[MAX Carpets]

Ok, here I go, I'll be brave and post, ready for the attack. This year has been our busiest year by far, before you go "yeah right" hear me out. I have made sure that our advert goes out to 50000 homes per month, yes per month. I mainly use local mags,  few leaflets. Plus I mail shot 200-300 customers per month. I make sure I run a special offer every month. I also use YELL.COM, and google sponsered listings (back in YP next year). I have also had a real push on regular commercial work this year, which has been very good. To be honest, the recession hasnt hit us (yet!) Thats not to say it wouldnt have if we hadnt gone out there and pushed hard to keep busy. RIGHT MEN, READY! .....................AIM....................... FIRE! I can take it, I'm used to it!

Justin

PS, I would like to add that I dont expect to be attacked ny all, just a few??   

[chrisjohn]

Colin,stop it!

Your frightening my kids.

[M.Acorn]

My accountant informed me i was over 3 grand up,on the previous year !!! Trouble is it will all be going to the tax man | +more 
As far as leaflets go,i had 10 thou done 4 years ago and still have about 9500 left !
Work comes now from word of mouth,the agency`s etc etc.Web sites prob generate 10 ish enquiry per week,mainly all price shoppers,got asked yesterday if i could beat £75 for a 4 room maisonette + stairs,normally £50 on the stairs alone !
Not looking too bad at the mo,usually end up working 5 days a week which is plenty for me !

[daysdeepclean]

Justin,

I'm "not"going to have a go at you, you've told us you're not doing bad and you've told us your strategy for keeping the work coming in. If anything, I thank you for sharing the advice and helping to reassure some of us that are worrying, about whether our carpet cleaning business will ever truly take off!

Cheers dude!!!!!

[MAX Carpets]

Colin,

Thanks mate. It will take off, however many say two or three years. I think realistically its more like 5 years, and you must be relentless at sticking with it, treat every day as a battle!

Cheers!


Justin 

[clinton]

Colin you should be getting referals this xmas rom last yr.

It took me a few years to get regulars and repeats and after all these years now i get mostly repeats and referals.

My web sites have started to bring in some good work so thats costing me nothing as to when i was in y pages when it was good..

[DanielWelford]

I think the main problem with new startups is that they are reactive rather than proactive. When they start lots of leaflet are delivered and make this offer and that, the phone starts ringing, then they have no time to do all the things that made the phone ring. 

Phone then stops ringing, panic go and deliver some leaflets..........................and so on and so on.

When I started I had a business plan that I stuck to religiously regardless. The trick is you need to put in some dedicated time for advertising your buisness, ie leafleting, canvassing, calling old custys, at least 1 day per fortnight.

Result = always busy 

Dan

[clinton]

Think the temptation for a new starter is to go in cheap in most cases.

Then 2 or 3 years down the line its hard to get your prices up..

[Shaun_Ashmore]

How cheap is cheap? if someone is doing the same work at a lesser rate then they are cheaper new or not, don't know what Clinton charges but if he is cheaper than me then he has either not been doing it as long or not as good!

Shaun

PS Clinton is far older then me so is probaably charging double

[David_Annable]

Hi

It would be nice to charge twice what shaun charges!

Busy here, but has been a funny year, very up & down.

Dave

[Shaun_Ashmore]

I'm poor and live in Yorkshore not like these Cheshire big wigs living and cleaning in houses I have many a time cleaned a scrap of carpet fibres in a cardboard box which we live in over here.

Poor Shaun

[DanielWelford]

Sorry Colin

The comment was meant to be constructive. The only pathetic statement is your response.

Dan

[markpowell]

I'm poor and live in Yorkshore not like these Cheshire big wigs living and cleaning in houses I have many a time cleaned a scrap of carpet fibres in a cardboard box which we live in over here.

Poor Shaun

[DanielWelford]

Yes Colin I always am, you just keep mugging yourself off mate.

Dan

[derek west]

I'm poor and live in Yorkshore not like these Cheshire big wigs living and cleaning in houses I have many a time cleaned a scrap of carpet fibres in a cardboard box which we live in over here.

Poor Shaun

cardboard box? you lucky barsteward.

when i was young, we worked 25 hours a day 8 days a week, ate coal for breakfast dinner and tea, and lived under a bridge on the motorway.

derek

[Shaun_Ashmore]

And you think that was bad I got promoted to the box, and my father used to whip me for 30 hours a day and we were glad of it.

Shaun

[Matt Lindus]

Shaun,

The farmer used to pay my farther to keep us children in his field. Our daily task was to run around screaming and ringing a bell in order to keep the birds from taking his corn seed. The nights were cold and bleak; I remember huddling up to a cow in order to keep warm. Some things never change!
I remember the sores on my bare feet as a I scurried around the field retching and screaming as I rang my bell in the pouring rain, we used to eat with the cows in the field adjacent.

If the farmer saw us resting he used to beat us with his hoe.

[Shaun_Ashmore]

A hoe? an American hoe? sounds good if it is.

Shaun

[Matt Lindus]

"Getin down with my hoe" as the coloured youth would say.

[Ian Gourlay]

Why has Colin left?