Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: ben smith1234 on August 25, 2012, 04:54:48 pm
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as title says. my cousin started up his own business in weston super mare called premier carpet cleaning.
he has been busy with carpets around my area in stroud gloucestershire. hes charging 2 rooms for £26 which is good for him.
but he phoned me and asked me what kit i have at my company and the prices of it all, now he has bought the same kit and advertising in my area and undercutting my prices to get work.
nice to know my own family would step on my toes, hes charging £7 per house any size. what should i do?
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let him get on with it
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really?
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you wont lose any and he will be a busy fool
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you wont lose any and he will be a busy fool
I agree. It sounds really hard to do, but in reality, what choice have you got. If you start dropping prices to a stupid level, what then? You'll have loads of underpriced work and be a busy fool like your cousin. What happens when the next turnip rocks up and undercuts you?
You have to concentrate on your business and watch these guys come and go. Seen it all before. Keep your nerve, not easy, but that's what you have to do mate.
Most of us have been through this at least once.
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If you drop/match prices your as bad as him,smashing his van up is child's play Ffs get a life,stick to your prices is without doubt the way to go ,he won't last at them prices or will soon get ped off .
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you wont lose any and he will be a busy fool
thats very true. was just thinking it would dry up i my area
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If you drop/match prices your as bad as him,smashing his van up is child's play Ffs get a life,stick to your prices is without doubt the way to go ,he won't last at them prices or will soon get ped off .
smashing his van up was a joke. even though im mad at him for stealing my customers i wouldnt do that
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in fact i would think of putting the prices up,so it make him look even more stupid than he is. ;)
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round here in gloucestershire. people are going for price over quality of work and reputation
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Advertise in his area and canvass hard - see how he likes it ;D
As long as you are doing a good job and customers are happy I wouldn't envisage too much trouble - the ones that drop you for a cheaper clean aren't worth keeping - they'll drop him just as quick when someone else comes along cheaper
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thats very true. we all have familys to feed tho :(
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I would stick to your own prices!! and canvass his area like mad!!
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Believe me, if you drop your prices I guarantee you will resent cleaning those houses and start to hate your job
Treat it as motivation to get out there and gain as much better paid work for yourself as you can - don't just sit there and let someone else take it from you
You'll feel much better picking up well priced work while he slogging away for peanuts ;D
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Tell ye mum to batter your aunty ;)
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concentrate on your business,do something different to him?,standing orders,bacs etc but never drop prices,if you loose a few,so what
i have just lost a £14.00 job to KARCHER ;D(she doesn't realises it only works on flat glass,hers are unleaded) ;D
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Tell ye mum to batter your aunty ;)
or wait for the next funeral,wedding,have a few and lamp him one
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round here in gloucestershire. people are going for price over quality of work and reputation
Not the custies you want to keep don't; they never have and never will. It's all in your head.
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keep an eye out while you are working,see if hes spying on you and later visiting these customers and offering them a lower price
an ex employee of mine was doing this, but i found a very good way to re-claim the few i lost to him .
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concentrate on your business,do something different to him?,standing orders,bacs etc but never drop prices,if you loose a few,so what
i have just lost a £14.00 job to KARCHER ;D(she doesn't realises it only works on flat glass,hers are unleaded) ;D
I put unleaded in my car !
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round here in gloucestershire. people are going for price over quality of work and reputation
people are the same everywhere. never start a price war. he's a fool
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Some bloody cousin :o I'm buying a window round off my cousin just now he is helping me get round it & is collecting it too , I feel like I'm robbing him ffs ..guess some families are closer than others ...if my cousin pulled a stunt like yours has I'd kick the shoite out of him >:(
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we was a close family. hes just thinking about himself. business is good for me but he taking already priced up customers from me and potential customers in my area. in all fairness i get quite alot of work through facebook on a for sale,swap and wanted page which i have been advertising on for a while now. it was just out of the blue i seen him post a advert and now has 50+ customers from it.
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Put posters up saying he's a peado
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We had a guy last year do a massive leafleting campaign, offering 50% off cleans for four months. He had a really cheap (and overly simplistic) pricing structure on his leaflets. He had a nice flash van too and all the gear. He must've used a leafleting company because these leaflets were everywhere. Even a JW (and they're normally nice placid guys) was upset about it and called him "Mr fifty-percent!"
Anyway, I didn't lose a single job and I haven't seen him about in months. Funny that innit?
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Put posters up saying he's a peado
What's a pea-do? Apart from roll around your plate as you try to get them on your fork.
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Put posters up saying he's a peado
What's a pea-do? Apart from roll around your plate as you try to get them on your fork.
PEADO ~ nonce, kiddy fiddler, child molester or someone who steals other people's work by undercutting.
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round here in gloucestershire. people are going for price over quality of work and reputation
Ben.
Change your attitude. The prices and money floating around in glos is/are plentiful. If you are finding the areas you are working are prepared to drop to a cheaper cleaner then move around.
You have mentioned your cousin. Is this the same one that you worked for before as mentioned on your website?
If so then perhaps he feels that you "owe him something".
Anyway if he is prepared to travel from weston to dursley/stroud to get work then he is probably only avoiding the dole inspectors by working out of his area. At least a 40 minute drive with no traffic and £15 of fuel he wont be doing that for long. Especially at those prices.
As others have said leave him to scrabble for the customers who will dump him in a flash for another cheap offer. Talking of which lose the 20% offer on your website. If you only offer it to new customers you stand the chance of upsetting your current customers.
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Put posters up saying he's a peado
What's a pea-do? Apart from roll around your plate as you try to get them on your fork.
PEADO ~ nonce, kiddy fiddler, child molester or someone who steals other people's work by undercutting.
That's a paedo.
And it's not a good idea, anyway. You could end up in trouble pulling a stunt like that.
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This is a joke right ?
There are 40 million buildings in this country and your worried about a carpet cleaner, cleaning cheap houses in his spare time ?
I just don't get it.
From what I have seen in Weston, there is some mega money on the outskirts, and loads of industrial units, also you are only a stones throw from Wells, Bristol, clevedon, etc, even Bath, also Swindon not far away. If you cant make any money from that pool there is something seriously wrong
If i can make a living 20 miles from lands end, i am sure anyone can make more money else where
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Put posters up saying he's a peado
What's a pea-do? Apart from roll around your plate as you try to get them on your fork.
PEADO ~ nonce, kiddy fiddler, child molester or someone who steals other people's work by undercutting.
That's a paedo.
And it's not a good idea, anyway. You could end up in trouble pulling a stunt like that.
Thanks for the spelling lesson.
...only if your fingerprints are on the posters!
It's a JOKE mate.
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It's a JOKE mate.
Griff knows it's a joke; he's just winding you up.
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It's a JOKE mate.
Griff knows it's a joke; he's just winding you up.
No, he doesn't know it's a joke just as he never posts any jokes or anything funny.
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I agree with Dave. I can't understand what the fuss is about.
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This is a joke right ?
There are 40 million buildings in this country and your worried about a carpet cleaner, cleaning cheap houses in his spare time ?
I just don't get it.
From what I have seen in Weston, there is some mega money on the outskirts, and loads of industrial units, also you are only a stones throw from Wells, Bristol, clevedon, etc, even Bath, also Swindon not far away. If you cant make any money from that pool there is something seriously wrong
If i can make a living 20 miles from lands end, i am sure anyone can make more money else where
Dave
He only lives 5 miles from Prince Charles, Badminton horse trials, Jilly Cooper, jk rowley etc., etc., . There are massive properties and good paying averages all around. He needs to turn his glasses around and stop looking inwards.
Heading north towards cheltenham or east towards tetbury would prove more fruitful if you feel you need to. Oh and dont tell your cousin(s) what you're up to or they will only follow.
Andy
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do you cleaning windows spongebob ;D ;D ;D ;D
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do you cleaning windows spongebob ;D ;D ;D ;D
Yes mate but only for the stinking rich in their big houses ;D ;D.
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stick to your own prices
provide a professional service
ignore your cousin and his business and concentrate on your own
this is all you have to do mate.trust me if you do the above you ll have no problems.there are loads of guys starting up window cleaning all the time.very few stick at it and make it a viable business esp if they are charging rock bottom prices.
you can never rest on your laurels in this business!keep working hard and as long as your not massively overcharging and have sensible fair prices you ll thrive and he ll go to the wall very soon.
best wishes
dazmond
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thanx for all the comments. im taking all the advice in. also the 20% off for new customers is just to get them in and i look after my good paying customers :)
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DIS-OWN him first and foremost, tell all your customers by dropping them a note on each clean, that gypsies are canvassing in your area,... pretending to be window cleaners so they can snoop on your property..... wont be long before he gets the message via the police.
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stick to your own prices
provide a professional service
ignore your cousin and his business and concentrate on your own
this is all you have to do mate.trust me if you do the above you ll have no problems.there are loads of guys starting up window cleaning all the time.very few stick at it and make it a viable business esp if they are charging rock bottom prices.
you can never rest on your laurels in this business!keep working hard and as long as your not massively overcharging and have sensible fair prices you ll thrive and he ll go to the wall very soon.
best wishes
dazmond
Excellent advice.
John
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round here in gloucestershire. people are going for price over quality of work and reputation
Not the custies you want to keep don't; they never have and never will. It's all in your head.
very true,
yes its sad that your family member is doing this indeed..however as said before, he is going to be a busy fool how many x custies could he take up a day 1-3? how many could you canvass all day 7-15? . it will open you up to a new world let go of those custies, the funny thing is he is gona think he was clever nicking them off you but in the end you will have the last laugh. ignor him dont let him know you are ped off. let him work a detached house with conny for £7 there is a reason why the price is more and it aint cos you are over charging because if you did what he was doing only a matter of time before he packs the job in...
ever canvassed a street where the window cleaner was charging half the price you did and they say "oh he just stoped coming round" thats what will happen.