margins to invest in growth, if you want to, or simply pocket it and roll around in the piles of dollars on the weekends (like Terje does...)
I wrote an article for Cleanfax on "higher prices, better clients" that might spark some ideas for you
http://www.cleanfax.com/article.asp?IndexID=6636960
Otherwise, Steve's stuff is good.
Lisa
Mikey P
Administrator
Lisa, what percentage of America would you think Steve's program will work in?
I'll be generous and say 5%.
I'll be generous and say 5%.
FLYERMAN
Supportive Member
I am an owner operator and my system works great for me.
Brian R
Member
Let's face it. One van can do $1000.00 dollars a day whether he/she does 7 jobs or 1 job to accomplish it. Just as an example of course because a van can do much more than that.
Is quality sacraficed with the 7 jobs? Yes, but a satisfied customer is a satisfied customer. That all depends on what they want.
At the end of the day 2 very different level cleaners can make the same money and I'm not sure one works harder than the other.
The 1 job guy takes extra time vacuuming, Grooming, educating, preping, schmoozing, even cleaning (not in that order). And let's talk about more money to create the high price image.
The 7 job guy just cleans the hell out of a place and grabs the check on the way out of the door. He will spend the bare minimum on image...sometimes (image is everything)
even with "High end" work, it still comes down to volume to make any real money. You need more people to do more work because one guy only has so many hours in a day where 10 guys have 10 times that many hours.
It's all math.
Is quality sacraficed with the 7 jobs? Yes, but a satisfied customer is a satisfied customer. That all depends on what they want.
At the end of the day 2 very different level cleaners can make the same money and I'm not sure one works harder than the other.
The 1 job guy takes extra time vacuuming, Grooming, educating, preping, schmoozing, even cleaning (not in that order). And let's talk about more money to create the high price image.
The 7 job guy just cleans the hell out of a place and grabs the check on the way out of the door. He will spend the bare minimum on image...sometimes (image is everything)
even with "High end" work, it still comes down to volume to make any real money. You need more people to do more work because one guy only has so many hours in a day where 10 guys have 10 times that many hours.
It's all math.
NobleCarpetCleaners
Member
- Joined
- May 16, 2010
- Messages
- 1,191
- Name
- Noble Carpet Cleaners
I've been keeping my eyes open and my ears to the rails for this elusive little critter called "high end". Back in Scouts we used to send Tenderfoots on a hunt for Left Handed Smoke Shifters and Snipes. I really wish folks would stop using the term.
Vary familiar with Marsh. He had his wife in charge of phones, scheduling and marketing and he cleaned in an area near San Fran where you could easily push the envelope on raising prices. And at a time when you could do it. Even it that area the market has changed and so has the calendar.
I'm sure all of us actual single truck operators are crafty when it comes to marketing. I seem to pull off the occasional networking campaign and even a few clever door flyers. Referrals have been solid for me as well, I know I'm not alone in that area. It either comes natural or it doesn't. But it's like watching paint dry; slow motion.
Personally I'm looking for advanced advertising ideas that I can fit into my unique business. I don't want to fly all over hell and half of Georgia for a multi-thousand dollar seminar that speaks to multi-truck operations or operations that don't speak to just one damn person. Jaaaazus I have quickbooks, I have realistic goals, I know how to read write and count. What I would like is a sneaky (or totally up front, that's fine too) crafty way to reach a healthy handful of homeowners to wake up and listen. I've always managed to do the rest.
I guess Lisa means well but come on, the example she gives is far from a true single truck operation. It would be refreshing to hear from a crafty operator out there who's talking the talk and walking the walk.
Vary familiar with Marsh. He had his wife in charge of phones, scheduling and marketing and he cleaned in an area near San Fran where you could easily push the envelope on raising prices. And at a time when you could do it. Even it that area the market has changed and so has the calendar.
I'm sure all of us actual single truck operators are crafty when it comes to marketing. I seem to pull off the occasional networking campaign and even a few clever door flyers. Referrals have been solid for me as well, I know I'm not alone in that area. It either comes natural or it doesn't. But it's like watching paint dry; slow motion.
Personally I'm looking for advanced advertising ideas that I can fit into my unique business. I don't want to fly all over hell and half of Georgia for a multi-thousand dollar seminar that speaks to multi-truck operations or operations that don't speak to just one damn person. Jaaaazus I have quickbooks, I have realistic goals, I know how to read write and count. What I would like is a sneaky (or totally up front, that's fine too) crafty way to reach a healthy handful of homeowners to wake up and listen. I've always managed to do the rest.
I guess Lisa means well but come on, the example she gives is far from a true single truck operation. It would be refreshing to hear from a crafty operator out there who's talking the talk and walking the walk.
LisaWagnerCRS
Member
Mikey P said:
Mike, every region has homes of value, professionals and families seeking to properly care for their homes, and people willing to pay for top quality work AND especially top quality service.
So... any town that has nice cars, nice neighborhoods, and stores other than the big box discount ones.
Every time I go into the Apple Store in my city - it's crawling with people spending too much money on items they can get in a different OS and shell for much, MUCH less. But they don't. That store is a shopping experience not only with all the cool items to play with, but also with a very helpful, super helpful staff who is HAPPY to see you.
That store is packed - the others are pretty light. The economy is irrelevant to one, and an excuse to the other.
It may be that 5% of every town would be a target for the higher-priced solution providers... but not just 5% of the towns. Every town has money. Every town has people who will pay for the right services presented to them in the right way.
Does that answer your question?
Lisa
LisaWagnerCRS
Member
NobleCarpetCleaners said:
Robert did add oriental rugs to his services - and so picks up rugs when he cleans, subcontracts them because he does not want to do more physical work, and makes $2/sq ft margin on that.
So - if you really want to be a one man show... then I'd add specialty rugs, and fine fabrics, and charge well for those services - THAT is how you can break that $1,000 a day threshold. There are great margins in rugs and fabric when you subcontract - or when you clean them from CLEANER homes (FYI - people who have nice things do tend to clean them more often, so as you raise your price you end up cleaning cleaner homes more often.)
Specialty stone - also a good idea. I have a Rug Secrets member who dropped carpet entirely and did only rugs and stone at $3.50 a sq ft for either.
And... if that still doesn't tickle your fancy... then build a list of high-value clients who really love you, then do joint ventures with other great companies who do other services, and do endorsement mailings to your list sharing their information, and ask for 10% of any jobs resulting from your mailing (they pay for the mailing).
The most expensive customer to acquire is that 1st time customer. If you can give companies a channel for new business, you can make money for simply lending your stamp of approval on them to your list.
Again... no physical work required....
Lisa
Joe Bristor
Member
- Joined
- Mar 22, 2010
- Messages
- 303
Nobel, it kinda reads like you'd already made your plan from the start of this, so just keep workin them foothills cuz you know that's where Marsh's custys move to after every real estate bubble pops.
they sell and move inland. she's still drivin the suv she swapped for her X and the bay area shack, so all you do is walk up and say Steve Marsh told me you needed a high end cleaner right?
You'll have your grand in hand in plenty of time to get home and spoon-feed the Mrs that pudding you promised.
they sell and move inland. she's still drivin the suv she swapped for her X and the bay area shack, so all you do is walk up and say Steve Marsh told me you needed a high end cleaner right?
You'll have your grand in hand in plenty of time to get home and spoon-feed the Mrs that pudding you promised.
Royal Man
Member
rick imby said:
I have found that networking to centers of influences actually takes less time than using traditional marketing.
All you have to do is set them up and then THEY do the marketing for YOU!!
Once executed it also, makes your marketing less expensive. Because, you won't have to use direct mail, newsletters postage,Door flyer's, time, effort or money just to get your phone ringing.
Untapped Golden nuggets centers of influences are everywhere. (Not Carpet Dealers and Furniture stores.)
You likely drive past them everyday. With a simple 2 minute phone call. They can become your personal profit center.
I get call from mine almost every day and I don' have to do a thing. They seek me out.
Most are upper middle and since they are warm prospects that definitely are not price shoppers.
Plant a few marketing seeds , Nurture them a little and then enjoy the perpetual fruit.
Lee Stockwell
FOJL
Maybe it's one of those trailers made out of a cut off van?
Brian R
Member
Sometimes I look back on being an owner operator and miss it.
But then I come to my senses.
But then I come to my senses.
LisaWagnerCRS
Member
Greg Crowley said:
It's a trailer to use in case the main van ever needs to go in for any work.
Also... the average Apple buyers are actually much older than you'd think, and have much more net worth as well.
Don't underestimate that, especially since with the iAd work on the horizon (and Google's upcoming purchase of Mobile Ads...) - marketing is about to have some very intense innovation in the mobile world.
Lisa
I was just going by the statistics Apple put out on who they expect in their stores while they look for their younger demographics, what the hell do they know. If you were talking about online sales you would get an older demographic for Apple but we weren't talking buyers we were talking stores clients, Whole foods on the otherhand (especiall specialty rugs, tile and green cleaning) would be a great example
Ron Werner
Member
I took Steve's program and it helped me a lot. It was a lot about the mental positioning of my business and marketing my service the way I want to clean and being firm with it. His program helped to unify and simplify my marketing.
I don't market to high end; I actually don't like cleaning "high end", I prefer middle to upper middle. I don't know many guys that do 1000/day as owner/operator, you have to really hustle to make those numbers. Steve is more about 600days which is more realistic and doable in any market. Rob Peters may make is 1/2M but he's not an O/O, he runs one truck. A cleaner with a helper can hit those numbers easier.
Many of my new clients are people that are tired of feeling ripped off by the lower priced cleaners that are in and out and didn't really seem to clean anything, or the chemdry hacks where the spots returned within a couple weeks, etc etc. These people simply want their carpets cleaned, not just looking clean. They've had the aesthetic cleaners and weren't satisfied.
I don't market to high end; I actually don't like cleaning "high end", I prefer middle to upper middle. I don't know many guys that do 1000/day as owner/operator, you have to really hustle to make those numbers. Steve is more about 600days which is more realistic and doable in any market. Rob Peters may make is 1/2M but he's not an O/O, he runs one truck. A cleaner with a helper can hit those numbers easier.
Many of my new clients are people that are tired of feeling ripped off by the lower priced cleaners that are in and out and didn't really seem to clean anything, or the chemdry hacks where the spots returned within a couple weeks, etc etc. These people simply want their carpets cleaned, not just looking clean. They've had the aesthetic cleaners and weren't satisfied.
