DumpsterBossPro Blog — Running a Dumpster Business

Turning Your Website Into a Booking Desk for Your Dumpster Business

Many homeowners look for a dumpster in the evening, after they have decided to finally clean out the garage or start the remodel. That is exactly when a small roll-off owner is eating dinner or asleep, not answering the phone. A website that only shows a phone number loses some of those customers to a company that let them send a request on the spot.

This guide follows Turning Homeowners and Contractors Into Referrals for Your Dumpster Business. Here is how to make your website work as a booking desk instead of just a business card.

Answer the Questions Customers Have

Before they request a can, customers want to know a few things. What sizes do you have? Which size do I need? How long can I keep it? What can I put in it? What happens if it is heavy? Roughly what does it cost? A site that answers those clearly gets more requests and fewer confused phone calls.

Show your sizes — 10, 15, 20, 30 or 40 yard, whichever you stock — with a plain description of what each is good for. Explain your days included and what happens after, and your included weight and overage per ton. Explain what materials you cannot take, based on your disposal sites. Clear terms up front prevent arguments later.

Put a Request Form Front and Center

The most important thing on your site is an easy way to ask for a can. A web request form should ask for what you actually need: name, phone, email, site address, size wanted, delivery date, what they are throwing away and any placement notes. Do not ask for twenty fields. Every extra question loses people.

DumpsterBossPro web request forms send the request into your system, so it does not sit in an email inbox. You see it with the rest of your work and can turn it into a job and schedule it from there.

Respond Fast

A website request is a warm lead, but it cools quickly. A homeowner who sent you a request at 9 p.m. may have sent the same request to two other companies. The first one to respond with a clear answer usually wins.

Respond the same day, ideally first thing in the morning. If you can glance at new requests during a lunch stop, even better. Two-way texting lets you answer from the system with a quick confirmation or a question about placement. If the request needs a price, send a quote they can approve online right away.

Turn Requests Into Approved Quotes

For many residential requests, the next step is a quote. Spell out the size, the price, the days included, the daily rate after, the included weight and the overage per ton. Send it so the customer can approve it online. An approved quote is a booked job with clear terms.

Collect a card on file when the quote is approved. That protects you and makes billing simple when the can comes back. The customer gets automated texts as the delivery approaches, so they are not left wondering.

Help Existing Customers Request Again

Your website is not only for new customers. Repeat customers and contractors should be able to ask for another can or a pickup without calling. The customer app lets them request a service, see invoices and pay online, which takes pressure off your phone during the busy season.

Make that clear on your website. A simple note that existing customers can request pickups and services through the app trains people to use it.

Make that clear on your website. A simple note that existing customers can request pickups and services through the app trains people to use it.

Do not forget the basics either. Your website should load quickly on a phone, show your service area plainly and list the towns you cover, since most people searching are on a phone and want to know right away whether you come to them. A request form buried three pages deep or a page that takes forever to load sends them back to the search results.

Measure What Your Site Brings In

Track how many requests come from the website each month and how many become jobs. If plenty of people request but few book, your prices or your response time may be the issue. If few people request at all, the site may be hard to find or hard to use.

Keep improving it a little at a time. The next guide covers sending quotes that customers approve online. For an overview of web request forms and dispatch, see the dumpster rental business software page.