PrimaDonna
Megatron
We got a call yesterday from a carpet retailer for an emergency job. They had a carpet being installed today, that the guys in the got several grease marks on when it was in the warehouse.
We've done work for this retailer here and there, but they don't refer us consistently because they have another guy they use. It is a place where we would love to be the primary cleaner they use and refer, but have been respectful of the relationship they have with the another cleaner. This is one those wait in the wings opportunities, and the second one that has happened for us with a local retailer in the past month. I didn't know why he called us for this, but was happy to have the opportunity, and knew it was one of those things we had to make happen if we wanted to further our relationship with them.
I quoted him our minimum charge over the phone ($175). He said whatever it is, fine, we need it taken care of. Sent the guys out at the end of the day and they took care of it.
While they were there, the Operations Manager made a big to do about how thankful he was for us coming out on such short notice. He told John he called is regular guy, who never called him back. However, he did show up yesterday afternoon before we got there and said he was there to fix the problem. They sent him packing and told him that someone else was scheduled to to it.
He then told John he was going to tell all the sales reps to refer us from now on. Just the "in" we've been waiting for.
Then we get this email this morning....
John, Meg,
Thank you for cleaning the rug last night. It was done promptly and efficiently.
Helped us out a lot.
I wanted to take this opportunity to honestly convey I was a little taken aback on the amount of your minimum. The present cleaner that I use for store cleaning,
Does an acceptable, similar size job for us here anywhere from $35 - $85.
I do realize after John explained to me that you added a step back into to help protect the fibers, understood.
I would ask that maybe we could revisit the charges for us moving forward .
Thank you.
I have approved the charges from last night; check being issued.
Working on the response. Want to be respectful of his position, but gently remind him what he said and how the customer service was lacking with the current cleaner (you get what you pay for....with out saying that)
We have to determine if his pain is greater in the wallet....or the customer service/responsiveness of the other provider.
I do plan to share our referral program and how we offer 10% back to new clients. They could use that "credit" toward our services in these situations or to clean their showroom. I'd even be happy to work something else out if we truly do start to get a lot of business from them and we see referrals coming through. However, I'm not quick to jump in to changing our prices if it's not going to result in other business for us.
How would you respond to this?
We've done work for this retailer here and there, but they don't refer us consistently because they have another guy they use. It is a place where we would love to be the primary cleaner they use and refer, but have been respectful of the relationship they have with the another cleaner. This is one those wait in the wings opportunities, and the second one that has happened for us with a local retailer in the past month. I didn't know why he called us for this, but was happy to have the opportunity, and knew it was one of those things we had to make happen if we wanted to further our relationship with them.
I quoted him our minimum charge over the phone ($175). He said whatever it is, fine, we need it taken care of. Sent the guys out at the end of the day and they took care of it.
While they were there, the Operations Manager made a big to do about how thankful he was for us coming out on such short notice. He told John he called is regular guy, who never called him back. However, he did show up yesterday afternoon before we got there and said he was there to fix the problem. They sent him packing and told him that someone else was scheduled to to it.
He then told John he was going to tell all the sales reps to refer us from now on. Just the "in" we've been waiting for.
Then we get this email this morning....
John, Meg,
Thank you for cleaning the rug last night. It was done promptly and efficiently.
Helped us out a lot.
I wanted to take this opportunity to honestly convey I was a little taken aback on the amount of your minimum. The present cleaner that I use for store cleaning,
Does an acceptable, similar size job for us here anywhere from $35 - $85.
I do realize after John explained to me that you added a step back into to help protect the fibers, understood.
I would ask that maybe we could revisit the charges for us moving forward .
Thank you.
I have approved the charges from last night; check being issued.
Working on the response. Want to be respectful of his position, but gently remind him what he said and how the customer service was lacking with the current cleaner (you get what you pay for....with out saying that)
We have to determine if his pain is greater in the wallet....or the customer service/responsiveness of the other provider.
I do plan to share our referral program and how we offer 10% back to new clients. They could use that "credit" toward our services in these situations or to clean their showroom. I'd even be happy to work something else out if we truly do start to get a lot of business from them and we see referrals coming through. However, I'm not quick to jump in to changing our prices if it's not going to result in other business for us.
How would you respond to this?