Phone estimate...bad then good

[floorguy]

So she said she had 2 liv, hall and bedroom....ok no biggy $100 min, i am in the area anyway heading to other jobs that night....


Wellllll forgot to tell her if the liv are larger then avg its more, plus it turns out the hall was larger then avg :x :x :x :x :x

Also a thunder cell rolled in as i am taking hose in... :x :x :x did i mention she had a dirt/gravel drive :roll: :roll: :roll:

Any who, my own fault for not verifying somethings :x :x :x :x :x :x

So i stick to the $100, i mean it is my fault... Get the check from her BF i think (dont ask)

LAter I text her to ask if she wants a receipt and how did it look (little bastard yorkys :x :shock: :x :shock: )

She loved said it looked great AND can she give me some extra money for it :shock: :shock: :shock: shiteatinggrin shiteatinggrin shiteatinggrin shiteatinggrin

I was like sure, it really should have been xxx, but its my own fault, so what ever will be great......we will see on fri how much it is, as i will go to her work, as she is off today, and its a ways away...


There ya go....A. dont forget asking questions....B. DO A KICK ASS JOB AND IT WILL ALL WORK OUT :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

 

[Royal Man]

Seems weird to me to tell them the price after cleaning instead of before?

Yorkies and no deo?

You didn't have her work number to confirm price and condition of carpet?


Is this newbie thing?

 

[floorguy]

told her price ahead of time....

at the job i did talk to her and she brought up the dog then... Said do the best i could and if it didnt clean up she was going to replace that room anyway..

and it was a complicate referal.....

and no i am to nice to get into it with people...more so when for the cost of deo the way it should be done, they could just replace it anyway...

and i am adamant of doing anything that looks like bait and switch...

and yes sometimes it bites me...


besides in the end it cleaned nice and she was extremely happy...

chalk one up to slop and gobble

 

[davegillfishing]

i am scratching my head too dave..
dont really get about 85% of what went on with that one..

 

[Royal Man]

Doug ,

Most clients know that the phone price is an estimate.

The firm price comes after you can inspect the job when you arrive and access the desires of the client.

The price can be more or even less after your professional assessment.

If the conditions require deo, carpet protector or if the client can save money on extra rooms and bedroom traffic areas while you are already there. You are doing the client a massive disservice if you don't at least offer these ways to benefit the client.

You might want to take some selling courses or pick up and read a few books on selling technique.

You do know by now that this is a sales and service profession?


You need to get off your trip about selling being a bad thing.

With proper selling you and the client both are winners.

 

[floorguy]

Selling is right up there with my list of BULLSHIT


Like it or not, that is how i am....that is how i am dealing with salesmen, that is how i treat my customers.....

i INFORM my clients of things and let them decide, in the end i tell them its their money do what they wish....


I am a CARPET CLEANER/ FLOOR CARE PROFESSIONAL...not a f'n salesman, and a pretty damn good one at that...

I know i know, i hear it from my wife to....but if i dont feel comfortable with it, then i cant endorse/do it..

I have gone 16.5 years this way, and while i am not rich, or do 10k months, i am happy in what i do and what it looks like after...



Whew i kind of feel better now

kind of

 

[Dolly Llama]

Whew i kind of feel better now

kind of

what was the deal with your TM shutting down
did you get it squared away??

..L.T.A.

 

[davegillfishing]

doug no one is telling you to be a salesmen but you cant go negative and do work for free.
if you quoted 100$ min charge based on what she told you then it changed when you
get there the price should have changed a bit as well. then you had to wait to get your money
on top of that? if you did some math i would venture to say you went in the hole on that one.
i dont allow my guys to push anything at all. no extra money to upsell in any way so we are on the same business
model but you have to do whats right for you and your family..even the customer thought you were under paid

 

[Royal Man]

I think that it is incredible that cleaners think that offering other beneficial services to the client is a bad thing.

What if your client could use Teflon to protect from their grandchildren's spills, or deo for the pet spots, or that filthy area rugs or sofa could be freshened up, or you could easily help them with a few bedroom traffic areas while you are there and it would be cheaper that a return trip.

It's not selling!!!

It's being a trusted professional that has the client in their best interest and that has the tools and experience to help the client by resolving problems that will benefit them and improve their lives in many ways.(Better looking /smelling home, longer lasting carpet, save money on replacement etc.....

Not offering other ways to benefit the client is doing them a huge disservice.

You are leaving with unresolved problems for the client that you can easily correct and the client will thank you for solving them.

From my experience the more the client spends the happier they are, because I fixed many problems they were having in only one trip.

 

[floorguy]

doug no one is telling you to be a salesmen but you cant go negative and do work for free.
if you quoted 100$ min charge based on what she told you then it changed when you
get there the price should have changed a bit as well. then you had to wait to get your money
on top of that? if you did some math i would venture to say you went in the hole on that one.
i dont allow my guys to push anything at all. no extra money to upsell in any way so we are on the same business
model but you have to do whats right for you and your family..even the customer thought you were under paid

I didnt have to wait, the guy was there as i was cleaning, so he paid me...

And ya i usually leave an opening saying, if i find the room is larger, or if there is this or that...this time i forgot to...hence phone quote bad this time....the good part (and everyone is missing it) I did a kick ass job, and she offered to give me more money shiteatinggrin shiteatinggrin shiteatinggrin shiteatinggrin

plus she is a cheerleader now....sooooo depending on how much she gives me....+ the amount of referals i get....

there is no doubt i loose money a time or 2...thinking back on it.....those are the ones i usually make more down the road anyway 8) 8) 8) 8)

 

[floorguy]

I think that it is incredible that cleaners think that offering other beneficial services to the client is a bad thing.

What if your client could use Teflon to protect from their grandchildren's spills, or deo for the pet spots, or that filthy area rugs or sofa could be freshened up, or you could easily help them with a few bedroom traffic areas while you are there and it would be cheaper that a return trip.

It's not selling!!!

It's being a trusted professional that has the client in their best interest and that has the tools and experience to help the client by resolving problems that will benefit them and improve their lives in many ways.(Better looking /smelling home, longer lasting carpet, save money on replacement etc.....

Not offering other ways to benefit the client is doing them a huge disservice.

You are leaving with unresolved problems for the client that you can easily correct and the client will thank you for solving them.

From my experience the more the client spends the happier they are, because I fixed many problems they were having in only one trip.

a few things...and hear again its me....

most times that i see, when they want 2 out of the 4 bedrooms cleaned the other 2 are not getting cleaned because
A. they shoved all the other shit in there
B. the carpet is a joke and they are skating by till they replace it some time that year

If they ask about this little area over here...or that over there, depending how big the job is, i do it free, or i say oh ok thats $10....there again its them asking me....and if you listen to the custy...its a id like it done but the $$$, so then I put their fears aside and OFFER them a solution....

I have had people ask about furniture, some have said ok, and others are like not that much...(i charge between $60-$150 for couches/love seats) I am going to make money on that because i hate doing it or it hurts my back/wrists

I am glad in your neck of the woods the client is happy spending more...around here i find people want to know a pretty close amount before they get it done...


I was with a fellow cleaner one day, he came to a job of mine to chat and what not....as i was getting stuff set up, he moved in with his sales pitch about doing the chairs....in the end they agreed to it....but it was a very uncomfortable feeling for me, and i could tell for them, being "sold" to..... After that they never said DONT let him back....but i could read the implied comments

 

[Royal Man]

a few things...and hear again its me....

most times that i see, when they want 2 out of the 4 bedrooms cleaned the other 2 are not getting cleaned because
A. they shoved all the other shit in there
B. the carpet is a joke and they are skating by till they replace it some time that year

If they ask about this little area over here...or that over there, depending how big the job is, i do it free, or i say oh ok thats $10....there again its them asking me....and if you listen to the custy...its a id like it done but the $$$, so then I put their fears aside and OFFER them a solution....

I have had people ask about furniture, some have said ok, and others are like not that much...(i charge between $60-$150 for couches/love seats) I am going to make money on that because i hate doing it or it hurts my back/wrists

I am glad in your neck of the woods the client is happy spending more...around here i find people want to know a pretty close amount before they get it done...

Sounds like you are making a lot of assumptions of your client's wishes based on your own biased opinions.

You might be better served to at least ask the client what their wishes and wants are before you close the door.

Be a professional, the helpfull hero, the problem solver- instead of a janitor

Sometimes a cleaners biggest obstacle- is right between their own ears.

 

[floorguy]

hey I was a janitor to....dont mess with profession homes Iseeru Iseeru Iseeru Iseeru Iseeru Iseeru

and i have no doubt there are issues between my ears either shiteatinggrin shiteatinggrin shiteatinggrin shiteatinggrin shiteatinggrin

 

[Bob Foster]

I feel that what for most initial customer inquiries that lead with a price question are in reality more interested in other things more important to them than price. 75% or more of my calls are closed based on how comfortable and confident they became in dealing with me during that phone call and the decision was not necessarily based on price. 6 out of 10 calls where price is the issue I don't book the appointment. Those tend to be renters calling for move out cleaning.

I concentrate on the fine line of not overselling my services (implying pushiness) and making them appreciate on their terms of reference that I will give them a quality result and at a fair price. What an eye opener then have someone shop your competition and be prepared for a range of emotions between outrage and laughter.

My close is very high and rarely do I feel the need to go do an estimate. I usually will only do estimates on commercial or if I feel the need to visit for further concerns. And when I do go on site for an estimate I certainly don't put a show on with lights, magnifying glasses, clipboards and a laser measure. If you believe that you need this crap then I think you have a serious case of Kool-Aid poisoning.

My business card, smile and booties are all I need. If you want to give your residential estimate a little more kick then leave a bottle of spotter just for the hell of it.

And if you have the personality and looks of a midnight crew lead man then its a real good thing you can do phone estimates.

 

[floorguy]

well she paid me the extra $40....no tip

but reaffirmed how happy she was...

Its actually funny how many people are shocked when I leave the price at what i said....sometime yes i have to adjust, and they are happy to oblige...

but they may not say it, but you can see they are happy to just have the KISS placed on them