Educate the nation on clean!!

[durango159]

Today was another of my experiences of really seeing that D2D sales is still necessary. A 72 year old woman had 2 older manual non-electric Bissell carpet sweepers and 1 Kenmore older suction only canister vac. The Kenmore is kept packed away in its original box and used about 3 times a year. Being straight suction it doesn't have the capability to properly clean her deep pile carpeting, even though it is much better than the manual carpet sweepers. This sweet old lady thought her home was clean. She didn't think there was any dirt in her home. She said she lives alone and eats her hot dogs over plate, never dropping a crumb and the place is clean.

I thought she was going to have a heart attack when those dirt pads came up. I consoled her the whole time that its not her fault. Someone has to teach these people what a clean house is and how to achieve it without living that way. Looking at the rug you can't see dirt, but put anything decent on it and you're talking mountains coming up. I should've used a bulldozer first before the FilterQueen. Even if I didn't have the sale, these people need to know that a manual carpet sweeper, battery operated Swivel Sweeper, flimsy stick vacs or Shop-vacs without agitation are just not meant for cleaning a house the way it should be done.

 

[kenkart]

It is even more fun!

To see there face when you go over the couch, and the junk that comes off of a bed really makes them jump!!As the old Filter Queen training book says..Dig more dirt and push the order form!

 

[durango159]

You don't think I did all that!!!! Her bed is one of the sofas. We did her carpet, her kitchen floor, her steps, her favorite recliner, her sofa where she sleeps, her precious living room that she claims is for show and not used. We cleaned her TV, furniture, and more. Her chair and sofa were awful.

To me I still love doing the carpet cause she thought her carpet sweeper was doing well. I pushed the carpet sweeper about 60 times over a section rug. Then I ran her straight suction Kenmore on the same spot. Then I ran the FilterQueen on the same spot very quickly. It's just amazing, she was in shock!

Another amazing thing is that you would think a manual carpet sweeper would be easy to use but the FilterQueen power nozzle is easier to use than the carpet sweeper and especially MUCH easier to use than the straight suction Kenmore. That straight suction nozzle on carpet is just awful to push.

 

[tolivac]

The cleaning tools that woman has just only get the surface debris as you well pointed out.Remember when I mentioned about bulldozers in another thread--thats right your feet exert more ground pressure per square inch than what the bulldozer's tracks exert on the ground.So feet are great in grinding dirt into carpets especially.When I used to sell TriStars with another fellow-we always tried the bed demne prospect started filling out his part of the paper work when we showed him some of the "debris" on a black test pad vacuumed from his bed was ----MOVING!Dust mites!They bought the vacuum.I think older folks like the hand sweepers becuase it seems to them they are easier to use and lighter to carry than a vacuum cleaner.But of course they can't do the job a vacuum can do.The manual sweepers are just good for sweeping crumbs off kitchen floors.

 

[electromatik]

That's funny despite it being a little sad. My grandmother, rest her soul, was the same way. She grew up before the rise of carpet and she mostly had linoleums in every room of her house (they never had hardwood and was too poor to think about it). She didn't think so but you STILL need a good vacuum even if you have NO carpet. You still need to vacuum your mattresses, couches, chairs, and anything else covered in fabric. Grandma thought all you needed to clean was a broom and a mop. She used to take the cushions out of her couch and sweep it with a broom. My grandpa bought her an Electrolux Model L which she promptly threw in the storage shed where it slowly rusted over the course of 42 years. My aunt used to use it but my grandma considered ANY vacuum too much aggravation. A lot of people think something is clean if they don't SEE any dirt on it. They never take a thought to what we now know really lives inside the home. My grandma never heard of a dust mite and never thought a thing about them. She thought she was clean. And she was mostly. She swept and mopped her floors, did laundry for 12 kids, washed her dishes and wiped her kitchen stove and counters after all meals, kept her tub, sink, and toilet scrubbed, and every spring pulled everything out and washed her walls, curtains, and cleaned her windows. However, her mattresses were never touched. She had an excuse. I'm not sure what people today have...

 

[AudibleNectar]

If you can get "in the door" and show people what these vacs are capable of, there's no doubt of the thesis of this thread. Especially today, with people being very concerned of allergens and such. Problem is, in an era of hyper-security and general distrust it is tough to get in doors, especially with canvassing/knocking on doors as the basic approach. If a particular store/shop is able to generate leads to reach these people, so that more demos can be done to people who would afford a good vac, it's really not hard to sell them. The trick is to get in the doors of potential customers who can afford it.


 


In the 50's/60's - when there existed a large middle class and there was less distrust and cynicism -it's easy to understand how so many of these high end machines were sold via DTD. These days it's much harder to reach the target audience - albeit not impossible. Knowing what I know about good high end vacs I would never go back to mass market brands if I could help it.

 

[nycwriter]

Also ...

... as I mentioned before, a generation ago, there were actually people (wives) home during the day for in-home demonstrations.

 

[vintagerepairer]

At 72 years old I don't suppose she is too worried about what has never killed her so far.

 

[ralph123]

Was it really an educated decision?

Since we're talking about making educated decisions, any vacuum with a rotating brush would have been an improvement over the manual sweepers. The question is why did she use a manual sweeper. Could she not afford a modern vacuum, or was a modern vacuum difficult for her to set up and use? The elderly are especially vulnerable to coercion to buy things they don't really want. Many elderly would be better off putting their money towards hiring someone to clean their homes rather than buying an expensive cleaner that they have a difficult time using.

Why does she sleep on couch - joint problems? If she eats hot dogs on paper plates regularly, can she really afford an expensive DTD vacuum? If she's capable of cleaning her own place, I would think that a 9 pound Simplicity Freedom /Riccar SLR would have made an excellent choice for her, particularly since she already has a straight suction vacuum. Two of my senior citizen relatives have 9 pound Riccars, and they love them. They're lightweight, powerful, and easy to use for cleaning their carpeting. The Riccar/Simplicity lightweight uprights scored excellent for cleaning carpeting in Consumer Reports.

 

[durango159]

Ralph123

My customer hated that straight suction Kenmore canister that's why it always sat in a box and was only used about twice a year. The thing is atleast from the 80's or perhaps older and looks practically brand new. It's very hard to use.

She lives in a 2 story home and really would be better off with a ranch. Even though her bathroom is on the second floor she chooses to sleep downstairs on the first floor on the couch. To each their own with comments on that one!!!

Similar to Electromatik's grandmom--- this lady honestly thought her house was clean. Her living room is for decoration only and never gets used. Therefore she figures the only room to get dirty is her dining room which has her sleeping sofa, reclining chair and TV. In addition, of course her kitchen gets some use but she said she mainly goes out to eat or brings home ready cooked meals from food stores. She doesn't like cooking much so a hot dog on a paper plate is no fuss and no dishes to wash. She has never had a driver's license so she just walks everywhere.

She was stunned when the dirt came up. She was very happy that the FilterQueen was easier to take apart and deal with than the older Kenmore canister straight suction vac and yet easier to push than the manual sweepers. She was so happy pushing the FilterQueen. This is one of the reasons, that I love canister power nozzle vacs myself, there is nothing easier to maneuver and lighter weight than a power nozzle canister wand. The lighterweight and power agitators propel themselves across a carpet.

Lightweight uprights like Orecks and Riccar Supralites are light in weight but they still don't seem to propel themselves across carpet well. The carpet nozzle heads on those uprights are still bulkier and of course heavier than a canister power nozzle because the entire vacuum motor in there with fan housing.

I'll be seeing customer again on Monday. Collecting the check and see that she still loves the unit on Monday. I also left the Defender air cleaner with her over the weekend to see how she likes it. Try before you buy deal.

 

[nycwriter]

Jeff ...

"Many elderly would be better off putting their money towards hiring someone to clean their homes rather than buying an expensive cleaner that they have a difficult time using."

Most live-out housekeepers do NOT bring their own cleaning supplies -- much less their own vacuums -- to your home.

***

"Why does she sleep on couch - joint problems?"

My Grandma slept on a CHAIR every night for 15 years without telling anybody because her mattress and box springs were horribly concaved and hard as a pellet of bricks. No wonder -- they were the original box springs and mattress that she and Grandpa bought when they moved into the house in 1941! Could she have afforded a new bed? Of course. Why didn't she? Because she, like others in her generation who grew up during the Depression, simply could not justify in her mind the expense of a new mattress and box springs when there was a perfectly comfortable CHAIR in the living room!

***

"If she eats hot dogs on paper plates regularly, can she really afford an expensive DTD vacuum?"

Grandma again. Yes, she can. It's just that when you're over 70 and live alone, you really "can't be bothered" (as my great aunt used to say) with washing dishes.

***

"If she's capable of cleaning her own place, I would think that a 9 pound Simplicity Freedom /Riccar SLR would have made an excellent choice for her, particularly since she already has a straight suction vacuum. Two of my senior citizen relatives have 9 pound Riccars, and they love them. They're lightweight, powerful, and easy to use for cleaning their carpeting. The Riccar/Simplicity lightweight uprights scored excellent for cleaning carpeting in Consumer Reports."

I'm starting to see the wisdom of canister vacs for senior citizens: you're "pushing" only a hose and a power nozzle around, and *dragging* the bulk of the vacuum (motor, etc.), rather than pushing the whole darn thing around in the form of an upright.

 

[ralph123]

Durango & NYC writer. Thanks for your insights.

I recently purchased Riccar 9-pound vacuums for both my mother as well as my mother-in-law. The mother-in-law has a 20+ year old Rainbow that has served her well, but it is difficult for her to use. Both were amazed at how light and easy to use the Riccar's were.

 

[suckolux]

as an elderly friend of mine is fond of saying, I just can't cook for one! How can my place be dirty, I don't do anything! She is a large lady with bad joints and can't get out of her bed, so sleeps in her power recliner.That Frieze? gets dirty.Her living room will fill my Hoover Air.

 

[nycwriter]

Just LIVING and BREATHING ...

... makes your home "dirty".

More than 90% of the "dust" in your home is actually dead skin cells ... from the humans and pets living in the dwelling.