Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: Richard iSparkle on March 06, 2015, 08:32:53 pm
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I am considering trying cleaner planner... is it really worth paying £15 a month ongoing for?
I have 1 van and 2 employees currently, and am using WCpro..
would be interested in hearing from some of the other employers particularly...
Thanks
R
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A very good friend of mine uses WCP well did.
Same boat as you.
Obsessed with CP like me now.
I think because (in reason) you can ask for whatever you want to be added and rob will do his best to make it happen.
Go for it.
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A very good friend of mine uses WCP well did.
Same boat as you.
Obsessed with CP like me now.
I think because (in reason) you can ask for whatever you want to be added and rob will do his best to make it happen.
Go for it.
thanks for the info... what are the advantages that you get from using it?
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I am considering trying cleaner planner... is it really worth paying £15 a month ongoing for?
I have 1 van and 2 employees currently, and am using WCpro..
would be interested in hearing from some of the other employers particularly...
Thanks
R
Yes it is :)
I find it really good - it saves me a lot of time compared to the previous software I was using.
Just this week I asked Rob if we could add a feature to make it even more 'managing agent friendly' and he has already done it ready for use on Monday.
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Just do it. 1 month free trial, can't go wrong.
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Yes it is :)
I find it really good - it saves me a lot of time compared to the previous software I was using.
Just this week I asked Rob if we could add a feature to make it even more 'managing agent friendly' and he has already done it ready for use on Monday.
cheers Alex,
which feature save you time please?
it has a lot of stuff that's not so relevant to me (Go careless, texting etc etc)...
do your WCs work off smartphones or paper?
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yep definitely the way forward... not only a brilliant piece of software but also comes with excellent support.
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Just do it. 1 month free trial, can't go wrong.
cheers Soupy... what features of it make the biggest difference for you?
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Yes it is :)
I find it really good - it saves me a lot of time compared to the previous software I was using.
Just this week I asked Rob if we could add a feature to make it even more 'managing agent friendly' and he has already done it ready for use on Monday.
cheers Alex,
which feature save you time please?
it has a lot of stuff that's not so relevant to me (Go careless, texting etc etc)...
do your WCs work off smartphones or paper?
The main thing for me is the ability to email the invoice direct from the system. Once a client has an email address logged all properties that you clean for them can be invoiced and sent with just a few clicks from the worksheet. Most of my work is commercial managed properties and they all need invoicing, so for me this is a big plus.
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Yes it is :)
I find it really good - it saves me a lot of time compared to the previous software I was using.
Just this week I asked Rob if we could add a feature to make it even more 'managing agent friendly' and he has already done it ready for use on Monday.
cheers Alex,
which feature save you time please?
it has a lot of stuff that's not so relevant to me (Go careless, texting etc etc)...
do your WCs work off smartphones or paper?
The main thing for me is the ability to email the invoice direct from the system. Once a client has an email address logged all properties that you clean for them can be invoiced and sent with just a few clicks from the worksheet. Most of my work is commercial managed properties and they all need invoicing, so for me this is a big plus.
thanks Alex. I appreciate your help.
R
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For me the main advantage of Cleaner Planner is it's accuracy and reporting ability. It appeals to my ocd nature.
I don't understand why you'd not be interested in gocardless or text messages though. It's these type of features that - for me - make cleaner planner head and shoulders above the rest. Once set up these features save me heaps of time and are excellent for giving the impression to customers that I'm super professional and know what I'm doing.
I definitely feel that I get my money's worth. I don't think that there is another software package out there that offers even half the support.
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For me the main advantage of Cleaner Planner is it's accuracy and reporting ability. It appeals to my ocd nature.
I don't understand why you'd not be interested in gocardless or text messages though. It's these type of features that - for me - make cleaner planner head and shoulders above the rest. Once set up these features save me heaps of time and are excellent for giving the impression to customers that I'm super professional and know what I'm doing.
I definitely feel that I get my money's worth. I don't think that there is another software package out there that offers even half the support.
Cheers Soupy. Thanks for the input
I use a different direct debit provider which is better than Go Cardless for my needs. More expensive, but much better for us.
I also use a different text service that is better suited for my business too..
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For me the main advantage of Cleaner Planner is it's accuracy and reporting ability. It appeals to my ocd nature.
I don't understand why you'd not be interested in gocardless or text messages though. It's these type of features that - for me - make cleaner planner head and shoulders above the rest. Once set up these features save me heaps of time and are excellent for giving the impression to customers that I'm super professional and know what I'm doing.
I definitely feel that I get my money's worth. I don't think that there is another software package out there that offers even half the support.
Cheers Soupy. Thanks for the input
I use a different direct debit provider which is better than Go Cardless for my needs. More expensive, but much better for us.
I also use a different text service that is better suited for my business too..
Would you mind starting a thread on your direct debit provider please, Richard?
Specifically, who it is? Why they're better? And the ways that GoCardLess fall short in comparison?
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I tried the trial and couldn't get on with it at all!!
I like George it does everything I need to run my business and its a lot cheaper as well..
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For me the main advantage of Cleaner Planner is it's accuracy and reporting ability. It appeals to my ocd nature.
I don't understand why you'd not be interested in gocardless or text messages though. It's these type of features that - for me - make cleaner planner head and shoulders above the rest. Once set up these features save me heaps of time and are excellent for giving the impression to customers that I'm super professional and know what I'm doing.
I definitely feel that I get my money's worth. I don't think that there is another software package out there that offers even half the support.
Cheers Soupy. Thanks for the input
I use a different direct debit provider which is better than Go Cardless for my needs. More expensive, but much better for us.
I also use a different text service that is better suited for my business too..
Would you mind starting a thread on your direct debit provider please, Richard?
Specifically, who it is? Why they're better? And the ways that GoCardLess fall short in comparison?
We use SmartDebit... more expensive but has advantages we like.. We can sign customers up for DD over the phone, which is a huge advantage. We make all new customers setup a DD before we will clean them.
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Is it still worksheet based? The thing I didn't like was not being able to schedule with the planner directly. It seemed less intuitive on the whole than Aworka. That said, the thing that stopped me putting more time into it was a loss of consistency in financial records but I'm going limited on 1st April so it's a fresh start & thinking about having another go.
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Just try it I was using WCP for 4 years I thought at first just a extra bill then I tried it but couldn't keep both databases up then recently due to further expansion and spending too much time doing admin so gave it another go and wouldnt look back now texting and calling function knocks off 10 minutes a day on its own then theres printing of worksheets and writing notes and then the time I save having to upload all worksheets at the end of the day also it holds all of us individually accountable if something is inputed wrong and its great for tracking staff totals particuarly useful if you offer bonus incentives etc and its great for keeping accurate accounts I think its well worth the £25 a month and top of all THE SUPPORT! just try it :)
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Is it still worksheet based? The thing I didn't like was not being able to schedule with the planner directly. It seemed less intuitive on the whole than Aworka. That said, the thing that stopped me putting more time into it was a loss of consistency in financial records but I'm going limited on 1st April so it's a fresh start & thinking about having another go.
Loss in consistency Of records?
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Is it still worksheet based? The thing I didn't like was not being able to schedule with the planner directly. It seemed less intuitive on the whole than Aworka. That said, the thing that stopped me putting more time into it was a loss of consistency in financial records but I'm going limited on 1st April so it's a fresh start & thinking about having another go.
Loss in consistency Of records?
+1
???
I've certainly not seen a loss in consistency of records.
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For me the main advantage of Cleaner Planner is it's accuracy and reporting ability. It appeals to my ocd nature.
I don't understand why you'd not be interested in gocardless or text messages though. It's these type of features that - for me - make cleaner planner head and shoulders above the rest. Once set up these features save me heaps of time and are excellent for giving the impression to customers that I'm super professional and know what I'm doing.
I definitely feel that I get my money's worth. I don't think that there is another software package out there that offers even half the support.
Cheers Soupy. Thanks for the input
I use a different direct debit provider which is better than Go Cardless for my needs. More expensive, but much better for us.
I also use a different text service that is better suited for my business too..
Would you mind starting a thread on your direct debit provider please, Richard?
Specifically, who it is? Why they're better? And the ways that GoCardLess fall short in comparison?
We use SmartDebit... more expensive but has advantages we like.. We can sign customers up for DD over the phone, which is a huge advantage. We make all new customers setup a DD before we will clean them.
Are there any other benefits?
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We use SmartDebit... more expensive but has advantages we like.. We can sign customers up for DD over the phone, which is a huge advantage. We make all new customers setup a DD before we will clean them.
I'm pretty sure you could do that with Go Cardless too, if you wanted. I've never tried tough so maybe not. I don't see any advantage in it TBH. With Cleaner Planner + Go Cardless you just install Rob's widget on your website and the customer does it. Once signed up you just need to press a button and payment is taken. There is even talk of a fully automated feature that starts the payment when you have marked off the job as done, meaning that you have no work to do whatsoever.
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Is it still worksheet based? The thing I didn't like was not being able to schedule with the planner directly. It seemed less intuitive on the whole than Aworka. That said, the thing that stopped me putting more time into it was a loss of consistency in financial records but I'm going limited on 1st April so it's a fresh start & thinking about having another go.
Loss in consistency Of records?
Not very important really. I just liked to track easily in Aworka growth. The records won't be lost, they just can't be imported into CP. The main problem for me was that you couldn't plan and schedule on the daily planner. Basically the fact that you had to make worksheets rather than the worksheet just being the output from the daily planner if that makes sense.
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I tried the trial and couldn't get on with it at all!!
I like George it does everything I need to run my business and its a lot cheaper as well..
Same here
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I have asked rob about a projection forecast if that's what your referring too? as I really miss the feature WCP had it and its great for just tracking roughly how your doing etc (or will be) that is the only downside that it doesn't bring across the old data but because I have wcp on my laptop still I can just refer to that if I need
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I see what you mean, loss of historical records rather than cleaner planner being inconsistent.
The worksheets took a bit of getting used to for me too, and from what I gather from the forum they are used in different ways by different people.
Once you get used to it I'm certain you will find a way that suits you. I don't use the planner at all yet, my old software was set out more like the jobs page so that is how I've been using it so far. The software is very versatile and has been set up in such a way as to cater to people coming from a variety of different software packages.
I haven't fully converted over yet, it has taken me a long time to get everything set up properly, setting all the customers up for SMS reminders, merging 'jobs' into 'customers' and training the lads on using the system has taken time. I still need to switch my invoicing over to cleaner planner but once that's done I'm pretty much there.
If I'm 100% honest there are some things that my old software did that are missing from cleaner planner. Having to 'pitch' my ideas which then 'compete' with scores of other window cleaner's ideas can be frustrating but I am confident that my ideas are the best and will inevitably be implemented ;D
Now that I have a handle on the software I am convinced that it is going to be a big step for the industry as a whole. It adds a level of perceived professionalism that isn't there anywhere else. In my opinion a lack of perceived professionalism is a major issue for you, me and every other shiner who isn't on the dole or on the rob.
Some of the ideas that Rob (and other, lesser mortals) come up with are great. The future is bright, the future is cleaner planner.
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I see what you mean, loss of historical records rather than cleaner planner being inconsistent.
The worksheets took a bit of getting used to for me too, and from what I gather from the forum they are used in different ways by different people.
Once you get used to it I'm certain you will find a way that suits you. I don't use the planner at all yet, my old software was set out more like the jobs page so that is how I've been using it so far. The software is very versatile and has been set up in such a way as to cater to people coming from a variety of different software packages.
I haven't fully converted over yet, it has taken me a long time to get everything set up properly, setting all the customers up for SMS reminders, merging 'jobs' into 'customers' and training the lads on using the system has taken time. I still need to switch my invoicing over to cleaner planner but once that's done I'm pretty much there.
If I'm 100% honest there are some things that my old software did that are missing from cleaner planner. Having to 'pitch' my ideas which then 'compete' with scores of other window cleaner's ideas can be frustrating but I am confident that my ideas are the best and will inevitably be implemented ;D
Now that I have a handle on the software I am convinced that it is going to be a big step for the industry as a whole. It adds a level of perceived professionalism that isn't there anywhere else. In my opinion a lack of perceived professionalism is a major issue for you, me and every other shiner who isn't on the dole or on the rob.
Some of the ideas that Rob (and other, lesser mortals) come up with are great. The future is bright, the future is cleaner planner.
The future is bright, the future is cleaner planner.
Well said ;D
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well said Soupy :)
Seriously though if you think that CP is missing something you like, well all you need to do is post the problem on CP forum and what de ye know Rob has implemented the solution usually within a week.
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what i am saying is , that CP fits any window cleaning business and the big businesses
all the simple operating issues were better then the competitors from the start and now the complex issues are just out of this world, CP is the heart of my business, any honest window cleaner would never look back once they have used CP.
You will save a few hundred quid on accountancy fees as they have to do very little. The thing is you know where you are and how your performing and what you need to do or not need to do.
In reference to the comment about honest window cleaners, then of course the ones who pay tax or the ones who are just starting out and have not earned enough.
UTC
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Theres prob a simple answer to this...but, if a certain street is scheduled for 1st of may, but you dont get there until the 3rd May, how does the system correct this? will that street then be updated as now being due on 3rd of each month instead of the 1st? Im just in the process of inputing all my customers...hope its going to be worth it. :-\
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It goes into its own column as overdue. If that's what you mean?
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For me the main advantage of Cleaner Planner is it's accuracy and reporting ability. It appeals to my ocd nature.
I don't understand why you'd not be interested in gocardless or text messages though. It's these type of features that - for me - make cleaner planner head and shoulders above the rest. Once set up these features save me heaps of time and are excellent for giving the impression to customers that I'm super professional and know what I'm doing.
I definitely feel that I get my money's worth. I don't think that there is another software package out there that offers even half the support.
Cheers Soupy. Thanks for the input
I use a different direct debit provider which is better than Go Cardless for my needs. More expensive, but much better for us.
I also use a different text service that is better suited for my business too..
Would you mind starting a thread on your direct debit provider please, Richard?
Specifically, who it is? Why they're better? And the ways that GoCardLess fall short in comparison?
We use SmartDebit... more expensive but has advantages we like.. We can sign customers up for DD over the phone, which is a huge advantage. We make all new customers setup a DD before we will clean them.
Are there any other benefits?
that's certainly a huge benefit for us. all you need is their bank details and you can set them up, and they don't need to confirm it by email or whatever. also they don't get monthly emails telling them a payment is going out, and you don't need to action a payment after each clean which if i remember you do on Go cardess. There are other differences too, but the phone is the big one for us
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Theres prob a simple answer to this...but, if a certain street is scheduled for 1st of may, but you dont get there until the 3rd May, how does the system correct this? will that street then be updated as now being due on 3rd of each month instead of the 1st? Im just in the process of inputing all my customers...hope its going to be worth it. :-\
Either or you can change the setting in settings > defaults.
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Theres prob a simple answer to this...but, if a certain street is scheduled for 1st of may, but you dont get there until the 3rd May, how does the system correct this? will that street then be updated as now being due on 3rd of each month instead of the 1st? Im just in the process of inputing all my customers...hope its going to be worth it. :-\
you can choose yourself in the settings tab for either C/P to reschedule the jobs from the date they were actually done or the date that they were due.
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I think beyond the price for the GoCardless intergration , Ideally I would love to be able to move jobs around across the planner with drag and drop .
That is the one simple thing I have found is so great about Aworka if this was implemented I would quite happily work through the other the other differences very happily .
Big Big over haul over of my business this Spring real fine tuning . And Cleanner Planner is without a doubt the way forward despite my past apprehension and indecivesiness
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I think beyond the price for the GoCardless intergration , Ideally I would love to be able to move jobs around across the planner with drag and drop .
That is the one simple thing I have found is so great about Aworka if this was implemented I would quite happily work through the other the other differences very happily .
Big Big over haul over of my business this Spring real fine tuning . And Cleanner Planner is without a doubt the way forward despite my past apprehension and indecivesiness
Same here regarding drag & drop on the planner. It's so much easier to use. For me it was an issue with Aworka. Chris at Aworka is very quiet & I don't think he appears commited to it any more.
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Drag and drop is on CP now.
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I cannot in anyway knock Chris at all , Even recently if I asked him a question it would be answered and sorted within an hour or so .
Without Chris pushing things forward their would have been no Revolution IMHO and their would be no CP . ;) ;)
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Drag and drop is on CP now.
Thanks for that mate very very good to know , their is no doubt I have been holding back a while , But Yeh defo need. To switch just purely for the simplicity of CG Intergration
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Drag and drop is on CP now.
Thanks for that mate very very good to know , their is no doubt I have been holding back a while , But Yeh defo need. To switch just purely for the simplicity of CG Intergration
I thought I wouldn't use the text part of CP But tbh it's the main feature I like. Even over GC integration.
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I cannot in anyway knock Chris at all , Even recently if I asked him a question it would be answered and sorted within an hour or so .
Without Chris pushing things forward their would have been no Revolution IMHO and their would be no CP . ;) ;)
Agreed re the help & speedy replies. I've just noticed too that the mobile app has been updated.
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Not bothered about mobile apps , I just save the web address on my iPhone then just open up planner to double check work schedule and mark off jobs whilst at work and check debts .
So I assume this can be done on CP if so I'm sold getting do forgetful lately that the more automated stuff is as well is a big plus for me .
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Yes that can be done but you must be mad not to want to use the app bud.
It's great!
Customer stops you.
Pays you.
Pull out phone. Load app. Click round. Click debt. Done !
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Yes that can be done but you must be mad not to want to use the app bud.
It's great!
Customer stops you.
Pays you.
Pull out phone. Load app. Click round. Click debt. Done !
+1
You could use the browser but that would be like being married to Angelina Jolie and having an affair with Angela Merkel.
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Thanks for the replies No23 & Soupy aside from the increase to £25 a month it was a few things wasn't sure about as well as working through the transition of the switch .
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Thanks for the replies No23 & Soupy aside from the increase to £25 a month it was a few things wasn't sure about as well as working through the transition of the switch .
I used George and wasn't keen on swapping at all. But George was kinda holding the business back. It was so embarrassing for a customer to stop me in the street and say when are you next round and i would literally have no idea. Now i load phone, give her exact date then she says leave it :D I kid i kid.
I don't see it as losing £25 a month i see it as gaining HOURS of my life back. I don't charge extra for locked gates even tho we textd etc. So i am making more now anyway as gates are generally always open!
The biggest thing for me is automated texts. To be able to set them up and be sent at 7pm on a Sunday night, means i can enjoy my evening. Doesn't mean i have to get my phone out on a Sunday and start texting people. I have had FANTASTIC feedback on it as well! Customers love the fact they know they will get a text at 7pm. Not 3pm 4 pm 5pm 5.32pm 6.24pm its 7pm! Since switching over to CP. Locked gates has gone down from around 3 in 10 being locked to i would say now almost zero. Texting a customer at 3pm on a sunday for a gate monday never goes down well. At 7pm. Most tasks are done and customer doesn't forget.
As for the swap over, you are lucky. CP has had lots of changes and updates and it now so easy to use.
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had a it tech that does all the sercity for hsbc in London look at the terms and cons and told me to stay well away from it as once you had sign up you had no control over your work and if some bought it out i.e. a window cleaning company the had the rights of all your details
also I thought it was clucky , the grafix were poor and it was to hard to use
running two van I find w.p, much better
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You asked someone who's proficient in IT their opinion on a legal issue?
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had a it tech that does all the sercity for hsbc in London look at the terms and cons and told me to stay well away from it as once you had sign up you had no control over your work and if some bought it out i.e. a window cleaning company the had the rights of all your details
also I thought it was clucky , the grafix were poor and it was to hard to use
running two van I find w.p, much better
weird, i had Richard Bransons legal team look over it and he rang me to say all is good.
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Thanks for the replies No23 & Soupy aside from the increase to £25 a month it was a few things wasn't sure about as well as working through the transition of the switch .
Mike - Looking at your website i know CP will be the right move for you ;) Professional website and professional system. It goes hand in hand ;)
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Yes that can be done but you must be mad not to want to use the app bud.
It's great!
Customer stops you.
Pays you.
Pull out phone. Load app. Click round. Click debt. Done !
+1
You could use the browser but that would be like being married to Angelina Jolie and having an affair with Angela Merkel.
HAHA I missed this, yeah couldn't agree more. Angelina Jolie is my Unicorn. Something i will never have lol
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You asked someone who's proficient in IT their opinion on a legal issue?
our good friend was sorting it all out for us to use on our lab top , and being a guy that runs a massive team in the city and on more money aday then most window cleaners earn a week we value his views on it , and because hes not like the rest on here full of bum lickers that jump on and off bang wagons because they want to be in with the cool crowd we will take his views over the bum lickers
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Hi All,
What a fantastic thread (of course I am a tad biased ;)) many thanks for taking the time to post your detailed thoughts, comments and questions.
To respond to a few points which jumped out at me:
DD setup by phone/paper - interestingly GoCardless do have this capability under their "Pro" package (https://gocardless.com/pro). However, it costs £200 per month (their fee) plus transaction fees, and is only available to merchants taking more than 500 payments a month. I did ask GC if it would be possible to spread this cost/limit (i.e. over all CP's users) but they said unfortunately not. However, they did say that they have a new API (system by which CP uses to integrate with GC's systems) coming out later this year which may support phone/paper signups. I'll get in touch with them on Monday and see if I can get some further specifics on this because it would certainly be fantastic if there was a bit more flexibility in terms of how you can sign up DD customers (many of whom either don't have/do email or would prefer phone/paper based setup). Will let you know what I find out.
Richard - How much do Smart Debit charge if you don't mind me asking? I can't see any pricing info on their website.
Drag & drop planner - Just to reiterate we've had D&D capability on the planner for some time now. You can drag individual jobs, check and drag multiple jobs, and even move whole rounds at a time. There's also a setting that will "retain" your underlying round order, so if you do drag jobs from one day to another it only changes the due date and doesn't mess with the overall round order/route (which you may have spent a long time getting right!)
Auto worksheets / 8weekly - I've been thinking (for a while now) about adding an "auto worksheets" feature which would automatically create worksheets and keep them in sync with your planner. Idea being (if you rely on the planner, many prefer to work from the jobs tab) that you could set the system to say create the next 7 or 14 days worth of worksheets automatically and keep them in sync with the planner, so if you move a job on the planner it also moves it to the correct (day) worksheet, but while still giving you the full power and flexibility of "proper worksheets" which is where a lot of the good stuff happens such as being able to send/receive notes to/from the lads (or yourself), send SMS reminders, send invoices, print payment slips and also have that crucial (for employers) opportunity to check everything through (i.e. tally cash/cheques in hand with done/paid totals on worksheet) before submitting as final (which you don't have in one view if you're working directly from the planner). The great thing about worksheets is they give you a way of "batching" things (such as creating invoices, sending texts in one go) rather than having to click each job individually on the planner. If we had "auto worksheets" then I think CP would be the best of both worlds for people who prefer a "drag and drop" style of working :) Let me know what you think!
Cheers,
Rob
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Rob
^ Thought i would use bold to ;)
When you email GoCardless try and get some info on the API application. They did have an APP around 6 months ago that was basically gocardless but in APP form. It disappeared from the apple store.
What GC really needs is a application where we can sign up customer there and then via our phones.
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Hi Damo,
If you have a phone or tablet with 3/4G then I see no reason why you can't use that to sign up the customer there and then - i.e. go through it with them, fill the form in for them while they watch (or let them do it if they prefer) then perhaps hand the device to them to check through the details before *they* tap the sign up button (so it's them that authorises the DD agreement).
The standard API (which Cleaner Planner integrates with) doesn't currently allow you to sign up a customer directly (i.e. if they give you their sort code and account number) but I suspect this may change (I will try and get more info) and if it did then potentially we could enable you to sign customers up to GoCardless directly from the Cleaner Planner mobile app, but this is all very hypothetical at this stage! I'll have a chat with them and let you know what if anything I find out, but they do tend to be a bit cagey about future plans and timescales ;)
Rob
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Hi Damo,
If you have a phone or tablet with 3/4G then I see no reason why you can't use that to sign up the customer there and then - i.e. go through it with them, fill the form in for them while they watch (or let them do it if they prefer) then perhaps hand the device to them to check through the details before *they* tap the sign up button (so it's them that authorises the DD arrangement).
The standard API (which Cleaner Planner integrates with) doesn't currently allow you to sign up a customer directly (i.e. if they give you their sort code and account number) but I suspect this may change (I will try and get more info) and if it did then potentially we could enable you to sign customers up to GoCardless directly from the Cleaner Planner mobile app, but this is all very hypothetical at this stage! I'll have a chat with them and let you know what if anything I find out, but they do tend to be a bit cagey about future plans and timescales ;)
Rob
DOH! How easy is that! I never thought of that. As i now have an iphone 6 plus it feels a little bit easier than crowding round a smaller screen lol. Yeah why on earth didn't i think of that. I have been taking ipad in and trying that out but some customers dont even know what a wifi password is! Nice one!
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Cleaner planner is great, made my life a whole lot easier.
Iv been inputting my customers details over the past few weeks, finally finished today.
Being more organised iv managed to compress my working week down to 4 days a week for 4 weeks out of my 6 weekly schedule, whilst still earning the same money :D
It's something I just couldn't do working from a diary, mainly because I couldn't be bothered with the hassle of reorganising and re-writing everything out again but was so easy organising work on c.p.
Those 4 days iv opened up I plan on leaving free for add on work or just have a well deserved break!
I'm only on the basic package to start, currently getting customer feedback on go cardless before I decide to upgrade, so far the response has been good so I think il be upgrading by summertime.
Excellent job rob@cleaner planner!!
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You asked someone who's proficient in IT their opinion on a legal issue?
our good friend was sorting it all out for us to use on our lab top , and being a guy that runs a massive team in the city and on more money aday then most window cleaners earn a week we value his views on it , and because hes not like the rest on here full of bum lickers that jump on and off bang wagons because they want to be in with the cool crowd we will take his views over the bum lickers
That's a different way of looking at it I suppose. I guess it says more about you than anything else.
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Thanks for the replies No23 & Soupy aside from the increase to £25 a month it was a few things wasn't sure about as well as working through the transition of the switch .
Mike - Looking at your website i know CP will be the right move for you ;) Professional website and professional system. It goes hand in hand ;)
Thanks for the comments on my website very appreciated , I will defo give the app a good go as well on a daily basis i generally just work from the planner and have no need for a worksheet .
Just emailed my customers over to Rob so fingers crossed i will get my head round the change pretty quick .
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You asked someone who's proficient in IT their opinion on a legal issue?
our good friend was sorting it all out for us to use on our lab top , and being a guy that runs a massive team in the city and on more money aday then most window cleaners earn a week we value his views on it , and because hes not like the rest on here full of bum lickers that jump on and off bang wagons because they want to be in with the cool crowd we will take his views over the bum lickers
A harsh way of putting it though I do understand the concerns.
My own view is that I prefer to adapt existing spreadsheet/database software to my own needs. Once set up it worked fine after a few tweaks. It is free as well and has free worldwide support. Because I've set it up myself, I generally know how to adapt it and make adjustments where required.
The downsides are that it is very clunky to operate and takes longer to do things; as a sole trader who is only paid by cash, cheques or BACS though, I'm probably only referring to an extra 5-10 minutes some days. Someone walking in on my way of doing it would struggle badly - it works best for me because it's grown around me and I've got used to it as it's grown.
My main reservations about relying on more specialised software (not just CP) are (1) more expensive - though this may be cost effective for a more complex business than mine (2) issues around importing/exporting data (some seem to allow import without re-typing in order to draw you in but have no viable export facility if you wish to use other software). I don't know where CP is with this issue but I have seen it with other software (3) ongoing support does depend upon the wellbeing of the software author. Although software support would only be a minor reason for wishing the author (Rob?) good health and a long life, there's no denying that the effective running of a number of other businesses would depend upon his health and immortality :) .
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Hi Chris - thanks for the kind words :) Really pleased to hear Cleaner Planner is making such a positive impact on your business and saving you so much time. Feel free to drop me a note when you're ready to look at the GoCardless and I can walk you through the ins and outs.
Hi Mike - thanks for signing up! Just emailed you back about the import and switchover. Looking forward to getting you up and running. Let's talk about worksheets when we get a mo. Sure you can tick jobs off on the planner on CP now just like Aworka, but personally I think this is a very inefficient way of working on the domestic side. Great for ticking off and invoicing the odd commercial job or two, but for the volume domestic work I just don't think it makes sense clicking into each job one by one on the planner. Get the jobs onto a worksheet and you can create invoices, print payment slips etc all in one shot! You can also download a worksheet to the mobile app tick it off while out and about so you don't have to waste time sitting and ticking when you get home. App runs offline so it's super fast and no 3G required so you can run it from a WiFi tablet.
ALSO - we've just released a major update to the mobile app so you can now add new customers and extras (e.g. gutter clear, con roof) for existing customers without having to reenter their details. You can insert the new job at a specific place on the worksheet and when you upload at end of day it will insert it in that position in the round so you don't have to reorder it later.
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Hi Walter - thanks for the insight. For some Excel works great, one off cost and can be customised to fit your individual way of working, but you have to be prepared to wrangle with formulas and filters and accept that features such SMS and GoCardless integration, multi-user and mobile apps (to name but a few) aren't really achievable with Excel.
Import - I will go out of my way to help you import your Excel sheet into Cleaner Planner. If you keep things tidy it's usually just a case of changing some column names and advising you on what you'll need to do with the data once it's in the system (and help you get your head round the concept of jobs having "due dates" and "debt balances").
Export - Just to clarify, with Cleaner Planner, whether you're on a free trial or a paying subscriber, you are free to export your data at any time. Simply click the "Export" button at the top of any of the pages (e.g. Jobs, Customers, Transactions) and it will instantly download an Excel CSV file that you can then use with another software provider if you so wish.
I have no interest whatsoever in preventing you from taking your data with you if that's what you want to do. It's your data not mine. Even if your trial has expired and you can't login, but have decided not to proceed with the software, simply email me and I will be more than happy to send you an export of your data and confirm deletion of it from our database if that is your wish.
Support - Yes, it's just me for now but I'm not going anywhere! I'm planning to take someone on to help with support (and possibly development if I can find the right person!) later this year.
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Barely used it just setting up and configuring a few things and finding my way around and very very impressed .
Rob has been on the ball all day as I have been off work due to rain so have been communicating via email and integrating GoCardless with customers details .
And many thanks to The Fantastic Mr Jones for installing reference box widget for CG on my payments page on my website .
Really seeing the benefits of the simplicity and ease of use of CP .
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Barely used it just setting up and configuring a few things and finding my way around and very very impressed .
Rob has been on the ball all day as I have been off work due to rain so have been communicating via email and integrating GoCardless with customers details .
And many thanks to Nat Jones for installing reference box widget for CG on my payments page .
Really seeing the benefits of the simplicity and ease of use of CP .
Best feeling in the world! Coming home and clicking all those start buttons lol
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In answer to the OP's question...Definately!
I've been using CP for around 5 months now and its changed my 'paper work' side of the business completely. Yes there's other programs but none that have as much support and updates/advancements as CP. It's in a league of its own in this department - it even ha its own forum where top ideas from users are suggested and voted upon in order to be integrated into CP! This shows the level of commitment from Rob to listen to its users and act accordingly. Great news for us.
For me it took some getting used to but now it's almost like learning to blade a window. You learn the knack and get into a rhythm, and the more advances Rob makes with the system the less you have to do. It's almost replicating the same advances the industry is making in general! It's the perfect add-on to compliment your business.
Try it, I'm sure you'll be impressed. Good luck :)
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In answer to the OP's question...Definately!
I've been using CP for around 5 months now and its changed my 'paper work' side of the business completely. Yes there's other programs but none that have as much support and updates/advancements as CP. It's in a league of its own in this department - it even ha its own forum where top ideas from users are suggested and voted upon in order to be integrated into CP! This shows the level of commitment from Rob to listen to its users and act accordingly. Great news for us.
For me it took some getting used to but now it's almost like learning to blade a window. You learn the knack and get into a rhythm, and the more advances Rob makes with the system the less you have to do. It's almost replicating the same advances the industry is making in general! It's the perfect add-on to compliment your business.
Try it, I'm sure you'll be impressed. Good luck :)
Shhhhh what happen is CP forum, stays in CP forum ;D
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I won't mention the F- word again ;D