Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: lee_dewing on July 04, 2012, 12:42:24 am
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Been going 7 yrs on my; 6 yrs wfp.
Never been keen working in rain but getting fed up of running behind schedule.
And if rain on/off light/drizzle then why not?
Put this letter out today; after custies went in as coward and to be honest if i had got into discussion would have taken twice as long.
Also had 1 is it worth it? So said upto you? see you next time, but she said ok then do it.
Another wanted me to come back when it was sunny ::)
But see you next time; and said ok do it.
Plan to give everyone this letter, watch this pace I'l let you know if i still have a round next month :D
PLEASE READ
A letter from Lee your Window Cleaner.
Dear Customer just to let you know
I am now working Saturdays to
provide a more regular service,
I should visit on a calendar month (4.3 weeks).
Unfortunately the last few winters and now the excessively wet spring and summer have caused large delays to my schedule and great financial difficulty
for myself and family.
So I have also decided to now work more in wet weather.
(Obviously not Heavy Rain!).
I guarantee my work, so if you my valued customer were ever to be unhappy with the finish to your windows after they have dried, then please call me to re-clean any offending window(s).
If I do not start working this way now,
then I will be out of business by this time next year. (Bit dramatic ;D)
I am running a legitimate business which means this is my sole source of income.
Thank you for your custom and taking the time to read this letter.
Lee the window cleaner, Mobile:
Ps. Thats it did in 10 mins this morning before going out, forgot to add the mrs gets made redundant august :(
Tired of people trying to run my round, (probably been too accomadating in the past) now my round has grown to 220 custies and taking 6 weeks to get round, (do school runs to)
Want to shave timescale back down and enjoy more money in my pocket.
If anyone is adamant they don't want it done then it's just a case of leave it til next time, especially if custie is having work on house and wont let me do then (i understand)
But wanting you to come back next week etc, is a pita.
Lee
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Forgot to say put this lettet out to all custies today.
regardless of Friendly, miserable or akward custie.
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Work in the rain, Saturdays, Sundays or Bank Holidays, if you want, Lee.
Some will tell you you shouldn't but they won't be providing for your family, will they?
Good luck with it :).
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i wouldnt have written but fair play to you they might like a letter to read over coffee
me and my lot work in all weathers ,even in a gale theres always houses tucked up sideroads . out of hundreds i can only remember 1 who turned me away once and it was a bit ridiculous as it was tipping it down so i agreed with her
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good luck brilliant letter well done
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Good on you Lee its your business to run the way that does best for you.Some times we give the customer to much power in the way we run our business.Taken back that power can be difficult but stick to your guns with out exception.The customer is not going to feed your kids on pay your bills.
The custy should only be involved in the results of what we do not the operations.
If more windy would put there foot down we would enjoy a better industry and get respect for what we do.Good luck.
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how embarassing . it sounds like a begging letter . rain gaurantees and letters, not once in 28 years .some windys are totally petrified of there custys . just go out and clean there windows , in the rain and without warning . you might be surprised .
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i must admit this is my approach just clean windows and juggle my round accordingly sometimes a 6 weekly done after 5 weeks sometimes after 8 weeks depends on how it falls MY terms and conditions on the back of the invoice ... i believe it is such a simple stress free approach it is one of the reasons i love this work
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Barry maybe your right.
I have been too acommadating and made a rod for my own back ::)
Just thought it was a good way to get on track, my mrs thought it was a waste of time and maybe the letters will be lining the bin in seconds.
I can't make the custie have it done.
All i can say is see you next time.
I'm am nervous doing it as i could lose a bit of work, could afford to lose 20%
But when converted to wfp thought i'd lose loads probably under 10 custies in reality.
As said mrs being made redundant and can't afford too many more wet weeks.
I don't want to be the window cleaner that's scraping a living anymore; my turnover is the same roughly every year no matter how many extra hours i try to squeeze in.
March was one of my best months ever followed by april one of my worst months ever.
Thanks for all your comments Guys
Just gonna print off my next batch of letters for today ;)
Lee
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Hi Lee
Sorry to hear wife being made redundant mine is too end of July following on from me on the 14th May - local authories axe falling.
Have you considered her working with you?
It would help you catch up and keep up and as with my missus she only ever works part-time and the pay for part-timers is usually miserly - can earn much more on the windows - perfect part-time job.
Plus customers love the women - gets more offers of inside cleaning - plus moral support for you when weather is dodgy.
G.
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leave the bit out about financial difficulties it gives the wrong
impression
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seriously lee just clean and stop worrying!im straight up with my work and i have 340+ customers mostly monthly cleans and some big houses and a few commercial in that 340.
ive also been able to squeeze a few conny roof/fascia cleans in as well plus i only work 25-30 hours a week "on the glass".
its all about your attitude and the way you conduct yourself when dealing with customers.my customers are that used to me turning up in rain most of them never bat an eyelid these days.
i think the letter is a bad idea.i agree with barry it sounds like a desperate begging letter.not the sort of impression you want to give to customers IMO.
GET YOURSELF SOME GORETEX BOOTS AND JACKET AND CRACK ON!!!if customers say anything explain the rain guarantee and that you would go out of business if you stopped working every time it rained.i sometimes get a "not today"thats fine but they wont get cleaned until next month.then move onto the next job.
if your round is mainly WFP its easy to work in the rain IMO.
when i was trad only this weather would be a nightmare and i would be miles behind with work!REMEMBER YOU HAVE THE MAGIC WAND THAT ALLOWS YOU TO WORK IN ANY WEATHER!!! :D :D :D :D :D :D :D
regards
dazmond
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I like the idea of writting a letter of explaination, if the custies arent used to seeing you in wet weather.
But i think your letter is a little long winded.
I agree that you shouldnt put the financial piece in to.
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My attempt:
Dear Customer,
Change to my wet-weather policy.
With immediate effect I shall be working in the rain. The PureWater system that I use is the market leader. PureWater is used by NASA on its space exploration program. There is no better system on this planet (geddit).
If you have any queries or concerns please let me know when we next meet, we can discuss it over a cup of tea and a bourbon biscuit.
PureWater; one small step for man, one giant leap for your Window Cleaner.
Regards
Andy.
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how embarassing . it sounds like a begging letter . rain gaurantees and letters, not once in 28 years .some windys are totally petrified of there custys . just go out and clean there windows , in the rain and without warning . you might be surprised .
+1
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It does sound like you are asking permission.
Just do it and deal with those who complain.
Yesterday most were sympathetic and realised I just needed to get on with it.
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Thanks for all the feed back.
I like the letter as it is.
Explains what i'm doing and why maybe slightly dramatic, but now ithink is the perfect time to give it out as everyone is saying you must be struggling.
Yes I am :'(
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IMHO .... just get out there and do it.
If anyone objects just say fine no problem see you next month .............. if they ask can you come back on Friday when its not going to rain then just say no sorry as will be in somewhereelsetown then .... so ur telling them in a nice way its now or next month.
I have a theory that messers love the rain as gives them (in their eyes) a valid reason to say not today thanks.
You need to bin ALL you not todays if your going to have a great round ... takes time to weed em out once you have ditched all the messers that you have already identified ... you know who they are ;)
So onto part 2 ............... as you will be culling a few customers you will need somemore .... if only your missus had some spare time ..... oh hang on she will have come August ;)
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Thanks Ian.
Off out to upset some custies ;D
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Thanks Ian.
Off out to upset some custies ;D
Get the missus working with you Lee - it's worked well for us. :D
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...obviously the letters a good start. My thoughts on presenting the fact that you worki in the wet are this, i would leave out any benefit that working in the rain has for YOU, i.e. i wouldnt mention that it helps you to keep up etc or run a good business, as this implies a compromise on the part of the customer....which in turn implies the windows are not cleaned as well in the rain. e.g. "please let me clean in the rain i need the money"
I would stick to the fact that it works, so why not work in the rain? and the work is gauranteed so there is no issue. I'm designing my "windows cleaned today" receipt, on it somewhere i will put a rain gaurantee....with a brief description of why we can clean in the rain, presenting it as an already accepted fact, rather than a point they can challenge you on.
Another thing i am going to start talking about verbally with customers was tipped to me by a very experienced window cleaner.......they said to me the only reason they werent cleaned when guys were trad is becuase ladders are slippery when wet!!!! I think customers can relate to this..makes it more tangeable for them. And also means they were kind of fooled in the past with their old window cleaner rather than being fooled now by you for cleaning in the rain. comments welcome.... :) :)
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IMHO .... just get out there and do it.
If anyone objects just say fine no problem see you next month .............. if they ask can you come back on Friday when its not going to rain then just say no sorry as will be in somewhereelsetown then .... so ur telling them in a nice way its now or next month.
I have a theory that messers love the rain as gives them (in their eyes) a valid reason to say not today thanks.
You need to bin ALL you not todays if your going to have a great round ... takes time to weed em out once you have ditched all the messers that you have already identified ... you know who they are ;)
So onto part 2 ............... as you will be culling a few customers you will need somemore .... if only your missus had some spare time ..... oh hang on she will have come August ;)
Good post.
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IMHO .... just get out there and do it.
If anyone objects just say fine no problem see you next month .............. if they ask can you come back on Friday when its not going to rain then just say no sorry as will be in somewhereelsetown then .... so ur telling them in a nice way its now or next month.
I have a theory that messers love the rain as gives them (in their eyes) a valid reason to say not today thanks.
You need to bin ALL you not todays if your going to have a great round ... takes time to weed em out once you have ditched all the messers that you have already identified ... you know who they are ;)
So onto part 2 ............... as you will be culling a few customers you will need somemore .... if only your missus had some spare time ..... oh hang on she will have come August ;)
Good advice
Get your missus canvassing up some new business-it will benefit both of you(she might even like getting on the glass-as per Tosh)
Good luck
Regards
Roy
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Granny, sorry to hear about you and your wife's redundancies :(
Take it your a newbie to the wonderful world of window cleaning.
Good luck. Just do the opposite to me and you'l be fine ;)
Do you work with your wife then?
Hows that going, will have to put a seperate post up about working with the wife.
Probably just end up rowing ;D
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...obviously the letters a good start. My thoughts on presenting the fact that you worki in the wet are this, i would leave out any benefit that working in the rain has for YOU, i.e. i wouldnt mention that it helps you to keep up etc or run a good business, as this implies a compromise on the part of the customer....which in turn implies the windows are not cleaned as well in the rain. e.g. "please let me clean in the rain i need the money"
I would stick to the fact that it works, so why not work in the rain? and the work is gauranteed so there is no issue. I'm designing my "windows cleaned today" receipt, on it somewhere i will put a rain gaurantee....with a brief description of why we can clean in the rain, presenting it as an already accepted fact, rather than a point they can challenge you on.
Another thing i am going to start talking about verbally with customers was tipped to me by a very experienced window cleaner.......they said to me the only reason they werent cleaned when guys were trad is becuase ladders are slippery when wet!!!! I think customers can relate to this..makes it more tangeable for them. And also means they were kind of fooled in the past with their old window cleaner rather than being fooled now by you for cleaning in the rain. comments welcome.... :) :)
Very good advice.
Last week and this have been the first times I have deliberately gone out to clean windows when it was already raining. There have been times in the past when I have carried on and finished off when out cleaning and rain has started but this was new to me. I just got sick of staring outside hoping the rain would stop so I could go and do some work.
I got myself some decent waterproofs and boots and the rain isn't going to stop me again - period. Most custys this week felt sorry for me cleaning in that weather - I explained my rain guarantee and no-one had a problem. If custys don't like it then I'm afraid they are going to end up dropped. I am the professional/expert (well nearly ;D) and I can decide when it is acceptable weather to produce an acceptable standard of clean.
I can't be having them telling me how to do my job - would they nip in the garage and start telling the mechanic how they prefer their car to be serviced or the type of oil they should be using - no, it would happen, ever.
Sorry, went on a bit of a rant there - feel better now - going for a lie down ;D
Tom
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IMHO .... just get out there and do it.
If anyone objects just say fine no problem see you next month .............. if they ask can you come back on Friday when its not going to rain then just say no sorry as will be in somewhereelsetown then .... so ur telling them in a nice way its now or next month.
I have a theory that messers love the rain as gives them (in their eyes) a valid reason to say not today thanks.
You need to bin ALL you not todays if your going to have a great round ... takes time to weed em out once you have ditched all the messers that you have already identified ... you know who they are ;)
So onto part 2 ............... as you will be culling a few customers you will need somemore .... if only your missus had some spare time ..... oh hang on she will have come August ;)
i think ians right here. there really is no need for this type of letter.
firstly, great decision to work in the rain. i have never not worked because of the weather even when it is bucketing it down, in the snow, or in the gales we had. there's no need. customers dont say a thing, and if they do they seem pretty impressed that we're so regular and hard working.
customers dont need to know you might be working on saturdays. just turn up and clean.
customers dont need to be pre warned you'll be cleaning in the rain. just turn up and clean.
i worry you re creating problems for yourself by raising it as an issue. customers may now get in touch if they dont like it! if you didnt write the letter most of them wouldnt notice, wouldnt mind, or wouldnt say anything. the ones that do say something, will just be checking it out with you. so long as you give them a good explanatino theyll be fine with it.
also you want to focus your explanations on the benefit to the customer. by the way you write the letter, mentioning financial difficulties, you are saying you are cleaning in the rain because of these difficulties. the reason should be that the process works just as well, or better in the rain (and youll come back if it doesnt).
good luck :)
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Hi Richard,
I think imo, i'm just being honest.
If they don't want it doing in the rain you can't make em.
I work because I need the money we all do.
I made a mistake when I started by being to accomadating, I'm trying to address that now.
I don't want to just show up on saturdays and in the rain without informing people first, will probably end up in lengthy disscusion/arguement.
Maybe I have got a low opinion of myself but I am a window cleaner and I don't think people find me that important.
Yes if they have a problem they will phone me or address it next time and i'l deal with it.
Bayview the reason most people don't tell the mechanic his job is because they don't understand it and wouldn't have a clue how to do it.
Most people can clean their own windows but are too lazy or don't fancy risking it on a ladder,
But the reason they can; is why unfortunately some like to try and tell us what to do.
Thanks for your views guys I see many see it as a begging letter as said I think I'm just telling it how it is,
I think most people appreciate the truth.
thanks Lee.
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I think you are making a rod for your own back. Sensitising people to something they may never have thought about.
The ones who don't want you to clean in the rain are not going to change their mind. They are also not responsible for your family.
Bad weather is a fact of life, you can't be a window cleaner in Britain and moan about the weather.
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True about the weather, will see soon enough putting letters out.
Ian lancaster does it re-working in the rain and puts rain gaurantee through the door before custie has chance to open door and moan.
I think he knows what his doing.
I have worked for most of my custies from 3 to 8 years.
I think i'l be o.k
Did letters explaining wfp system before i started it.
Had a bit of opposition most excepted it.