North Texas Company Is Reinventing Clean
Rug Doctor is modernizing the carpet cleaning business with product innovation and technology, clever branding, and a clean new office space in Plano
PLANO, Texas, Oct. 19, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Rug Doctor is reinventing "clean" as it approaches its 20th anniversary in North Texas. The global market leader in do-it-yourself carpet cleaning, whose Plano headquarters employs nearly 100 people, is relaunching the rental business with its most significant innovation and consumer-driven focus in its 45-year history.
The relaunch has been led by Travis Lewis who was named Rug Doctor Chief Executive Officer in 2015 and has set out to improve and modernize all aspects of the business, which includes an all-new product launch, optimization of operational efficiency at 40,000 retail locations such as Walmart and Kroger, and fresh thinking with new talent hires from across the consumer product industry.
"Rug Doctor's heritage is a deeper professional clean at a better value with the best system. That has not changed – what is changing is how we better deliver on that promise and communicate it to the customer in ways that fits with their lives today," Lewis said.
Largest new product launch since founding of company
"We listened to customer feedback and created solutions to their pain points. Our scientists and engineers have used the latest technology to ensure our products provide the versatility and ease consumers are looking for while performing comparably to hiring a professional carpet cleaner," Rich Foster, Rug Doctor Chief Product Officer, said.
Rug Doctor's two new rental machines, the Rug Doctor Pro Detailer & Portable Spot Cleaner and the Rug Doctor Pro Deep Upright Carpet Cleaner, are easier to use, lighter, more powerful and versatile than ever, and are significantly less expensive than hiring a service with rentals starting at $19.99. The all-new Pro Deep Upright Carpet Cleaner has even been awarded the Carpet and Rug Institute's Platinum rating, the highest rating awarded, for superior dirt and water removal comparable to cleaning results of a costly professional service. The machines also have a brand new functionality new to the category – in addition to soft surfaces they have the ability to clean hard floors and grout.
Retail partners who house Rug Doctor's rental displays are excited to see the investments the company is making to grow the category with new products. They are equally enthusiastic about the enhanced technology, which has allowed Rug Doctor Operations to more closely monitor retailer needs, resulting in faster and more effective servicing of machines and cleaning concentrate replenishment.
New marketing campaign: Rug Doctor Institute of Clean
Jan Valentic, Rug Doctor Chief Marketing Officer, has been leading the branding transformation and new investment in advertising. Staying true to the company's heritage of delivering a professional quality clean, she wanted the brand to be contemporized and made more relevant and memorable to consumers.
Valentic hired Dallas-based The LOOMIS Agency to help with the effort and in April launched the new advertising campaign, The Rug Doctor Institute of Clean, which was inspired by Rug Doctor's R&D facility where engineers and chemists put products through tortuous testing to ensure that Rug Doctor machines can clean what life throws at consumers. The campaign even coined a new Urban Dictionary term to describe the feeling people experience after a deep cleaning when they pour out the dirty water tank and see the filth that was extracted from their carpet: disgustifaction, the feeling of utter disgust combined with total satisfaction.
Results of the campaign have shown an increased affinity for the brand, and more importantly, driven more people to clean their carpets with Rug Doctor.
Clean new office space and attracting top talent in North Texas
"We've brought in new talent to infuse external thinking from the consumer product industry and it's had a tremendous impact in fueling innovation," CEO Travis Lewis said. "North Texas is a great place to hire, work and live, so we look forward to continuing to be a magnate for top talent in the area. The new office space in Plano is a prime example of the culture we are working to build to do just that."
Since Rug Doctor is a brand used in the home, the company created visual cues in the work environment that invites team members and visitors into the new Rug Doctor home. From the welcoming sculptural dogs standing watch at the Rug Doctor red front door, to the garage with the technology heartbeat of operations – the "clean" open floor plan with shared workspaces creates a whole new level of employee collaboration.
"We didn't anticipate how much a work space would engender such positive energy and pride in our company – for employees and visitors," Amy Howell, Rug Doctor General Counsel, said. "Our people work harder and smarter in a space that makes it fun and rewarding to make a difference for our customers every day."
Dallas-Fort Worth media is invited to see Rug Doctor's clean new office space in Plano and experience 'disgustifaction' firsthand by testing the all-new Rug Doctor products on Oct. 25. Find a rental location at www.rugdoctor.com/rent.
About Rug Doctor:
Rug Doctor is the global market leader in professional-grade, do-it-yourself deep carpet cleaning systems for consumers that provide a quality clean at a better value than professionals. Rug Doctor was created in 1974 in the garage of a professional carpet cleaner who believed it was possible to empower people to achieve professional-quality results themselves. Rug Doctor continues to deliver on that promise with iconic red machines that are available for rent in more than 40,000 retail locations and are for purchase at major retailers like Walmart, Tesco, and Amazon. Learn more at www.rugdoctor.com.
Contact:
Marissa Stabler
(469) 859-3445
[email protected]
SOURCE Rug Doctor
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