Parking Lot Sweeping Business 

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So let's get to the good stuff! Everyone is incredibly eager to find out how much money they'll be
making. After all, isn't that what a business is about? Because you probably won't have insight into
parking lot sweeping pricing (unless you have utilized this service in a different business), you are
probably curious. Do you charge based on area or number of spots?

Actually, an hourly rate is the best way of pricing your service. This allows tremendous flexibility, and
also assures you that you are being paid fairly for your time. On top of this, it lets the client know he's
getting a standardized deal. Many hopefuls want to charge based on square footage, however the type
of lot you are cleaning will greatly vary. Hourly rates, however, cover the difficulty of that individual lot
by taking all factors into account.

A multitude of factors influence your estimated time to complete a given lot. Difficult shapes, as well as
surrounding terrain and usage will all play into the time it takes to clean this lot. The following list has

some other possible setbacks:

1. V-shapes on parking spots

2. Obviously, stores such as fast food places will have more litter than places like dry cleaners.

3. Take special note of landscape; trees will litter the parking lot with leafs and limbs.

4. How the parking lot is set up will also influence your bid. Think about any places that are hard
to get to, hard to maneuver through, or places that will take extra time.

5. Many sweeping businesses also clear flower beds of any trash. Consider this when figuring
out the time each lot will take to clean.

6. Many parking lots have bumper stops at in between the parking spot and the adjacent
sidewalk. This area tends to be especially dirty, so take this into account as well.

7. If you decide to clean lots behind stores (such as grocery stores or restaurants), be sure to
allow extra time. These areas, especially when dumpsters are nearby, are heavily littered in
comparison to a normal parking lot.

8. What is the next parking lot over like? If this is a particularly messy lot, be sure to take into
consideration the fact that litter will probably come over to the lot you clean. This is especially
true for places such as fast food restaurants.

9. Wind can give you a hard time. Take note on how the wind generally affects the debris and
litter in a parking lot.

10. Weather is one of the most important factors for you to consider. While rain will definitely
lengthen the time spent on a lot, winter weather such as snow or ice can literally quadruple
your time involved. Make sure you account for this in a monthly bill.

11. It's imperative that you make sure that you know the clients expectations and meet them.
This being said, make sure these expectations are somewhat reasonable.

As tip #11 states, one of the most crucial things you need to do is make sure you know exactly what
the client wants, as well as what you promised. This way, in any disagreement, you can simply go back
to the original hard contract and point out what both sides agreed to. One effective tool you can use
is tailoring your service to fit in a price range desired by the manager. If the manager feels that your
service is necessary but too expensive, cut some areas out and change the price accordingly. You must
make sure from the very beginning that you know the frequency with which the lot should be swept.
This varies greatly, and can be from a few times a year to nearly every day.

Every good salesman must realize from an early stage that a bid too low will literally result in you
working for no gain whatsoever. You must create a bid that will cover your costs and still give you an
appropriate amount of money for the time spent working. Everyone wants reliable service, and most

will be willing to pay extra for this. This is a fantastic area to make your profit in.

Although some lots are exceptions, most department stores, grocery stores, and other large stores
will have anywhere from 450 to 600 parking spots. This should take around an hour (give or take) to
complete, and at 38 dollars an hour, you should be making anywhere from $30-$40 each time you
sweep it. Sweeping these lots three times a week should create a monthly yield of around $320-$400.
If, however, you offer some of the bonus services listed above, you may want to add money to this bid.

Small restaurants will take considerably less time, as well as having to be done less often. Count on
these stores taking half an hour each, and being done about once a week. The monthly price for this
should be around 65 to 80 dollars. While determining these prices seems a daunting task, you will
soon become very accustomed to it and constant with your pricing. Take note: if you say you will do
something, you must do it!

Talk to the clients on a regular basis. Be personable, and make sure you have strong relationships with
all of your customers. Getting them to like you will avoid innumerable problems in the future.

On top of this, you must be available for calls at all times, regardless of whether these calls are good
or bad. If you can't pick up the phone at that time, remember that quickly returned phone calls are a
staple in good customer service.

The frequency of sweeping is an often unused approach in selling. This can be done right away, or after
any amount of time.

Most people don't seem to realize that sweeping more frequently often doesn't mean much more of
a time commitment. Say you sweep a certain client's lot twice a week. If you make on average $40
per sweep (or $80 per week), you will make about $350 a month (multiply weekly bill by 4.333 for the
monthly bill). However, you can probably sweep the same lot three times a week at half an hour per
sweep and spend only about 15 minutes more on it while getting money for an extra sweep weekly!

 

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