Happy New Year

May you and your family have a blessed, happy and prosperous new year.

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The Cleaner's Creed...I will:

Respect my profession, my reputation and myself
Be honest and fair with my customers and my employees
Act as a custodian of the cleaning industry's good name
Be a person whose word carries weight with my fellow cleaners
Be a booster, not a knocker; a pusher, not a kicker; a motor, not a clog
Base my expectations of reward on a solid foundation of service rendered
Be willing to pay the price in honest effort
Look upon my work as opportunity, not as drudgery to be reluctantly endured
Remember that success lies in my abilities, ambition, courage and determination
Expect difficulties and force my way through them
Convert hard experience into capital for future struggles
Believe in my profession heart and soul
Carry an air of optimism into the presence of possible customers
Make every hour bring dividends in fees, knowledge, or healthful recreation
Learn to save money as well as earn it
Cut out expensive amusements until I can afford them
Get a grip on the joys of life; play the game with honor; fight against my own weaknesses; and endeavor to grow as an individual every single day.

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Merry Christmas

May you and your family have a very joyous and blessed Christmas.

©Bane-Clene® Corporation 2008 Reprinting or electronically publishing this article is strictly prohibited without permission from Bane-Clene Corp.

Everyone gains by a positive attitude!

Positive and negative attitudes seem to perpetuate themselves, and are infectious. Everyone we come in contact with is affected by our attitude and vice versa. A positive attitude projects confidence; a negative attitude projects failure.

Attitude is something we can control. To project a positive attitude, we should have a smile on our face when we greet someone or talk to a prospect or customer on the telephone. Not only will we feel better, but those we work with and our customers will be more relaxed and confident.

If we’re in a bad mood, we need to take a break and get our emotions under control. Personal problems should never be discussed with a customer. Even fellow employees will shy away from someone who complains all the time.

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Phone management

Make phone calls in bunches. This applies to both returning calls and making planned calls. Make rough notes about points you want to make in each call and try not to waste time in idle conversation beyond being polite.

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Thieves at work

Trucks parked outdoors are an open invitation to thieves. Tires, batteries and equipment may be stolen, and sometimes even the truck itself may disappear. An alarm system is a good investment on a service vehicle loaded with equipment.

Never leave a truck with the engine running while on the job. Besides being an invitation to thieves, it is also against the law in many municipalities.

©Bane-Clene® Corporation 2008 Reprinting or electronically publishing this article is strictly prohibited without permission from Bane-Clene Corp.

Take time to think

If you are the owner of a "one-truck" carpet cleaning company, you are hard pressed to find the time to think constructively. Besides doing all of the work, you are the manager, accountant, sales rep, advertising agent, technician and public relations department along with the many other chores that are part of owning a service business.

When you come in from a full day's schedule of cleaning, you probably don't have the time or feel like making courtesy calls on customers, sales calls on prospects, writing letters that are important in business or thinking ahead to the next seasonal promotion you need to be planning right now. Usually it's this planning that is completely lost in the day to day activities of a busy owner/operator.

To help with this problem, schedule time to do nothing but "think." By spending some time in thinking ahead, you'll be able to plan work loads, have more steady work lined up, raise your profit level and in general, you won't be running in circles as much as you once did.

Take a few days to attend classes at Bane Clene Institute. It will help you manage your business better. You will return refreshed and ready to tackle the problems that lay ahead.

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Phone quotes

A web site offering consumer advice for selecting a carpet cleaner doesn't do a favor for anyone in the cleaning business. They make arranging for service sound like a major ordeal by suggesting multiple interviews and even demanding to sign a contract. The worst advice they give is telling consumers they should never accept a price quotation on the telephone.

Two prominent expenses in a service business are time and transportation. One trip instead of two means significant savings in labor costs. Petroleum prices make an extra trip prohibitive, too. Besides payroll savings, less travel means reduced oil consumption and traffic congestion. Fewer trips can also give a much needed assist to the environment.

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What a job!

A young man saw a want ad for a carpet cleaner in his local paper. He told his wife this was the job he'd been looking for all his life. It offers quick, monetary promotions and he told her that in just two years he'd be rich.

Here's what the want ad said: "Wanted Man to learn carpet cleaning business. 35K to start - 401K after the first year. Call 555 XXXX for interview."

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New school program

Bane Clene Institute has been revamped to meet the ever changing needs and wishes of our customers. There are courses in wood, stone and tile floor maintenance scheduled on weeks with our regular three day school on carpet care and business management.

You can come for any of the events or stay the whole week for the three-day school, too. Call 800 428 9512 for registration, for available dates or for more information.

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Sunday is a special day

"Remember Pearl Harbor?" That was the battle cry of WWII. President Franklin D. Roosevelt said, "Sunday, December 7, 1941, a day that will live in infamy..." Not many are alive who remember that fateful Sunday morning when the dastardly attack took place on our Pacific Fleet. Those who were, will never forget.

"Remember the Alamo" and "Remember the Maine" are slogans that would never be forgotten...but now they are relegated to the pages of tattered history books that are routinely ignored by many teachers. "Remember September 11" is the latest of infamous events that unfortunately will soon be just a faded memory.

Thank God for the brave troops who protect our freedom and for the first responders who protect us in this land of plenty. With all of our problems, people still want to come here legally or illegally. But, freedom is not free!

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Call 'Us' On The Carpet®

Real, live, helpful people answer our telephones at Bane-Clene and you will hardly ever be put on hold or into voice mail during business hours. You can talk to anyone from the shipping department to the service company, and the president, two vice presidents, managers and everyone in between are on call. Just ask!

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Achieving a goal

Instead of being annoyed when you hold a door for a stranger or let a vehicle merge in front of you.... and you do not receive an acknowledgement of appreciation, remember that you accomplished your goal. It shouldn’t really matter if you were thanked or not.

©Bane-Clene® Corporation 2008 Reprinting or electronically publishing this article is strictly prohibited without permission from Bane-Clene Corp.