As the year comes to a close, we take a look at some of the most popular stories on www.cleaner.com. If you missed any of these, now is your chance to catch up. Enjoy this look back at 2019.

10. Selling Customers on Drain Cleaning Maintenance Contracts
Maintenance contracts mean consistent business, so it’s no surprise that readers were interested in this online-only story about Toledo, Ohio’s Drain Doctor, featured in the November issue. It looked at the tactics Joel George, owner, uses to get customers to commit to maintenance contracts.

9. Worker Deaths Lead to Manslaughter Conviction for Owner of Drain Service Company
Tragic job site incidents in this industry also often provide good safety lessons. One such incident in Boston from 2016 that killed two workers got a lot of attention this year, as the owner of the company was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to prison.

8. Preventing Roots From Growing Through a CIPP Liner
Have you ever experienced a root growing through a CIPP liner? The author of this article did and used the failed lining job as an opportunity to provide some valuable lessons about the wet-out process.

7. New Orleans Works to Keep Mardi Gras Debris out of Sewer System
In 2018, at the conclusion of an extensive storm sewer cleaning, the city of New Orleans had collected 46 tons of Mardi Gras beads that had built up in the collections system over the years. That story was one of the most-read articles of 2018, and the subject remains of interest to readers. This follow-up story discussed the proactive sewer cleaning approach that New Orleans took ahead of 2019’s Mardi Gras festivities and will continue going forward.

6. Five Quotes to Guide Your Operations
Who doesn’t like a good inspirational quote? Regular contributor Anja Smith selected five of her favorites and then detailed how they offer some valuable lessons for those working in the drain cleaning industry.

5. Advice for In-Home Cleanup of Sewage Spills and Flooding
Customers could look to you for some guidance in the event of a sewer backup. This article provided a rundown of important information to share with them.

4. Public Pushes for UV Curing on Pipe Lining Project to Reduce Environmental Impact
This news item from July looked at an impending pipe rehab project in the Washington, D.C., area. In order to avoid surface disruptions, CIPP was already being targeted as the likely method. But members of the public wanted more, urging officials to use UV curing rather than water or steam so that manhole access paths wouldn’t have to be built for heavy equipment that would impact hundreds of trees.

3. Do You Charge Enough for Your Services?
Pricing is always tricky. You need to be able to sustain your business, but you also need to be able to attract customers. If you do ever get complaints about pricing, though, don’t automatically assume it means customers want you to go as cheap as possible. This story explains why that line of thinking about pricing is wrong.

2. 115 Tons of Hardened Concrete Blocks London Sewer
News about massive sewer blockages always receives a lot of attention. Oftentimes “fatbergs” are the ones making headlines, but in this instance, the blockage was hardened concrete and the largest of that kind that London’s Thames Water had ever had to deal with.

1. 5 LinkedIn Profile Tips for Business Owners
Social media is something you have to pay attention to these days to maximize your company’s marketing and branding efforts. The most-read story of 2019 was about how to get the most out of the social media tool that is particularly pertinent to the business world — LinkedIn.