One word that strikes fear in any carpet cleaner: lawsuit! Not scary enough? Then let’s try three: personal injury litigation! No entrepreneur wants to even hear these unspeakable words! Yet the opportunity for a “slip and fall lawsuit” rears its ugly head on every carpet cleaning job. So how can cleaners protect themselves AND create a wham-bam positive Moment of Truth? See what you think …
Print up brightly colored “Courtesy Cards” on heavy card stock that warn the home owner of the “slip and fall” hazard when their damp carpets open onto hard surface floors. These cards should be printed on brightly colored 5 1/2″ X 9″ heavy card stock and pre-creased for folding by the printer. (NOTE: Be sure to check for dye bleeding on damp carpets.) Then just fold these warning cards “tee-pee style” and place one at every intersection of damp carpet and hard surface flooring.
So after cleaning a carpeted section by a hardwood, tile or concrete floor the tech should wipe up excess over spray and then place an absorbent cotton walk-off “bath mat” so the home owner can dry their feet. Then place your folded Courtesy Card on the carpet that says on both sides:
“PLEASE USE CAUTION when walking off your sparkling clean but damp carpeting!
Your friends from ‘name of your company’!”
Collect your walk-off mats before leaving but be sure to leave the Courtesy Cards for your customer to dispose of after the carpet is dry. This Procedure helps avoid potential liability, increases your business name recognition AND shows your client that you care!
I also like these Courtesy Cards because they bring out in the open an “Unspoken Question” of the Homeowner, “Should my carpets be wet?” (Of course, you all know the only way carpets get WET is from a broken pipe! After you clean carpets they are always “DAMP”, never wet!) Now with these pre-printed carpets your Unspoken Answer to the customer’s Unspoken Question is, “It’s entirely normal for your carpets to be slightly damp after cleaning.”
Now if you implement this great Procedure remember to “Make it easier to do it right than to do it wrong.” So instead of just letting these cards float around (literally) on the floor of your van change your Job Folder Stocking Inventory and Job Folder Procedures. A supply of Courtesy Cards (I suggest eight) should be placed in the separate Job Folder made up for each job AND your Technicians must CONSISTENTLY use them.
Steve
P.S: Did this idea get you thinking? Just one simple, practical quickTIP like this just might transform your business. Now imagine a new one arriving every week! So if you’re not already signed up for these weekly QuickTIPS, do so now.