How to keep the price shopper on the phone?

[Dion R]

The potential customer calls and asked "how much do you charge for....." I answer and they hang up. I know that of the twenty cc's below me in the yellow pages many will be cheaper. What do I say to keep her on the phone and seal the deal.

 

[J Scott W]

The price question is often the only question the caller knows to ask. She doesn't want to just say, come clean my carpets. She is looking for information but doesn't know what to ask except for price.

You can take either of two approaches or a combination of the two.

1) Let her know that each carpet is different. That you provide personalized service rather than a one-size fits all approach. You would be glad to come to the home and do a carpet inspection, advice her on the carpet needs and provide a free price quote at that time. (Not an "estimate.")

It is much easier to make a sale face-to-face in the home. She has a chance to observe your professionalism and see that you are not a threat to have in the home taking care of her investment.

2) Again explain about each individual carpet being different. You will be glad to give a price after you have a bit more information. You then ask questions such as "Do you have any specific cleaning challenges or concerns?' What color is the carpet? What fiber is the carpet made of, etc.

Soon she will realize she does not know all the answers and will agree to have you come and look at her carpet.

If you are able to collect enough information, you can give a price.

Remember that not everyone asking about the price is a price shopper. Charge a fair price. Don't try to be the lowest cleaner in the YP. Try to sell the potential client on your level of expertise and professionalism. You can bet that few of the other cleaners, let her know that they care about the difference between olefin, nylon or whatever. Few cleaners care about her carpets need and provide personal service.

Scott Warrington

 

[Bob Foster]

I screen my employees so that there are criminal background checks done on them.

My staff are experienced trained professional and weren't courier drivers or drywallers the month before.

I do the work myself so I understand how important your business is to me in the long run.

You will not get a surprise when I come to your door and bring up a different price.

I have done plenty of work in your neighborhood - did you see my truck there last week?

What is the idea time you would like your home to be cleaned?

Do you want your carpets to be cleaned to meet the new warranty requirements?

I haven't ruined a carpet in at least 3 months just the odd chair....

 

[Mike H.]

I would try to engage the caller in a conversation by answering with something other than a price per square foot or per room. "Our rate varies based on the amount of carpet we are cleaning and how much furniture you would like us to move . . . can you tell me what areas of your home are you having cleaned; and are there any special soiling concerns?"

In my experience this usually leads to the customer describing the reason she has decided her carpet needs cleaning, such as "there are these little black spots", "I've got pet stains" or "it just looks terrible in the traffic areas". Which gives you the opportunity to describe the steps you will take to ensure the best possible cleaning. This often leads to a four or five minute conversation and a booked job.

If the caller comes back with "I just want to know if you can clean my two bedroom apartment for 59.95 because I'm moving out and it's required in the rental agreement", this job would probably be better suited for your lower priced competitors.

 

[Rex Tyus]

I reply with ..." is your primary concern price or quality?"

If they say price I hang up.
If they say anything else you got them. 8)

 

[Royal Man]

I hardly talk about price.

It's better to talk about value. a cheep cleaning job is easy to find.

What's hard to find is a cleaner that won't rush the job and cares enough to do the job right.

To get that lower price how many corners are going to be cut.

The best value is a quality job at a fair price.

If they get a low price and their carpet still looks like crap all that money is for nothing.

 

[Steve in Omaha]

Good line Rex!

 

[Ron Lippold]

Ask her when was the last time she called Dilladrs and asked how much is a dress.

 

[Johnnyone]

Just go by the Dillard's parking lot and see how full it is

Go by the Walmart parking lot and see how full it is....

Make you choice You pay for what you get...

 

[Mikey P]

Turn the interview around asap


You need more info from her then she needs from you to close the sale.


The "right" customer will take your questions as professionalism and more then likely she didn't hear squat form the last guy she called.


Razzle dazzle em.

 

[Ron Werner]

Rex beat me to that post. Great line!!
That's what I was taught to ask, and from there it can lead into what they need done, have they ever had it cleaned before, by whom, were they happy with that cleaner, what are their expectations, set up a time to go by and give them an actual quote. Once there you can wow them with your presentation. Even if you don't get the job, they now know there is a difference in carpet cleaning "professionals" and when they are serious, they will call.

If they answer with "price" being their main concern, I will refer them to some good budget cleaners. Steve Marsh told me that term, budget cleaner. Sometimes just saying that what they are looking for is probably a good "budget cleaner" is enough to drive them to upgrade, just out of pride.

 

[CarpetQueen]

Great Thread! Thanks for the info! These ideas will certainly help me!

 

[B&BGaryC]

I usually adhere to a script that helps with this problem, but on an off day when I don't start it right, and they insist on the price, I get creative and have a little fun at the same time...

"I gotta be honest with you, I don't do very good giving a price over the phone. I'm probably gonna error on the side of too high, rather than too low and look like a bait and switch guy..."

"If I told you I had a car for $200 what would you expect? A rusted pinto. I've got something that runs like a Mercedes and costs as much as a Kia, I can come out and you can take a look at it..."

"I'm happy to come out, measure your house, test your carpet and give you an exact written price, but from experience I've learned that when giving prices over the phone, I could tell you it's free, and you'd call every other cleaner in town until you found somebody willing to pay you 20 bucks to clean your house."

"Are you looking for the absolute lowest price? Call P.O.S. services, nobody will clean as cheep as them... I also can recommend a floor covering salesman and a mold remediation company to fix the damage they are going to do to your home."

 

[Rex Tyus]

LMAO @ Gary.




At least I hope you are joking. :shock:

 

[B&BGaryC]

Not entirely.

I did tell them I could recommend a guy who has the lowest prices, but they might need new carpet once he's done.

I have flat out told somebody that calling around they are not comparing apples to apples and price is not the only question they want to ask. I told them I didn't have time at the moment to bother with a phone quote and it wouldn't really matter what I quoted them at, because it would be an inaccurate quote and I there is always somebody willing to do cheaper work. I concluded my statement saying, I charge the same as any other company in this town that knows what they are doing, and more than somebody who doesn't have a clue. I can reserve their estimate appointment if they like, but I must be going now because I am busy...

Or something very similar to that...

You catch me on a bad day and I have NO customer service skills...

 

[steve r]

wow, no wonder you have been having trouble closing deals.
i know what you mean though, about having bad days.

sounds like you need a good script to work by and do it consistently then even on bad days you can still close the deal.

 

[B&BGaryC]

yeah, I got a script I use, but I just goof it up sometimes, and people can easily piss me off. I take it too personally. I can see all the money these dimwit price shoppers spend on a monthly basis and then they think 75 or a hundred dollars is too much. I just want to tell them to go hell, or that they are morons and they don't deserve a good job, so they better call somebody else. I want to tell them that they spend more in a month on sub-standard take out food, and if a trained professional with an expensive machine is less valuable than a hamburger on a stale bun with cold french fries than get a damn McDonalds employee to come over with a bottle of resolve and rag.

What even pisses me off more is when a trophy wife with a Mercedes in the driveway and $50,000 worth of wall to wall carpeting tells me she can't afford it, when I know for a fact my cleaning bill is less than her monthly payment on her Mercedes. I very tactfully and gently brought this to her attention, in a way that worked, because I held my temper.

I mentioned that she had a nice car. I asked her what kind of mechanic she would have work on it when it needed serviced.

The answer, of course, a good one.

Then I brought up the fact that it would cost about the same to replace all the carpet as it would to replace her car. What kind of cleaner do you want to clean for you?

The answer, of course a good one.

Doesn't a good mechanic charge a little more?

Yes

So do good cleaners. I have an opening this coming friday in the morning, or monday afternoon.

 

[B&BGaryC]

This is more rare than I am making it out to be though. I just stick with polite well written scripts and if they still choose another cleaner, it's their loss.

I had one person tell me they believed I was the best choice, but they just needed a receipt to prove they had a professional cleaning done to get the deposit back on their lease so they were going to get the cheapest job done they could.

I can understand that, but if the cheap cleaner doesn't do a good enough job, your landlord will hire another company and take it out of your deposit, then you pay to have it cleaned twice. My price is only 25% more, not double.

They still booked a hack.

 

[Rex Tyus]

You catch me on a bad day and I have NO customer service skills...

I would never have guessed that :roll: .

Seriously though. Closing becomes easier when you don't have to. Just relax. Some really base their decisions on price. Some value and some fashion. Once you can tell them a part you won't waste your time where there is no return. Biggest tip, DON'T TAKE IT PERSONAL. 8) Second tip, Don't make it personal with insults or sarcasm. There is no return on that. I have had numerous people call within a couple of months after they had tried someone else first. If I had insulted them I would have lost them for ever.

 

[TimP]

All I can say is if they are that cheap then they pay for what they get. In addition the only customers I have had say I was outrageous have been the most picky customers. I let my reputation spread and build my business on quality. I've had customers say I do wonders and that their carpet looked like brand new, and their furniture too. And that I may be higher but it's so worth it not to have to buy new furniture. I've seen them tell someone right in front of me and recommend me like I'm a miracle worker. It is truly rewarding to do a good job in this business.

 

[Dion R]

Good info

Thank you every one for your comments. Very helpful indeed. I especially like the term "Budget cleaner." You guys have given me a lot to work with. I think I need to get them in my head so they will roll right out when I need them.
I hope I'm not in the same city as any of you guys. I have a hard enough time working against myself.

 

[Jimmy L]

My phone script.

Question.....how much do you charge?

My answer....CLICK!


Question...When can you come out and clean my carpets?

My answer...Which day and time do you prefer?

 

[Out of Character - 0]

I sometimes get bothered by the people who expect a near free cleaning. I hate to quote $300 and hear how I'm nuts and the other company did the same for $85. My first though is NoFnWay they do the same thing for that. My cost is higher than that.

But the sad truth is some people do good work for nothing. They either haven't learned to charge yet or their just not out of biz yet. My grandparents have 12,000sqft of white, plush, nylon w/pets. They get it done once per year for $450. The guy pre-vacs, pre sprays, and uses a rx 20. I gave them a deal for $900 once and they were supprised at the difference. But they still have Hose A & Hose B do it.

 

[hogjowl]

Since I am an OO, I don't need a script, and can get away with not pricing over the phone.

However, if I, or any of you ICS cleaners, want to grow into a multi-truck operation, we'd better get real.