My Chair Smells like Dog! . . . But I Can't Stand The Smell of Chemicals Either!

Don't be surprised if you get a call from a customer who wants dog odor treatment, but also claims to have chemical sensitivity issues and can't tolerate “chemical smells”.

Most cleaning professionals refuse to work with people with such concerns, and write the prospective customer off as being somewhat “crazy”. However, we now live in a time where people are, for real or imagined reasons, very concerned about chemicals in their homes, but also equally concerned about animal odors that are unavoidable in today's “pets are family” society.

Follow these important steps when you have a customer with such concerns: 

1. Ask These Questions Tactfully:
 
  a.  What Types of Products Bother The Family? 
Perfume oils? Household Cleaners? Chlorine Bleach? Answers to these questions will give you clues as to the types of products you might be able to use in their home.

  b.  Is Your Customer Under a Doctor's care, or their Pet Under the Care of a Veterinarian for this Condition?  
If so, would the doctor or the vet be willing to examine your product(s) safety data sheets? Your customer's willingness to engage in this type of conversation will also help you to better understand if they are going to be reasonable to work with, or not.

2. Consider Your Alternatives:  
Depending on the types of materials that your customer reacts badly to, the following types of products might be helpful to solve their problem: Odor absorbents, such as Wicked Awesome Odor Absorber, or Big Papi's Odor Killer, an odorless oxidizing odor treatment.  Both of these products are completely odorless, and incredibly effective.

3.Clean and Treat “In Plant”:  
If the contamination is only on a cushion, or if you can move the entire article of furniture to your location, you can clean, apply odor treatments, and then make sure the material is completely odor free before you return it to the customer.

There are, of course, customers who will have unreasonable expectations, and such people are better left for others to handle.  

But with the reminder that the recent pandemic and often overuse of disinfectants has created a strong sense of chemical fear in our society, you have the opportunity to use “Customer Focused Marketing” approaches that will have you seen as a both caring and professional service company who will then have the right to be financially rewarded appropriately for both the knowledge and care needed to solve these problems many of your prospective customers are facing today.