TrashCanBossPro Blog — Billing & Payments

Deodorizing, Pad Washing and Other Add-Ons on the Bin Cleaning Invoice

Add-ons are where a bin cleaning route gets more profitable without adding stops. The trailer is already at the curb. The water is already hot. Spending two more minutes on a deodorize treatment or a pad wash can be worth more per minute than the cleaning itself, but only if it actually gets billed.

Add-Ons Are Line Items

The general rule for clear invoices is laid out in Invoice Line Items Bin Cleaning Customers Actually Understand. Add-ons follow the same rule: every one gets its own line, named the way customers talk about it.

In TrashCanBossPro, add-ons are just services on your service list. You set the name and the price. When an add-on is on a customer's plan, it shows up on the invoice each time the cleaning is completed. When it is a one-time extra, it goes on that visit only.

Common Add-Ons Worth Offering

What you sell is up to you, but these are the usual ones:

• Deodorize treatment. A scent or odor treatment after the wash. Popular in summer.
• Can pad wash. Washing the concrete or driveway spot where the cans sit, where drips and stains build up.
• Additional can. A third or fourth can beyond what the base price covers.
• Deep clean. A heavier first-time or catch-up cleaning for neglected cans.
• Commercial pad wash. For dumpster enclosures at businesses and apartment communities.

Keep the list short. Five add-ons a customer understands sell better than fifteen they have to read about.

Recurring vs One-Time Add-Ons

Some add-ons belong on every visit. A customer who wants deodorizing in July probably wants it every time in July. Put that on their plan so it bills with each cleaning automatically.

Others are occasional. A pad wash every visit might be overkill, but once a season it makes sense. Add those as one-time extras on a single visit so they bill once and stop.

The danger is the add-on that was supposed to be one-time and ended up on the plan, charging every visit for months. Customers notice that eventually, and it costs you more in goodwill than you earned. Check your recurring add-ons during your month-end review.

Letting Customers Add Them Themselves

The easiest add-on sale is the one the customer makes on their own. In the TrashCanBossPro customer app, customers can sign up for services and see your pricing. A customer who smells their can in August can add a deodorize treatment without calling the office.

Two-way texting helps too. A short text in late spring, like "Summer's coming. Want us to add a deodorize treatment to your cleanings? Reply YES," turns into add-ons the office can apply in a few clicks. Keep in mind that each text counts toward your plan's monthly text allowance, so send seasonal offers to the customers most likely to say yes.

Making Sure the Tech Does What Was Billed

An add-on on the invoice that never happened at the curb is a refund waiting to happen. The tech needs to know about it. Put add-ons in the job notes so the tech sees them on the card in the tech app, right next to the cans and the can location.

A note like "Deodorize all cans" or "Pad wash this visit" takes seconds to write and saves an awkward conversation later. The before and after photos back it up. If a customer asks whether the pad was washed, the photo answers.

Pricing Add-Ons So They Are Worth It

Price add-ons based on the time and product they take, not on what feels small. If a pad wash adds five minutes to a stop, and your route earns a certain amount per minute, the pad wash should earn at least that. Otherwise you are better off moving to the next stop.

You set the price for every service on your own list. When you change an add-on price, update it on your service list and on the plans that use it. For more on adjusting prices across your customers, read Raising Prices on Bin Cleaning Customers Without Losing the Route.

Review add-on prices at least once a year. Product costs change, and an add-on that made sense at last year's price might be barely breaking even now. A quick look during your month-end review keeps every line on the invoice earning its place.

It is also worth asking techs which add-ons customers mention at the curb. The crew hears things the office never does, like a neighbor asking about pad washing or a homeowner complaining about smell. Those comments are often the best guide to which add-ons to promote next season.

The Short Version

Put every add-on on its own line, decide whether it is recurring or one-time, tell the tech in the job notes, and let customers add services in the customer app. For more billing guides, go back to the trash can cleaning billing software page.