Article Number: 3493
Carpet Installation: How and Why You Should Address the Carpet Gripper
By Tammy Brown
How many times have you walked into your customer's home to measure and immediately noticed that unsightly, uneven and usually black "dip" around the entire perimeter of each carpeted room? I call it the "ugly dust gully". As a carpet installation technician you know what the cause of it is, so why not better serve your customer and help yourself as well by addressing the problem. I’m talking about the carpet gripper.
Carpet should appear as thought it were poured into a room in liquid form and then allowed to dry into a solid. It will not look this way if your edges are not crisp, clean, uniform and level. The trim and tuck can help make or break an installation's aesthetic properties. It is one of the many things that will differentiate floor-art from a typical, so-so installation. The only way to achieve floor-art is to begin with a perfect canvas. Proper installation of new carpet gripper is part of a perfect canvas.
I am a carpet installation artist. I am a woman and more than ninety percent of my customers are women. Women like beautiful as well as unique things. We don’t want average if we can have something better. We care about our lovely homes maintaining a clean, beautiful and unique appearance. When I walk into a customer's home it becomes my own and I want to transform it into the most beautiful home in the neighborhood.
Aside from carpet installation, I’m not so interested in the mechanics of things unless the mechanics of things are going to improve upon the beauty and uniqueness of my home and reduce the amount of work on my part to ensure it remains that way for a long time to come. Do you follow me so far? Put yourself in the place of your customer, and then offer her what you yourself would want.
When I go on an estimate one of the first things I notice is the ugly dust gully and non-uniform edges. I pull up the carpet in several areas of the room and explain to the customer what’s causing her "ugly dust gully" (the one that no matter how often she vacuums, will not come clean). I also explain how important proper placement of the carpet gripper is to the durability of the actual installation. I show and explain to my customer how and why the gripper is designed the way it is and why it is so important to have it installed properly. By taking the time to show and explain to your customer what is causing her problem and offering a solution to it, you are giving her excellent service while also helping yourself.
Even if you do not see an ugly dust gully pull up the carpet in several areas anyway. You know that you are almost guaranteed to find old, rusty, gapped, and in some cases, very nasty looking gripper that will not hold up to a power-stretch. We women do NOT like nasty anywhere in our beautiful homes, not even when it’s covered up. Once we know it’s there, forget it, it has to go. In addition, if you are going to be replacing the existing carpet with a new, lower profile carpet, there will be an ugly dust gully if the carpet gripper is not installed properly. You know the standards, quote them.
What about the ten percent of my customers who are men? Men are usually more technical and in most cases they are concerned with quality and getting the most for their dollar. This is where the installation technicalities and standards come into play.
I know what you’re thinking. How is this helping me when it’s only going to add more time and work to the job? It’s helping you in several ways. First, it is going to make you more money. I charge by the linear foot for removal and replacement of existing carpet gripper and it’s not cheap. However, customers do not mind paying to have their problems solved. They understand that time is money and removing and replacing all that gripper is time consuming.
When you take the time to explain to your customer what is causing their problem and you offer them a solution to it, they will not only pay for the solution but they will appreciate you for it as well. By addressing the problem and offering a solution to it, you are also setting yourself apart from your competition and this will only bring you more customers and ensure that your existing customers remain loyal to you.
I just had a customer schedule an install with me who admitted I was quite higher in price than the competition but I was also much more knowledgeable about what he and his wife were expecting from their new carpet. He said I brought things to their attention that the others did not. My customers are not looking just to have the floor covered; they are looking to make their home more beautiful and unique for quite some time to come.
Many of my installations are of premier, high end tufted and woven goods and they are installed in huge, custom homes. In these cases, I explain to the customer why the products they are purchasing require Architectural Tri-tack. If I am to do the job, there is no choice given. My name will be on that floor when it’s completed. I have yet to have a customer argue with me about it.
Let me also add a warning. If you do bring these problems to your customer's attention and offer to solve them, be prepared to truly solve the problems. What do I mean? Don't make a mistake by thinking that once you bring these problems to your customer's attention that you can then do a slap it down and get it done installation by replacing the old strip with a sub-standard gripper and then placing it a half inch away from the baseboards, leaving gaps and forming a V around the door jams.
Once you point the perimeter of the carpet out to your customer, they will in fact scrutinize every carpet perimeter they see from then on whether in their own home or someone else's. That means they will be looking for and expecting to see those crisp, clean, uniform and level edges that you promised them and they will not be happy if you destroy their baseboards with your hammer while trying to install the gripper three-sixteenths of an inch away from all abutments.
Look, you chose your craft so be the best at what you do. That means taking extra special care of your customers and solving problems for them. Don't just ignore things because everyone else does. Set yourself apart from the rest and be an installation artist and your customers will show you their appreciation by paying you well and spreading your name. What more could you ask for?
How many times have you walked into your customer's home to measure and immediately noticed that unsightly, uneven and usually black "dip" around the entire perimeter of each carpeted room? I call it the "ugly dust gully". As a carpet installation technician you know what the cause of it is, so why not better serve your customer and help yourself as well by addressing the problem. I’m talking about the carpet gripper.
Carpet should appear as thought it were poured into a room in liquid form and then allowed to dry into a solid. It will not look this way if your edges are not crisp, clean, uniform and level. The trim and tuck can help make or break an installation's aesthetic properties. It is one of the many things that will differentiate floor-art from a typical, so-so installation. The only way to achieve floor-art is to begin with a perfect canvas. Proper installation of new carpet gripper is part of a perfect canvas.
I am a carpet installation artist. I am a woman and more than ninety percent of my customers are women. Women like beautiful as well as unique things. We don’t want average if we can have something better. We care about our lovely homes maintaining a clean, beautiful and unique appearance. When I walk into a customer's home it becomes my own and I want to transform it into the most beautiful home in the neighborhood.
Aside from carpet installation, I’m not so interested in the mechanics of things unless the mechanics of things are going to improve upon the beauty and uniqueness of my home and reduce the amount of work on my part to ensure it remains that way for a long time to come. Do you follow me so far? Put yourself in the place of your customer, and then offer her what you yourself would want.
When I go on an estimate one of the first things I notice is the ugly dust gully and non-uniform edges. I pull up the carpet in several areas of the room and explain to the customer what’s causing her "ugly dust gully" (the one that no matter how often she vacuums, will not come clean). I also explain how important proper placement of the carpet gripper is to the durability of the actual installation. I show and explain to my customer how and why the gripper is designed the way it is and why it is so important to have it installed properly. By taking the time to show and explain to your customer what is causing her problem and offering a solution to it, you are giving her excellent service while also helping yourself.
Even if you do not see an ugly dust gully pull up the carpet in several areas anyway. You know that you are almost guaranteed to find old, rusty, gapped, and in some cases, very nasty looking gripper that will not hold up to a power-stretch. We women do NOT like nasty anywhere in our beautiful homes, not even when it’s covered up. Once we know it’s there, forget it, it has to go. In addition, if you are going to be replacing the existing carpet with a new, lower profile carpet, there will be an ugly dust gully if the carpet gripper is not installed properly. You know the standards, quote them.
What about the ten percent of my customers who are men? Men are usually more technical and in most cases they are concerned with quality and getting the most for their dollar. This is where the installation technicalities and standards come into play.
I know what you’re thinking. How is this helping me when it’s only going to add more time and work to the job? It’s helping you in several ways. First, it is going to make you more money. I charge by the linear foot for removal and replacement of existing carpet gripper and it’s not cheap. However, customers do not mind paying to have their problems solved. They understand that time is money and removing and replacing all that gripper is time consuming.
When you take the time to explain to your customer what is causing their problem and you offer them a solution to it, they will not only pay for the solution but they will appreciate you for it as well. By addressing the problem and offering a solution to it, you are also setting yourself apart from your competition and this will only bring you more customers and ensure that your existing customers remain loyal to you.
I just had a customer schedule an install with me who admitted I was quite higher in price than the competition but I was also much more knowledgeable about what he and his wife were expecting from their new carpet. He said I brought things to their attention that the others did not. My customers are not looking just to have the floor covered; they are looking to make their home more beautiful and unique for quite some time to come.
Many of my installations are of premier, high end tufted and woven goods and they are installed in huge, custom homes. In these cases, I explain to the customer why the products they are purchasing require Architectural Tri-tack. If I am to do the job, there is no choice given. My name will be on that floor when it’s completed. I have yet to have a customer argue with me about it.
Let me also add a warning. If you do bring these problems to your customer's attention and offer to solve them, be prepared to truly solve the problems. What do I mean? Don't make a mistake by thinking that once you bring these problems to your customer's attention that you can then do a slap it down and get it done installation by replacing the old strip with a sub-standard gripper and then placing it a half inch away from the baseboards, leaving gaps and forming a V around the door jams.
Once you point the perimeter of the carpet out to your customer, they will in fact scrutinize every carpet perimeter they see from then on whether in their own home or someone else's. That means they will be looking for and expecting to see those crisp, clean, uniform and level edges that you promised them and they will not be happy if you destroy their baseboards with your hammer while trying to install the gripper three-sixteenths of an inch away from all abutments.
Look, you chose your craft so be the best at what you do. That means taking extra special care of your customers and solving problems for them. Don't just ignore things because everyone else does. Set yourself apart from the rest and be an installation artist and your customers will show you their appreciation by paying you well and spreading your name. What more could you ask for?
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