Knowledge is Power

There are a lot of important issues to consider when dealing with carpet care, such as how to train end users adequately, what cleaning procedures to use (problems and solutions) and how to stay abreast of market trends.

Customers want and need information about carpet care issues so they can make the best possible purchasing decision — one that takes all the facts into account. Distributors know the importance of educating the end user properly to increase satisfaction and sales.

For this carpet care case study, SM talked to four distributors to get the specifics on how their carpet care expertise contributes to high levels of customer satisfaction.

ChemClean Inc., Milwaukee
Gene Traudt, president, explains that when it comes to any new piece of carpet care equipment, ChemClean provides end users with an in-house demonstration on using the machine correctly. “We also provide monthly training sessions,” says Traudt. The training focus rotates every month, but often relates to carpet care issues.

Training and education is done by ChemClean on a daily basis, says Traudt. “Generally, end-user training is done in-house during one of the scheduled sessions or by one of us going out to a customer and manually showing them how to do something,” he says.

ChemClean employees also get instruction to ensure they have the technical knowledge needed to service the carpet care market. ChemClean educates its employees through a combination of classroom and hands-on training.

“If a salesperson has five or six products with them to treat a carpet stain, he or she will soon learn [and remember] which product offers the best solution,” Traudt says.

Employees also need proper support from manufacturers and suppliers to ensure proper training techniques. “This also includes on-the-job training with sales reps,” he adds.

Staying abreast of carpet care market trends is easy when distributors “talk to and listen to manufacturers,” says Traudt.

“When the manufacturers do come out with a new product, you’ll already be on top of it,” he explains. This is also the best way for distributors and sales staff to be familiar with carpet construction — textures, fibers, colors, etc.

All in all, the best way to keep end users happy and coming back is to properly train them the first time. And this can only be achieved by having properly trained salespeople.

Contract Cleaner Supply Inc., Conshohocken, Pa.
The most effective training is “hands-on” training at the customer’s facility, according to Russ McCammitt, sales manager. “Distributors need to discuss the various methods, chemicals and equipment available to maintain carpets,” he says. “Also, reinforce this training on a regular basis as needed.”

McCammitt recalls one instance when his company and the training it offered helped a customer through a carpet care problem they were having. “A facility needed ongoing carpet maintenance, but had a small, poorly trained staff to do the work. We showed them automatic carpet extractors that handle large square footage using minimum labor force,” he says. He explained that it only took three short seminars — about two hours each — that enabled the facility to accomplish their goal of proper carpet maintenance.

But what does Contract Cleaner Supply do to make sure that its sales staff is properly trained and is able to answer technical carpet questions? According to McCammitt, the company provides ongoing training for its employees. For example, regular meetings are dedicated to certain equipment problems and carpet care solutions. Distributors and salespeople also gain knowledge through carpet manufacturers. “Mill representatives are happy to have the opportunity to discuss how carpets are made,” he says.

The company also has salespeople schedule as many demonstrations as possible, he says. “Demonstrations create sales and increase knowledge,” he notes.

Staying alert to market trends is also something that requires proactive work on the distributor’s part. McCammitt suggests talking to the people who make the products, reading trade magazines and networking with other distributors and sales reps to stay ahead of the game. “People love to share their knowledge,” he says.

Distributors who sell carpet care products and equipment also need to be familiar with carpet construction, including textures, fibers and colors. Again, McCammitt believes the best way to educate yourself is to talk to people, mainly manufacturers. “Enlist in the help of experts — call in a carpet manufacturer’s representative — they love to pitch all aspects and types of carpet they manufacture,” McCammitt says.

Once distributors are educated, then they can educate their end users. McCammitt advises that distributors should help customers pick the correct carpet, color and construction and then remember to factor in the quality, experience and training of the personnel. “This will lead to the use of proper equipment, chemicals and methods to maintain the carpet,” he adds.

End users often lack carpet care knowledge; they look to distributors who are willing to help provide them with the information they need. But how do distributors know what information is essential for each individual end user? Simple: They ask questions. “First determine what level of maintenance they want to achieve, then help them design a program that meets these needs,” he says. “Also, teach proper use of equipment and chemicals used in the program. And don’t forget follow-up calls to ensure that steps one and two are being followed,” he advises.

McCammitt recalls another time that an end user came to Contract Cleaner Supply with a carpet care problem: “A psychiatric department of a hospital installed a lime green carpet over a terrazzo floor. It was bombarded daily with medicines, food, coffee, soft drinks and bodily fluids (including blood). Our recommendation was to tear it up since it was inappropriate for the area and replace it with walk-off mats in needed areas. They said no. So we then recommended daily dry foam shampooing and spotting — an expensive proposition. After six months of extensive labor and chemical costs they ripped up the carpet and went back to terrazzo.

“The moral of the story,” McCammitt concludes, “is some areas are not meant for carpet.”

Egan Supply Co., Omaha, Neb.
Egan’s philosophy is that any time it sells carpet equipment or any equipment, they install the unit themselves while working with the operator of the equipment, says Jim Egan, president. Installation includes going through a checklist — operation, care and maintenance — with the end user. “When we finish, the operator is comfortable operating the machine,” he adds. “They also have a phone number to call if they have any problems or questions.”

Egan Supply also knows that a good distributor helps to pass on its knowledge to its end users. “We provide, with the help of our vendors, regular seminars on carpet care, hard floor care, gym floor care, etc.,” he says. Just recently the company had a carpet care seminar where existing and prospective customers were invited. Egan tells how one prospective customer became an existing one: “A prospective customer left the seminar and returned to her office (that had new carpet). There was a spill earlier in the day and she called our rep about what to use. She was told what to try and we followed up the next day with the customer. The customer was impressed and now we have all of their business.”

Again, before distributors can pass knowledge on to end users, they must be trained themselves. Egan Supply has found that handing a technical manual to a new salesperson does not work well. “Instead, our salespeople work with vendor reps, work hands-on with the product and attend seminars,” says Egan. “If the factory provides a school, they attend.”

Staying current with what is new in the market is easy to do when distributors talk to others in the field. “We read industry literature and deal with reps for the latest product innovations,” he explains.

Industry trends are important to keep up with, along with carpet construction knowledge — one without the other isn’t very helpful to an end user. Therefore, Egan Supply tries to stay in contact with carpet vendors and carpet mill representatives. In the past, they had reps that worked with them more so than now. “I wish we had more interaction with mill [reps]. We would be better equipped to handle carpet cleaning problems,” he notes.

However, Egan Supply does the best job it can to provide end users with solutions to carpet care problems. For example, when an end user came to them with a large carpet care problem, Egan Supply was eager to help. “They cleaned their carpets once a year whether they needed it or not and the carpets looked bad,” says Egan. “The facility manager did not have any extra staff or money in the budget for extra equipment. We discussed this with a medium-sized contractor that had just purchased a carpet automatic from us. The contractor now cleans their carpet on a regular basis — spotting is done in-house, but all extraction is done four nights a week.”

Besides helping end users through carpet cleaning problems, Egan Supply likes to educate end users on many important aspects of carpet care. “We like to tell customers that carpets are a sewer. They need to be cleaned more frequently than they are,” he says. Many end users have the misconception that hard floors should be scrubbed every evening, but carpets don’t require that kind of maintenance. “Automatic carpet extractors have come a long way in helping to change this attitude,” he notes.