cleaning

Chances are your cleaning company employees work in buildings after hours and have access to areas that may hold confidential information or valuables. How can you be sure the employees you hire can be trusted when working unsupervised? Paying close attention during the interview will help, but another tool you can use is the employee background check.

More companies than ever are doing background checks on new employees. There are several reasons for this:

1. According to the Society of Human Resource Management in Alexandria, Virginia, 37% of all applicants put some false information on applications and resumes and 65% of resumes are enhanced or exaggerated.

2. Lawsuits for “negligent hiring” are on the rise. If one of your employees hurts someone you can be held liable.

3. Current events, such as high profile child abuse and abduction cases, the terrorist attacks of 9-11, and the scandals of executives have created concerns when recruiting and hiring new employees.

4. Federal and state laws require background checks of people working in certain situations, including working with children, the elderly and disabled individuals. Plus some cleaning contracts will require you to perform background checks on your employees if you want to gain the contract.

The types of background checks performed can vary, but they typically include:

Tags: background, business, checks, cleaningbackground, business, checks, cleaning

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When talking with prospective customers for your cleaning business, you’re bound to have objections. To minimize objections, it helps to know why people raise them in the first place. Here are some of the main reasons for objections:

*Your presentation was weak and didn’t fully answer their questions

*You didn’t establish trust or credibility

*You didn’t establish need

*You didn’t completely qualify the buyer (you didn’t do enough research on this prospective customer)

Why do so many people struggle with handling objections and why are there so many objections to overcome in the first place?

*Lack of product knowledge

*Lack of sales training and techniques

*Lack of self-confidence

*Not prepared, didn’t practice

The best way to overcome objections is to prevent them from coming up in the first place.

*Make a list of every possible objection you can think of. Think about past sales calls you’ve made and write down the objections you’ve received.

*Write down your responses to your list of objections.

*Incorporate your answers into your presentation so you’ve answered the objections before your prospect has a chance to bring it up.

*After rehearsing your presentation, try role-playing with a colleague, friend or family member.

*Try out your presentation on prospects. Make any needed revisions and track what works and what doesn’t.

You might want to incorporate some of the following into your presentation:

*Use real-life stories of similar situations. For example, if you had another customer that made the purchase despite having the same objection, use that example in your presentation.

*Use testimonials. Perhaps you had a customer that had a price objection initially, and then later realized that he actually ended up saving money. Prospects might not believe it when you tell them the story yourself, but if you have a written testimonial from someone else, it’s much more powerful.

*Offer a comparison chart - your service versus the competition.

*Use phrases like, “Our experience has shown…”

*Use a phrase like, “Our existing customers had similar concerns, so in response to their concerns, here’s what we did…”

Cleaning companies often find themselves having to overcome price objections. The important thing to remember is to discuss the value you provide to the customer before you start talking about price. This is why we stress talking about benefits rather than features. Benefits show value, and people are willing to pay more if they perceive the value to be high.

Try this exercise. Take a blank sheet of paper and make a list of the features you offer. Underneath each feature, write down the benefit the customer will receive. For example:

Feature: Bonded and insured
Benefit: Peace of mind that your contractor has taken steps to protect the building and its contents.

Feature: Employee training
Benefit: Employees take pride in their work and stay with their job longer when they receive training. This means the customer’s building will receive higher quality of work with more consistency.

Feature: Building Inspections
Benefit: We make sure the quality of service is up to your standards so you don’t have to spend time worrying about it.

Feature: Managing supplies
Benefit: You don’t have to worry about running out of supplies or spend time picking up or ordering supplies.

Feature: Cleaning certifications
Benefit: Peace of mind, knowing that we’re experts in our field. We’re not experimenting with procedures on your furniture and flooring. When you need something done, all you have to do is ask.

This exercise should get you thinking more about the specific benefits that you need to talk about with the prospect. When he sees the value you offer, he’ll have a better understanding of why your prices are what they are and will be less likely to object to your price.

What do you do if the objection has nothing to do with your service, but the simple fact that the prospect is happy with his current contractor? You need to start asking some key questions that will get the prospect thinking about why he should start shopping around, even if he’s happy with the current contractor. Here are some tips for getting more information:

*Find out what is it about the current contractor he’s happy with. What are they doing right? What does he like most about the contractor?

*Ask what changes he would make if he could.

*Question his selection process (not his selection!) Ask him by what standards does he judge his contractors by?

*You need to show a difference between your business and the current contractor. For example, perhaps you’re using new technology that the current contractor doesn’t have — a telephone timekeeping system. This technology pages supervisors if an employee doesn’t show up for work. This ensures their building will never miss a service.

*Ask if he regularly shops around for all his products and services. After all, don’t we owe it to our business to make sure we seek out the best value regularly for all our goods and services? By doing this, it also keeps vendors and service providers on their toes if they know they’re not guaranteed the business.

*If you offer a service the current contractor doesn’t offer, see if you can get your foot in the door by offering a sample service. For example, if you offer hard floor care, and the current contractor doesn’t, offer to strip and wax a section of a floor in order to demonstrate your services. Perhaps you can get that piece of their business.

Preparation and practice is really the key to overcoming objections. Unless you’re a seasoned sales veteran, you’ll likely be nervous when calling on prospects. However the more knowledge you gain about your business and the more you work on your sales skills, the easier it will get. Before you know it, you’ll have a great system down and will be getting as much business as you can handle!

Steve Hanson is co-founding member of The Janitorial Store (TM), an online community for owners and managers of cleaning companies who want to build a more profitable and successful cleaning business. Sign up for Trash Talk: Tip of the Week at http://www.TheJanitorialStore.com and receive a Free Gift! Read cleaning success stories from owners of cleaning companies at http://www.cleaning-success.com/

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You don’t have to be running your own business for very long to find out that customers are different when it comes to what they expect out of a cleaning service. There are those customers who want the best, no matter what the cost. On the other end of the spectrum are price conscious customers who are more concerned with how their cleaning expenses fit into their overall budget than anything else. Marketing to these two distinctly different groups can indeed be a challenge.

What are the differences between the “budget conscious” and the “quality minded” customers? There are always individuals who will make their final decision based on price. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that these are not good customers for your cleaning business. With the budget minded there are special issues to consider:

1. For the budget minded, regular carpet maintenance will not be high on their list of priorities.

2. They will probably only become concerned about the “soiled” look of their carpet and ask for cleaning before a special event or occasion.

3. When they finally decide the carpets need cleaning, they will want the “biggest bang for the buck”.

4. The budget minded are also not likely to ask for special services, such as carpet spotting, floor stripping and waxing, and window washing.

5. Overall, these customers are willing to have fewer cleaning services provided and deal with some inconvenience in exchange for a lower price.

Quality minded customers have a different view because they value high standards, professionalism and great service.

1. The quality minded customer believes in the value of building maintenance and the results that are achieved with a contractor who provides quality service.

2. They are willing to pay to avoid inconvenience. 3. Poor service is a big irritation to the quality minded customer.

4. They will want carpets cleaned on a regular schedule and not allowed to become so soiled that they are an embarrassment to employees, customers and visitors.

Marketing to these two distinct groups means tailoring your materials to match what they are looking for in a cleaning service. The budget minded customer has let things go for so long that they will be in a rush to find someone to do the job. They may not take time to get referrals and will search traditional advertising sources such as phone books, newspaper ads, and direct marketing materials. In addition, they are always looking for specials or discounts.

The budget minded customer’s first question is likely to be “How much do you charge?” As they tend to wait until the situation is critical, they may also be looking for fast service. Penny-pinching customers are also likely to ask for outrageous guarantees and try to get you to lower your price. The “budget conscious” are also more likely to complain about the smallest details even though they want everything done quickly and cheaply.

Quality customers will be using a professional cleaning service regularly. If they become unhappy with their current cleaning service they will ask for referrals from friends and colleagues. They are not motivated by specials or discounts. If your cleaning company does not offer the specific services they are looking for, they may quickly remove your cleaning service from consideration.

Customers who are looking for quality will want a company that has a high degree of professionalism and takes pride in its work. They don’t want any surprises when it comes to getting their building cleaned. This customer is looking for an expert and is relying on your judgment, knowledge and skills to handle their cleaning needs. They trust that you are recommending and providing what they need and not promoting services that are not needed. The quality minded customer wants a long-term relationship and wants to avoid going through that long search process of finding a cleaner that suits their needs.

It often takes a referral from a happy customer to get you in the door of someone looking for quality. When you do “get in the door” make sure that you have quality printed marketing materials. Know your business and be proud to “toot” your own horn.

As you are marketing your cleaning business keep in mind these two distinct customer types. Remember, the budget conscious customer is looking for specials and package deals. Effective marketing tools for “economy” customers will involve using direct mail, newspaper ads and door hangers. The customer who is seeking quality will most likely ignore these marketing strategies and be searching for a reliable and knowledgeable cleaner that has a solid reputation in the community. Remembering that there are two types of clients can help you market your cleaning business more effectively.

Copyright 2006 The Janitorial Store

Steve Hanson is co-founding member of The Janitorial Store (TM), an online community that offers weekly tips, articles, downloads, discussion forums, and more for anyone who would like to learn how to start a cleaning business. Visit The Janitorial Store’s blog and get inspired by reading cleaning success stories from owners of cleaning companies.

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