How To Improve Your Carpet Cleaning Business

Want to take your carpet cleaning business to the next level?

You need to understand where you are at and how your business is doing.

Are you doing good at customer service? How are your sales? What about basic phone etiquette?

Here are some statistics that will blow your mind on the carpet cleaning industry. This is to teach you and help you evaluate where you are to make improvements as needed.

These statistics came from a carpet cleaning group on facebook. I was given the task from the admin of the group to audit the different carpet cleaning companies to understand how they were doing in their business.

I didn’t know beforehand what their strengths or weaknesses were as business owners.

My goal was to contact the companies and secret shop them. Meaning, I looked up their company, called the company for a quote, and recorded any observations I made.

The results were mind blowing.

It was really interesting to see the data when put together. Carpet cleaners are part of an amazing industry and provide a wonderful service to many people. It was my job to help them understand their weaknesses and teach them how to improve their carpet cleaning business in regards to phone answering, etiquette, and customer service.

Here are our 9 top insights on the carpet cleaning industry and ways to improve on this for your own business.

1. Only 50% of carpet cleaning companies answered their phone.

When the carpet cleaners were called, it was during the morning, mid-day, afternoon, and evening. As well as over different days of the week.

What we found was the average amount of times the calls were answered was 50% of the time.

With that being said, that means 50% did not answer their phone.

It is really important to always be answering your phone, because if you aren’t, that means someone else is.

Customers aren’t leaving voicemails anymore either, especially new ones. If you don’t answer your phone, that new customer will most likely call someone else, and not leave you a message.

Missed calls means missed business.

If you are too busy to always answer your calls, consider getting an assistant or secretary to help you out. Jill’s Office is great because they are virtual secretaries and can answer those missed calls.

Take away: If you aren’t answering your phone, you are missing out on increased business, new customers, and more money for your business. If you don’t answer your phone, chances are somebody else is.

Get into the habit of answering your calls every time, having your office staff be better at answering, or hiring out a service to help you out.

2. 80% of companies had their contact information listed.

According to bright local, “97% of consumers read online reviews for local businesses in 2017, with 12% looking for a local business online every day.”

If 97% of consumers are online looking at reviews, chances are if they like you, they will call you.

But guess what?

If you don’t have your business name, contact information, phone numbers, etc. easily displayed on your website, facebook, or other media presence, they will skip you and find someone else.

80% of companies randomly surveyed did have their contact information listed on their facebook group group or page, which means 20% did not.

Take away: Check all of your sites where your business is listed, your website, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or LinkedIn, etc.. Make sure your information is easily seen and accessible. This way if a customer needs to contact you, they can find you to use your services.

3. Only 5% asked for a customer name

Only 5% of carpet cleaners in the group remembered to say the customer’s name during the call.

The Washington Post published an article about the power of a name.

They said that “A person’s name is the greatest connection to their own identity and individuality.

Some might say it is the most important word in the world to that person.”

How powerful is that!

Using someone’s name is really going to help you personalize the conversation. It makes the person feel more important.

Take away: In your business, make sure to ask your customer for their name and use that name.

4. How to have good phone etiquette

Don’t you hate it when you call a company they speak so fast you don’t catch their company name or even their name?

Or even worse?

When they don’t even want to talk to you!

Having great phone etiquette can go really far. It’s also so easy to do.

How can you avoid being part of the 75% that had poor phone etiquette?

1. Answer the phone in a normal tone and pace. Make sure they can understand and hear your business name and your name at the beginning of the call. Ask for theirs and ask what their needs are.

2. Sound interested. Try to care. Listen to their needs.

3. Solve their problem.

Take away: Learn to have better phone etiquette. Sound better on the phone so customers want to do business with you.

5. Only 5% asked who referred them

This is truly a great trick to help you grow your business and so easy to do.

When on the call with new, old, or prospecting customers, at the end of the call, ask who referred them.

By doing this, you can identify certain areas in your traffic flow that are helping your business.

You can then focus your attention to those areas to market to that source better.

Are the customers coming from google, social media, or maybe word of mouth. It’s your job as a business owner to find that out.

Take away: Ask who they were referred by. Only 5% of people are doing it, and it will make you look different.

6. Only 5% Asked For Email

What?!

I can’t believe it.

Only 5% of companies tried asking for an email!

This is huge because having someone’s email that they give to you is like “marketing gold!” You can email that person follow up information about your company, send them an estimate, or contact them at a different time to sell them on other services.

Get your customer’s email.

Find a tracking or management system to help you manage the emails.

Learn the importance of having and getting emails and why it’s important for your business.

Take away: Get your customers emails.

7. Ouch….0% asked for a phone number

If you want to transform your business with a few simple tweaks, please try to get phone numbers for your customers and prospects.

Trust me, you’re going to love having them.

This will allow you to follow up with people who don’t book on the spot.

If you have their number, you can call them in the future and follow up with them.

It’s going to make you look so much more professional, and people love great customer service.

By following up with them, you set yourself apart from everyone else.

And if only 50% are answering their phones, and 0% aren’t getting phone numbers to follow up, that is so much more leverage you will have over your competition!

Take away: Get phone numbers and follow up with your customers asap!

8. Only 10% tried to book the appointment on the spot

If a customer isn’t sure yet if they need your services, try offering them a time that you can do it.

Sometimes the customer may get excited knowing you can get them in right away.

Sometimes the customer is indecisive and needs that gentle push to make the commitment.

And sometimes, the customer just says no and isn’t ready yet.

But at least you tried. It only take a few seconds to ask that question “Would you like me to make an appointment for you?”

What is crazy is that only 10% asked to book an appointment!

Take away: Take the call to the next level. Always ask if they would like to have an appointment or get booked. It’s always a yes until they say no! Customers need a little persuasion.