How to Handle Special Requests in Your Cleaning Business

Steve Hanson

Do you ever get special requests for additional services from your customers? Maybe they decided to go through their old files and have a huge pile of papers and boxes that need to be hauled out to the trash. Or perhaps they had a birthday party and have a big mess in the breakroom with confetti all over the floor, cake crumbs ground into the carpet, and punch spilled all over.

Certainly you want to satisfy your customer by cleaning up the messes and taking care of whatever they ask, but you also can't provide services outside the scope of your specifications list for free. If you do, before you know it, you'll get so many requests that you'll find yourself resenting your customer and wondering why you are no longer making a profit.

Here are some tips for handling special requests:

If it is a minor request like doing an extra vacuuming in the President's office, or removing a dead plant, you should go ahead and do it without charging extra. Think of this as a value-added service that will keep goodwill between you and your customer. And be sure to tell the customer that although it is outside the scope of your cleaning specifications you're happy to do it for them. This becomes a gentle reminder that you don't work for free when it comes to special requests.

If the request is going to take additional time (15 minutes, 1/2 hr or longer - it's your call), you should charge extra for the service. In your cleaning proposal you should state that services outside the scope of the cleaning specifications list will be billed at an hourly rate in 1/4 hour increments. This way, when it takes you an additional 1/2 hour to haul out piles of trash, you can charge your hourly rate. For example, if you charge $25/hr for extra services you would charge $12.50 for the extra 1/2 hour of trash hauling.

If the request requires that you make a special trip to the site you should include your drive time as well. A good example of this would be if there was a water leak that needed to be cleaned up in the middle of the day. You'll want to make every effort to handle the problem for them as quickly as possible, and perhaps give them an estimated price over the phone so they know they will be charged.

Train your employees to call you or a supervisor if a customer comes to them with a special request. All employees should be aware of the cleaning specifications, and if a customer asks them to do something outside the list, they need to know how to handle that situation. It is your responsibility to make sure they know what to do.

Keep your competitive edge by being cheerful and responsive to your customers' special requests. Most cleaning companies have the ability to provide quality cleaning services, but the companies who provide excellent customer service by being willing and able to satisfy their special requests will have a leg up on the competition. The key is to let the customer know how it works up front so there are no surprises later when they receive an additional charge for the service.

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Steve Hanson helps owners of small cleaning companies build a more profitable and successful cleaning business through his online community at TheJanitorialStore.com. Read inspirational cleaning success stories at http://www.cleaning-success.com, and sign up for weekly cleaning tips at http://www.TheJanitorialStore.com.