It goes back to a fundamental rule of economics, the law of supply and demand.
As we move into the busy fall season here, we are having to book clients two and three weeks out. Part of this is due to the difficulty of finding quality employees in a rebounding market. That same rebounding market means there is more demand for our services. The number of requests for a quote we are getting is breaking all previous records. Reading the message boards, it seems like everyone is having these problems. For most people it seems terrible, but there is a silver lining. This means it is time to raise your prices. Maybe by a lot. (article continued below offer)
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Right now we are losing far more clients because of difficulty in getting them on the schedule than because of price. This can seem very scary at first, however it goes back to a fundamental rule of economics, the law of supply and demand. When there is far more demand for your service than you have supply (available hours) to sell, then you should raise prices. You should raise prices until supply and demand match each other. This is also part of the solution to our labor problem. Because we pay our cleaners on commission, I will also effectively be able to give everyone an instant raise, which may help with that recruiting problem.
Raising prices can seem like it will cost you employees, but in truth it can be the secret to growing your business. Now raising prices can be scary but it does not need to be. At Cleaning Business Builders, we offer an entire module on Cleaning Times and Bill Rates. This class, delivered by Castle Keepers owner/CEO Tom Stewart, gives you the tools to measure your existing cleaning times toward creating time standards and a bill rate to charge for that time. And now through Sept. 14, 2016, you can get 25% OFF this class. Just enter the promo code RAISE in the DISCOUNT BOX at checkout.
Derek Christian has been involved in the cleaning industry for more than 20 years and is an owner or investor in several cleaning companies including
My Maid Service Dayton and
Real World Services Columbus, and now he works as a sales and marketing consultant for
Castle Keepers.
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