[Grafters Cleaning Services]

hi guys,
we've all been there
not today thanx
and locked gates
.......
i have come up with this letter below to give to the offending customers and would like your opinion before i print them out,
am i being to harsh? ....... would you word it different?
don't hold back, let me have your thoughts
thanx in advance.....................


Grafters Cleaning Services


Tel: Office 023 8039 2971
Mobile 07840 183969

Dear Customer,
Firstly I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your past custom and I hope that you continue to use our services for many years to come.

As we at Grafters now find ourselves getting busier by the day (through recommendations etc)
we now find ourselves in a position whereby we are turning work away in order to clean the windows of our regular cliental.
On some occasions when we turn up 1 or 2 customers have in the past asked us to give them a miss that month, we find that we can no longer continue with this practice.
In future any customers that cancel without prior warning or do not have a valid reason for cancelling that month will be dropped from our books to allow room for other people on our waiting list to take their position.

Also on some occasions we have turned up at a property only to find we cannot gain access to the rear due to a locked gate and have had to return back at a later date, again this is a practice that we can no longer continue with.
In future we will clean all windows that are accessible to us and invoice you accordingly, should you wish to, you can leave us your phone number and we are more than happy to ring you the night before our visit so you can unlock the back gate.

We hope that you understand both the issues above and we hope to keep you on as a valued customer.



Jay
Your loyal Grafters window cleaner

[macmac]

i think thats perfect jay, infact may i edit it and use it myself??

[ian m]

hi Jay

I've been thinking of doing something like this myself.

I think your wording is fine, the only bit I would omit is the "or do not have a valid reason for cancelling that month" as you might get into some disputes with customers  as to what is considered  a valid reason.  

I've had to "sack"  3 customers this month over the " leave them this time syndrome" thanfully they have all been repaced already


Cheers

Ian

[craig jwc]

Sounds ok to me.

I have told people basically the same. I phone some of my customers to unlock the back gate and still some forget.

I am now charging 75% off the clean if no access is available after i have phoned to remind them.

If i am turned away when turning up to clean then i am starting to charge 50% of the cleaning price as i now require at least 3 days notice for a cancellation.

Craig

[Paul Coleman]

hi guys,
we've all been there
not today thanx
and locked gates
.......
i have come up with this letter below to give to the offending customers and would like your opinion before i print them out,
am i being to harsh? ....... would you word it different?
don't hold back, let me have your thoughts
thanx in advance.....................


Grafters Cleaning Services


Tel: Office 023 8039 2971
Mobile 07840 183969

Dear Customer,
Firstly I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your past custom and I hope that you continue to use our services for many years to come.

As we at Grafters now find ourselves getting busier by the day (through recommendations etc)
we now find ourselves in a position whereby we are turning work away in order to clean the windows of our regular cliental.
On some occasions when we turn up 1 or 2 customers have in the past asked us to give them a miss that month, we find that we can no longer continue with this practice.
In future any customers that cancel without prior warning or do not have a valid reason for cancelling that month will be dropped from our books to allow room for other people on our waiting list to take their position.

Also on some occasions we have turned up at a property only to find we cannot gain access to the rear due to a locked gate and have had to return back at a later date, again this is a practice that we can no longer continue with.
In future we will clean all windows that are accessible to us and invoice you accordingly, should you wish to, you can leave us your phone number and we are more than happy to ring you the night before our visit so you can unlock the back gate.

We hope that you understand both the issues above and we hope to keep you on as a valued customer.



Jay
Your loyal Grafters window cleaner

Looks fair enough to me.  It's clentele by the way (getting posh aren't we?    ) .
I would go furthewr than you though.  I would request a spare key for the gate or, if they were unwilling to release a key into your charge,  suggest a combination lock to which only certain people (including you) would know the number.  Apart from a couple of jobs left over from the dark ages, I don't phone in advance.  If the job is VERY profitable I will but not for run-of-the-mill jobs.

[simon knight]

Jay, Your letter is fine but personally I wouldn't bother sending it! Just pick the phone up and tell them one-on-one where you expect better behaviour and that if they don't tow the line they can f >:(k right off!!!!

 

[poleman]

Send it as you need to get your point across and no way better than a letter 

Andy

[Mike_G]

Thats a good un. I think it says everything it needs to in a professional and polite way.

[Grafters Cleaning Services]

i think thats perfect jay, infact may i edit it and use it myself??

help yourself mac

[Grafters Cleaning Services]

hi Jay

I've been thinking of doing something like this myself.

I think your wording is fine, the only bit I would omit is the "or do not have a valid reason for cancelling that month" as you might get into some disputes with customers  as to what is considered  a valid reason.  

I've had to "sack"  3 customers this month over the " leave them this time syndrome" thanfully they have all been repaced already


Cheers

Ian

good point ian

[simon knight]

Sorry guys I can't agree!....why hide behind a letter? Surely you pick up the phone, say you're not happy and get something sorted out?

[macmac]

excellent, saves me a job. cheers jay

tony

[AuRavelling79]

It's "clientele", actually - but as you address them as Dear customer and not Dear client it's "customers".

Strictly - client is for the professions (Law, accounts, architects etc).

Malc "word-police" (G)old. 

Very good tho'!

[Helen]

Jay. good one, we do this sort of thing, but it goes out to the customers when they first join us as part of terms and conditions. Even if they don't have a call to say when we are due, they know approx when we are due and most will phone if they have a problem. I say most, because you will always get the odd few who need training to our ways To be fair we give then a couple of chances and should they still not "play the game" so to speak, then off they go. It is the time of year, when fitting it all in is a nightmare at times and we can all "go off" on one about customers, but sometimes we just need to take a step back and look at the situation from the customers point of view aswell. Saying that these sort of customers are B**** annoying!!!! at timesi

[Majestic]

I would not use the word  dropped I would put replace.
Also they may leave  the back gate open for a few cleans after the letter , then forget again.

[macc]

Hi Jay.

I think its spot on, its polite but to the point.

Macc

[Grafters Cleaning Services]

Jay, Your letter is fine but personally I wouldn't bother sending it! Just pick the phone up and tell them one-on-one where you expect better behaviour and that if they don't tow the line they can f >:(k right off!!!!

 

hi simon, i wasn't gone to post them (it would cost me a fortune) i'm going to give them to the offenders and all new customers i pick up in future

[Grafters Cleaning Services]

I would not use the word  dropped I would put replace.
Also they may leave  the back gate open for a few cleans after the letter , then forget again.

good point john

[Grafters Cleaning Services]

It's "clientele", actually - but as you address them as Dear customer and not Dear client it's "customers".

Strictly - client is for the professions (Law, accounts, architects etc).

Malc "word-police" (G)old. 

Very good tho'!

thanx malc, i have now dropped the word client and changed to customer

[Grafters Cleaning Services]

hi guys,
we've all been there
not today thanx
and locked gates
.......
i have come up with this letter below to give to the offending customers and would like your opinion before i print them out,
am i being to harsh? ....... would you word it different?
don't hold back, let me have your thoughts
thanx in advance.....................


Grafters Cleaning Services


Tel: Office 023 8039 2971
Mobile 07840 183969

Dear Customer,
Firstly I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your past custom and I hope that you continue to use our services for many years to come.

As we at Grafters now find ourselves getting busier by the day (through recommendations etc)
we now find ourselves in a position whereby we are turning work away in order to clean the windows of our regular cliental.
On some occasions when we turn up 1 or 2 customers have in the past asked us to give them a miss that month, we find that we can no longer continue with this practice.
In future any customers that cancel without prior warning or do not have a valid reason for cancelling that month will be dropped from our books to allow room for other people on our waiting list to take their position.

Also on some occasions we have turned up at a property only to find we cannot gain access to the rear due to a locked gate and have had to return back at a later date, again this is a practice that we can no longer continue with.
In future we will clean all windows that are accessible to us and invoice you accordingly, should you wish to, you can leave us your phone number and we are more than happy to ring you the night before our visit so you can unlock the back gate.

We hope that you understand both the issues above and we hope to keep you on as a valued customer.



Jay
Your loyal Grafters window cleaner

Looks fair enough to me.  It's clentele by the way (getting posh aren't we?    ) .
I would go furthewr than you though.  I would request a spare key for the gate or, if they were unwilling to release a key into your charge,  suggest a combination lock to which only certain people (including you) would know the number.  Apart from a couple of jobs left over from the dark ages, I don't phone in advance.  If the job is VERY profitable I will but not for run-of-the-mill jobs.

i can see your point shiner but the last thing i need is a great big bunch of keys weighing me down like a prison guard