First Customer Advice And Products

[Matt Dodd]

Hi people

After getting my flyers on Monday I decided to go and post some through letterboxes thinking I'd not hear anything back, however, I've just had a phone call from my first potential customer. I've been asked to go and quote a huge 5 bedroom, 3 bathroom house for a spring clean, as you can imagine i'm both nervous and excited.

The customer mentioned that her current cleaner is away on holiday at the minute and I kind of get the feeling that this is a trial and could lead to regular work so I want to get everything spot on.

Any recommendations on products I should use should I get the job? So far in my wishlist on World of Clean I've got STS, APC (which seems to be everyones go to), solu-clear sanitiser, natural odour neautraliser, 500ml empty bottles, microfibre cloths, Micro power XR hand pads and i'm going out today to get a mop + bucket and Henry hoover.

If anyones got any other tips/advice please share them with me.

Thanks in advance

 

[Steve Porter]

Hi Matt

That'll teach you for not having faith in your flyers eh?!

Sounds like you have most things covered, you may want the odd special cleaner for something like nasty mould or mildew/ glass cleaner (screwfix no nonsense is best I've tried) but you'll see that when you quote.

If I'm brutally honest I would probably scrub the Henry & opt for a SEBO comfort, yes it's twice the price BUT the look on your clients faces each time you wheen it out will be priceless! Everyone else will have a Henry so only ever vacuuming out a small part of what's in the carpet, but a SEBO & you'll actually make your workload less yet achieve a MUCH higher standard which very few domestic cleaners will achieve

Mops. Microfibre mops are great, you may need a flat mop for smooth surfaces & a thicker/ hairier one for textured floors, don't buy those silly Vileda fall apart mops!

 

[John Bolton]

Matt,

Wot Pottie wrote!

You might add Stainless Steel Cleaner to that excellent chemical list.

 

[Alex Hamilton]

Diluted distilled vinegar is one of my most used products with domestic cleaning. It’s great for getting a streak free finish in shower screens plus lots more I wouldn’t be without it and it’s very cheap too.
I also carry all the other products you have mentioned

 

[Jacob Ward]

Go flat mop and a few microfiber cloths.
Decent spray bottle. The 1L qwazar are brill.
Some fragrance pearls for the bag of the sebo


J

 

[Daniel Darlow]

Ok, well done in such a quick situation.
You need to stand back and really think about this one.
Firstly talk and make notes on what your client REQUIRES and EXPECTS.
On a parallel situation, a five bedroom, 3 bathroom, National Trust Holiday Farmhouse at Coleton Fishacre, Devon, takes 5 staff from 10am to 3pm, to clean throughout, admittedly that means changing bedding, so knock off an hour but that is still a lot of manhours, vaccing, windows, dusting, mopping. The kitchen is a BIG situation and you must get your information clear about what is required here. Ovens are a no no unless you have hours to spend with the right equipment, walk round with her and list and think about how long it is going to take you then add on more time. I know it is a big and good job, but dont sell yourself short on time and money.

 

[Jon Chrimes]

Purchase a fixed smile , for meeting the customer for the first time.
Purchase some sort of quotation sheet to ensure the customer knows exactly what they're getting included in the price.
Borrow a sence of humour for when they say 'while you're here can you just'.
Ensure you pack you're 'balls of steel' so you can stand your ground and not leave until paid in full.
Have fun

 

[Matt Dodd]

Just a quick update for you guys.

The mrs went round this morning with a job sheet and noted down all of the customers requirements which were dusting the hard to reach places such as skirting boards, blinds, picture frames, behind beds, on top of cupboards etc.

The jobs going to take 2-3 hours if both of us do it according to the mrs, rang the customer and gave her a quote which she happily accepted which has me worrying as we've either undercut ourselves or underestimated the job time (wish i would of read Daniels reply before i rang back and quoted ).

On a positive note the customer has asked for some business cards as her friends are looking for a similar service so hopefully we can generate some more business from that.

Thank you all for the replies and help.

 

[Terry Miles]

I must admit 2-3 hours for a property of this size does not sound much at all, I assume you are doing nothing in the kitchen or bathrooms...……

 

[Tadgh o Shea]

I would agree with Steve, don't waste your money on strip mops or cotton mops go for microfiber mop pads or microfiber floor cloths as both are far more effective than traditional type cotton or strip mops. I would also stay away from Vinegar as its very corrosive and best kept for fish and chips.

 

[Matt Dodd]

Quick update for you all we went over the hours quoted I’m not surprised really don’t know how the mrs thought we were going to do it in 2-3 hours but it’s her first time quoting so it’s a learning curve (still worked out at £16ph each so not all is lost). I think being our first customer she obviously wanted to secure her.

The experience was more important and the customer was spot on (left us to it) so it was a good starting point for us both.

Customer seemed happy gave her some business cards she said she’d hand out to friends so hopefully get some more customers through word of mouth.

Got another call from some flyers I posted on Sunday and I’m going to quote this woman tomorrow however she was horrible on the phone demanding a price per hour and had a answer for everything so I’ll be making sure I go in high this time.

All in all not a bad day, thank you all for the responses and advice it helped me out loads.

 

[Daniel Darlow]

Well done Matt.
Experience is all, so long as it doesn't cost you too much in getting it, sometimes you have to take a hit, but you will know the next time.
But the main thing as well you know now, is requirements and expectations, balanced with your time and costs.
Spray furniture polish around the door jambs and don't do bleach...good luck!

 

[J S]

Matt , stick to your guns no matter what your pricing strategy is , if your not happy then don't be afraid to walkaway
she sounds like a customer you don't want or need

 

[Abdul Al Hagin]

Are you doing a domestic style clean or an end of tenancy style? The difference being domestic properties take a hell of a lot longner having to dust many items and then put them back etc whereas the end of tenancy is bag the crap that needs to go, dust from top to bottom and then hit it with the vaccum, don’t forget tin polish all switches as it’s one of the biggest complaints estate agents end up calling asking me to go in after another cleaning company.

In regards to my own experience of dealing with 2-3 EOT properties a day, many of which are student houses ranging upto 11 bedrooms etc, the chemicals you use will really play a massive part.

Key items I personally would say, others may disagree:-

-Concentrated bleach, great dilution rates and essential if you wish to dilute to a general purpose cleaner or neat for toilets and abit in the mop diluted correctly cleans well.

-Glass and stainless steel cleaner, streak free finish and again the price to volume ratio is great.

-Plenty of terry towels, you can buy 10kg for £25 online, worth their weight in gold.

-Decent vac is essential, lack of power will slow you down majorly.

-Degreaser will be essential for cleaning in the kitchen where there is oil spots all over the walls and counters. In addition, when cleaning inside the showers this will clean better than bleach due to much of it being fat based.

-Decent mop and bucket for all hard floors.

That’s what I personally use, I don’t promote for specific companies just saying what I use. Your list seems well thought through, though 2-3 hours for even a light clean of that size seems ambitious but all a learning curve. As for pricing, personally I aim to add approximately 25% of your price on top for any domestic cleans but these days I usually reject them as prefer to clean without someone there watching me and the clock.

If you want any advice on getting into EOT cleaning let me know as I recently launched my own business only 3 months ago and it’s flat out so I hope I can share what I found worked for me and see if it works for you too

Good luck!

 

[Alex Hamilton]

All such great advice!! I would echo what others have said about 2-3 hours being ambitious for this size property especially if it’s a spring clean. But as someone has said it is a learning curve and in my experience often things look like not a lot of work until you actually start cleaning then you realise so I always account for that

 

[Tadgh o Shea]

If new and starting out i would definitely not carry Bleach or Vinegar when cleaning your customers surfaces, especially if you want to turn them into clients of yours. Talk to the guys in Solutions they carry much safer alternatives.

 

[Tony Roberts]

Hi Abdul, could you share how you got so busy with EOT's done a few over last few months, mainly passed from an estate agent that I have linked up with, but not flat out like yourself. Thanks