Carpet cleaners all over the world fall too easily into the old “just gimme an estimate” trap when they get calls from potential cleaning customers. This is just yet another incarnation of the all too common over-emphasis on price when marketing cleaning services. You don’t have to play this game! Fight back with this simple change in terminology …
I know Steve prefers to use the word “inspection” instead of “estimate” in the Strategies for Success seminar. This is a valid point simply because the word “estimate” is both vague and focuses the customer completely on price! However, as a Senior Carpet Inspector my company prefers to use the phrase “pre-cleaning evaluation” instead of “inspection” for pre-visiting the home and selling the carpet job. Especially if you are doing IICRC Certified Inspections, this change in terminology may be a good idea to avoid possible confusion. But I also agree with Steve; whatever you do, don’t use the “e-word”!
Works for me! Certainly price is a valid part of the buying equation (and always will be). As part of our “pre-inspection” we were delighted to give the customer a complete written price list. However, a proper “Inspection That Sells” is divided into five parts: 1) Introduction/ Breaking the Ice, 2) Tour/Questions, 3) Test/Measure, 4) Review/Qualify and 5) Close/Sell-up.
NOTE: Don’t forget that you have to “pre-inspect” the job (especially on a first time customer) regardless of if you make a separate trip or it be on the day of the cleaning with your truck mount parked outside. Either way, you should follow the sequence given above if you want to book more jobs!
Steve
PS. Make sure you have the tools to follow the above mentioned five part pre-inspection. For me that included the following: business card case, holstered duckbill napping shears, tape measure, ultrasonic distance meter, high intensity spotlight, black light, photo album, pH pen, white towels, free lifetime spotter bottle, handi groomer and sales brochures.
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