Question: Should regular accounts move furniture?
Steve replies: NO! And here’s why…
Hi Steve,
I was wondering what you did with the tables and chairs during the cleaning? Did you charge extra for moving the furniture in commercial work? Or should I require commercial accounts (especially restaurants) to move the furniture off the carpet before I clean? Any suggestions would be appreciated! (I am trying to increase the commercial end of my business.) Thank you very much,
Looking At My Options in Orlando
Well, Looking, I did things a “little differently”. If a commercial account like restaurants wanted all the furniture moved (on some of them we just did the open areas on an every other time basis) we moved it AND replaced it. Why? I’m glad you asked:
A. Less hassle for management. I found that when my service became an “irritation” to the customer we weren’t going to be around long. And I can’t think of anything more “irritating” for a restaurant manager than coming in early and finding a kitchen full of furniture!
B. Faster production for us. If you are using two people anyway (which you probably should on commercial work for production, physical exhaustion and mental burnout reasons) one of them is just going to be standing (or sitting) around a lot of the time if there is no furniture. Why not use the second person to keep moving furniture and replacing it? After all, if the furniture is being moved faster than the wand (or Cimex) can move, then moving tables and chairs isn’t really costing you anything!
NOTE: We normally would only move the tables and chairs enough to let us clean under them and then replace them immediately. With most restaurant furniture and good extraction (or even better encapsulation cleaning!) I found that blocking and tabbing wasn’t needed. With a good system and two people working together smoothly the wand never stopped which was great because my mantra on commercial work was, “If the wand isn’t moving we’re not making money!”
And yes, we made a LOT of money as my company cleaned over 50 restaurants and bars every month on a contract basis! How did I get all those accounts? Because I personally followed my weekly Dedicated Sales Morning concept! Download my free Special Report on “Selling Commercial Work” here with all the details!
C. Not being able to “blend into the woodwork”. I found the commercial accounts we kept the longest were the ones where we didn’t get “noticed”. We went in, did the work, sent the bill, they paid us! Just like clockwork! But if I had to call the manager or owner to remind them each month to move the tables and chairs it was too easy for him or her to say, “Let’s skip it this month.” The kiss of death in commercial!
NOTE: This is why it is ESSENTIAL to get “Open Access” on all regular commercial accounts! Click HERE to learn how to get “Open Access”.
So to cut to the chase, Looking, I strongly suggest you factor moving and replacing the furniture into your proposals for restaurants. (By the way, a great way to get all the information you need for your proposal and to “structure” your first visit with the Decision Maker is to use my Commercial Carpet Analysis form.)
More soon,
Steve
P.S. Commercial work is one area that the owner normally should excuse them self from ASAP. The problem is that these late hours will suck the life out of you. I seriously question if your “highest and best use” in your business is pushing a wand around some greasy spoon at 2 o’clock in the morning!