[Jamie885]

Hi all..

I'm totally new to the carpet cleaning industry and thinking about doing it part time with the intention of going full time if it all takes off... in the Newcastle upon tyne area

Any advice for a newbie would be much appreciated

I've been looking at a airflex storm and a little van  obviously it's not as easy as that

Thanks

Jamie

[Mike Halliday]

Why carpet cleaning? What do you do at the moment?

If you are going to start do it now and benefit from the Xmas rush, start in January and you will not get the work until March.

Don’t get to hung up over what machinery or chemical is best  they are mostly all the same once you get into the professional area  eg get a twin vac  and over 120 psi, if you see a machine less than this more than likely it’s aimed at the homeowner or car valleter

[Jamie885]

Hi Mike..

I'm not sure why I'm thinking about carpet cleaning I honestly think I will enjoy it and self satisfaction will be good...

at the moment I've got a great job and gives me lots of time at home but it's the working away part I don't enjoy

I have a driving school also but I'm giving it up as not enjoying it anymore .. so I'm used to being self employed and also marketing side of things and customer relations

Am I not best off getting the best equipment In my budget ?? I also.would like to do some courses but can't find any in Newcastle 

Also I don't really want to jump into it b4 Xmas as I wanna make sure I'm properly prepared for everything if that makes sense

[Jonathan Evans]

I would listen to Mike but if you are in no great rush get your marketing in place and aim to start in March.
It takes a lot of time to get established and costs a lot too.
Dependent on your age etc it might make more sense to expand your driving school.
The closest to you for training is John Kelly in Northumberland. Alltec in Royston Cambridgeshire and Solutions down in Cornwall all offer great training and support.
Good luck whatever you decide to do.

[maxcampbell]

Mikes' right - don't worry about the machine, follow his guidelines. I bought my first 2 machines second hand, and I'd do that again if I could find a clean machine with a good sounding history - all the components are more-or-less the same, and it's them what breaks - the body goes on for ever.

Use the majority of your available funds for marketing. Getting the jobs on is the hard bit. I think these days I'd spend the first big chunk of money on a high-end website. Not just the money, either, the thinking. Aim for consistency across all your marketing - the van, the leaflet, the website and the ads should all look as though they come from the same easily recognised place.

There are loads of threads on here, and other carpet cleaning forums, about marketing. Perhaps the best forum on marketing is on a forum owned by a manufacturer / importer of machines and a particular (I would say niche) range of chemicals. It's them that do the training in Cornwall.

[wayne zabel]

Do a lot of research into the local competion.

CC is often a very crowded market with people of various skills and training.

I often see posts on Facebook buy and sell sites asking for recommends for CC and frankly the lists posted back are as long as our arm with all sorts of clowns advertising their services.

Sorry to be negative but its worth bearing these things in mind.Ive been going 10 years and have seen the Facebook revolution explode recently

[John Kelly]

Hi Jamie, call in and see us in Cramlington. We do training courses and supply a wide range of products including the Storm.

[Dave_Lee]

Ask yourself a few questions.
1.  Are you physically fit and like hard work - because you need to be and it is.
2. Do you have sufficient funds, not only to purchase all the gear, but to put yourself through the training before you start.
3. Are you patient - because you will need to be as it's a very slow drip when starting out no matter how much marketing you do.
4. Do you have seperate funds to fund your marketing.
5. Are you prepared to make a loss in at least the first year - because you very well might.
Hard facts but all true, so many have a go but don't last very long, you need to start with a good plan and some money to get you going and enough determination to keep going through the bad times which are inevatable, and stay focussed on your goals.

[Jamie885]

Hi Dave
Thanks for the harsh but true reply
And I can honestly answer yes too all your points

I know this will take Time . Money. And most importantly hard work

I don't want to be the biggest company out there I  want to be the best

[Simon Gerrard]

Hi Jamie,
Being the best is a journey and never a destination.

[*Hector*]

Hi Jamie,
Being the best is a journey and never a destination.

Yoda gerrard

 

[Doctor Carpet (Ret'd)]

Do a lot of research into the local competion.

CC is often a very crowded market with people of various skills and training.

I often see posts on Facebook buy and sell sites asking for recommends for CC and frankly the lists posted back are as long as our arm with all sorts of clowns advertising their services.

Sorry to be negative but its worth bearing these things in mind.Ive been going 10 years and have seen the Facebook revolution explode recently

Is it really 10 years since we hooked up and did a day’s experience/training together?

Well done you.

Bet you’re glad you left the printing trade behind?

I’ll have a toast to you, Wayne, when I’m out with the boys tomorrow night.

[wayne zabel]

I think its actually just over 9 years Roger.

Yes I'm glad I got out of The Print - it's even worse now than when I got out.

I've managed to keep going in CC despite the Facebook revolution and the £10 a room guys

Hopefully I will keep ticking over another 6 years until I can get an OAP 

Cheers Roger

[Cleanevangelist]

Jamie885

you need to think of this business as a marketer of carpet cleaning and not as a cleaner. that should be your focus. as far as starting out start by hiring rug doctors out there is big demand for them. keep all contact details then start marketing to these people. every month and i mean every month. this will build up the cash you need to invest in equipment and one your have bought it keep renting out the rug doctors to fund you marketing.

Respects

Ian Harper

[Peter Hobbs]

When I started up it was very slow, so you are lucky you have that second job as it's not easy to get work at the beginning.

My advice would be to really take your time on every job, be polite and courteous and always go the extra mile for your customers. By doing this you will get repeat work. I remember the first month I started,  it was harsh. I think I got 3 jobs in the month, but from those 3 jobs, I got 2 referral jobs the next month and 1 of those customers I'm still cleaning for now nearly 8 years later.

Personally, I wouldn't waste any money on directories such as Yell, leaflets etc. Some others here may say otherwise, but for me when I was starting out these were a complete waste of money and a massive learning curve to not fall for the hype when they call and try to sell you these amazing packages which are going to increase enquiries to your business. It's mostly BS.

Get a good professional website built, focus on promoting it locally through free online business ads and slowly build up your customer base from there. Oh, and get ready to sweat - a lot. Carpet cleaning is hard work, especially if you're not used to it and depending on what machine you get (ie a starter machine) you will be lugging it up and down stairs to start with. Once your business takes off any you have more capital you will be able to invest in a machine that you can leave on the van or outside and dramatically reduce the amount of labour you have to deal with.

Hoep that helps : )

[Neil Worsnop]

A source of work I found in the early days was through Age Concern.  As a charity they had a list of tradespeople that they had vetted.  They would ask for proof of training, insurance and asked for three referees - and they did  actually contact them!

The best bit was that there was no initial outlay from me as they took 5% of every job lead.  You might think it is steep but you pay them after the customer has paid you.  Some months there were several leads and some months none at all.

Downside was it was mostly crappy jobs although on balance they were good 'learners'.  I dropped it as soon as I could but still clean for a few of the better customers.

Might be worth a ring round locally to see if there is a similar scheme available

[RPCCS]

Hi Dave
Thanks for the harsh but true reply
And I can honestly answer yes too all your points

I know this will take Time . Money. And most importantly hard work

I don't want to be the biggest company out there I  want to be the best

you will have to get passed me first 😃😃 Also a newbie looking for work in Newcastle area. 😃 As far as training goes, I went with John at Restormate in Cramlington, and followed up with a 2 day carpet and upholstery course from Derek Bolton,at Cleansmart in Nottingham. Both excellent. Beauty of going with John, and buying equipment from him, he is always obliging with advice, and if anything goes wrong with your equipment, its not far to take it for repair.

[jasonl]

Carpet cleaning is just one service, with the same basic equipment you will buy to start carpet cleaning, and for zero extra marketing costs you can add variety to your working life and a lot more income streams, all it will take is a little more training and some chemicals and extra tools which will normally be paid for after one job, here are some of the extra services you could add, as for training, going out with a competent old timer and benchmarking their business and knowledge is the best time you will ever invest.  carpet cleaners are a friendly bunch generally and many will happily help a keen newcomer.

hard floors, in wood, tile, stone and lvt
fire clean up
flood clean up - those two are my favourite and best for ££
upholstery cleaning
commercial carpet cleaning- another big payer!
toilet deep cleans
commercial kitchen cleans
trauma scene cleans
curtain cleaning

I advise that once you master basic carpet cleaning, you learn asap how to expand your list of services and in so doing keep your buffer spinning and wand sucking, cash flowing.

[Jennifer w]

Hi there,

For what it's worth , depending upon your age of course , train to do something with a higher demand.
The constant need to market sucks the life out of it really..
Whereas numerous other "trades" have to turn work away they are so busy..
I'd train and set up as a woodburner installer/ chimney sweep if I was starting out right now.

Good luck though,

Jen