Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: Wc Solutions on October 10, 2010, 06:04:30 pm
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doing my head in!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
we phone up to book in the days work and im finding that 1 in 3 are saying can you leave it this month...
now this isnt customer that dont have a fair bob or 2 or even 3. all big money customers ....
doing my head in big time, this carrys on we are gonna have to let staff go ....
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to he honest i find i have more problems with the money people than council houses, a lot of the council i do are on benefits and have more cash then a lot of the private houses
as they aint running 2 cars etc
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winter coming they think in there dizzy heads less day light dont look out of windows that much
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Many years ago we used to clean weekly. Then we started getting the same thing 'leave it this week' so the general trend went to fortnightly, with the thinking being they wouldn't be so ready to skip a clean. That worked for a few years then it started again, so we all started doing it monthly, and told our customers that as we were now leaving it as long as we could between cleans, if they wouldn't have it done we would cancel them.
Now we always try to get new customers signed up to monthly cleans, but if they aren't happy we offer every other month instead.
I can see the time coming when no-one will want it done monthly, so bi-monthly will become the norm.
Keep this up for a few more years and we'll be doing it the American way: once a year >:(
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thing is if you ring up, they glance at the quite clean glass and it gives them a chance to cancel . i have only 1 customer who i ring and i really regret letting this start as they still occasionally forget to open the sidegate. next time they forget im dropping them , besides if you phone anybody to me it sounds like begging
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thing is if you ring up, they glance at the quite clean glass and it gives them a chance to cancel . i have only 1 customer who i ring and i really regret letting this start as they still occasionally forget to open the sidegate. next time they forget im dropping them , besides if you phone anybody to me it sounds like begging
i dont agree with that at all, we phone up so the gates open and money is out for us ... customers like this service and its better in some ways for us as i get pd off with turning up and then they come out and say leave it...
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Many years ago we used to clean weekly. Then we started getting the same thing 'leave it this week' so the general trend went to fortnightly, with the thinking being they wouldn't be so ready to skip a clean. That worked for a few years then it started again, so we all started doing it monthly, and told our customers that as we were now leaving it as long as we could between cleans, if they wouldn't have it done we would cancel them.
Now we always try to get new customers signed up to monthly cleans, but if they aren't happy we offer every other month instead.
I can see the time coming when no-one will want it done monthly, so bi-monthly will become the norm.
Keep this up for a few more years and we'll be doing it the American way: once a year >:(
it does appear that the younger generation of house owners/dwellers are less house pround than the older generation when it comes to windows.
I had the can you leave it this time from a custy last week cos money is tight, this after they have just had a large extention built and paid £800 for a s.h.i.t.t.i.n.g. machine ( cocker spanial )
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Suggest avoid calling . It's the perfect situation for custy to cancel.
Maybe text gate access custys only.
All others just turn up and clean.
Regards
Mr B
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Suggest avoid calling . It's the perfect situation for custy to cancel.
Maybe text gate access custys only.
All others just turn up and clean.
Regards
Mr B
so when a potential new custy requests a call the night before coming round do you refuse them ?
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i would try and not ring them gives them a reason to say leave it
but i do agree sometimes you have to i have one i do it to but thats only to leave money out as she gave us code to electric gates
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so u text them the day b4 and it peas it down the next day what do u do then ???
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i have noticed that if you can leave it till the windows are actually getting dirty, u tend not to get the not this month crap, by this i mean, i use to be every 4 weeks and to be honest the windows looked clean so started to drag out to 5/6 weeks and it seems to work better
if a custy says not this month 2 months running they dumped
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thing is if you ring up, they glance at the quite clean glass and it gives them a chance to cancel . i have only 1 customer who i ring and i really regret letting this start as they still occasionally forget to open the sidegate. next time they forget im dropping them , besides if you phone anybody to me it sounds like begging
i dont agree with that at all, we phone up so the gates open and money is out for us ... customers like this service and its better in some ways for us as i get pd off with turning up and then they come out and say leave it...
Dont mean to be funny mate, but climb over the gate instead, that way YOU earn. Who runs your business you or them?
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you just have to do them thats another reason not to do it
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Suggest avoid calling . It's the perfect situation for custy to cancel.
Maybe text gate access custys only.
All others just turn up and clean.
Regards
Mr B
so when a potential new custy requests a call the night before coming round do you refuse them ?
I just tell em we dont do that mate, good to see you again last night.
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i'd rather climb a gate than ring for "not today"
its like knocking on the doors and sayin want them cleaning yea? b4 you clean them, prob 20% would say na
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I always tell my custy's weather permitting, a little communication goes a long way and as stated they also leave payment out and access to the back of house.
also there are plenty who turn up to clean without calling and the custy still comes and and says leave it this time, so a wasted journey and fuel.
but at the end of the day its what works best for you and for me providing the best possible service includes letting my custys know the night before and the feedback from them tells me they are very pleased with this arrangement.
yes you do get one or two who make the excuse but no more than ones who w/cs turn up to without calling.
in fact by speaking to the customer on phone builds a good working relationship, I know this is not for every w/c especially the ones who find it difficult to communicate with their customers.
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i'd rather climb a gate than ring for "not today"
its like knocking on the doors and sayin want them cleaning yea? b4 you clean them, prob 20% would say na
thing is mate one slip and you fall and injure yourself have even heard about w/cs breaking limbs by climbing over gates / fences so when you weigh it up is it really worth it.
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thing is if you ring up, they glance at the quite clean glass and it gives them a chance to cancel . i have only 1 customer who i ring and i really regret letting this start as they still occasionally forget to open the sidegate. next time they forget im dropping them , besides if you phone anybody to me it sounds like begging
i dont agree with that at all, we phone up so the gates open and money is out for us ... customers like this service and its better in some ways for us as i get pd off with turning up and then they come out and say leave it...
Dont mean to be funny mate, but climb over the gate instead, that way YOU earn. Who runs your business you or them?
I started doing that,splitting my ladders , but then the hubby accused me of bending his gate when i never actually touched it. its a bit of a shame as the wife is friendly and grateful. BUT as you say , who is it running the business / best i drop em at a suitable opportunity
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Suggest avoid calling . It's the perfect situation for custy to cancel.
Maybe text gate access custys only.
All others just turn up and clean.
Regards
Mr B
so when a potential new custy requests a call the night before coming round do you refuse them ?
I just tell em we dont do that mate, good to see you again last night.
hi mate,
yes was good to see you again although I only just got my lottery on when I left which almost cost me a tenner ;D
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My other half has a hairdressing salon established 22 years,there has been a shift in the frequency of visits amongst the customer base in the last 2 years which was absorbed but the most recent 3 months shows a further decline with the same customers stretching there visits longer.
I have always maintained that an established hairdressers is a barometer of the economy and currently it reveals there is a fear behind peoples spending.Older,financially stable couples are finding more and more that they are bailing out their offspring.
Anyone cutting back reduces the non-essentials and clean windows on a house thats mainly populated after dark falls into this category. I am in the process of just getting going and am giving considerable thought as to where i am going canvassing next. Bungalows populated by the older generation at £6-£8 a time seem ideal if i could get them . My current strategy is every 6 weeks as i am hoping this will reduce the "not this time " households.
Easy for me to say rather than do but how about a "sales patter" on the not this time brigade along the lines of "due to the present economic climate we are finding many customers are choosing to extend the time betwwen cleans and we can offer this though obviously we would like to clean as normal this time and then we can facilitate cleaning at X number of weeks thereafter. However a 6 week from 4 week strategy needs 50% more customers.
1 in 3 currently wanting to skip a clean might well be a sign that ought to be acted on,involving hard work extending a customer base,keeping things tight whilst the transformation occurs(reduced hours for staff) but it might be the way to adapt to the future. Only surmising of course and i give a little sales patter now to explain 6 week frequency along the lines of " Is that bloody window cleaner here again".
If you have 6 weekly`s and they are saying not this time at a rate of 1 in 3 then i am a bit more concerned about where my future income might be coming from.
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what type of houses are saying not this month
big well paid ones, or £6 houses
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Hi Sean that's interesting.
My daughter's a self employed mobile hairdresser and has been for two years. She was a bit panicky in August as her monthly rate dropped by 25% and she even helped me out for a couple of days to top up her earnings.
However looking back at her last year's figures she dropped about 20% in August then. In fact she says bookings are really on the up for Sept/October and has worked out that a lot of it is seasonal.
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Common problem here seems to be winter months. So hindsight is needed. To cure the problem you need to have a back up plan in mind. One step ahead at all times. Sorry I know that alot of you guys wont agree, seasonal springs to mind and diversification. What can you do in winter? Its obviously a problem, so need to think ahead.
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so u text them the day b4 and it peas it down the next day what do u do then ???
Clean them?
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i'd rather climb a gate than ring for "not today"
its like knocking on the doors and sayin want them cleaning yea? b4 you clean them, prob 20% would say na
i'm not talking 30ft gates.. 5-6ft no probs ;)
thing is mate one slip and you fall and injure yourself have even heard about w/cs breaking limbs by climbing over gates / fences so when you weigh it up is it really worth it.
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Common problem here seems to be winter months. So hindsight is needed. To cure the problem you need to have a back up plan in mind. One step ahead at all times. Sorry I know that alot of you guys wont agree, seasonal springs to mind and diversification. What can you do in winter? Its obviously a problem, so need to think ahead.
I do not think it's a common problem. We all have or have had customers that like to dictate when they use us, the trick is to fill the round with customers that accept that it is your only source of income, that you work all year round and that they may get 2 or 3 cleans a year on wet days.
Bfg has a valid point about communication. Providing they know when to expect you and can rely on you, most will accept that we have to make a living. The others get dropped.
Lee
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Um then, not sure so why winter months are a problem???
If it wasnt a problem, nothing would have been said.
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Um then, not sure so why winter months are a problem???
If it wasnt a problem, nothing would have been said.
It's a problem for the new and unprepared, Kate.
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Maybe Gold,
But it stands out. There is a problem - winter months.
Its completely understandable
I agree with you too Gold "if you can work it"
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Hi Sean that's interesting.
My daughter's a self employed mobile hairdresser and has been for two years. She was a bit panicky in August as her monthly rate dropped by 25% and she even helped me out for a couple of days to top up her earnings.
However looking back at her last year's figures she dropped about 20% in August then. In fact she says bookings are really on the up for Sept/October and has worked out that a lot of it is seasonal.
Kids back to school,family holidays,ice cream vans etc. all have an effect on cash flow in August/September,kids back to school is the big one with uniforms,shoes etc. The wife is a bit "old school" and thinks a woman likes to be pampered in a salon but is well aware that as money gets tight people will opt for savings and finding a good mobile hairdresser would generally reduce the cost of the cut/colour/perm/highlights. Wish your daughter well ,sounds like her customer base is increasing,tell her never to bother with a salon,just doesn`t add up!. Got stung just over £600 for ppl music license 3 weeks ago,have prs and thought thats all was required but some nice bit of government legislation gave the ppl lot new powers last year.Dont get me started on staff,basically they are women and go away from work to have babies whilst you continue paying them and the customer base that they had go elsewhere.It kills a small salon. Stay independent or be massive,anything in between is just a hard slog that just aint worth it and i see posts on here from guys who have a better quality of life and no worse off for going alone and binning the staff.
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If 1 in three cancel, then increase your customer base by a third, and keep taking new customers till you have a core of reliable customers that require your services all year round, it might take a few years though
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Kate,
You must be a leave it today merchant if you think there is an understandable problem in the winter, there isn't. It just gets tougher but is expected and manageable.
1 in 3 is a really tough rate though.
Lee
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Might be good for you? If there wasnt an issue why are people raising it?
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Might be good for you? If there wasnt an issue why are people raising it?
Ok, no worris.
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i have a few drop in the winter, i have done every year for 4 years!
i now do a promo on offering 20% off gutter cleans, this tops us up and is a nice bonus running into xmas. signed up 12 customers last week which is well over a thousand in revenue
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1 in 3 sounds scary to me but you mention you have staff,have you taken your finger off the pulse?,could there be other reasons for this?
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it does appear that the younger generation of house owners/dwellers are less house pround than the older generation when it comes to windows.
I had the can you leave it this time from a custy last week cos money is tight, this after they have just had a large extention built and paid £800 for a s.h.i.t.t.i.n.g. machine ( cocker spanial )
I consider myself of the younger generation (33) I personally could not give a toss about my windows getting cleaned until they are dirty, Probably every 3-4 months. I generally think its the women who care about such things, But my mrs cares even less than me about the window, Probably be happy twice a year!! Not that I would suggest this to any of my customers :P
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sean i was just thinking the same mate...... staff member problem is where i would look at first, the 'not today' COULD be a result from smoking on the job, not saying thankyou for the cuppa, leaving a gate open or just not taking care. it might NOT be but 1 in 3 is terrible.
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I do not think it's a common problem. We all have or have had customers that like to dictate when they use us, the trick is to fill the round with customers that accept that it is your only source of income, that you work all year round and that they may get 2 or 3 cleans a year on wet days.
Bfg has a valid point about communication. Providing they know when to expect you and can rely on you, most will accept that we have to make a living. The others get dropped.
Lee
I agree with this mostly. I see it this way.........if you have customers who you are scared to ring incase they cancell or you just turn up so they can't then there's already a problem .You aint getting the right customers, drop them. Drop them with a smile and tell them to get back in touch when they want to get back on the round and bump the price accordingly when they do. The jist of it is never stop looking for new solid reliable customers if you're providing a solid reliable service. Don't accept any less than they would. Give ya best and expect it too!!
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I do not think it's a common problem. We all have or have had customers that like to dictate when they use us, the trick is to fill the round with customers that accept that it is your only source of income, that you work all year round and that they may get 2 or 3 cleans a year on wet days.
Bfg has a valid point about communication. Providing they know when to expect you and can rely on you, most will accept that we have to make a living. The others get dropped.
Lee
I agree with this mostly. I see it this way.........if you have customers who you are scared to ring incase they cancell or you just turn up so they can't then there's already a problem .You aint getting the right customers, drop them. Drop them with a smile and tell them to get back in touch when they want to get back on the round and bump the price accordingly when they do. The jist of it is never stop looking for new solid reliable customers if you're providing a solid reliable service. Don't accept any less than they would. Give ya best and expect it too!!
hallelujah. Thanks.
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I would them up next month and tell you cant clean their windows this month ;D see how they take that,i hate it when people say they want a regular window cleaner and all you they want is them cleaned when they cant see out of them...
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Hi Sean that's interesting.
My daughter's a self employed mobile hairdresser and has been for two years. She was a bit panicky in August as her monthly rate dropped by 25% and she even helped me out for a couple of days to top up her earnings.
However looking back at her last year's figures she dropped about 20% in August then. In fact she says bookings are really on the up for Sept/October and has worked out that a lot of it is seasonal.
I find an August dip to be pretty normal. I clean as many windows but the cashflow is tighter because of delayed payments due to holidays. In a business like hairdressing where the customer (obviously) has to be around to get the service, it would easily translate to a drop in turnover. This is yet another reason why pre-notifying window cleaning customers is something I've largely shied away from. Customer on holiday = no access = no money. No problem if there are gaps in the work but money loss if working flat out.
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As with all things in business..if you watch the business closely enough and over time you will see small trends occurring and perhaps re-occurring.
With each customer that wants the winter skip...go out as soon as you know about it and get 2 customers for that 'skipper'...
Nobody likes it but it's a part of the game....see it that way and not as a personal issue.
Cheers
Dave.
ps easier said than done.
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How long have you been Window Cleaning? And how long phoning ahead?
I think to offer the phone ahead service the price needs to be premium. (See my site)
General monthly cleaning you could simply send an email or text as then they would have to do something in order to cancel rather than just respond to your call.
Window cleaners never used to call before hand, I still only do this on premium customers.
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ive been window cleaning for 16 years and never get more than a handful every year saying "not this time".usually its because of a impending holiday and /or building work etc,etc.
i only text/ring the odd one for access.ive NEVER had one of these custies say"leave it this time"!!
nearly all my custies are 4 weekly.
what frequency are your cleans and are you too expensive for the frequency of the clean?
due to bad weather and shorter days in winter the odd "not today"doesnt affect me really.most of my custies ive cleaned for years ALL YEAR ROUND with no problems whatsoever.
dazmond
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Might be good for you? If there wasnt an issue why are people raising it?
The initial post did not mention winter months and the comment of "letting staff go" does not suggest that this is happening just recently! It has developed into "winter months"
Phoning ahead for gate access when you have staff is a MUST. It's obvious why so won't go there.
Winter custies have never been a problem as when taken on, it's explained "all year round" or not at all.
The "issue" we all have to face is that there is an economic crisis! From rich to poor custies, they have all got used to living to their means and in some ways everyone will be hit by cutbacks.
It is true that there will always be someone who wants a window cleaner, but it is also very true that having your windows cleaned is a "luxury" service that in all honesty when money is short, is not required!
1 in 3 does seem to be very high though and if I were you I would speak to these again and ask if they want to extend the frequency of cleans. Of course this would be an increase of some sorts to them, but "selling " it over the yearly cost is the best way. :)
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I avoid locked gates , so i only have to have contact with them after the clean....
for the money.
If i asked all my customers , if they wanted them cleaned this month, i bet 50% would say no.
It has to be done with some of you i know, ... but a couple of years ago ,i text lots fo customers to leave gates open etc, ...
it was a nusiance,as they replied ok !... then the gate was locked !.... they forgot!
i dont think !
Also it gave them the opportunity to say leave it this month, ..
i tend to do locked gates as a "one off " clean , and its priced accordingly ,as generally they are other cleaners cast off ,s .
problems.
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ive got so many custies, im glad when they skip, gives me a chance to catch up! i dont think ive managed to get all my custs in their specified week since may!
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love it dirty boy. i thought i was the only one not getting to my custies right on time..... everyone talks about f&s cleans gutter cleaning etc. i just love cleaning windows and dont have time for anything else :D except the family ;)
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ive been window cleaning for 16 years and never get more than a handful every year saying "not this time".usually its because of a impending holiday and /or building work etc,etc.
i only text/ring the odd one for access.ive NEVER had one of these custies say"leave it this time"!!
nearly all my custies are 4 weekly.
what frequency are your cleans and are you too expensive for the frequency of the clean?
due to bad weather and shorter days in winter the odd "not today"doesnt affect me really.most of my custies ive cleaned for years ALL YEAR ROUND with no problems whatsoever.
dazmond
I think you got a good point there Dazmond.
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I agree many on here charge an awful lot for what they provide and wonder why they lose customers, to undercutting or winter or all manner of other excuses