Economy, Premium and Deluxe package advice needed.

[Prosteam-sonomacounty]

Wait wait wait... Quality AND tiered pricing? What a concept!?!?

@Prosteam-sonomacounty and @aloha one Take notes here, this guy might be on to something! What if you didn't have to reduce quality, but could offer more options and tailor services to fit the perceived needs of the customer? Can it really be possible to do both?

Oh lord. It's getting real up in here. World's gonna spin off it's axis!

Being dramatic sure is fun...

For me , I have one service for cleaning that includes a top of the line painstaking process. I do have a variable pricing schedule that depends on the condition of the carpet and the amount of square footage to be cleaned. Square foot pricing , for me, insures not only that I don't leave any $$ on the table but also insures that I can spend the kind of time on a job that allows me to feel confident that nobody else can exceed my quality of work. If they want it deoderized , decontaminated, scotchgarded....well , of course that's extra. You just keep eating success (spamming) and we'll keep cleaning.

 

[jaymark]

After meeting with a marketing consultant I decided to make some changes.

First was to drop my cheaper package and just have two, standard and premium.

Second was to end all my prices with a 9.

He shows me lots of research on both topics, amazing how the mind works.

One other point he made was that people's brains are wired to spend until it hurts. So our job he said was to minimize the pain of the sale.

 

[Pinosan]

After meeting with a marketing consultant I decided to make some changes.

First was to drop my cheaper package and just have two, standard and premium.

Second was to end all my prices with a 9.

He shows me lots of research on both topics, amazing how the mind works.

One other point he made was that people's brains are wired to spend until it hurts. So our job he said was to minimize the pain of the sale.

That is what I was thinking have only two packages. glad you posted this. I may bring the cheaper one .5 up and the more expensive one, leave it a .60 see how it works

 

[EatSuccess]

After meeting with a marketing consultant I decided to make some changes.

First was to drop my cheaper package and just have two, standard and premium.

Second was to end all my prices with a 9.

He shows me lots of research on both topics, amazing how the mind works.

One other point he made was that people's brains are wired to spend until it hurts. So our job he said was to minimize the pain of the sale.

Two packages gives your a client an "either/or". One option is a "yes/no". 3 options is a "which fits you?".

Why do national chains use 3 options always?

They only expect to sell one MOST of the time. As do we. For example we don't expect people to buy our top package. It's pricey. However it provides a necessary function in our pricing strategy. It makes our middle package, which is also priced modestly, look much more attractive. It also makes our bottom package look unattractive or "cheap". We have a service level (not a service, for all of our services are premium and price shoppers don't typically have any interest in our services. We don't cut corners. We always give the full cleaning process. ) that fits everyone. If you're CHEAP, go with our "cheap" package though it is still a fair bit higher than any other company in the area, you'll get what you pay for, great service, quality cleaning etc. If you are a customer who says, "I only buy the best, I'm a big spender and won't settle for anything normal people can afford", then buy our top package. Also quality cleaning and a few perks only a few people use or need, but it isn't about the customer using 100% of what they buy. How much food is thrown away at restaurants every day? They don't sell you what you need and even at buffet restaurants people could in theory only take what they need. Does that happen? NOPE! WASTE WASTE! That's why a buffet is $16 when it could be $10. It's your job to be profitable.

Which size of pizza do you want? Personal, medium or FAMILY?

Which size soda do you want? Small, Medium or BIG GULP?

Which grade of fuel do you want? 87 Octane, 89 Octane or 91 Octane?

I'll say it one more time, our premium package has one purpose, to help us charge more and sell more of our middle package. That's its purpose in life. Serves its purpose pretty well.

See a pattern? Learn from the masters folks.

 

[flashsplat]

I didn't read everything here but I agree with alot of what I did.

I currently have a flat rate which I discount for apartments and Realtors by 30% (sounds like alot, but they keep me busy!).

Recently, i stopped pre-vaccing and grooming at the end of the job. I would like to add that as a premium service. Extra $15 a room and we'll scothgard and groom the carpet.

I clean in straight lines, so grooming because a big time waster, but with the scotchgard you have to groom it in anyway so why not make it 'value added'.

Just some things I've been thinking about :/

 

[rob allen]

We are building a new 3 tier package pricing for clients as I write this. Any more suggestions?

 

[Jose Holguin]

@Prosteam-sonomacounty

Mike, I've always liked the idea of protecting hardwood floors but I'm not sold in the butcher paper idea, have you ever considered using floor runners or anything other than paper?

 

[Prosteam-sonomacounty]

@Prosteam-sonomacounty

Mike, I've always liked the idea of protecting hardwood floors but I'm not sold in the butcher paper idea, have you ever considered using floor runners or anything other than paper?

I've got a bunch of runners now and they work in most cases but some places have ridiculously long runs of hardwood or stone to go across and I make up the difference in paper. Also , blue tape and paper is a must when delicate hardwood meets the tile or carpet that you're cleaning. I use it to mask off SS appliances and counters as well

 

[Mojo Rising]

I've got a bunch of runners now and they work in most cases but some places have ridiculously long runs of hardwood or stone to go across and I make up the difference in paper. Also , blue tape and paper is a must when delicate hardwood meets the tile or carpet that you're cleaning. I use it to mask off SS appliances and counters as well

I use floor covers as well .. was using furniture blankets from harbor freight that Saiger is using and they work very well for long runs.

 

[katandmouse]

Taking your time, cleaning thoroughly and being super careful inside a clients home isn't rocket surgery, it just takes more time. The tricky part is making sure that your client recognizes your effort. The reason I hate per room pricing is because your high end clients end up getting the worst service. Let me explain. You charge $55 per room and then you go into someone's home that is huge. This client wants and expects you to take special care of their flooring. This client WILL recognize your effort or lack thereof. Well he's got a 450' Master, a 650' playroom, 500' LR.....etc. Now you're cleaning for 10-15 cents per foot. You're in a position to HAVE to rush and this is the last client in the world that you can afford to rush with. Bottom line, you will NEVER be able to cultivate this kind of client because they are ultimately getting a subpar service in relation to the guy who has a 100' br. This is why square foot pricing has completely changed the way I service a client. Someone will say , "but I charge $100 per room". Congratulations but the guy in a small house is paying nearly $1 per foot and the mansion home is still 20 cents per foot. Sorry about the long read but I thought a proper explanation was warranted.

Late to the party here. It's now over 8 years since you wrote that. Has anything changed?
What do you say when your lead says, "but I can get 3 rooms for $99 with so and so"?

There's a lot of that "bait and switch" going on, but those who do it say it works. With their upsells, they say they're able to compensate for the low per-room price.

Also, if you're not doing the $99 bait and switch, do you think this is a good reason to keep your prices off the website so you can address those objections in case they never bothered to read your site?

Thanks for your advice!

 

[carpetcleaningxperts]

Late to the party here. It's now over 8 years since you wrote that. Has anything changed?
What do you say when your lead says, "but I can get 3 rooms for $99 with so and so"?

There's a lot of that "bait and switch" going on, but those who do it say it works. With their upsells, they say they're able to compensate for the low per-room price.

Also, if you're not doing the $99 bait and switch, do you think this is a good reason to keep your prices off the website so you can address those objections in case they never bothered to read your site?

Thanks for your advice!

I use that same loss leader for carpet and tile cleaning and it works. I would never bait and switch. Most of the time my customers add extra services or more areas. I have lost money because the customer only wanted the special and nothing else. I use Facebook paid ads mostly to advertise.