How to get commercial carpets
clean - Step 1
by
Jeff Cross
You are a carpet cleaner. You walk into a business, notice the carpet is in terrible shape, but no matter what you do, you can't convince the decision maker to even acknowledge your bid.
You know you can fix the problem. You are the best carpet cleaner in the world, right?
Or, perhaps, you work in facility cleaning... and the carpet - although cleaned on occasion - still never look very good. In fact, you have made requests to management to either allow you to increase frequency of cleaning, or hire a professional carpet cleaning service, but you have been ignored.
What can you do?
Sell the pretty
Somehow, you have to convince management that their dirty carpets are an eyesore that can't be ignored.
But only you know the personality of management. Some managers (decision makers) can be joked with; with others, you have to be as serious as you were with your 10th grade math teacher.
You can use some comparisons.
Would someone go to a job interview with a grease stain on the collar of their shirt? No. And that's where the comparison comes in: Facilities are a place that invite people in, to make a good impression.
The building is a big job "interview".
Something is being interviewed and sold in your building at all times.
Sell the economics
It's true - clean carpets are economical.
Carpet is the biggest filter in any building. By keeping carpet clean, you keep all other surfaces cleaner.
Carpet is also a huge investment. By keeping carpet clean, you make it last longer and keep money available for other investments. A dirty carpet wears out much faster than a clean carpet.
Speaking of economics... what if having a clean carpet somehow influenced one or two tenants of your building to stay as tenants? What if one or two clients decided (perhaps subliminally) to remain as clients?
Or what if a cleaner carpet helped land a new tenant or client?
That's economics.
Sell the healthy
Most people talk about cleaning for health - it's an important topic and benefit to building occupants.
But it's probably not the best selling point for carpet cleaning. That's why it's last in this list.
It's still important, though.
Carpet is a huge filter, as mentioned earlier. By keeping it clean, you keep the air cleaner in a facility. Better indoor air quality is a benefit.
There are statistics you can find on many websites that you can use to prove your case to management.
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Jeff Cross is the senior editor of Cleanfax magazine and an industry trainer and consultant, and offers carpet cleaning marketing, disaster restoration marketing and contract cleaning marketing seminars and classes through
Totally Booked University