The biggest competitor we face

[Ron Werner]

A woman bought a SteamPro, you know those dept store upright "steam" cleaners. She wore her first one out.
She said she cleans houses and if the carpets aren't too bad, they'll have her clean the carpets. She said it will pay for itself really quick.

She says customers are happy.
She didn't even need a Rug Dr. So much for SOA.



I've been thinking since someone on here said, "as long as the customer is happy", that it really is a lame measurement of how well the job is done.

Ignorance is bliss!

 

[Heathrow]

Yeah Ron - aint it bizzarre. I guess now and then they get a clean one that comes up looking great, check out this guy - lots of WOW factor here :shock: :
http://www.trademe.co.nz/services/domestic-services/cleaning/auction-395328382.htm

 

[FredC]

Ron...I go to the cheap carwash all the time. They run it through the wash and vac it out while I go and have a starbucks. I know it doesn't get all the dirt that a fuckin detailer I payed a couple hundred dollars would (so do the carwash guys)....but I'm happy...and i don't consider the car dirty although the detailer might.

but I can still afford the starbucks

bang for the buck buddy.............

 

[ACE]

My biggest competitor, the one who is really standing in the way of success is myself thathurts .
I prefer to blame the low ball hacks, franchises and of course, Obama when the phone isn’t ringing 8) .

 

[Brian R]

Maybe she does an awesome job Ron....I bet she pre-vacs. !gotcha!

 

[The Great Oz]

Ron,
Make friends with her. She's doing work you wouldn't want or get anyway. Let her know that when the carpet is beyond the little machine she can call you. Maybe even offer a lead fee.

 

[Ron Werner]

I think she does prevac Brian, she's house cleaning so shes the one prevacuuming before a professional comes in too. I was mentioning to her to prevac thoroughly beforehand, would help the performance of the machine, thats when she told me she cleans some homes and offices with it. SHe was in her car and gone before I could talk to her much.

I was being somewhat facetious when I said she's our biggest competitor. Even Nationwide or EZCLean wouldn't blink an eye over her. Like the Auckland cleaner's ad, the terminology used is the same as any other website. For the uneducated, they would think "that's clean". There are prob many that think their car is clean after going to the cheap car wash. And there is SOOOOO much diversity in the "professionals", even amongst us all here on the board, I bet we couldn't come up with a Standard for how "clean" should be defined.

For ex, Many say I'm "overcleaning", right Brian?
Fine, prove it. Tell me what clean is.
I would define clean a lot differently because of my experience in what I've seen over the past 19yrs. I would say many are under cleaning.
We SHOULD be able to define clean a hec of lot better than by a customer's visual inspection.
And its pretty lame and pathetic to base clean on economics or simply because someone wouldn't have the time to "clean" the carpet.

WHat about Rug Badgering. Why do it? Can make it "look" just as clean without that expensive machine. Or even the rug bath. Why?
Isn't this what the CRI SOA was all about?

 

[Royal Man]

What the whup!

I clean for a lot of clients that have "Steam cleaners" in their closets collecting dust.

After they go through all that work and time, for less that stellar results.

It can actuality make them appreciate my services even more.

Nothing wrong with that.

 

[truckmount girl]

What Fred says is true...how many of us will stop in and get fast food when you certainly know you aren't getting five star cuisine. It may not be as wonderful, but it's filling, tasty, cheap, quick and you don't have to dress up.

A lot of people use a home steamer to touch up between regular cleanings as well. I actually love the Spot Bots for small spills.

What Oz says is very important. Look to network with her. Find her a few housecleaning clients and she'll recommend the homeowners get annual or bi-annual professional cleanings between her spot and freshen-up cleanings. Could be a win-win for both of you.

Take care,
Lisa

 

[Brian R]

For ex, Many say I'm "overcleaning", right Brian?
Fine, prove it. Tell me what clean is.
I would define clean a lot differently because of my experience in what I've seen over the past 19yrs. I would say many are under cleaning.
We SHOULD be able to define clean a hec of lot better than by a customer's visual inspection.
And its pretty lame and pathetic to base clean on economics or simply because someone wouldn't have the time to "clean" the carpet.

There is no such thing as clean....only the perception of clean.

You know it, I know it and the American people know it.

 

[Royal Man]

There is no such thing as clean....

That is why we are called carpet cleaners.

WE are only expected to get the carpet "Cleaner."

It's like a pest control guy told me years ago."We only "control" the pests, We can't kill then all."

WE all do our best. But, the carpet will never be truly clean. I don't care how much vacuuming you do or how many steps you include.

Have you ever removed a carpet and seen all the find dust under the carpet?

No way can that be removed from the surface.

Does it really matter that much to a client anyway? That carpet will be soiled again after the first step,The furnace is turned on or the front door is opened.

I guess you could laminate the carpet to preserve it after all the vacuuming and multiple steps to immortalize your cleaning efforts.

 

[rwcarpet]

I admit....I fixed my clothes dryer today. $50. First I replaced the glow gas igniter, which did no good. Got on line and found a guy who posted video on his dryer problems, and it matched mine........chattering gas valve solinoid. It recommended replacing the gas valve coils. So I picked up a set today, installed, and wala....it works. My next call would have been to a repairman, or the appliance store.

 

[Hoody]

Competition is a good thing, and so is competition awareness. But not all competition is your enemy.

 

[Ron Werner]

Competition is a good thing, and so is competition awareness. But not all competition is your enemy.

No, shes not the enemy, nor is she my competition, and if I knew who she was I would refer her. I collect house cleaners names because they come and go faster than carpet cleaners.

And sure! We ALL stop to buy/hire/do something cheaper than the best at one time or another.

The point is that we KNOW we are hiring a cheap mechanic, or whatever, or going to a cheap car wash, or buying a cheap meal etc
and we KNOW what a better job would cost, what it would look like,

but "professional" carpet cleaners range from BS to B&S, from just learning, to half decent, to pretty good, to excellent. Very few people really KNOW what to expect from a professional cleaner because there is no consistency, no real standard to compare/measure it against, so they hire "whoever".
The biggest consistency is mediocrity, simple prespray-rinse; why? because they can get in and out the fastest, leave it looking adequate enough that the customer is "happy" (ignorance is bliss!). IF they're lucky they'll see a scrubber. If they're extremely lucky they just might see a vacuum of some sort. So then carpet cleaning becomes a commodity, one cleaner is the same as another, store bought equip, rental, OP, portable, TM, doesn't matter, there all the same.

The IICRC put together a cleaning method standard, goes to reason there should be a standard for "clean". Unless of course having a standard scares you because you know you wouldn't measure up and you just might have to change your methodology. Maybe you'll find your method meets the standard, maybe you exceed it.
What are all the new tools for ie the Greenhorn, 2.5" hose, highheat tms, the new OP machines, new chemistry, new uph tools, just to make us faster? No, they help us to clean "Better", in all aspects.

 

[Contemporary Carpet Clean]

I would never consider a Portable...either a home or more of a commercial grade a threat to our business. I have actually encouraged people to buy a portable. Along with the encouragement I have told them less soap is better! I also tell them that when they are sick of it (now they see how hard our work really is) or if the machine breaks to call us until it gets fixed....of which they rarely get fixed in a timely order or at all.

I have never seen a portable do a better more thorough job than even the smallest truckmount....never!

all the time we have people call us that "clean their own carpet".....after we get done and while we are cleaning the carpet they almost always say.....my machine never did that!!!

I agree with what someone said above...that as long as the custys happy thats all that matters....if they are not happy they won't call you back!

 

[bahrahm]

Competition is a good thing, and so is competition awareness. But not all competition is your enemy. competition is good for jobs not for price. all low ballers trashing the markets. which is they r all my enemies.

 

[Giorgio]

I remember the panic feeling I had over 25 years ago when Rug Doctors first came out.

They haven't improved much at all since then.

Besides their ultra weak performance they usually break down within the first year or so.

Sorta like a sail boat vs a cigarette boat. There's no competition!

Imo

 

[Ron Werner]

[quote="Brian R":d8n6s5by]There is no such thing as clean....

That is why we are called carpet cleaners.

WE are only expected to get the carpet "Cleaner."

It's like a pest control guy told me years ago."We only "control" the pests, We can't kill then all."

WE all do our best. But, the carpet will never be truly clean. I don't care how much vacuuming you do or how many steps you include.

Have you ever removed a carpet and seen all the find dust under the carpet?

No way can that be removed from the surface.

Does it really matter that much to a client anyway? That carpet will be soiled again after the first step,The furnace is turned on or the front door is opened.

I guess you could laminate the carpet to preserve it after all the vacuuming and multiple steps to immortalize your cleaning efforts.[/quote:d8n6s5by]

well why wash your dinner plate, you're just going to dirty it again
or why wash your clothes
or take a shower

and as you said, we are "cleaners", so why not get it "cleaner" than the mediocre
do you think the carpet is "cleaner" or "dirtier" after I vacuum?

 

[Hoody]

I guess I'm confused. You title the thread the biggest competitor we face, and then you say shes not your competitor.

 

[Brian R]

Hoody, Ron was being facetious.


Ron, We just wash enough off the dinner plate so that it looks clean....If you really think it's clean after you run it through the dishwasher you're crazy. Within seconds, it's getting dirtier and dirtier.

But it looks clean to you, feels clean to you and smells clean to you right?

Please tell me you don't vacuum your dishes. :shock:

This is a dirty world we live in. Nobody that I know of lives in a bubble.

You can only get a carpet so "clean".

Stanley Steemer get's carpets "cleaner".....Because they don't get them "Clean".


With that said, I believe the term "cleaner" is used as a noun in our industry to describe the guy cleaning.

 

[Ron Werner]

POWERFUL DEEP CLEANER :shock: :roll:

Notice all the "clean streaks"

(forgive the orientation, Photobucket was screwing around and I just could not get this picture vertical!) The far spot was some unknown "stuff" got it cleaner, after I took this pic, with some citrus gel but not 100%.

I got it "cleaner"

 

[Becker]

Respectable. Hardly!!!

 

[FredC]

Notice all the "clean streaks"

I notice your ability to vacuum far exceeds your ability to "clean" carpet...............

"yes mam....I know it doesn't look clean but I vacuumed the hell out of it"

 

[Art Kelley]

Notice all the "clean streaks"

I notice your ability to vacuum far exceeds your ability to "clean" carpet...............

"yes mam....I know it doesn't look clean but I vacuumed the hell out of it"

That's not nice Fred. I'm sure Ron can get a dirty carpet very close to the appearance level to those of us who focus our efforts on the cleaning aspect of the job.

 

[Ron Werner]

Notice all the "clean streaks"

I notice your ability to vacuum far exceeds your ability to "clean" carpet...............

"yes mam....I know it doesn't look clean but I vacuumed the hell out of it"

You DO realize that the pic with the streaks was the BEFORE picture, the result of the "Powerful Deep Cleaning" action from the Bissell?? Again, I was being facetious about the "clean" streaks.
Hope you're ability to clean at least is as good as my ability to vacuum.

 

[FredC]

[quote="Ron Werner":3dgxkjfe]Notice all the "clean streaks"

I notice your ability to vacuum far exceeds your ability to "clean" carpet...............

"yes mam....I know it doesn't look clean but I vacuumed the hell out of it"

You DO realize that the pic with the streaks was the BEFORE picture, the result of the "Powerful Deep Cleaning" action from the Bissell?? Again, I was being facetious about the "clean" streaks.
.[/quote:3dgxkjfe]

I just figured you used a Bentley Wand on it.

Ron, you know I'm just screwing with you. There is no way of knowing if I could have made it "look cleaner"....no matter how much I believe it. !gotcha!

 

[Ron Werner]

Don't want to insult Bob now, he uses the Bentley !gotcha!

I didn't know how well that was going to clean up either.

But cranky, I don't know if I'd want referrals from a cleaner using one of those machines!! Takes too much effort!! There was a wax spot that had melted right into the primary backing! UG! What a pain. And stink!!!

 

[Bob Foster]

Love my Bentley. I tightened up the manifold and it works great again.

Cheap ass people are cheap ass people. Let the coupon cleaners have them.