Questions We Want Answers to That Impact our Pricing

Pricing is never linear. So much goes into our pricing. There's no one size-fits-all. We can bid the exact same location months apart and come up with entirely different rates, despite our timing the the building's square feet remaining the same. We consider each question whenever we bid. This list has served us well over the years, and I hope it'll help you too. 

Below are questions we want answers to, and the answers influence our pricing:

Labor-

What is the average wage in our area considering the same shift and hours?

What is the CPI-W and where will wages be at 1 year from now?

Will the labor market favor the employee or employer 1 year from now?

Where will labor tax rates be at 1 year from now?

Will anything impact my guesstimated man hours like upcoming construction projects at this prospect’s location or any changes in the prospect’s staffing?

How’s their IAQ? Dusty?

Will there be any time during our 1 year contracts that they will close and not want to pay?

Is there anything in the SOW that can cause an uptick in time needed, like stripping and waxing?

Is the shift conducive to the wage in my pricing?

What state am I in that can impact wages or benefits offered?

What is the personality profile of our client’s staff that may interact with or interfere with keeping our employees happy?

Supplies-

What’s the SOW?

Are there any potential for staffing additions or reductions that influence our supplies?

Is there any part of our cleaning process as applied to there that can impact the lifespan of our equipment? 

What are the surfaces?

What’s the location’s layout?

Overhead-

Will this location need more or less supervision?

Where is it located at?

Is there parking available (we’re in DC)?

Will I have to budget in money for parking or public transit?

Are there any required certs?

Any extra training needed for staff?

Does the client require anything in their processes that take extra time or money?

Others-

How’s the personality of the potential client? Easy to deal with or a pain in the butt?

How far away is it from our hub?

Do they have other locations?

Are there upsell opportunities?

Are they demanding a proposal 5 minutes after I left the walkthrough?

Be sure to check out our other blog posts on pricing:

Calculating Cleaning Times (Needed for Pricing)
How Do You Price A Cleaning Bid?