[dave_carroll]

please help, i'm waiting delivery of my trolly system, at the moment i'm 100% residential and so far my customers are as excited as me (another post, different forum), any way there is a new office/science park being put up locally, loads of glass, some 'ladderable' but a lot is glass wall construction. my first target is the onsite cafe, this is on a corner plot, so consists of two walls one of 50 panels, one of 40 panels, each panel approx 1 metre square.
   when i started out i made the mistake of pitching my prices too low, i don't want to do that again, yet i don't want to scare them off either. come on lads help a new boy out. all posts will be eagerly read.
     thanks in advance
                            swamps

[riz]

Hi Swamps,

If it is on the ground floor and easily accessable £1 per window=  £90, then see how long it will take you, how long to set up, travel times and how often they want it done if 90 seems to little add a tenner or so or if to much drop it down.

Regards
Paul

[dave_carroll]

riz,
    thanks for the tips, i was thinking along the lines of betwwen 50-70p/panel but £1 sounds nice to me  , only 2 1/2 miles away en route to my main work area. set up time should be minimal as i can park within feet of the place.
                     thanks again
                                           swamps

[Polepro]

Dave,

You won't be as competitive as someone with a van mounted system, there is about 100 sq mtrs to be cleaned and your trolley holds about 50ltrs. You'll have to stop for a top up at least once probably twice, the guy with the van mount won't. You may get the job at £90 but the guy with the van mount will charge £45 and be done in 15mins, he may even pick up the rest of the Park.

You need to work smarter not harder pitch your prices with growth in mind.

Tom

[dave_carroll]

tom,
      yes i understand that, i will be carrying 100 litres, also i've never seen a 'poleman' in my area so i'm hoping to be the first, get in with a bit of novelty value (perhaps wear a clowns suit aswell  ). then progress up to a trailer/van mount, but like i said earlyer i'm 100% domestic @ present so a trolly suits my present needs whereas a van mount brings its own set of problems for domestics.
              thanks
                              swamps

[Polepro]

Dave,

I understand that its horses for courses, but if you price the work to get it and keep it you'll find that your business will grow more rapidly. You'll earn more doing commercial so the van mount can come later, but only if you get the work for it.

Tom

[dave_carroll]

tom,
      i think we're talking the same language here, the reply from riz quoting £1/panel i was shocked @ such a high price, even my thought of 50-70p/panel i was thinking as nicely ambitious, could drop it slightly to get a foot hold in the area as well you know you pick up more work by being seen.
                      swamps

[Polepro]

Swamps,

You're on the right track.

Tom

[dave_carroll]

tom,
      thanks
                    swamps

[Spoonbill1970]

(perhaps wear a clowns suit aswell  ).

Hi Swamps,

Not such a bad idea!  Bloke round our way dressed up in red overalls when he started 20 years ago and it got him noticed! Now has most of the shops in our town centre.

JSP.

PS Waiting on my wfp trolley too   - as excited as excited thing too!

[elfords]

I do not think it is wise to drop your prices to get a foot hold, as you will regret it later when you have considerable work all under-priced and find yourself in a difficult position when it comes to trying to increase your prices to the going rate. Not to mention upsetting your local friendly competitors! Start off as you mean to go on charging the going rate as there is plenty of work out there for all  the professionals let the `make a bit of cash summer boys` charge the cheap rates and be around to pick up there work long after they have left town!

Good Luck

[highwash]

elford is right - false economy to get work by pricing un-realistically.whatever you charge the client always requires a good job done. price your time professionally and keep to a good standard. my motto: -
quality service - sensible prices

[riz]

I say no more.

[dave_carroll]

all above,
                 well thats me well & truly put into place, i thank you all for your input & time.
        swamps

[simonb]

If you price high you can always come down but going up is a lot more difficult.
Once you are established you are unlikely to lose on price because you are 'known', they like you(maybe!) etc
If they are honourable they will tell you if they have a better price and THEN you can come down.
I do loads of commercial work and I have NEVER LOST an established customer on price.
Simon

[Craig_Mawlam]

When considering bigger commercial contracts you have to remember that most customers see window cleaning as an overhead that has little value in terms of aiding the sale of their goods or services. Also because of the frequent changes in staff and the desire of new people in the role of procurement to demonstrate that they can save their company money, they attach very little emotion to the decision about which supplier they use so long as they are cheap and safe.

The skill and experience of the contractor will determine how much money can be made from this situation. At the top end I'm talking about contracts worth 100K plus pa, but even contracts with an annual value of 2-3k require the same philosophy. Working on Residential, Pubs, shops and small business premises you may get your turnover up to 150K, get into commercial and do it well and we are talking 1 million plus. It goes without saying that the second business owner will make a better living otherwise he would not be doing it, and remember he probably started where you are now.

If you want to learn more about making the transition from residential to commercial window cleaning try a BWCA marketing course.

Regards

Craig Mawlam
Internal Verifier
BWCA City & Guilds NVQ Centre
0800 146133

[windows_chepstow]

Sorry mate, that sounds like a sales pitch to me.

Chepstow_Windows.

[Craig_Mawlam]

Hi Chepstow,

True I made a pitch at the end, but at the beginning I gave a little. Essentially what I went on to say was if you wanted to know more on the subject then further learning is available.

Craig

[choice.clean]

have you got a date yet for the course craig as some guys were complaining that they had paid there money but not had any communication about the date.

[Craig_Mawlam]

A sheet detailing all of the course dates was sent out with each literature pack and entry form. On the form it asks candidates to indicate their desired date for training. One or two have come back without the dates being indicated. There has been a good response and demand for courses has been high. The next available course dates are in July but we wanted to see if there were any cancellations of postponements before allocating dates to those who had not indicated which date they required. I see that this has become an issue therefore I shall ensure that anyone who has not had a date allocated will be informed of a course date by the end of next week.

Thank You

Craig