Top 10 Mistakes People Make When Selling Cleaning Services To Customers

When your just starting out in the cleaning business, you are going to make some mistakes.

There is nothing really wrong with that because that is the only way to learn most of the time. As in life, business is a lot of trial and error. You learn from your mistakes and make adjustments along the way.

I know that I’ve made more mistakes than most anyone I know. Yet despite all those mistakes I’m still standing, I’m still in business and I’m probably better off than I would be otherwise.

With that said, some mistakes can be avoided all-together by just following in the footsteps of someone who already walked the path you are just starting out on. In other words…

why learn from your own mistakes when you can learn from mine?

I want you to know that I have made each and every mistake listed below. I still regress from time to time and short-circuit a deal every now and again, but who doesn’t. My point here is to clue you in on mistakes that can hurt your bottom-line. Knowing what the common problems are should help you minimize their effect on you.

Now lets get the process started. You will get more cleaning accounts (and have happier customers) by not making the following mistakes (like I did).

# 1 – Not listening. Listening is a two-step process. You need to not only listen to what the customer is asking for, you need to also look past that to find out what they need. Many times you are tempted to just sing the praises of your service without hearing what the customer wants. You cannot convert the prospect if you do not know what they want. Listen to your potential customers, identify the need, then fill it.

# 2 – Overselling. A never-ending sales pitch leaves your potential cleaning client with no room to make a smart decision. There is a fine line between being a good salesperson and being pushy or obnoxious. In other words…know when to stop.

# 3 – Being unprepared. Whether you are discussing your cleaning services on location or over the phone, you need to know all the details about your service. You must be able to answer all questions so be as prepared as possible. Even if you are prospecting for new business at a networking event, know what you are going to say and be ready for questions you may be asked.

# 4 – Moving straight to the sale. In virtually any type of  business, you need to establish a relationship before finalizing a sale. Take the Internet for example, you need to have landing pages to provide complete information about your products or services before jumping to the shopping cart. In other words…don’t put the cart before the horse (don’t rush to the sale). Take the time to educate your potential customers, and they will reward you with their business.

# 5 – Not closing the sale. This is the dirty underside of the mistake # 4. Once you have provided your potential customer with the information they need, ask the customer for their business. It may seem a little unnecessary to some, but sometimes asking for the sale can be the nudge the potential customer needs to make a final decision.

# 6 – Rambling on and on. Sometimes people are tempted to go overboard in their quest for a “relationship” and create way too much small-talk. While you do want to build a relationship and make your potential customer “comfortable”, the goal is to make the sale. Too much talking can make the conversation veer into topics that are better left out of business talk.

# 7 – Not performing any homework. If you are trying to offer your services to a specific client at a meeting, you need to know what he or she is all about. Dig in and do some research before the sales meeting to get a good idea of the prospect’s likes, dislikes, interests, and overall manner of doing business. You may not always be successful but the more you know the better off you will be.

# 8 – Judging books by their covers. Many people routinely miss sales because they prejudge their customers. Go into each and every sales opportunity with an open mind and leave any preconceived notions at the front door. Do not let any negative experiences from the past stand in the way of making a sale today.

# 9 – Failure to follow up on past leads. Just because someone does not buy immediately does not mean they will not be interested later on, especially if they requested information in the past from you. Proper follow-up is a vital part of sales that is often overlooked.

# 10 – Not prospecting for new customers. Even when you have plenty of cleaning accounts, and you are making money hand over fist, you need to devote time to looking for even more customers. No cleaning company can survive without a constant influx of new customers. Turnover of cleaning accounts happens even when you are holding up your end of the bargain. Sometimes new management comes in with their own crew, some companies go out of business and others let you go for cost cutting reasons. It is for this reason you never stand put, and always should be looking for more business.

Well there you have it, some useful information that should save you a lot of the grief that I put myself through early on in my career. You may find this hard to believe but most of you folks are probably farther along than I was when starting out (I was real “green” as they say in the beginning). But that should give you all hope, because if I can succeed in this business (with zero business experience), you certainly can!

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