Latest / Cleaning Business Life / CBL EP 193 What CleanCon Is REALLY Like (From an Attendee Who Went All In)

Transcript

CBL EP 193 What CleanCon Is REALLY Like (From an Attendee Who Went All In) · Cleaning Business Life

• 0:58
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm going to be looking at you instead of looking over here, looking over there.
• 1:03
  SPEAKER_02: Totally.
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_02: Welcome back, everyone.
• 1:05
  SPEAKER_02: This is Shannon Miller with Cleaning Business Life.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_02: And today I am bringing you Miss Natalie, who was an actual attendee of CleanCon.
• 1:13
  SPEAKER_02: We're going to talk all things CleanCon, see whether it's worth it for you, whether it's not worth it for you, how she felt about it, what it was like.
• 1:21
  SPEAKER_02: Welcome, Miss Natalie.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you, Shannon, for having me.
• 1:25
  SPEAKER_01: I'm so excited.
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_02: Yes, yes.
• 1:27
  SPEAKER_02: Why don't you tell the audience a little bit about what you do, where you're located, that type of thing?
• 1:33
  SPEAKER_01: Sure.
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_01: I own two cleaning companies.
• 1:36
  SPEAKER_01: My original company was Majestic Domestics in Boulder, Colorado.
• 1:40
  SPEAKER_01: And I started that with these two hands off by my little lonesome.
• 1:46
  SPEAKER_01: After having a midlife crisis and leaving Los Angeles.
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_01: So that's my original good old fashioned uses bleach and Clorox wipes and soft scrub kind of company, because that's what I was taught to use.
• 2:01
  SPEAKER_01: And then, so we're in business 15 years this year.
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_01: So it's exciting.
• 2:06
  SPEAKER_01: Yes.
• 2:07
  SPEAKER_01: And my other company is called Clean Conscience Cleaning.
• 2:11
  SPEAKER_01: And that's my green cleaning company, which I took over, gosh, what year was that?
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_01: 2022.
• 2:17
  SPEAKER_01: It had been in business at 15 years at that time.
• 2:21
  SPEAKER_01: And the owner just was like over it after COVID.
• 2:26
  SPEAKER_01: He lost half his staff, half his clients, and was too tired to carry on.
• 2:31
  SPEAKER_01: So he asked me to take the torch and run with it.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_01: And that's what I did.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_01: So I have both.
• 2:37
  SPEAKER_01: I have both.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_02: Awesome, awesome.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_02: So that that's a lot of cleaning tax, I would imagine.
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_01: We you know how it goes.
• 2:44
  SPEAKER_01: It's the roller coaster.
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_03: I have this many.
• 2:48
  SPEAKER_03: I have this many.
• 2:50
  SPEAKER_03: Today I'm great.
• 2:52
  SPEAKER_03: Tomorrow, not so much.
• 2:55
  SPEAKER_02: That's so true.
• 2:57
  SPEAKER_02: And I think that's the epitome of the cleaning business in general.
• 3:00
  SPEAKER_02: It's like when it's high, it's high.
• 3:01
  SPEAKER_02: When it's low, it's low.
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_02: You're like, oh my God.
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 3:04
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 3:05
  SPEAKER_01: So we just this past July January had lost seven texts.
• 3:10
  SPEAKER_01: And seven texts that most of them were with me for over three years.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_01: So it was just life things, though.
• 3:19
  SPEAKER_01: And and one was pregnant, and her and her husband moved halfway across the state.
• 3:25
  SPEAKER_01: The other one, her sister, is pregnant with her third child not coming back.
• 3:30
  SPEAKER_01: People went to go work for hospitals.
• 3:33
  SPEAKER_01: People didn't like my percentage pay that I instilled.
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_01: So they they left.
• 3:38
  SPEAKER_01: And it's okay.
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_01: We we survived it.
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_03: Awesome.
• 3:43
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 3:43
  SPEAKER_02: I I love I love that.
• 3:46
  SPEAKER_02: People constantly, and and this is such a people industry.
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_02: We constantly are trying to finagle the flow of the river.
• 3:54
  SPEAKER_02: And I and it's it's always nice to research when people leave.
• 3:58
  SPEAKER_02: Obviously, we're getting off topic here, but yes, we'll talk about all things clean con because I don't want to go down that path.
• 4:04
  SPEAKER_02: Yes, yeah.
• 4:05
  SPEAKER_02: It could be a whole other hour, right?
• 4:07
  SPEAKER_02: Five more episodes talking about, you know, the behind the scenes of what that takes.
• 4:11
  SPEAKER_02: So before attending King Con, what did you think it was going to be like?
• 4:15
  SPEAKER_02: And how accurate was that?
• 4:17
  SPEAKER_02: Like when I first heard of it, I was like, wow, another one.
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_02: Finally, we have something that's for just cleaners, not just commercial or carpet like ISSA.
• 4:26
  SPEAKER_02: What was that like for you?
• 4:28
  SPEAKER_01: So I had never gone to anything like this.
• 4:32
  SPEAKER_01: I'm not part of ISSA.
• 4:34
  SPEAKER_01: I had a coach that I would go to some of her conferences.
• 4:39
  SPEAKER_01: And that's what I thought it was gonna kind of be like, you know, all about that person.
• 4:45
  SPEAKER_01: And what I really liked is that there was such a variety of different residential commercial cleaners and at different stages of their business, which I found refreshing.
• 4:59
  SPEAKER_03: And I love that.
• 5:02
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it it was really nice in that way.
• 5:07
  SPEAKER_01: It was a great mix of people.
• 5:09
  SPEAKER_01: And I thought the panels that they had were excellent, like I didn't expect that at all.
• 5:16
  SPEAKER_01: There were, you know, I think three three or four panels that concentrated on one uh uh item, like uh marketing or management or culture.
• 5:32
  SPEAKER_01: And so they would have these experts from within our industry up there asking questions, answering questions.
• 5:40
  SPEAKER_01: I I thought that the questions that they asked were very um deep and thorough, and I got a lot from that.
• 5:48
  SPEAKER_01: And and then they had a keynote speaker, which is I'm gonna wreck his last name, Mike McLowitz or whatever.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_01: Mikelowitz, I guess.
• 5:59
  SPEAKER_02: Please forgive me if you're ever listening to this podcast.
• 6:03
  SPEAKER_02: I hope she says it right because I'm like, I can't.
• 6:05
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, I've read all of his books, so I was like in the first table, like going, love you, man.
• 6:17
  SPEAKER_03: He was excellent.
• 6:19
  SPEAKER_02: He was excellent, awesome.
• 6:20
  SPEAKER_02: I love hearing that.
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_02: I have often wondered what he was like to speak in person because you his personality comes out in his books a lot.
• 6:29
  SPEAKER_02: You can tell what type of person he is by reading what you're reading.
• 6:32
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 6:32
  SPEAKER_02: Where I didn't know if that resonated and carried over when he was speaking as well.
• 6:36
  SPEAKER_01: 20 times more in person.
• 6:38
  SPEAKER_01: He's just amazing.
• 6:40
  SPEAKER_01: So yeah.
• 6:41
  SPEAKER_01: So that was like so such a great highlight and and such a nice cherry on top is to meet all these people, hear from experts and panels.
• 6:53
  SPEAKER_01: They also had vendors set up.
• 6:55
  SPEAKER_01: So those people, some of those people were on the panel were vendors as well that supported Clinkon.
• 7:02
  SPEAKER_01: Very interesting and very thorough group of vendors.
• 7:07
  SPEAKER_01: And I switched marketing companies while I was there.
• 7:11
  SPEAKER_01: Hi, yeah, and and just gathered so much information.
• 7:17
  SPEAKER_01: I I just really enjoyed it.
• 7:20
  SPEAKER_02: That's good, that's good to hear.
• 7:22
  SPEAKER_02: I've been to a couple more other conferences, and well, to be honest, I haven't traveled in the last couple of years.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_02: I've had one sick dog, then another sick dog, then I had a third sick dog.
• 7:33
  SPEAKER_02: So all three of them have passed.
• 7:34
  SPEAKER_02: I'm sorry.
• 7:35
  SPEAKER_02: And then my littles were too little, unless I wanted to drag them and a babysitter.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_02: So now next year's, I'm hoping to, you know, get back on to the circuit, so to speak, and and travel around a little bit more than I have in the past.
• 7:46
  SPEAKER_02: Because I have two children.
• 7:48
  SPEAKER_02: I have a 10-year-old and 11-year-old, and then I have well, I have four children.
• 7:52
  SPEAKER_02: I have a 30-year-old and a 29-year-old, and then I have a 10 and 11 year old.
• 7:55
  SPEAKER_02: So you God bless me in the middle of everything.
• 7:59
  SPEAKER_02: So I had to pivot and adjust things so that the business works for everybody involved.
• 8:06
  SPEAKER_02: So yeah, I'm hoping to be able to travel.
• 8:08
  SPEAKER_02: And CleanCon has been, I was like, I wonder if it's worth it.
• 8:11
  SPEAKER_02: I would love to talk to somebody about this because everyone kept reaching out to me.
• 8:15
  SPEAKER_02: I'm like, I don't know, I haven't found anyone yet.
• 8:17
  SPEAKER_02: So I'm so thankful that you're here.
• 8:20
  SPEAKER_02: What's one idea or strategy you learned when you that you've already started learning?
• 8:26
  SPEAKER_02: Was there one particular thing that stuck out?
• 8:28
  SPEAKER_02: Or I know you said you switched marketing companies.
• 8:32
  SPEAKER_02: Was that your strategy that you changed?
• 8:34
  SPEAKER_01: That was my major strategy.
• 8:37
  SPEAKER_01: I had been, I'll be honest, not very good or on top of my marketing.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_01: I'm kind of lazy girl that way.
• 8:46
  SPEAKER_01: And I would rather delegate it, which that is it's not beneficial.
• 8:51
  SPEAKER_01: You have to learn something to be able to manage it, right?
• 8:55
  SPEAKER_01: So I am stretching and I'm asking questions and I'm asking questions of people that actually use this marketing company and what they had to say, and did a more deeper dive with them of what I am lacking and what I need and the support that I need from them.
• 9:15
  SPEAKER_01: And so there was there was actually three that I was considering, but I went, excuse me, with one that I felt a good connection with, and I thought they were highly knowledgeable and hungry.
• 9:30
  SPEAKER_01: Is that a good word to use?
• 9:31
  SPEAKER_02: Hungry is a good word because I think that we and it's not intentional.
• 9:35
  SPEAKER_02: I think that we just get comfortable and then we're not as hungry.
• 9:40
  SPEAKER_02: To do, you know what I mean, to do the the dog and pony show every time, right?
• 9:43
  SPEAKER_02: It becomes like, hey, here's my dog and here's my pony.
• 9:49
  SPEAKER_01: So yeah, that's that's the major thing.
• 9:52
  SPEAKER_01: And so we're revamping my websites.
• 9:55
  SPEAKER_01: We are fixing things that were broken that I didn't even know were broken, and just breathing life into my marketing in this time.
• 10:05
  SPEAKER_01: And I know a lot of people are kind of withdrawing from putting funds towards marketing, but I am gonna go forward and and fix what needs to be fixed and try new things and see if they work for me.
• 10:18
  SPEAKER_01: And and part of that is doing things like this.
• 10:22
  SPEAKER_01: Like I am a very quiet observer.
• 10:25
  SPEAKER_01: I'm naturally shy.
• 10:27
  SPEAKER_01: I'm always stalking in the background, but I don't come out and introduce myself.
• 10:33
  SPEAKER_01: I do have a few pockets in the industry that know me but and know of me, but I am I'm committing to stretching myself, to doing more digital stuff, to learning digital and how it will benefit our company companies.
• 10:49
  SPEAKER_01: I think that's awesome.
• 10:50
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you.
• 10:51
  SPEAKER_02: Was there an AI company there as well?
• 10:53
  SPEAKER_02: I'm curious.
• 10:54
  SPEAKER_01: There was a um like a phone AI company that would help with your phone calls, which I'll reach out to them when I'm done with this next step and see what what could be utilized on that level.
• 11:09
  SPEAKER_01: And actually there was another company, Libby.
• 11:12
  SPEAKER_01: Do you know Libby?
• 11:14
  SPEAKER_02: I do know Libby.
• 11:15
  SPEAKER_01: Lucent.
• 11:16
  SPEAKER_01: I think I'm saying her name.
• 11:17
  SPEAKER_02: Lila and all that stuff.
• 11:19
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so she's doing Lila, which is a lot of AI and one level deep, and she has a great program that one of my colleagues is participating in and really enjoys her information.
• 11:32
  SPEAKER_01: There was just so much there.
• 11:35
  SPEAKER_01: You just need to take these little bites to get through what you need to fix, and and then you know where to go.
• 11:42
  SPEAKER_01: At least you were introduced to them.
• 11:44
  SPEAKER_01: And when you're going to need help or look for the next level, you could go to these people that you met.
• 11:50
  SPEAKER_01: And it was fascinating.
• 11:52
  SPEAKER_01: I thought Molly and Moran and Holly and Drew just put on a top notch next level conference.
• 12:06
  SPEAKER_01: It blew my mind actually how detailed it was, how uh generous it was with introductions and the first night and getting to know other cleaners and cleaning companies.
• 12:19
  SPEAKER_01: They had like a fun game, a participation game.
• 12:22
  SPEAKER_01: And it was just it broke the ice in the very first night, and just all these little touches, they thought of everything and just had a blast.
• 12:33
  SPEAKER_02: I love hearing that they put so much thought into creating an event that was so connected.
• 12:39
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 12:39
  SPEAKER_02: Oftentimes in our society, especially now, especially with AI, we're not connected.
• 12:44
  SPEAKER_02: We don't have that human touch.
• 12:45
  SPEAKER_02: And we're seeing the whole evolution of the house cleaning industry change.
• 12:50
  SPEAKER_02: Where we used to be a lot of old school stuff where like it's embarrassing when I admit how much paper we used to go through.
• 12:55
  SPEAKER_02: Here's your sheet for the day, here's your sheet for the day, here's your sheet for the day.
• 12:59
  SPEAKER_02: And I'm like, oh my god, we tons, tons of paper we'd have to have shredded.
• 13:03
  SPEAKER_02: And how now that's more digital, but it doesn't give you the connection that you need for our industry.
• 13:10
  SPEAKER_02: And our industry is growing tenfold every year.
• 13:12
  SPEAKER_02: I'm like, wow, did that just happen?
• 13:16
  SPEAKER_01: I know.
• 13:16
  SPEAKER_01: Well, I I heard a statistic, I think it was 2024, that the registered amount of cleaning companies went up 2,000% in a year.
• 13:30
  SPEAKER_01: One year.
• 13:30
  SPEAKER_01: That was crazy.
• 13:34
  SPEAKER_02: Like it suddenly feels a little crazy.
• 13:37
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I feel like the old fish in the back.
• 13:39
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, these little young guppies are swimming forward.
• 13:42
  SPEAKER_01: I gotta, I gotta catch up.
• 13:45
  SPEAKER_02: I think it's I think it's awesome.
• 13:47
  SPEAKER_02: I this is probably the greatest industry to be in.
• 13:49
  SPEAKER_02: Um and I uh I always say this, and it's as me on my soapbox, this is the 23rd trade.
• 13:55
  SPEAKER_02: This is the first opportunity, and I know there's guys in here too, but that women have dominated a field and actually have an opportunity to build wealth, legacy, and something that they can sell or gift to family later on.
• 14:07
  SPEAKER_02: Um, and it makes me excited to be here, like in this spot right now.
• 14:10
  SPEAKER_02: So I think it's awesome.
• 14:14
  SPEAKER_02: Did anything change about how you think about your pricing of your services while you were there?
• 14:18
  SPEAKER_02: Did that come into play or it was like non-existent?
• 14:21
  SPEAKER_01: Um I that's a good question.
• 14:26
  SPEAKER_01: I did not, I I I personally think our pricing is spot on, and uh that's come with a lot of pain and tears, but it always does.
• 15:03
  SPEAKER_03: Yes, yes, indeed.
• 15:05
  SPEAKER_01: But I I I know other cleaning companies were considering that talking about that.
• 15:13
  SPEAKER_01: You know, Mike talked about Prophets First.
• 15:18
  SPEAKER_01: That was his talk and around his book.
• 15:21
  SPEAKER_01: And uh so I had been incorporating that since 2019 after I read it then, and it had benefited me through COVID and to this day.
• 15:32
  SPEAKER_02: Uh so I had lessons in there, good lessons.
• 15:35
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, yeah, and easy, easy to install into your life in your per in business and personal.
• 15:43
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 15:43
  SPEAKER_01: And I I just love the concept and I was so thankful that he taught that to us and refreshed me and gave us some paperwork about percentages where your cleaning company is and where your percentages for profit first.
• 16:03
  SPEAKER_03: You froze.
• 16:05
  SPEAKER_01: So yeah, that was so for me, you know, profit first.
• 16:10
  SPEAKER_01: If you're if you don't have profit, then you have a pricing problem.
• 16:14
  SPEAKER_01: And so we're profitable.
• 16:17
  SPEAKER_01: We're quite profitable and fat and happy.
• 16:20
  SPEAKER_01: So yeah.
• 16:23
  SPEAKER_01: I don't have to change my pricing.
• 16:25
  SPEAKER_01: Or else I'll have no clients if I change my pricing.
• 16:30
  SPEAKER_02: It's feast or famine, and it it really is finding the middle ground and what the national averages are.
• 16:35
  SPEAKER_02: And people ask a lot, like, what do you what do you think the national averages are and how do you come up with that?
• 16:38
  SPEAKER_02: I'm like, because I talk to hundreds of people every single week.
• 16:41
  SPEAKER_02: I'm like, so what are you charging?
• 16:42
  SPEAKER_02: What are you charging?
• 16:43
  SPEAKER_02: Yes.
• 16:43
  SPEAKER_02: And then I can kind of gauge where where everybody's at, right?
• 16:46
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 16:48
  SPEAKER_02: So you feel overall that the event was worth the investment, time, money, travel, all that stuff.
• 16:54
  SPEAKER_01: Completely, completely.
• 16:55
  SPEAKER_01: And I was able to, it's just like a reunion because of the last conference that I've been to.
• 17:05
  SPEAKER_01: I had met so many wonderful people, but hadn't seen them in years.
• 17:10
  SPEAKER_01: And so it was, it was just like a homecoming to see some of these people that you haven't seen for years and you just love and miss, and you reconnect and you chat away.
• 17:20
  SPEAKER_01: And yeah, that that was that is so necessary, like you said earlier, to have this tribe that has walked in your moccasins, you know, that really truly get you.
• 17:32
  SPEAKER_01: And so that that was wonderful.
• 17:35
  SPEAKER_01: And yeah, it was it was worth the money.
• 17:38
  SPEAKER_01: The hotel was lovely.
• 17:39
  SPEAKER_01: Everything uh about the whole conference I've really enjoyed.
• 17:43
  SPEAKER_01: And unfortunately, there's the next one is in September.
• 17:47
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, is that's it gonna be good?
• 17:50
  SPEAKER_01: Austin, Texas.
• 17:52
  SPEAKER_01: I can't participate because I'm taking my husband on a cruise for our anniversary.
• 17:57
  SPEAKER_01: It's the same day.
• 17:58
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 17:59
  SPEAKER_01: Well, happy anniversary.
• 18:02
  SPEAKER_01: But yeah, so I won't be able to go to the Austin one, but I do have clo colleagues that are that are gonna go because they went to the first one, they enjoyed it and got a lot out of it.
• 18:13
  SPEAKER_01: So they're going back.
• 18:15
  SPEAKER_02: Awesome.
• 18:16
  SPEAKER_02: So the part of the event that delivered the most value, you think was Mike, or what do you think it was something else that like kind of jingled around in there that was more more valuable?
• 18:26
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, obviously the keynote speaker is always the highlight of everything.
• 18:29
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, yes.
• 18:31
  SPEAKER_01: I thought he was great and it was a great message for the crowd.
• 18:35
  SPEAKER_01: Because I heard it already and kind of incorporated that, it wasn't new information for me.
• 18:42
  SPEAKER_01: But what new information was was again the marketing panel that had different levels of expertise and what worked for them, maybe didn't work for a different marketing company, and they talked about it.
• 18:56
  SPEAKER_01: And they were open with it.
• 18:58
  SPEAKER_01: They were they were okay.
• 19:00
  SPEAKER_01: They were like kind of jabbing each other, but it was in a friendly, friendly, competitive way.
• 19:06
  SPEAKER_01: And I really, really appreciated that transparency up there.
• 19:12
  SPEAKER_01: I didn't feel like I was being sold to.
• 19:15
  SPEAKER_01: I felt like I was really having information delivered to me to process.
• 19:21
  SPEAKER_01: And I really appreciate that because um the last coach that I used, it was just constant sales over the head and fluff, and I just couldn't take that anymore.
• 19:35
  SPEAKER_02: It just couldn't turn out that happens a lot.
• 19:38
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, and it's not fun to be pitched to all of the time.
• 19:41
  unknown: All the time.
• 19:43
  SPEAKER_01: At least I feel that you shouldn't be pitched to all the time.
• 19:46
  SPEAKER_01: Right, right.
• 19:47
  SPEAKER_01: It's like I'm from the Southside of Chicago.
• 19:49
  SPEAKER_01: I have no time for fluff, okay?
• 19:51
  SPEAKER_03: Right while we move on.
• 19:55
  SPEAKER_02: So true, so true.
• 19:57
  SPEAKER_02: So nothing was overhyped or underdelivered in the whole aspect of the show.
• 20:02
  SPEAKER_02: It was like three days, right?
• 20:04
  SPEAKER_01: I'm sorry?
• 20:04
  SPEAKER_02: It was three days?
• 20:06
  SPEAKER_01: Three days, yes, yes.
• 20:08
  SPEAKER_01: I I went in with no expectations and was blown away about how every detail was so thorough and so fun and so engaging.
• 20:20
  SPEAKER_01: I just told Molly and Holly and Drew that it was, you know, five-star Ritz-Carleton kind of conference.
• 20:30
  SPEAKER_01: It is worth every penny.
• 20:32
  SPEAKER_01: And I would support that if I wasn't going on a cruise the next time or their next one, I'll be at the next one after that.
• 20:39
  SPEAKER_02: I value all three of them with the different segments of the market that they help manifest and create and kind of push forward.
• 20:49
  SPEAKER_02: Yes.
• 20:51
  SPEAKER_02: So do you feel if someone was brand new in the industry that this would shift the confidence level for someone who is like trying to figure it all out?
• 20:59
  SPEAKER_02: Do you think that it would be a benefit for them if they were to go?
• 21:03
  SPEAKER_01: I think it would be a benefit for them if they keep their mind open and not get overwhelmed.
• 21:09
  SPEAKER_01: Like it might be I was there, right?
• 21:13
  SPEAKER_01: I was the person in the back of a class trying to catch up and and and you internally, or I did at the time when I was new, felt like I'm an idiot, I'm behind, I don't know what I'm doing.
• 21:28
  SPEAKER_01: If you don't do that self-talk, and if you go in with an open mind and saying, I'm gonna absorb as much as I can, and I'm gonna get a plan in place with these people that have walked in my moccasins and not be so hard on yourself, I think it will be a really good conference for somebody who's new.
• 21:48
  SPEAKER_03: Awesome.
• 21:52
  SPEAKER_02: Did you walk away thinking bigger, smaller, or just more clearly?
• 21:56
  SPEAKER_01: Bigger, much bigger, yeah.
• 21:58
  SPEAKER_02: That's exciting.
• 21:59
  SPEAKER_02: I love thinking bigger.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, I I came back with, and like I said, it's been a couple years since I've been part of any conference.
• 22:05
  SPEAKER_01: I came back with a real like excited, we're gonna do this, let's do this, how about this?
• 22:11
  SPEAKER_01: My team and I.
• 22:13
  SPEAKER_01: And of course, I'm naturally like that, but this time they knew I meant it.
• 22:20
  SPEAKER_01: We really were working on a lot of things that I just kind of let go or and so it feels like a little bit of a spring cleaning in the office and and how we're running our business.
• 22:32
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, it's I think it's fantastic.
• 22:35
  SPEAKER_02: I also think back to like COVID and how difficult it was to actually run the legitimate, even though we were considered essential air quotes.
• 22:42
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 22:43
  SPEAKER_02: There was a lot of like some states would allow you to go work and other states still wouldn't.
• 22:48
  SPEAKER_02: Then you're trying to scramble around, figure out, you know, how that's gonna work out for everybody.
• 22:53
  SPEAKER_02: So I think having new cool ideas and being able to implement them in easy bite chite bite-sized chunks articulation.
• 23:01
  SPEAKER_02: Yes.
• 23:01
  SPEAKER_02: I've not had enough coffee.
• 23:05
  SPEAKER_02: So is beneficial for everyone.
• 23:07
  SPEAKER_02: And it's always exciting to go to the shows because uh oftentimes I have found that the actual show itself, it's in the hallways where you're making the connections with others that those are the that's the gold nuggets of what going to a conference is in our industry.
• 23:22
  SPEAKER_02: Yes.
• 23:22
  SPEAKER_02: But I also Like the fact that it's almost a boutique like conference.
• 23:27
  SPEAKER_02: It sounds like it's totally bourgeois.
• 23:30
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it was lovely.
• 23:32
  SPEAKER_01: It was so lovely.
• 23:33
  SPEAKER_01: And again, didn't have any expectations.
• 23:37
  SPEAKER_01: I just wanted to I know Molly for many years.
• 23:41
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, you know, when even in our personal life, we we've visited each other, and so and that and I just thought anything that she was participating in, I wanted to support.
• 23:53
  SPEAKER_01: So but I never knew Holly, and it was great to meet her and how fabulous she is, and Drew as well.
• 23:59
  SPEAKER_02: And so, yeah, that's both down to earth and both very approachable, is what I liked about them.
• 24:04
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, yes.
• 24:06
  SPEAKER_01: So uh yeah, I I I think it's a a great conference, and I'm so happy that they came up with the concept and pulled it off in a short amount of time.
• 24:18
  unknown: Right.
• 24:20
  SPEAKER_03: It was like six months, I was like, wow.
• 24:24
  SPEAKER_01: So it was good.
• 24:26
  SPEAKER_01: It was good.
• 24:27
  SPEAKER_01: I'm glad, I'm glad it was successful.
• 24:29
  SPEAKER_01: I know that they were probably just so exhausted at the end, but hopefully their adrenaline carried them to be able to travel back home.
• 24:39
  SPEAKER_01: Definitely.
• 24:41
  SPEAKER_02: Were there any connections that could actually impact your business that you made from the actual conference from when you attended?
• 24:49
  SPEAKER_02: New old connections.
• 24:52
  SPEAKER_01: So there so there were some vendors that I did not get to talk to that I think would be my next step.
• 25:03
  SPEAKER_01: Like personal coaching and things like that.
• 25:05
  SPEAKER_01: I don't have an accountability coach right now.
• 25:08
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 25:09
  SPEAKER_01: And so it would be something I used to have a different accountability coach that didn't do conferences.
• 25:16
  SPEAKER_01: And I love that, but I I got overwhelmed with that.
• 25:20
  SPEAKER_01: So it was nice to know that again, that there's a contact out there, and when I'm ready, I could touch base with them and and incorporate that into my next steps of my plan.
• 25:34
  SPEAKER_02: I love it.
• 25:35
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 25:36
  SPEAKER_02: Accountability coach, it's been a while for me too.
• 25:38
  SPEAKER_02: That's interesting for sure.
• 25:40
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 25:41
  SPEAKER_02: And I'm thinking that the vibe of the whole conference was just collaborative.
• 25:46
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, everyone was there to help everyone else, whether you were in, you know, at the beginning stage, middle stage.
• 25:51
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, we even know when you hit the middle stage, it changes 15 times and then you scale to the larger, larger stage, and then that changes 15, 20 reiterations.
• 26:01
  SPEAKER_02: So I would imagine it would just all be collaborative on, you know, we're here to help you.
• 26:06
  SPEAKER_02: The bottom of the pyramid, right?
• 26:07
  SPEAKER_01: We're here to serve you.
• 26:09
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, yes.
• 26:11
  SPEAKER_01: It was really great.
• 26:12
  SPEAKER_01: And they had at the very end, what I thought was brilliant is that they grouped, let's see, how do how do I say this?
• 26:20
  SPEAKER_01: What your sales are for your company size.
• 26:23
  SPEAKER_01: So they had like 1 million to 1.5 at a few tables.
• 26:28
  SPEAKER_01: And we got to mastermind with our peers at the same level.
• 26:32
  SPEAKER_02: Oh, wow.
• 26:33
  SPEAKER_02: That I love that.
• 26:34
  SPEAKER_01: It was so smart because again, if you're a newbie, you don't want to be put in a a table with$1.5 million cleaning companies.
• 26:44
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, yes.
• 26:45
  SPEAKER_01: You don't want to pass.
• 26:47
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, you're right.
• 26:48
  SPEAKER_01: And you don't want to ask questions because you're like, oh God.
• 26:51
  SPEAKER_01: But but by grouping people where they are in their business, I thought was brilliant.
• 26:58
  SPEAKER_01: And like that.
• 26:59
  SPEAKER_01: I loved my mastermind.
• 27:02
  SPEAKER_01: They offered me, and again, in the areas of my weakness, which was marketing, they gave me some fabulous ideas to incorporate in what I had wanted to know how they did it, what they did.
• 27:16
  SPEAKER_01: They gave me a bunch of tips and likewise for other people in my in my circle that had issues and how I dealt.
• 27:25
  SPEAKER_01: And it had to be not a theory that you actually incorporated.
• 27:31
  SPEAKER_01: I love that.
• 27:32
  SPEAKER_01: Love it.
• 27:33
  SPEAKER_01: I love that too.
• 27:34
  SPEAKER_02: I think that's brilliant on so many levels.
• 27:37
  SPEAKER_02: And it kind of it makes you feel like you belonged in the room, right?
• 27:40
  SPEAKER_02: Yes.
• 27:41
  SPEAKER_02: Yes.
• 27:42
  SPEAKER_01: It was excellent.
• 27:43
  SPEAKER_01: So smart.
• 27:45
  SPEAKER_02: And then from an outsider perspective, what do you think the cleaning industry is doing well right now?
• 27:52
  SPEAKER_01: I think what people like Mike is encouraging is that you are worth your hourly rate or whatever you charge.
• 28:05
  SPEAKER_01: You are worth it.
• 28:06
  SPEAKER_01: Like you shouldn't be working and not getting paid, which is the premise of his book.
• 28:14
  SPEAKER_01: You should go into business because of all of the ideas that you thought you were going into business for, like to have freedom, to have choices, to create a culture that that you want to work in, that you would like to work in.
• 28:30
  SPEAKER_01: And it's so hard that people don't get burnt out because they're not paying themselves.
• 28:36
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 28:37
  SPEAKER_02: That's the biggest thing I hear all of the time.
• 28:39
  SPEAKER_01: Yes.
• 28:39
  SPEAKER_02: And so major discussion about owners draw, non-owners draw, getting an actual paycheck.
• 28:44
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 28:45
  SPEAKER_02: So I get asked all the time.
• 28:47
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 28:48
  SPEAKER_01: And so that is, I think, so important message is that let's all raise this to where it should be and not undercut because you just want to get clients.
• 29:04
  SPEAKER_01: You're you're killing yourself doing that.
• 29:07
  SPEAKER_02: Training bad behavior with clients too.
• 29:09
  SPEAKER_02: I'm we're seeing this with the free cleaning phenomenon.
• 29:12
  SPEAKER_02: I'm sure you've seen it all over the internet where we're we're actually training clients to be like parrots, yeah, to act awful in some cases, and have these really high expectations for something that someone is being very generous with.
• 29:26
  SPEAKER_02: So it's it's an interesting, touchy, sticky, messy thing.
• 29:30
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 29:31
  SPEAKER_02: And I'm hoping that it it changes, that we all charge what the industry needs to keep us going.
• 29:39
  SPEAKER_02: Because to have a legitimate business has way different costs than not having a legitimate business for sure.
• 29:44
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 29:45
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 29:46
  SPEAKER_01: It's exactly true.
• 29:47
  SPEAKER_01: And and uh so I I agree with having the self-esteem that you deserve to be paid for this very hard work.
• 30:00
  SPEAKER_01: It's very hard.
• 30:01
  SPEAKER_01: It's very hard.
• 30:02
  SPEAKER_01: It's never easy, it's not, it ain't pretty, you know.
• 30:06
  SPEAKER_01: And so it it's just, but I want people to have that confidence that no, if you could get it somewhere else, go on.
• 30:17
  SPEAKER_01: And that's another mic book, which I I can't remember which one it is, but it was like either, but I know what you're which one you're talking about.
• 30:25
  SPEAKER_02: It's not the pumpkin one, it's the other one.
• 30:27
  SPEAKER_01: It's is it clockwork?
• 30:30
  SPEAKER_01: I'm not sure if it's clockwork.
• 30:32
  SPEAKER_01: But it's it'll come to me later.
• 30:34
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, right.
• 30:35
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, pumpkin.
• 30:36
  SPEAKER_01: It's about the pumpkin.
• 30:36
  SPEAKER_02: Is it the pumpkin one?
• 30:38
  SPEAKER_01: Yes.
• 30:38
  SPEAKER_01: Because I would say to my office, not our pumpkin, not our pumpkin.
• 30:43
  SPEAKER_01: And so that's what I want.
• 30:45
  SPEAKER_01: I want I want people to say, no, not our type of client, and really know who your client is, and really know what you have to offer them and feel confident about saying no to them.
• 31:00
  SPEAKER_01: It's the only industry that everybody feels they can bargain with.
• 31:05
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 31:05
  SPEAKER_02: You see tender tradesmen doing it.
• 31:07
  SPEAKER_02: No, you don't go to your plumber and go, I want you to fix this big mess.
• 31:10
  SPEAKER_02: Can you give me a discount on the$600 price?
• 31:14
  SPEAKER_02: Dude, I'm here at nine o'clock at night.
• 31:15
  SPEAKER_02: I can get, you know, time away from my family.
• 31:17
  SPEAKER_02: My husband's plumber.
• 31:19
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, you know, you know.
• 31:21
  SPEAKER_02: I hear it all the time.
• 31:22
  SPEAKER_01: Or it's Christmas morning and you know, something broke, and I have all these people coming.
• 31:29
  SPEAKER_01: Can you come today?
• 31:30
  SPEAKER_01: Right now.
• 31:32
  SPEAKER_01: But I only want to pay you minimum wage.
• 31:35
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 31:37
  SPEAKER_02: Are you okay with uh minimum wage like 1999 too?
• 31:41
  SPEAKER_01: It wasn't like Yeah, yeah, and that's it's like you you kind of want to itch.
• 31:49
  SPEAKER_03: That's a double itch for those of you who don't know for sure.
• 31:53
  SPEAKER_02: My gosh.
• 31:54
  SPEAKER_02: So where do you from what you've you've been in the industry a long time, where do you see if the industry, if the industry is falling short, or if it's stuck in a certain besides pricing, obviously that's a big pain point.
• 32:08
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 32:09
  SPEAKER_02: Where do you think that if if you think that the industry is stuck, or where do you think the industry is stuck or falling short?
• 32:17
  SPEAKER_01: I was just telling my husband this morning is that there's so much to learn.
• 32:24
  SPEAKER_01: Oh my gosh, yes.
• 32:25
  SPEAKER_01: There is so much to learn.
• 32:27
  SPEAKER_01: And if you're a person that thinks they know it all, you don't know it all.
• 32:33
  SPEAKER_01: And it's about being flexible.
• 32:36
  SPEAKER_01: And again, I'm in my late 50s.
• 32:40
  SPEAKER_01: I'm stretching.
• 32:42
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, I'm not a social media person, and I'm becoming a social media person.
• 32:47
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, I it's not my comfort zone, but I have to do it to reinforce my brand.
• 32:55
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 32:55
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 32:56
  SPEAKER_01: And I can't do it all on one-on-one like I used to when I was new.
• 33:00
  SPEAKER_03: Right.
• 33:00
  SPEAKER_01: I have to expand.
• 33:01
  SPEAKER_01: And how do you expand?
• 33:03
  SPEAKER_01: Well, social media, whether you like it or not, is is what is where I'm going to be able to reach more people in a short amount of time and be more efficient with my valuable time.
• 33:15
  SPEAKER_01: So it's just all about, I mean, another biz good business book is Who Moved My Cheese, right?
• 33:22
  SPEAKER_03: Like the cheese.
• 33:28
  SPEAKER_01: The cheese is always moving, Dag Nabbit.
• 33:32
  SPEAKER_03: Right.
• 33:33
  SPEAKER_01: So you have to, you have to be flexible.
• 33:36
  SPEAKER_01: You have to learn and ask questions and not be afraid and be confident in the decisions that you make after learning.
• 33:48
  SPEAKER_01: And then activate all the things you've learned.
• 33:53
  SPEAKER_01: And that's that's where I think people need to to go to the next level and and not to think of them as self-siv as just a cleaning company.
• 34:04
  SPEAKER_01: Oh no, we're a kingdom, man.
• 34:07
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 34:08
  SPEAKER_01: It's just a grocery.
• 34:09
  SPEAKER_02: That's the problem.
• 34:10
  SPEAKER_02: I don't understand why you want to charge me that.
• 34:12
  unknown: Yeah.
• 34:13
  unknown: Yeah.
• 34:14
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 34:15
  SPEAKER_01: If they could do it so much easier, why don't and save so much money, why don't they just do it themselves?
• 34:21
  SPEAKER_01: They don't want to.
• 34:22
  SPEAKER_01: They need you.
• 34:24
  SPEAKER_01: They need you more than you need them.
• 34:27
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 34:28
  SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
• 34:29
  SPEAKER_02: Those are all of the questions.
• 34:30
  SPEAKER_02: So I feel based on the information you have given me, I think it would definitely be worth well worth for all of the listeners out there to try CleanCon, which is coming up in September.
• 34:39
  SPEAKER_02: Definitely feel that it's worth the investment.
• 34:41
  SPEAKER_02: I love the the aspect of the masterminds without having to pay extra for the masterminds to get in the room with others who are your peers without having to pay, you know,$500 or$800 for the facilitation of the meeting.
• 34:56
  SPEAKER_02: So I I think it's definitely worth the investment.
• 34:58
  SPEAKER_02: Do you happen to have, I always ask at the end, do you have any questions for me?
• 35:05
  SPEAKER_01: Well, why didn't you go?
• 35:07
  SPEAKER_01: You said was it because you couldn't?
• 35:09
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 35:09
  SPEAKER_02: You're trying to my little dog who passed away on April 4th, he had a sudden passing.
• 35:15
  SPEAKER_02: I woke up and he was belly breathing really hard and his gums were black, which meant that he was in cardiac arrest.
• 35:21
  SPEAKER_02: So I had to zip him over to the vet.
• 35:23
  SPEAKER_02: And he required medicine and my husband couldn't do it.
• 35:26
  SPEAKER_02: And then for him to go to the vet was really stressful, so he could be boarded and cared.
• 35:30
  SPEAKER_02: And I was just like, I just can't travel.
• 35:33
  SPEAKER_02: So next year, it's it's nothing, it's traveling this year, but next year I do plan to travel, and I it is something I am considering.
• 35:40
  SPEAKER_02: That's why it's good.
• 35:41
  SPEAKER_01: Put it in your budget, put it in, you know, little dollars into your little budget.
• 35:47
  SPEAKER_01: And yeah, I know a lot of people were hesitant about going because it was the first one.
• 35:53
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 35:54
  SPEAKER_01: And that's why I had no expectation.
• 35:56
  SPEAKER_01: I was just like, let's see what the first one's like.
• 35:58
  SPEAKER_01: Then we can iron out the bugs for the second one, you know.
• 36:02
  SPEAKER_01: And I was really pleasantly surprised.
• 36:05
  SPEAKER_01: I love it that they did such a great job on the first time.
• 36:10
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 36:11
  SPEAKER_01: Without any major glitches.
• 36:12
  SPEAKER_01: Yay! Yeah, not that I know of.
• 36:14
  SPEAKER_01: I'm sure, I'm sure they could tell you some horror stories, but I bet.
• 36:18
  SPEAKER_01: Very seamless.
• 36:20
  SPEAKER_02: Gosh, that's just super exciting.
• 36:22
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, definitely for the agenda for next year.
• 36:24
  SPEAKER_02: And I just want to thank you for coming on and taking the time.
• 36:26
  SPEAKER_02: I really do appreciate it.
• 36:28
  SPEAKER_02: Everyone appreciates it.
• 36:29
  SPEAKER_02: And I look forward to talking to you again.
• 36:31
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you.
• 36:32
  SPEAKER_02: And it was great to meet you, Shannon.
• 36:34
  SPEAKER_02: And everybody else.
• 36:36
  SPEAKER_02: Take care.
• 36:36
  SPEAKER_02: Bye bye.
• 36:37
  SPEAKER_03: Take care.
• 36:37
  SPEAKER_03: Bye.