People do seem to have a bias toward the bigger, more powerful-looking systems. They want to see lots of steam and hear lots of noise. What is the best way to educate them that the low-moisture method gets their carpets cleaner than any HWE system possibly could?
(Thanks for all your answers, by the way. I'm learning a lot in this forum. It's a great resource. Thanks to Mark for setting it up.)
Re: Overcoming The "If I Don't See Steam" Objection
The difference is sucking vs scrubbing. It is no way around it hwe SUCKS (haha) no just kiding, well no I am not, but when I talk to potential customers and they ask questions about this I tell them that I scrub the carpet fibers, Steam which a majority of the time is not even steam it is hot water ectraction just dumps water on your carpets and attempts to suck it all back up but end up leaving lots of water in the carpets, if they cant remove all that water do you really believe they removed a lot of dirt? Plus there is more of a posiility of carpets being desroyed with hwe then with our method, there is mold and mildew, more of a chance of fading (espeacialy if there system does use steam or close to steam) you do not wash dark close in hot water because they will fade) seems can tear with hwe because typically there a seam (not a tack line but a seam will be held togheather by a piece of tape and glue which if it gets wet it can be damaged? Then give the example of washing clothes old washing machines use to use lots of water new high efficient machines use lets water and more scrubbing.
Re: Overcoming The "If I Don't See Steam" Objection
I have had to learn to be patient as curious customers try to sort out what is good for their carpet vs. what may possibily damage their carpet. For this reason I have taken an educational approach to handeling this issue.
1. First off I assure people that Orbital Polishing has been successfully used in the finest residential and commercial settings for decades.
2. Next I explain that HWE cleaning has become the most visible method simply because many professional carpet cleaners often schedule too many cleaning jobs into each 8 hour day. Their strategy often includes getting into and out of the home in as little time as possible. Unfortunately faster is not necessarily better.
3.Thirdly I explain that my biggest desire is to do a thourough job so they are well pleased and will call me again and refer me to their friends.
As a result I don't advertise anymore because people tell people. Offer to clean a volunteer fire department's carpet and soon you will have dozens of volunteer firefighters wives calling you. Same goes for your local church or youth center etc.
Re: Overcoming The "If I Don't See Steam" Objection
One way to respond is to say that technology and practices change & improve over time. The best car built in 1960 is a distinctly inferior product to any vehicle manufactured today. You might mention that on carpet cleaning online forums and bulletin boards cleaners who have in the past ONLY used HWE are now adding high-agitation, low-moisture methods to their business, and in some cases leaving their truck mounts at home altogether. Only the most closed-minded of cleaners are refusing to even try new methods. Explain that as the level of agitation goes up, the need for water goes down. Scrubbing rapidly separate soil from carpet fibers, needing only to briefly dampen them in the process. HWE has virtually no agitation. When HWE users have to contend with heavy soiling conditions, they can do only one thing: inject more water, or water/detergent mix, then try (TRY!) to suck it back out. The worse the soiling, the more water is left in the base of the carpet. The more water left in the base of the carpet, the more soil will "wick" back into view one or more days later, when drying has finally ended.
A free, no-obligation demo should be enough for any fair-minded person to make up his/her own mind.
