Clean It Up

UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: deanorfc on November 01, 2006, 10:03:36 pm

Title: Story of my first few days
Post by: deanorfc on November 01, 2006, 10:03:36 pm
I am new to the forum and with the forums help me and my mate made a decision to give window cleaning a go and start our own business.

On Monday i posted around 150 leaflets in a couple of estates that were a year old, having been a good canvasser in my past i went round the doors tonight and asked if they had seen my leaflet and if they had a window cleaner.
At the end of the nigh after 2 hours knocking doors where we had left leaflets 2 days before we manaed to get 21 customers with £170 worth of work per month. Out of those customers only 3 didnt have a window cleaner, 4 we were !3 lower than excisting window cleaner and 14 were at least £1 over there last window cleaners prices some £2 over.

Cant wait to get leafleting and knocking the doors again, is that a good start for our business ?
Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: windows_chepstow on November 01, 2006, 10:08:55 pm
Dean,

Which part of country do you live?  Your profile isn't filled in properly.

Also welcome to the forum.

Tosh.
Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: deanorfc on November 01, 2006, 10:09:47 pm
Bonnie Scotland
Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: JohnL on November 01, 2006, 10:11:16 pm
Sounds like a good start but I am not sure about undercutting other WCers because all you are doing is starting a downward spiral.

Come a couple of months you may lose the work to someone who undercuts you.

Just my opinion   :)

JohnL
Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: windows_chepstow on November 01, 2006, 10:11:42 pm
Bonnie Scotland

Good! ;D
Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: Art on November 01, 2006, 10:15:50 pm
Bonnie Scotland

Good! ;D

Here we go  ;D ;D ;D
Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: matt on November 01, 2006, 10:16:24 pm
Sounds like a good start but I am not sure about undercutting other WCers because all you are doing is starting a downward spiral.

Come a couple of months you may lose the work to someone who undercuts you.

Just my opinion   :)

JohnL

agree'd only 1 winner in the undercutting game, thats the punters
Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: deanorfc on November 01, 2006, 10:17:40 pm
Sounds like a good start but I am not sure about undercutting other WCers because all you are doing is starting a downward spiral.

Come a couple of months you may lose the work to someone who undercuts you.

Just my opinion   :)

JohnL

I always said to myself i wouldnt undercut as i learned from the forum it was a no-no but the customer says they werent too happy with there current cleaner and we gave them our price it just happened to be £1 cheaper and they decided to change, we didnt know the price they were paying their current windowcleaner.
Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: craig jwc on November 01, 2006, 10:24:48 pm
As long as you haven't asked what they are currently paying i wouldn't worry about it.

To be honest when i 1st started and went out looking for work some of the people i spoke to didn't tell me they had a w/c until after i gave them a price.

If the present w/c is doing a good job then they won't change. If they have obvioulsy changed because you are cheaper then i agree they will only leave you for someone else who comes along cheaper again.

I didn't take on every job i quoted on only the ones where it was SO obvious they were getting a poor service.

Craig

Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: matt on November 01, 2006, 10:26:25 pm
Sounds like a good start but I am not sure about undercutting other WCers because all you are doing is starting a downward spiral.

Come a couple of months you may lose the work to someone who undercuts you.

Just my opinion   :)

JohnL

I always said to myself i wouldnt undercut as i learned from the forum it was a no-no but the customer says they werent too happy with there current cleaner and we gave them our price it just happened to be £1 cheaper and they decided to change, we didnt know the price they were paying their current windowcleaner.

thats fair enough, i wouldnt call that undercutting, i would have said thats " 1 quid cheaper than the other WC'er"

now if you had asked what the price was and said "i will do it 1 quid cheaper" then thats undercutting ;)
Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: JohnL on November 01, 2006, 10:49:07 pm
agreed
Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: TCs window cleaners on November 01, 2006, 11:34:32 pm
Where about in scotland are you from dean
Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: deanorfc on November 01, 2006, 11:37:42 pm
im from Fife mate, where you from
Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: TCs window cleaners on November 01, 2006, 11:49:22 pm
Edinburgh
Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: macmac on November 01, 2006, 11:51:05 pm
glad i'm not in fife, never seizes to amaze me how dis-loyal some customers are for the sake of a quid or two!!!!
Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: deanorfc on November 01, 2006, 11:56:57 pm
what do you mean by that, i have gained 14 customers by pricing them £1 sometimes £2 over there excisting cleaner, so to me they werent getting the service they were after.

Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: macmac on November 02, 2006, 12:26:23 am
nothing personal matey, just i've had the odd customer in the past, got to know them,chat to them, never over-charged them, always done a top job then WHAM, goodbye, someone offers to do it a pound cheaper and they're off!! some real tight gits round here though, does make me smile to myself sometimes.

good luck

Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: macmac on November 02, 2006, 12:40:58 am
also makes me smile that everyone's first question on here is "where you from?"
Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: james cairns on November 02, 2006, 01:36:26 am
dean hope you have  got a license and insurance, as it is compulsory in scotland, if not the other window cleaner can ask the police to remove you and stop you working for about 6 weeks until you get one

thought I would just mention it as you said you were new to window cleaning, and it might be an area you overlooked

jinky
Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: simon knight on November 02, 2006, 05:26:51 am

Hi Dean, 21 customers in 2 hrs knocking is really good going. The best I ever managed was 11 in 2 hrs.

So yeah a good start.
Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: Templar on November 02, 2006, 09:03:19 pm
What's the moral of the story? Is it best to be a good at canvassing or scrubbing?
Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: S_RICHARDSON on November 03, 2006, 03:31:25 pm
Sounds good to me especcially at this time of year!!
Title: Re: Story of my first few days
Post by: macc on November 03, 2006, 06:26:05 pm
glad i'm not in fife, never seizes to amaze me how dis-loyal some customers are for the sake of a quid or two!!!!

Thats the Scottish for you.  ;D