A client asked us for advice on keeping accounts from cancelling. Here's some advice.

Account retention is crucial when growing a profitable cleaning business. Customer loyalty is built on clients being treated well, and knowing that you are competent and concerned about their cleaning needs. Here are several components you might need to shore up:

  • Ensure your staff performs all activities in a friendly manner. Grouchy, rude, argumentative, disconnected, or impolite staff will drive customers away. No one wants to be treated disrespectfully.
  • Demonstrate that you are responsible for all of your actions by keeping all of your promises
  • Solicit input and then surpass customer expectations
  • Take care of an angry customer immediately
  • Recruit top cleaners by only selecting the best workers and training them well
  • Provide direct supervision, or on-site management to monitor and track performance
  • Provide advanced cleaning systems, equipment, and chemicals
  • Provide on-going training systems that prevent operator errors and increase skill levels
  • Stop by, email, or phone the customer to make sure they are happy with the work. Track your efforts with a solid follow-up program.
  • Train your staff to act as if they are the only personal contact that the customer has with your company, and conduct themselves as if the entire image and reputation of your company depends upon them.
  • Solve all cleaning problems immediately, eliminate deficiencies and work to keep them from reoccurring
  • Follow an exact Complaint Response System
  • Provide an ongoing, comprehensive employee training program that reduces complaints
  • Keep focused on what it will take to get your contract renewed and identify what the customer will lose if you are cancelled.
  • Develop obstacles, barriers and impediments that would stop a competitor from trying to get a foothold or take over your account
  • Offer a satisfaction guarantee and keep getting better at what you do

A KPI (Key Performance Indicators) spreadsheet can help you track your progress. If you would like a free copy of our Excel spreadsheet, email us at gary@nationalproclean.com.

Gary Clipperton, President of National Pro Clean is a forty-plus year industry veteran, author, trainer, consultant and developer of training programs, videos and software. He can be reached at the above email.


posted on 7/3/2018