Hone Those Jedi Commercial Cleaning Client Acquisition Skills
Why is the contract turnover rate so high for the commercial cleaning industry? Is there mismanagement of client expectations? A lack of communication in general? Maybe there is a larger quality issue that needs to be addressed. If every commercial cleaning client was understood from the beginning, what would your cleaning contract turnover rate look like? Let’s explore how your client’s personality plays a role in the client acquisition process.
An Essential Element in Getting Clients for Your Commercial Cleaning Business is Bidding
Discover part #1 Your Bid—Cleaning Variables. Or want to dig deeper. Read our Complete Guide to Bidding.
Have you met these commercial cleaning clients before?
Type A client.
Love them or hate them – They are easy to spot
Extremely thorough and detailed in their scope of work. It’s important, with clients like this, to probe. Find out why they are not happy with their current commercial cleaner and look for ways to exceed their expectations. This is also the client you want to be crystal clear on their expectations surrounding inspections and conformance to the contract. If you’re able to, ask how long the location currently takes to clean. With this info, you’ll be able to ballpark the production rate.
*production rate = hours given / net cleanable square feet
Type B client.
The new kid on the block
Basically, they got given the job of figuring this out and they’re very much still trying to do that. Warning: education is everything when bidding on these jobs. During the walkthrough, use a portion of the time to point out all the work that should be done and help them understand why. Like client type A, expectation setting is everything. There’s a good chance they’ve never worked with a cleaning company and establishing what to expect is key to this relationship being successful.
Type C client.
The great Oz
These clients are the trickiest. During the commercial client bidding process they are loose on their details and the walkthrough feels rushed—red flag. During the bidding process, you always need to be considering location variables. It’s wise to slow them down to ask detailed questions to protect location profits. These clients also have a tenancy of disappearing once the contract is signed. Don’t take this as a sign of satisfaction. Reach out on a somewhat frequent basis to undercover any brewing issues.
Mastering the art of bidding is an essential step in how to get clients for your commercial cleaning business means you’ll pay greater attention to the personality of the person managing the contract on the client’s side. If you pay close enough attention, people will give you the information you need. Still eager to learn more about bidding? Check out “How to Close 80% of the Cleaning Contracts you Quote”.
Swept is dedicated to highlighting stories that touch everyone in the commercial cleaning industry. Having started as a commercial cleaning company ourselves, our hearts go well beyond the janitorial software we offer.
