What to Think About $25 a Room?

[Rex Tyus]

volume whatever, the fact is IMO ken needs to be over 7 bills a day just to break even, this is all day every day, yeah I guess its doable conceivably but the guys need to be humping and running, and a $500 day just means you gotta do $900 the next

You stated the expenses at around $500. That is what I referenced. Nobody said anything about him only doing $500 in sales. I don't remember the # but I think he said he actually averages around 7 bills a day per van. But I am not going to debate Kens business with you cause I DON"T HAVE A CLUE about it. I just pointed out with the numbers you were using it is still conceivable to obtain a 30% profit. 30% sucks if you only do $100,00 a year. BUt if you do a few million in sales 30% sounds a lot better.

 

[Terry]

steve g - i think ken posted his crews numbers at the of last year, his lowest crews were in the 7/800 and best were in the 11/13 hundred range approx. Hopefully he'll be along to set us straight.

Terry

 

[hogjowl]

Stevie G:

Obviously Ken is going bankrupt, and just hasn't figured it out yet.

Maybe in another 50 years he'll realize it.

 

[steve g]

Stevie G:

Obviously Ken is going bankrupt, and just hasn't figured it out yet.

Maybe in another 50 years he'll realize it.

not saying he is, maybe I am missing something, I was just trying to make sense of it all. personally I think many businesses are better off not getting so gigantic, at the end of the day the owner can put more money in his pocket by not having so many irons in the fire. just my opinions of course, in any event ken's business model can't leave much margin for inefficiency

 

[joe harper]

Marty,

The bottom line is the "BOTTOM LINE'...(the bottom line of there profile's) <Years in Trade.>

Most everyone with 15 plus years under there BELT'S, Has been through lean times!!!!!!!!!
I trulely feel for the guys with limited track time...Most of them are supporting young families
& have saddled themselves with equipment payments larger than their mortgages............

This BOOM had to end..Sadly, some will go out of business! But afterall it is survival of the
fittest. There needs to be a little PRUNING OF THE TREES....LOWERING your prices is the worst
thing anyone can do at this time. If you have done the job right....you should have loyal cleints
and they will get you through these times...Volume will pick-up simply because the HACKS will
not SURIVE in this lean market.....They can not afford to drive from county to county for $25.00
per room. Big franchise's in my neck-of-the woods are really hurting...I know BECAUSE their Tech's
are calling me for employment.

I had a local SS bid against me on a church friday....They were over a $1200.00 under my bid!!!!
Paster called & ask if I could meet there BID??? I said no, But ask him set-up a side by side DEMO....So I could let him see the difference in the QUALITY of work....THEY DIDN'T EVEN SHOW!
We got the job & I gave them 60 days to pay!!! They really just needed a some TERMS to absorb
the additional COST..

My point is ....Don't start LOWERING your prices gentelmen,"Offer your cleint's easier way to PAY"
Get 75% down & wait 10 to 30 days for your PROFIT.....Your cleints will appreciate your offer.....&
Even if they don't PAY the balance.....You HAVEN'T taken the perception of VALUE out of your SERVICES!!!!!!!!!!! Hell why do a WHOLESALE DISCOUNT of your price / Not all of your clients will
ask for a DISCOUNT.......... ********"NEVER PREJUDGE A SALE"**********

There is always ways to CLOSE a cleint crying POVERTY...Give them an additional service at NO
CHARGE .....Tell them this is a 1-TIME deal to Help them out.....Alway's sell them the VALUE of your Service....By NO means....Tell them you are SLOW or having Financial problems..NOBODY
wants to deal with a LOOSER...

The thing that REALLY PISSES ME OFF is the so called GURU'S and DISTIBITOR'S that have
Sold these young men a LINE OF SH@T about marketing & burried them in equipment they
can't AFFORD...."HOW ARE THOSE LEASES WORK-IN OUT".........

HANG IN THERE GUYS.IT ALL COMES OUY INTHE WASH.They sure as Hell can't afford to REPLACE

 

[Rex Tyus]

Stevie G:

Obviously Ken is going bankrupt, and just hasn't figured it out yet.

Maybe in another 50 years he'll realize it.

not saying he is, maybe I am missing something, I was just trying to make sense of it all. personally I think many businesses are better off not getting so gigantic, at the end of the day the owner can put more money in his pocket by not having so many irons in the fire. just my opinions of course, in any event ken's business model can't leave much margin for inefficiency

I strongly agree with that. That is why just anybody can't do it. It takes skill to acheive the kind of success those type organizations reach.

 

[rhino1]

Just to be sure it was understood that I wasn't saying Ken or Greg was a hack because of what they charge. I would honestly like to know how this particular marketing and business model works and if the lower price increases the sales volume, not just the calls.

How does the customer react when they realize they have to pay X amount for the first room to get the $25 price? Or do you put the whole deal in plain print in your ads?

 

[XTREME1]

If they got a marketing piece it was with a fixed price suchs 3 rooms for $79.95 or 4 rooms for $99.95.

I am ensconched in my market everyone knows my company and me. If you have kids you have seen my signs in my area because I clean the karate schools, gymnastic studios, boys and girls club etc etc. I volunteer for things in my community with the big truck. Price point is never really a factor with those folks I like giving a value price and great service. I do 3 jobs a day. I get overwhelmed with business from March-jan.

I have a truck that does a ton of commercial and because of my standards I charge more usually than the competition lately

People are not stupid. They can read. I am a very thorough cleaner who never ever gets called back for redos. I live in an expensive area of the USA and a fairly expensive neighborhood

 

[Ken Snow]

Lots of comments/questions after I went to sleep.

Most of our crews average well above 800 a day and some over 1100

Certainly the margin on our model is lower than an owner operator (and for all I know other multi truck ops), though an 18% pre tax profit on 5.3 mil ain't bad scratch.

The number of crews and revenue they produce are all contributing to the cost of not only our Customer Care Coordinators, but also our maintenance staff, Managers, advertising, accounting department, IT staff, all the other fixed operating costs brought up and of course I like to get a paycheck too. We also have a large rug cleaning operation that contributes to these overhead costs, and my smallest division, fire and flood restoration, which will hopefully do north of 1.5 mil this year contributes as well.

Our price points of 2 rooms 59.99 & 4 for 99.99 are in print ads and on TV. On radio I sometimes use price but lately I have been talking about custmer responses and trust. If anyone would like to hear some of my radio spots shoot me an email and I'll send you an mp3 of a few, I don't know how to post one here.

Ken

Ken

 

[Curtis Pennington]

Our pricing is very similar To Kens and Matt's we start upsell 80-90% of ours jobs. Also we cordinate very well we the job is located and the next one is right down the road. We offer various pkgs bronze-silver- gold similar to Matts, I would say 70% are silver to gold pkgs which equal...depending on rooms range in the 35-50 dollar range pending pkg and rooms.

 

[Jim Martin]

One can make money if the efficiencey is there.

The economy here is gonna test my survival skills. Just keeping positive right now is a challenge.

Keep our heads up and try to be active in someway to generate work.

Later

Brad..the economy is going to test every body's survival skills...... The best cheerleaders you have out there are your existing clients....they know you and they trust you...market to them and find a way to push them to get you referrals to new clients....you can do this both residential and commercial..
For example.....I have been doing a ups store once a month for the last few years....not a real big job but I make good money for my time..I go in and clean then put down protector and it normally takes me about an hour from start to finish.....Our ups stores are independently owned...I had them be a cheer leader to help me get my foot in the door on another ups store and because of there help I now give them the protector free......started cleaning the ups store that they helped me with ....proved myself to them and offered them the same deal and landed another ups store....I am now up to 4 ups stores and it has only cost me about a gallon of protector and I did not spend a dime on any type of marketing material.....The way that this economy is right now you are going to work harder then normal landing new clients....use the ones you have now to help you with getting new ones....

 

[BradFenstermaker]

Thanks Jim

 

[steve r]

3 rooms n hall $99. for that i dont move furniture,prevac.or do stain or odor removal.and thats up to 200 sq ft per room.i can get in and out in less than an hour on most because the custy knows he better move everything or its extra.my time is valuable and they understand that.

the more i do the more i get paid its that simple.

also with room pricing you end up cleaning a lot of traffic areas only so the sq footage is relatively low.take a bedroom for instance. i wont move beds though i have and charged for it.i probably only clean 50 to 60 sq ft in a lot of bedrooms but the price stays the same.i tell them because i have to work around furniture it takes longer if they ask.

 

[hogjowl]

I won't pull out of the ICS parking lot for less than $200!