Carpet Cleaning Issues - Carpet construction, upholstery cleaning, stain removal, equipment, events, etc.
I'm fuming about low pricesPosted by stevegunn (Steve Gunn), 15 October 2003
Just arrived in and looked in local paper new carpet cleaning company advertising one carpet £10,suite £20 and carpet & suite £25.Just had potential customer on the phone wanting qoute but guess what she said cowboy said he will do it for a tenner 
After explaining cost of fuel,diesel,insurance,setting up time she still thinks this fella will do a good job.Do these people realise how many jobs this fella has to do to make a living Posted by martin_606 (martin_606), 15 October 2003
Hi Steve
I don't think these kind of people really care, they just think they are getting a bargain.
If he messes it up she will only have herself to blame and it will cost more to correct his mistake.
Guess who they'll call to correct it...
You probably
Regards
Martin 
Posted by Tony_Browning (Tony_Browning), 15 October 2003
Don't worry about it,
they will do a crap job with crap equipment and be out of business within months.
Most people won't book them to clean anyway, only the tight fisted type....and who want's their business anyway? 
Understand the fumming though...
Kind Rgds
TonyPosted by Derek (Derek Bolton), 15 October 2003
Calm down Steve and Tony 
.... just imagine the frustration when something goes wrong as it surely will...very soon.
The potential customer 'won't' come back to you...she will be far too embarrassed.
She will vent her feelings at the cheapy guy instead...if she can get hold of him that is... even if she does he is more than likely to be uninsured.
On that thought you should have a very good nights sleep.... your potential customer won't!
As 'our Ken' would say...Happy cleaning
DerekPosted by lenpg (lenpg), 15 October 2003
Don’t worry I’ve been there! One gets what you pay for; you want cheap you get cheap. She’s probably spends most of her day running round looking for the barging and for gets the time and effort she put into it as she has all day. She has probably had it for 20 years and paid a fiver for it and it’s never been cleaned. Walk a way from the type of customer.
Mind you I have phoned this type of company too wind them up, what machine, chemicals and stain removal etc the only response I get we are in you area for the next two weeks, book fast. One day I will take them up on the offer but only when I have the time.
LenPosted by Cloverleaf (Cloverleaf), 15 October 2003
A lady rung me up and said how much for my living room carpet, I says £35, she says it only cost me £25 last time, I says why dont you get him back, she says, because I wasnt pleased and the stains came back. I explained about low performance equipment etc and said if you pay £35 you will be pleased or you wont pay.
She was pleased and I got 185 quid from referals.
What more can I say 
Posted by Derek (Derek Bolton), 16 October 2003
All too common I am afraid...
SCENARIO.
Guy rings me up in a panic, red wines spilt on carpet could I come out ASAP. I said yes, as I was passing the following day after my last job....no prices were discussed.
Arrived on site following day as arranged, looked at stain in middle if grubby carpet. I was very confident of removing the stain and suggested that I should clean the whole room 12 x 12 so that he wouldn't have a clean patch.
"How much will it cost"? says he....
"Fortyfive pounds." said I..
"My regular guy does the room for twenty pounds" says he...
"So why didn't you get him to come and remove the stain" says I...
"He couldn't get here until next week" says he...
"So, do you want me to do the job" says I...
"I will pay you twenty quid" says he...
"May I respectfully suggest you get your regular guy" says I....
"But aren't you going to do the job" says he....
"Not for twenty pounds" says I...
I reckon he thought that as I was already there I would do the job at the lower price
At this point I packed up my test kit and left
My fault... I should have talked money at the outset, I usually do, but I thought I was helping him out.... silly me
Derek Posted by Scots_cleaner (Scots_cleaner), 16 October 2003
Seems we all have the same problem up here in fife i have 2 guys.
1st guy Suite carpet £ 40
suite 2 carpets £50
leater suite £45
L\rm carpet £18
2nd guy
suite £30
2 carpets £30
rugs £10
leather £40
And thats just in my town
We as good cleaners need a nationwide (more public than ncca) way of showing that quality counts at reasonable prices. NOT CHEAP AND QUICK Posted by woodman (woodman), 16 October 2003
Steve,
next time a punter rings with same patter, just tell her to keep your number by the phone because she's going to need it once Mr Bex Bissell has finished with her carpet. and when she does ring in a panic double your price because now you are going to have to put right what they have done.
Seriously, you neither want nor need this customer let the 'in your area brigade' work for her for nothing.In her mind she thinks she's struck a bargain and will feel good about that until, they arrive 
Let it go and move on.Posted by Derek (Derek Bolton), 16 October 2003
Hi Mr Cleaner from Scotland
Why so formal....we don't bite....honest.
The NCCA are working on it.... There will be an annoucement in the November issue of their Magazine Newslink (Due out in the middle of the month) as one of their projects has now been finalised.
Other projects in the pipeline..... 
Regards
Derek
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