[luap]

is there anywhere that i can go to see what guide lines you have on here for advertising products.

someone has sent me a product to test that works great and would be a bonus to carpet cleaners.

some boards have pages(forsale,news,work leads and so on) within the current forum for this so as people know that they are being sold something ...something along the lines of vBullitin boards.

paul.

[Derek]

This suggestion sounds as though it has possibilities, It would, hopefully, take out the blatant advertising which can spoil an interesting debate.

Suppliers do or can have a part to play within the discussion sections by suppling technical information that is relevant.

On a personal note the direct (hard) sell is a real off putter for me .... I like the more subtle/ subliminal approach which can be far more effective.

Derek

[Mike Halliday]

The easiest way would be for everyone to fill out thier profile and stop using stupid names.

this would stop the paranoia that when someone makes a comment that a particular product  is good, some cleverclogs starts accusing you of selling the product and trying to get some free publicity.

Mike

[STEVE71163]

I agree with Mike. If we all used our proper names and Company name if applicable at least we would know who we are talking to. I don't mind someone bringing to my attention a new product or service but when it is done day after day perhaps they need to learn about a product called Yellow Pages.  

Steve Lowe

[Nigel_W]

Mike and Steve are right - I have just discovered this forum but I am reluctant to waste time posting when everyone is anonymous. I for one cannot understand anyone on a carpet cleaning forum needing to hide their identity.

Nigel

[Derek]

Hi

I have been posting messages under my correct first name from the word go, but in view of the comments (which I agree with) I will endeavour to ammend my profile accordingly.

My knowledge of computers is somewhat lacking so its trial and error time folks

Regards
Derek

[Forum Admin]

Hi 'luap'
We dont yet have any hard and fast rules about advertising other than if its relevant then post it if not, dont. It can be difficult to draw a line between the two but what we have to avoid is repetitive posts from members who are only here to sell products without being prepared to contribute to the forum.
If you genuinely have a product you are impressed with then yes, mention it. If on the other hand thats all you are here to do, thats different

We do seem to be getting around the nickname business after changing the registration process - people are being reminded that other members will take them more seriously with their real, or company, name.

We're still developing the site and there is sure to be these sorts of 'teething' problems in the first couple of months. Please bear with us - all these comments are being taken seriously!

Please keep them coming  

(By the way, you can change your name after you've registered, as Derek has done, but you must still log in with your original one)

[luap]

hi i tried to register with my name (paul) but it would not let me so to save all the hassle i spelt it backwards.

i do not personally want to advertise anything on these boards.even though i have come across a interesting product......as the way things are set up here is more fore help and discussion.

i was wondering if there was any rules regarding posting....if there is not there should be as it stops the ones who only want to post for their own end.

cheers paul.

[Derek]

Hi Paul

You made me smile with your explanation of your user name... I thought I was the only one who gets totally confused finding my way around a PC.

Talking about products amongst ourselves is fine until such time as the comments become derogatory... then you have to watch what you say or how you say it.

As a current Director of the NCCA I have the additional problem that if I talk positively about a specific product it just may be perceived that I am endorsing it.

I am just an ordinary carpet/upholstery cleaner who likes to talk dirty (carpets of course) with other interested technicians etc. I have been known, on several occassions, to talk carpet cleaning until the early hours with colleagues having completely lost track of time.
I am not a distributor, I do NOT sell chemicals or machinery as part of my business

In my opinion there is a time and a place for direct selling and this is not it.
However, as I have said in a previous post, suppliers have a unique opportunity to 'indirectly' promote their businesses by sharing the vast amount of technical knowledge they have access to... this is what I term 'subliminal advertising'  

I don't have a problem with that!

Regards
Derek

[Mike_Boxall]

Hi Guys

Perhaps it would help to explain how this site came about. A lot of our business at Express is direct to contract cleaners, carpet cleaners and window cleaners, and for a number of reasons we deal with a lot of people just getting into the industry. Over the past few years we've had hundreds of questions covering all sorts of topics (many of which have been repetitive) which we've answered happily time after time.
Although there are other forums about it was clear that there was no single forum that covered all areas of the market and, indeed, none that were proactive in attracting new members. After just 3 months, the results clearly speak for themselves. Registration is not by invite only, it is not dependent on membership of any organisation and there are no fees whatsoever.

Clean It Up was set-up and is paid for by ourselves, however, if we were to stop members discussing any other products than our own, the forum would simply fail - it is here as a genuine free resource, for whoever wants to make use of it without exploiting it. We know that our competitors get involved and their products get mentioned but our view is that it actually helps us identify opportunities. Besides, no matter what area of the market you are involved in, there is plenty of business for us all and we'll all do better if we work together at it!

As has been said before, all your comments are being taken on board - please keep them coming.

It is as much your site as it is ours!

Regards

Mike Boxall

[Derek]

Mike

What a sensible outlook... if only other suppliers felt and acted as you have done the industry would be better for it.

Many suppliers simply don't listen to their customers but continue to sell what they 'think' their customer needs.

Here, on the Forum, you can 'listen in' and plan your business strategy accordingly... what a cunning plan

Regards
Derek

[luap]

"What a sensible outlook"..you said derek...and i agree with you, if you wrote on here that you had tried this new spot cleaner and it was great...then thats what we all want to hear(and i believe you would)contracters telling contracters what works for them.thats what we want.

if people who have a axe to grind they should have a appropiate place to post thier goods...i mean i have just read a thread that had 3 different topics in 3 posts in 1 thread ?? and that was on page 2(i did not want to have a look at page 1  .
find a vBullitin board and see what i mean.

never mind..found a link to 1  

http://www.htmlforums.com/          paul

[Mike_Boxall]

Hi Paul
I agree it's a good idea to sub divide the categories and it's relatively easy to do.
Can we have some suggestions please on how you would all like this category split up.
What headings do you think would be best to use i.e. starting up, equipment, marketing, problems, industry books  , etc
I don't think it would be a good idea to have too many at the moment because I suspect it would slow down the ability to 'browse' through.
We have also considered the option of not allowing anyone to view the forum until they've registered but my concern is that we may discourage people and they simply won't bother - what do you all think?
Regards
Mike

[BeeClean]

I think youve got all the topics there. by the way I agree with paul and derek youre doing a great job with the site just what the industry needs.

[luap]

hi mike...i think the first four sound ok....i think that you should log in and have a valid e-mail address, the only way to be able to acces the boards.

if people only want to look and not participate and can log in as a guest.....they do not want to contributr to the boards..perhaps take away the odd idea(thank you very much....not), they are not doing anthing in the way of keeping the board alive or making a community.

if they don't log in, don't take part, (we) don't know they are there...what use are they to anybody.

paul.

[Mike_Boxall]

Hi Paul
With regard to logging in I think we'll try it for a couple of weeks and see what difference it makes. We'll let everyone know that it's going to happen in the next email update and try it for a while next week.

Any more suggestions or agreements for the proposed sub categories in the carpet cleaning section?

Regards
Mike