We have a store in the mall we would pay you $85 to clean the carpets..ooo...Lucky me

[Mark Saiger]

Just never know how things will transpire, but.....,

I always try to word my responses in a positive manner so if they can't find anyone, they will know my pricing. If they decide to give in and pay, we know where each of us stands. Has worked in the past....if not....go ahead and get someone else.

So today's email to my webpage:

The following information was submitted: linda@*******.com

I have a retail store called ******* in the ******* S***** Mall that needs a carpet cleaning. It is a small accessory store. Would you be interested? We pay $85 for this service and pay upon receipt of invoicing. MY RESPONSE: Hi Linda, We unfortunately could not do it for that price. I called back to my office to pull that file. We currently charge .38 cents per square foot and the last time we cleaned it April 18, 2007 we were at a rate of. 34 cents per Sq foot. The amount at that time we were paid was $307.79 and since than, the tax rate has also increased in our state. We have on file it is 850 Sq ft so our rate would be $323.00 and current state tax would be $22.21. That would put the total at $345.21 with tax. I am not sure if you want to pay that rate, but wanted to let you know what our current fee would be. Thank you for the contact and let me know if you need further assistance or would like to get on our schedule. Sincerely, Mark Saiger Saiger's Steam Clean, LLC 20068 Crystal Springs Loop Grand Rapids, MN 55744 218-326-4736 Home Office 218-259-9099 Cell msags@mchsi.com www.saigers.com THEIR RESPONSE: Yes, you’re a little too expensive for us. Thanks anyway! Thanks! Linda ****** **** Floor Maintenance N**** P*** B****, FL email: Ph: Fax: Then they proceed to keep calling my brothers in Bemidji, MN which is a 3 hour round trip drive....and they all have basically the same response except with a higher rate as they are going to charge mileage. Not sure what locals might take on this project for $85, but will see. Last time, they had to take our rate because no one else would do it. We recently have had 2 commercial jobs that someone cheap has come in each time (for cheap), and then the places (a store and a bank) had to replace all the carpets due to over wetting and other problems (Simple Green). So, I just wait it out, and if no one else has tried to clean it yet, the price is what it is.... If I have to try and clean up someone else's mess....there will be another price (increase) So anyone want to do a store for $85? (and you do have to move everything by the way....we know that from last time!)

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[Desk Jockey]

I had one call a couple of weeks ago that had a flood at a national Pet Store.

The first person said half the store was wet and wanted to know how much. I told them $1,500.00 and up depending on what all is wet. They then said they couldn't open a ticket for more than $250.00 unless they knew for sure how big it was.

I told them to call me when they got it figured out. They never did.

 

[rwcarpet]

I remember my days with Cleanway out of New York. I took the work because I was just starting out with a TM, and needed the cash flow.They wanted to pay maybe .05 cents a foot....or cheaper. Usually mall stores. And the mall management wanted $3 million in liability insurance, with them named on the dec sheet. And they took 30 days + for payment.

 

[Loren Egland]

Maybe if you could clean the store at night or on the weekend it would be worth it. LOL Short hose run too I bet.

 

[Mark Saiger]

Maybe if you could clean the store at night or on the weekend it would be worth it. LOL Short hose run too I bet.

Oh yeah....super easy job...NOT!

 

[TomKing]

don't you love the way some yahoo in a corporate office can make a statement of how much a company should pay for a service. We get that also from time to time. Usually a corporate office trying to set up service. sometimes it is just a small $200 job that is priced right. i always tell them i need payment by CC up front no invoicing. They tell me they can't do that. I tell them neither can I. Nothing worse than doing a small job and taking 90-120 days to get paid. Learned that long ago the hard way.

 

[Mark Saiger]

don't you love the way some yahoo in a corporate office can make a statement of how much a company should pay for a service. We get that also from time to time. Usually a corporate office trying to set up service. sometimes it is just a small $200 job that is priced right. i always tell them i need payment by CC up front no invoicing. They tell me they can't do that. I tell them neither can I. Nothing worse than doing a small job and taking 90-120 days to get paid. Learned that long ago the hard way.

Lol...

I love it when they say small or easy job....take no time at all...

I just want them to come try it a little and then tell me how easy they thought it really is ....

 

[Barry-QDCC]

You may or may not know I was a Chem-Dry franchisee at one time. Several years ago HRI started their "commercial cleaning" division or whatever they called it where they would (at least this was how it was suppose to work) get National Corporate accounts and then "pass" them out to the local franchisees in the area. You had to agree to whatever price was agreed to. There was a few other stipulations to as I remember.

My first (and it turned out only) job from them was in a mall. It was only cleaning a small area like 10' by 5'. It was the stores bright pink logo in the middle of the entrance. Later on supposedly they were going to have us come back to clean the whole store.

This pink logo thing was absolutely COVERED with ground in gum. I had to park probably 300 yards from where I could enter the store. Had to be done after 9:00pm. It paid around $100.

I did it the first time. It was probably 15 minutes from my office so I had 30 minutes drive time. Loading and unloading time, and cleaning time which took FOREVER with all that gum.

I called the next day to corporate and bitched. Really loud!

I never got another job from corporate - (never WANTED another one either) and that was another straw on the camels back of my disillusionment with HRI/Chem-dry. It's always a bummer when you realize that something you believed in, as it turns out, doesn't give a shit about you.

 

[GCCLee]

I got hit with that crap too!


I give em the hackers #

 

[ruff]

Saiger" data-source="post: 4301795" class="bbCodeBlock bbCodeBlock--expandable bbCodeBlock--quote js-expandWatch">

Just

So anyone want to do a store for $85? (and you do have to move everything by the way....we know that from last time!)

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For the ones who want just a stain removed and rebel against our minimum charge . I extend the offer that if they bring the stain to our location I'll only charge them for the stain removal.

For that price, have them bring the store to you

 

[SamIam]

click buzzzzzzzzzzzzzz! Did the carpet cleaner just hangup on me?????


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

[Mark Saiger]

click buzzzzzzzzzzzzzz! Did the carpet cleaner just hangup on me?????


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

[SamIam]

We have a store in the mall we would pay you $85 to clean the carpets..ooo......

Lol

 

[DangerkittyToTheRescue]

For the ones who want just a stain removed and rebel against our minimum charge . I extend the offer that if they bring the stain to our location I'll only charge them for the stain removal.

For that price, have them bring the store to you

Oh yeah, that's good, I like that.

You know, we've had people drag entire sofa's into the office just to save on the $7.50 trip charge, then they look at you expecting ya to drop everything and clean it while they wait at the office. So I once pointed at the shop, not a truck in sight, told them that all the trucks were out at customers houses. Oh yeah the conversation went downhill from there.

how will it take long?
couple of days,

what am i going to sit on?
don't know but you know, we can come out to your house and clean it.

thought you were a cleaning company?
yes, but you don't take your furnace to the heating cooling company office to have it fixed?!!!

Yeah, people can be funny.

 

[Scott S.]

I love it when a customer calls and says they need their carpet cleaned because so and so cleaned it with a portable and now it's crunchy to. Rug Dr hacks.

 

[Barry-QDCC]

I love it when a customer calls and says they need their carpet cleaned because so and so cleaned it with a portable and now it's crunchy to. Rug Dr hacks.

Funny... I love it when a customer calls and says they need their carpet cleaned because so and so cleaned it with a TM and it was wet for 3 days and got dirty fast.

 

[KevinL]

I was set up to clean a home town buffet last year for $500 until they sent me the detail sheet on how they wanted it done. Pre-vacuum the place, move everything and put back, chain the door shut, use an acid rinse, leave 2 blowers to be picked up the next day. They knew about carpet cleaning but don't tell me how to do it after the price is set. I think the thing I didn't like the most was chaining the door. And the vacuuming.

 

[Scott S.]

Funny... I love it when a customer calls and says they need their carpet cleaned because so and so cleaned it with a TM and it was wet for 3 days and got dirty fast.

Barry, I have a portable too. Haha

 

[Royal Man]

I got a mall cleaning call last week and it turned into Encapping the back office od Sears for $575 ( .25sq ft.)

 

[Barry-QDCC]

I got a mall cleaning call last week and it turned into Encapping the back office od Sears for $575 ( .25sq ft.)

Dave, just curious as I hardly do any commercial work. How accurate are you when you measure a commercial job? Meaning do you get out a tape measure and measure to the inch and multiple to the exact sq foot or estimate? do you subtract for desks, files, etc? take a percentage off for that stuff instead?

 

[tmdry]

Why would you subtract for obstacles?

They're in your way, it'll be a ton more time stopping, turning, twisting, going over traffic lanes, spotting, re-arranging the cords, list goes on.

Measure the whole room as one, measuring every corner to save on the sqft for the price than doing twice the work is not worth the hassle.

 

[Art Kelley]

I was set up to clean a home town buffet last year for $500 until they sent me the detail sheet on how they wanted it done. Pre-vacuum the place, move everything and put back, chain the door shut, use an acid rinse, leave 2 blowers to be picked up the next day. They knew about carpet cleaning but don't tell me how to do it after the price is set. I think the thing I didn't like the most was chaining the door. And the vacuuming.

For $500 I don't think any of those were unreasonable requests. You could have completed the work in 2 or 3 hours. Even I will prevac a restaurant that just closed and as for chaining the door, it is for your safety as well as their security. A bike chain and lock would work. Leaving fans overnight costs nothing.

 

[Desk Jockey]

I agree, now that Kevin has joined the ranks of rug snob, I think he is letting it carry over into his on location cleaning too.

 

[ruff]

I was set up to clean a home town buffet last year for $500 until they sent me the detail sheet on how they wanted it done. Pre-vacuum the place, move everything and put back, chain the door shut, use an acid rinse, leave 2 blowers to be picked up the next day. They knew about carpet cleaning but don't tell me how to do it after the price is set. I think the thing I didn't like the most was chaining the door. And the vacuuming.

For $500 I don't think any of those were unreasonable requests. You could have completed the work in 2 or 3 hours. Even I will prevac a restaurant that just closed and as for chaining the door, it is for your safety as well as their security. A bike chain and lock would work. Leaving fans overnight costs nothing.

Not sure how you can reach that conclusion Art.

1. As, you do not know the size of the job. So you have no idea if the price justified the extent of the work.
2. You certainly do not have a clue as to how much work "moving and putting back everything" is. It may be a whole lot.
3. And since we're at the subject of having no clue: I am willing to bet that Kevin's clue was the long detailed list. My experience with clients that try to tell me to the T exactly what I need to do and how, is that they're a royal pain....

The request to work locked in was reasonable.

 

[Art Kelley]

Not sure how you can reach that conclusion Art.

1. As, you do not know the size of the job. So you have no idea if the price justified the extent of the work.
2. You certainly do not have a clue as to how much work "moving and putting back everything" is. It may be a whole lot.
3. And since we're at the subject of having no clue: I am willing to bet that Kevin's clue was the long detailed list. My experience with clients that try to tell me to the T exactly what I need to do and how, is that they're a royal pain....

The request to work locked in was reasonable.

Once you get past the obligatory inconsequentials the client demanded, you have the work at hand. How long does it take to clean a restaurant? They're all the same once you get underway. There's bad areas by the kitchen doors and various busy spots and chairs and tables to move. After 2-3 hours of busting ass, you're done. But it's late night work, and you have to take take that into consideration.

 

[Lee Stockwell]

For $500 I don't think any of those were unreasonable requests. You could have completed the work in 2 or 3 hours. Even I will prevac a restaurant that just closed and as for chaining the door, it is for your safety as well as their security. A bike chain and lock would work. Leaving fans overnight costs nothing.

My son Jason always chained the doors for his own safety and his wife's peace of mind. From back in my Bane years I've personally known two good people murdered in robbery attempts.

 

[Russ T.]

My son Jason always chained the doors for his own safety and his wife's peace of mind. From back in my Bane years I've personally known two good people murdered in robbery attempts.

This is why it's smart to consider carrying a weapon on commercial jobs. They would know within minutes, they picked the wrong rug sucker.