I recently read a trade magazine article that opened with this to say about what I call recleans and the author described as callbacks or re-services: “[they] are a necessary evil in the cleaning industry, and one that all involved parties should strive to minimize; you can’t put an end to them, but you can do your best to limit them and the damage they can do.”

I’m sure the author is a fine young man, and in the balance of the article he acquits himself well in describing how to make this reclean “lemon” into “lemonade.” Still, I must take issue with that opening statement. Recleans aren’t a necessary evil; they are a necessary component of a well-run, successful business.

I know that goes against the conventional wisdom; so if you will allow me, I’ll explain myself.

There has never been nor will there ever be a carpet cleaning job done that couldn’t be improved upon. We’re not in a perfectible business, so the results of our efforts are always less than perfect. 

Consequently, our job is to ensure that our customers are fully satisfied with our work. In order to do this, we need to invite our customers to critique us and our work. Anything less invites a sense of false security. 

You see, it’s not about perfection, it’s about perception. If our customers perceive that we are willing to go to the nth degree to do the best possible job — no excuses — trust goes up and anxiety goes down.

When I do a job, I take responsibility for it being completed to the customer’s (and my) complete satisfaction. (My standard is nearly always higher than the customer’s.) I listen to the customer’s concerns and explain what I will do to address them. Sometimes there are options; for instance, the use of oxidizers on certain types of stains that don’t come out. I explain the pros and cons and allow the customer to decide whether they should be tried. 

I always follow up both by phone and in writing. Mostly I get praise, but that’s not what I’m looking for. If a spot came back due to wicking, I want to know and I want to correct it. Likewise when a traffic area that still looks dingy, a pet odor that lingers or filtration soiling lines that stubbornly remain. 

Do I always succeed? No. But I always offer to try. I’m not in the least bit grudging about doing a reclean and customers appreciate that. 

The alternative, a technique that is commonly taught and used in the industry, is to lower the bar of customer expectations using the “we don’t guarantee” technique. Usually the things “we don’t guarantee” are the very things customers are most concerned about, the reason they called us in the first place: Spots and odors and ugly traffic areas. 

Worse, many companies reinforce their “we don’t guarantees” with releases that the customer is asked to sign that absolves the company of responsibility.  

The result? Customer trust goes down and anxiety goes up. But odds are high the company won’t have to do a reclean because ... “we don’t guarantee.” 

Of course, the odds are also high that the customer will call another company the next time. With luck they will call a company like mine, one that doesn’t treat recleans as a necessary evil but as an opportunity to build trust and cement the customer relationship. 

John Downey is owner-operator of Downey’s Carpet Care of Granville in Granville, OH. When he’s not scrubbin’ rug, his wife, Cecilia, lets him help out his brother, Tiger, owner of Perceptionist, an appointment scheduling service for small service businesses (www.myperceptionist.com), or assist Dr. Michael Berry in his efforts to bring science-based environmental management practices to the cleaning industry. John can be reached at jdowney@johndowneyco.com.