[james peters]

hi all
this is just an observation on reading this forum.. and i can just add its been great reading.
It now seems the norm to never have to collect. I get this . its something I strived to acheive over the years. and I have been in this game for 26 years now.
collecting was especially a pain when I had a young family.
I am now past that young family age and have more time and have started a push for more work , and getting my mojo back .
I push for online via bacs  mainly. or the custie leaves money in a safe place. I only accept these options for long distance !
for those on my doorstep, I do collect.
I dont mind doing so once a week . it helps with the cash flow. it also takes me back to when i first started. I actually enjoy it.
so ... yes . I have a mixed bag of getting money, but accamodating so many methods of payment . i never need to chase debts.

[SB Cleaning]

Sod collecting 

[P @ F]

The only time I knock a door for money is if by chance I am passing or they have run a couple of cleans up by being slow payers , dont have many at all but they need to be kept in line as poss .

[britishwill]

Never collected in my 10 years All payments are online or cheque, as a rule we do  not except cash it is so much easier with the banking and the clients knowing this from the start.

[Stoots]

I've never collected apart from the early days when I did it half a dozen times and soon realised it's a mugs game.

I probably have a dozen that insist on cash, but it's very rare they are not in so it's never an issue.

[DeLuce]

Before I started my round, I went out with a mate who's been cleaning windows for quite a few years before I started. He showed me the ropes. Trad days.
One of the best things he  told me was, never collect. From the outset, make the customer aware of payment methods.Leave addressed envelope, send cheque in post, or bacs, or cash if in.
Collecting can be so hit and miss, wasting time when we could be doing something not work related.

[Johnny B]

Most of my customers pay me on the day, but any that were not home I either knock when I am passing or leave until next time.

I don't mind collecting. It keeps me in personal contact with my customers and as I enjoy chatting with them it's all good as far as I am concerned.

John

[deeege]

I have only one round that I collect, roughly £500 a month, only about 30 houses right next to each other.

Usually takes around 2 hours (incl travel) on a Monday night once a month.  Enables me to upsell some addons too.

[Walter Mitty]

It's been a long time since I collected - probably the late 90s.  Cash flow was certainly improved by collecting, but it was a pain.  After stopping it I used to receive a lot of posted cheques.  These have gradually dwindled in favour of BACS.
The turning point was the pleasant summer evening I went out to collect money.  I still remember that I found nobody home until I reached the eleventh house - and I was driving a fair few miles too.

[Smudger]

Likewise- soon packed up collecting - go out for a couple of hours travel 20 odd miles people still out or running around for cash or cheque book dinner running down their chin sometimes just out the bath (better) all for a few quid

Now the money arrives into the account everyday, no hassle, no time wasted

Darran

[dazmond]

i used to do 2 hours on a friday and 2 hours on a monday collecting every week! ...

now its around 2-3 hours a month.bliss.....and it seems to be getting less and less....

estate work is easy to collect(esp if you have 4 days work on one estate)but more and more customers are going online which suits me TBH...

I dont mind collecting these days (as its not much) and it keeps me in contact with some customers.i find its good for customer relations....

[Marc Stock]

I dont do collection.

Only time i will ever collect money, is when i have decided to cancel their service.

[james peters]

I have 8 days a month all within a 2 mile radius.  the majority I clean at a time when I know they are home . some pay online the others I collect, it takes roughly an hour as I know when to catch them, and I drive past their properties most days.
the rest of my round , which is 12 days work is further afield. for these , again I have a lot at home. forr those that are out its payment online. and for those where I need access , its payment left for me by cheque or cash.
so all in all its about an hours collecting a month
i very rarely have money outstanding as i dont do messers. i just move on

[dazmond]

i like to have a bit of cash payment ......i very rarely have to go to a ATM as i usually have a certain amount of cash on me.... .i have enough payments being paid into my bank every month these days that i very rarely have to put any in to pay bills etc.....as for cheques im down to around 20-30 a month!

[dazmond]

I have 8 days a month all within a 2 mile radius.  the majority I clean at a time when I know they are home . some pay online the others I collect, it takes roughly an hour as I know when to catch them, and I drive past their properties most days.
the rest of my round , which is 12 days work is further afield. for these , again I have a lot at home. forr those that are out its payment online. and for those where I need access , its payment left for me by cheque or cash.
so all in all its about an hours collecting a month
i very rarely have money outstanding as i dont do messers. i just move on

my debt list is usually between £500-£1000 at any one time.....i managed to get it down to around £300(for a day!)this week!currently its nearly £600....

[james peters]

I have 8 days a month all within a 2 mile radius.  the majority I clean at a time when I know they are home . some pay online the others I collect, it takes roughly an hour as I know when to catch them, and I drive past their properties most days.
the rest of my round , which is 12 days work is further afield. for these , again I have a lot at home. forr those that are out its payment online. and for those where I need access , its payment left for me by cheque or cash.
so all in all its about an hours collecting a month
i very rarely have money outstanding as i dont do messers. i just move on

my debt list is usually between £500-£1000 at any one time.....i managed to get it down to around £300(for a day!)this week!currently its nearly £600....

I am  a tight arse, and have very trained customers. lol. but its taken years to get them paying on time . its funny tho coz now I am in a position to not worry so much,
when I had 3 young children and a huge mortgage , I had to be a tight arse and be strict with payments.
my middle daughter now works for me . she is high maintenance

[windowswashed]

When I first started window cleaning I use to collect towards the end of the week.  Thank goodness for online payments, etc. Collecting is a waste of time and petrol. Thank goodness I stopped collecting years ago. Still see a few trad w/c's out collecting Friday evenings, such a tedious job that isn't necessary anymore unless it the fAgs & booze brigade with cash in hand.

[james peters]

When I first started window cleaning I use to collect towards the end of the week.  Thank goodness for online payments, etc. Collecting is a waste of time and petrol. Thank goodness I stopped collecting years ago. Still see a few trad w/c's out collecting Friday evenings, such a tedious job that isn't necessary anymore unless it the fAgs & booze brigade with cash in hand.

let me reassure you ..... I am not the fAgs and booze brigade !
Do I still enjoy cash in hand ? yes I do!
do I pay tax ? oh hell yes .. !
why do I collect?
I hardly do as stated . its about an hour per month! thats probably 5% of my round .

[windowswashed]

Hi, fAgs & booze brigade i regard as the odd job men and gypsies who don't contribute to society, claim dole money and do jobs on the side and there are a few of them knocking around who don't want a job because they'll lose too much in benefit handouts. Never been on the dole in my life, wouldn't want to be.  I know a lot of trad cleaners who legitimately run a successful w/c business who have done it for twenty plus years and it's there way of life and they won't convert to wfp at their time of life and collecting is the norm for them. I started trad, then had to stop for health reasons and restarted twelve months later with wfp. I still trad inside a factory and a couple communal areas for housing associations but not domestic work. Been using Moerman squeegie with the pad so can wash and blade in one go, it's a pretty nifty tool combined with GG3.

[james peters]

Hi, fAgs & booze brigade i regard as the odd job men and gypsies who don't contribute to society, claim dole money and do jobs on the side and there are a few of them knocking around who don't want a job because they'll lose too much in benefit handouts. Never been on the dole in my life, wouldn't want to be.  I know a lot of trad cleaners who legitimately run a successful w/c business who have done it for twenty plus years and it's there way of life and they won't convert to wfp at their time of life and collecting is the norm for them. I started trad, then had to stop for health reasons and restarted twelve months later with wfp. I still trad inside a factory and a couple communal areas for housing associations but not domestic work. Been using Moerman squeegie with the pad so can wash and blade in one go, it's a pretty nifty tool combined with GG3.

I have been wfp for 13 years and was trad  for 13 yrs prior to that . about 18 mnths ago I tripped over a bin liner and dislocated my shoulder. I had to be put in the land of the fairies so that the doctors could put it back in.
If I was trad , I wouldnt have been able to continue. I do one customer inside, and sometimes I will do insides as a one off, but not very often. since injuring my shoulder, I struggle to do like 20 mins of trad.
It is ironic tho how wfp has  helped my shoulder to heal.   I asked the consultant for some excercises for my shoulder. he told me to get a broom stick, and move it around... lol.