I see nothing more mind boggling than those who are running a carpet cleaning business. Not because its a bad business to have, they just don't learn

My biggest problem is how they focus on price, and are hell bent thinking they have to be… hogwash. Whenever I ask about why they keep sending out the same deals all their competition does they say "I got to price myself according to the marketplace".

hmm… who is it exactly that said first "clean 3 rooms for $99"? Was it consumers or desperate cleaners?

The reason they focus so hard on price is that they have lost touch on how to build value, instead of subtract it. Rather than creating a UVP (unique value proposition) , they say "we're all the same, just choose us".

When I work with these poor souls I say "what is unique about your service?" Mostly I get crickets chirping but every now and then I get a head scratcher like "we're green!"

Green? So what? Who isn't?… of course the reason they went 'green' is because the rest did it.

It's like a parade of guys walking off a cliff and trying to beat the others to the ground

One of the things I LOVE to do is to figure out what it is that truly matters. Green is not a reason to buy. It certainly has not helped to raise profits (being the coupons haven't changed in 5 years).

Looking at your business objectively is hard… it even is for me to look at my own. You need to find out why majority of your customers hire your type of service. Was it to-

• Prepare the home for an event? (party, selling, in-laws, etc)
• Smells or visually unbearable anymore
• Water damage

Don't be confused, I'm not asking why they hired YOU. I'm asking what made them decide they needed the service at all (no, it was not your offer or the fact you're green)

Most people do not impulse buy a service. They already had to be going down that road and then your ad hit them.

With carpet cleaners, they are praying to up-sell other services that are very profitable. The problem is most do not do it very well and if they don't make a bigger sale, they literally break even, or lose money.

The most disturbing part about this (I'll include all service businesses) is that once they get a customer, they focus on getting another…. not realizing majority of their profit is with current customers. The new ones cost a lot to get.

There are only 3 ways to grow a business (all must be done to be successful)

1. Get more customers (which is likely 90-95% of your focus)
2. Increase transaction amount (up-selling, cross selling- VITAL)
3. More transactions (sell to them multiple times annually)

The last 2 are where vast majority of your profits are…. yet most spend all their time and money on getting new customers.

I believe one must advertise (smartly advertise) to be successful, but if you don't have the other two wrapped tight your business will literally eat itself.

Ask yourself:

• What else could my customer truly use that would be a complement to what I sold them (keep in mind that if you don't offer anything, someone who does can joint venture with you.
• What could I inform them of to make them purchase more often? (sometimes they just may not realize why they should have the service again. Send them reasons why. Easy to do in carpet cleaning but possible with ANY service).

The reasons you give MUST be something that they care about. If you don't know, ASK THEM! You are not your customers and you're biased, and too knowledgeable about your process. You will use reasoning that will not resonate with them.

Ask yourself a sincere question- how can I help my customer's life be a little better? That my friend is where your success, or failure lies.

Paul McQuillan

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