What "new service"...

Captain Morgan

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Feb 23, 2008
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Maine
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Bill Morgan
are you considering adding to your cleaning business in 2018?

-Wood floors
-Hard surface ie: Ceramic/Stone. Concrete floors
-Counter tops
-Window/blinds
-Oriental/Area rugs
-Odor Remediation
-Commercial
-Rental Move outs
-Dog Grooming

My perception locally speaking is both residential and commercial markets are switching to hard surfaces of one form or another.

Over the years I've seen color sealing, bleach spot/crayon repair, leather recconditioning, ozone, and other "profitable home run" add on services be all the rage and 9 months later... poof! The only time it's mentioned is when someone is trying to sell some product or equipment they aren't using either because it cost too much money to break into the market against bigger outfits or the market could support it..at least those seem to be the reasons given. Seems like many start with a lot of fan fare and then slowly fizzle due to expensive start up costs, limited training, geographic limitations etc.

OR are you looking to just maximize the business you already have by adding protector, upholstery cleanings while your in the home or business, or other easy lay-up add on sales to boost your ticket sales and bottom line? I know it's hard to add an extra hour of couch cleaning when you've got 2 more cleanings to do and you don't want to reschedule appointments and potentially lose a $300 cleaning for an extra $100 "well..since I'm here I could clean your"...

This question is directed my to the smaller single truck owner ops rather than the bigger guys who can easily call the office and send a second truck to a job if the get held up. But I am still interested in your opinions too.

Hope you all had a profitable 2017 and Cheers to your 2018!!

Your buddy Danno!
Just kidding..
All the best and Merry Christmas to everyone!
Regards,
Bill
 
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Jim Williams

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Oct 8, 2006
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Bynum N.C.
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Jim Williams
No new services here. I have all the carpet and upholstery I can clean, but I would like to take a class on leather.

Every once in awhile I am tempted to get my chimney cleaning brushes back out and get back into it in the winter. Guys around here are getting $175 to clean a chimney these days. Not bad for an hour of work. When I quit doing them 15 years ago I was at $65.
 
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Bob Pruitt

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May 22, 2016
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earth
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Robert Pruitt
2 months with very little work just before and after Hurricane Irma. Will be ready before next hurricane season for some damage restoration work. Enough to keep the bills paid if we get another one next year...hoping not. Adding equipment slowly until then.
Hoping the counter top class is at the next Florida Fest because that seems to be a simple/quick and profitable add on service.
 
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Feb 23, 2017
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California
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Matt Ross
Focus on what I'm good at. I have to be confident I can do a do a really good job with something new before I offer it. Keep raising prices and keeping current customers happy. Don't fix what's not broken. Sometimes expanding is much more headache than it's worse. Less is sometimes more. Experimenting with a new service on a customer can ruin a good reputation. Don't get me wrong, there is a time to expand, but make sure you know what your doing.
 
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Captain Morgan

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Bill Morgan
I get what your saying Small Town..

Glad your back Larry. Missed your sense of humor. My pot holders always unravel. What's your secret? :very_drunk:
 
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Captain Morgan

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Maine
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Bill Morgan
Bob,
I thought counter tops would be a very logical add on myself, especially if people have tile/stone floors in the kitchen or bath.
Equipment isn't too bad and the training/cleaning process is relatively straight forward too.
The guy out in California from Hard Rock (i think) is awesome and there are some other gurus here like Demille who could really help shorten the learning curve.
If I were to add anything this and the hardwood floor process Mikey mentioned would be at the top of my list.
 

Captain Morgan

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Feb 23, 2008
Messages
604
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Maine
Name
Bill Morgan
No new services here. I have all the carpet and upholstery I can clean, but I would like to take a class on leather.

I would like to take a real quality leather training class. There was a guy named Roger that posted a little on here. He had his own leather restoration forum.

He did some remarkable leather restoration shit that would blow your mind!! I think the science behind the process of repairing dehydrating or water damaged leather goods pretty cool...
Glad you've got enough on your plate Jim. Best wishes for a busy 2018 too!
 
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Desk Jockey

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Oct 9, 2006
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64,833
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A planet far far away
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Rico Suave
We added Steramist disinfection as a new service in 2017. We had a goal of 100k. It didn't do that well, we did just over 50k but it showed a lot of promise and we hope to build on the service in 2018.

We try to avoid line extension but this service dovetailed very well with our current offerings.
 

BLewis

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Jun 17, 2008
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Lexington
Name
Billy Lewis
We haven't added services for a few years. Actually scaling back in pressure washing. "If" I ever add another service it will be duct cleaning (because that's what I get ask about the most). Just not sure I can swing it currently, and now that I have gotten off the truck full time I want to focus my time this upcoming year on training my next residential tech for his own truck. Oh, I am striving to add more property managers.
 

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