Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: frames to panes on February 26, 2008, 03:09:56 pm
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I've been going for just over a year now earning an ok living. However today i ran out of work and the rest of the week looks poor. So lets go canvassing! Me and the wife armed with leaflets and cards hit the streets and came back with....... one job. :( Whilst we canvassed we saw three large waterfed van units, a fully logo'd trad van and another. The big vans i have not seen before but have probably always been there.
What i'm trying to say is don't spend your hard earned cash or redundancy money without building a round first or testing the market. Claims on here of "stacks of work out there - help yourselves lads" is total wotsits in my area.
Be warned it's not a free for all, an endless goldmine!
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Hi, what area are you from DJW?
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invest in yourself djw purchase an additional round it will help fill up your work schedule you can then canvass up the round further and pick up the customers that had fallen out with the previous cleaner etc..
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I've been going for just over a year now earning an ok living. However today i ran out of work and the rest of the week looks poor. So lets go canvassing! Me and the wife armed with leaflets and cards hit the streets and came back with....... one job. :( Whilst we canvassed we saw three large waterfed van units, a fully logo'd trad van and another. The big vans i have not seen before but have probably always been there.
What i'm trying to say is don't spend your hard earned cash or redundancy money without building a round first or testing the market. Claims on here of "stacks of work out there - help yourselves lads" is total wotsits in my area.
Be warned it's not a free for all, an endless goldmine!
thats doom and gloom, it might be the case in your area, i turn down domestic work almost daily theres always plenty of houses available! Commercial can be a bit more challenging!!
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i dont go looking for work these days,but as im out working i used to be asked at least a few times a week by people if i can take them on and clean their windows,but i realy do think people are starting to feel the pinch as i havnt been asked to take anyone on for weeks and weeks.
i think djw is right,maybe their used to be stacks of work out their,but im not sure thats the case anymore, i think its becoming much harder to find. and with more and more wfp vans on the go ( i have never seen so many new window cleaners about) it can only get harder to find good work.
of course things will differ greatly in different areas of the country,and work will be easier to find in some areas than others,but i think anyone just starting up could find things a little tougher than they expect it to be
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I've been going for just over a year now earning an ok living. However today i ran out of work and the rest of the week looks poor. So lets go canvassing! Me and the wife armed with leaflets and cards hit the streets and came back with....... one job. :( Whilst we canvassed we saw three large waterfed van units, a fully logo'd trad van and another. The big vans i have not seen before but have probably always been there.
What i'm trying to say is don't spend your hard earned cash or redundancy money without building a round first or testing the market. Claims on here of "stacks of work out there - help yourselves lads" is total wotsits in my area.
Be warned it's not a free for all, an endless goldmine!
not doom and gloom, but common sense. we have peaks and troughs of new custies and so far this year the number of enquiries has been lower than before. Feb is normally a bumper month for new custies and so far we have picked up only 8 this month.
There is work out there, but you have to search harder for it now than you did 5 years ago ;D
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sorry to hear that mate. hope everything works out ok for ye. can ye not get some normal work ina factory backshif tor something to help you through. this will be my plan if things get tight when i am stuck for work. I will temp doing shift work and cram my wc work in early on if i can.
what about home deliviries for extra cash from the local indians/keba shops? good money my mates make doing this
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I think more and more redundancies = more and more window cleaners = less and less work for every one else
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Don't worry i'm doing ok (small mortgage and the wifes got a part time job) ;) it's just that every few weeks i get this quiet couple of weeks. A year ago it seemed very easy to pick up a hundred customers - i couldn't believe it. Now it seems much much harder, a combination of money problems and stiff competition i think. There are some filthy houses about so it seems people may have cut back on a cleaner. I found an estate today with endless filthy gutters but clean windows? So maybe they are covered by one cleaner who stings them for gutter cleans. I'm going to probe about tomorrow and see. ;)
ps. had i have been thirty years younger then i would have to look for other employment to survive with the kind of mortgages banded about today.
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Very similar story around here mate.
I don't get much either.
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Claims on here of "stacks of work out there - help yourselves lads" is total wotsits in my area.
There is stacks of work out there!
Just because you got 1 job from a days canvassing doesn't mean there isn't more work. You will find you'll get some phone calls from the leaflets left today at houses with no one in.
Maybe travel a bit further and pick some work up in other areas?
Andy
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DJW, Don't take this the wrong way, but what did you expect? As someone said phone calls may follow and you posted your message just after 3pm. People are at work. Give them time. Good luck
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Almost 20 window cleaners in this direct area. Took me ages to build up my round. At almost £1500 a month now, 1,5 years doing it. But I could have done a lot better, I haven't canvassed for atleast 8 months. Too much going on in my life. Difficult sometimes.
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keep the faith,i hadnt picked up work for ages and was getting fed up canvassing but today i touched for £125 of regular work-your right about more windowcleaners though they are popping up everywhere,some of them are giving wfp a bad name as they are leaving run marks everywhere
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You should try in Torquay during the summer. There's so many dole brigade come out of the woodwork, it's unreal. I pick up most of my new jobs there before spring and start of winter when they're all hibernating and from referals. Thank goodness I spread my wings further afield.
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Everything is getting harder, its not just window cleaning. The old problem still exists, when things go slack elsewhere they all turn to window cleaning to tide them over.
I've picked up two customers in recent times that have sacked their old WFP window cleaners because they were incompetent. I have taken them over still doing WFP and they are OK about it ( so far).
WFP in the wrong hands is cr4p.
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Could be some areas are easier than others, we have a huge influx of eastern europeans here, and the prospect of one or two major industries going under. There's only so many windows for the cleaners at the end of the day. Like i said i'm alright but jobs are definately harder to get this year. Two of the big units were working a village that supposedly didn't have a cleaner. I reckon there could be six vans in my area and around half a dozen trolley boys, maybe another dozen trad probably more.
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You all go on about taking on more customers whAT ABOUT DROPPING THEM?
(sorry caps lock was on)
I take on about four a week new ones, but drop/get dropped by one or two so I am always in credit. More windows out there than I can clean right now.
Wimps way out is to say theres not enough work available when there obviously is.
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Where are you DJW?
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I do not understand this post.
Feb is always a bumper month for new custies? running out of work?
When I started I built my round up from scratch and did not stop canvassing until I had enough work. After that I stopped canvassing, and changed to refining. Occasionally I'd lose a customer, which I would replace. Sometimes I would drop a low paying one in favour of a good one.
I do not understand why you would need a steady stream of new customers? Once you've got them, as long as your reliable, why do you need to worry about other window cleaners?
Surely after a whole year you should have a full round by now?
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If your good you never get a full round, you just get faster and faster and get more jobs, Luke
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If your good you never get a full round, you just get faster and faster and get more jobs, Luke
I must have half a round then, 'cause I'm nearly always behind with my work, lol.
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feb is a good month for new custs BUT also a good month for the fresh batch of w/cers who will not last the year...or at least they didnt use too ::) imo trad use to sort the wheat from the chaff and most of the newcomers would be gone by november((leaving us to mop up the peed off custs)wfp makes it easier and less hazardous so i think that more will see it through BUT there are still oppurtunities out there,you just got to go looking
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This Jan I noticed a big sign written van canvassing in the town where I live and work. A few custies phoned me to warn me too. lol.
Anyway, I had one of their flyers through our door and it all looked quality. Not dole boys.
Got a bit worried and whilst it was raining really hard one day I posted about 30 flyers.
from those 30 I got 10 jobs. I could not beleive it. ( you probably think I'm full of Sh**) but I hit a street that had lost there w/c.
At the end of the day, there are more houses than there are w/c. New ones being built all the time. The dole boys generaly are unreliable, look scruffy/ worrying so keep your chin up.
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Well unlike Squeaks who works the same geographical area as myself, I'm forever picking up work or getting inquiries.
We are not talking loads of them day after day, but there is, and always has been a steady trickle of them.
I passed a name & number over to Squeaky on Monday that should lead to a handful of accounts for him.
This morning I'm doing a new account I picked up on Monday - £23.00 - and another account - £15.00.
There is work out there, new window cleaners come along all the time, but many suddenly find that getting enough work to have a decent income of is no easy thing.
They may spend a fat chunk of redundancy money on a smart, all singing, all dancing WFP setup and van...but they still have to pick up the work!!
And it takes many months of canvassing, and then years to hone and develop your round.
Ergo, many get disenchanted and leave window cleaning...very much the poorer too if they've gone straight in at the deep end.
Squeaky for instance only does about 4000 miles a year, I do closer to 15,000 a year...I'm prepared to travel and take on work that is miles apart, I chased down leads no matter how far I had to travel.
Work doesn't have to be compact to earn you good money, spread your wings, look further afield.
If you are going to canvas via doorknocking then why on earth bother with housing estates with several other window cleaning challenging for the work? Especially new estates.
time to get to work
Ian
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feb is a good month for new custs BUT also a good month for the fresh batch of w/cers who will not last the year...or at least they didnt use too ::) imo trad use to sort the wheat from the chaff and most of the newcomers would be gone by november((leaving us to mop up the peed off custs)wfp makes it easier and less hazardous so i think that more will see it through BUT there are still oppurtunities out there,you just got to go looking
Thats spot on, you dont need much nerve to stand on the ground and jiggle a pole up and down. Different job ladder work, soon send em home when they go up 3 storeys in a stiff breeze.
Mark
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There will always be work for a window cleaner who turns up regular, does a good job (or goes back if a problem) and who is friendly to their customers.
It does take years of honing though as ian says and i'm still a long way from that.
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Boom or bust theres always dust ;)
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feb is a good month for new custs BUT also a good month for the fresh batch of w/cers who will not last the year...or at least they didnt use too ::) imo trad use to sort the wheat from the chaff and most of the newcomers would be gone by november((leaving us to mop up the peed off custs)wfp makes it easier and less hazardous so i think that more will see it through BUT there are still oppurtunities out there,you just got to go looking
Thats spot on, you dont need much nerve to stand on the ground and jiggle a pole up and down. Different job ladder work, soon send em home when they go up 3 storeys in a stiff breeze.
Mark
Thats a very good point. There seem to be a lot more people looking at window cleaning as a business opportunity rather than a self employed job.
Certainly the franchise people are selling the idea hard and there are a number of websites selling guides ( i posted about one earlier this week ). The underlying message always seems to be that you get a load of blokes to do the work while you sit back and watch the money roll in. IF ONLY!
As was predicted a long time ago on this forum WFP is bringing people into the industry who NEVER would have considered it when it was ladders or nothing.
And this trend is going to continue because soon there will be copycats and me-too types who think that if they can do it so can I.
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Apples don't fall far from the tree, either.
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Everything is getting harder, its not just window cleaning.
So true,
I keep in contact with friends (and now custies) from my last place of employment. They run their own business(not WC'ng) and for the last 18 months have not been able to give a pay rise to their staff (approx 25), due to overheads rising and less business coming in.
The local firms round here are making redundancies and the salaries advertised in local rag and recruitmnet agencies are not rising. In fact some are pretty poor and I would not get out of bed for them :) One I saw the other day...Laboratory Technician, loads of qualifications needed, £13,000 per annum, will need car as based in rural location!!!!
Someone will take that job, because they have to, but they won't have their windows cleaned, because they won't be earning enough. :)
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You must be doing it all wrong dave, after all (apparently) the more you invest the bigger the return! ???
What you need to do is this-
Go out & spend 20(ish)k on a new van (after all, this is peanuts). It must be BIG, the BIGGER the BETTER, yes BIG, you'll regret it if not, as when you expand, yes, EXPAND, at an empire building rate you never thought possible (with just a magic wand that spits water) you'll be using 2000Ltrs per day.
Spend another 10k (just nut shells) on a top notch HOT (this is a must) system.
Sign writing, uniform, a few staff & you're made for life dude, it couldn't be simpler mate.(could it?)
Once customers see how proffesional you look they'll be throwing themselves at you AND wanting to pay much, much more above the going rate just to get on your books. Trust me dave, i get this all day long, infact i'm taking on a minder next week just to clear my path. ;)
I've a few tips on swiss bank accounts too but i'll give you these next week when you'll need them.
Hope this helps
Tony
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You must be doing it all wrong dave, after all (apparently) the more you invest the bigger the return! ???
What you need to do is this-
Go out & spend 20(ish)k on a new van (after all, this is peanuts). It must be BIG, the BIGGER the BETTER, yes BIG, you'll regret it if not, as when you expand, yes, EXPAND, at an empire building rate you never thought possible (with just a magic wand that spits water) you'll be using 2000Ltrs per day.
Spend another 10k (just nut shells) on a top notch HOT (this is a must) system.
Sign writing, uniform, a few staff & you're made for life dude, it couldn't be simpler mate.(could it?)
Once customers see how proffesional you look they'll be throwing themselves at you AND wanting to pay much, much more above the going rate just to get on your books. Trust me dave, i get this all day long, infact i'm taking on a minder next week just to clear my path. ;)
I've a few tips on swiss bank accounts too but i'll give you these next week when you'll need them.
Hope this helps
Tony
lol. ;D ;D ;D
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You must be doing it all wrong dave, after all (apparently) the more you invest the bigger the return! ???
What you need to do is this-
Go out & spend 20(ish)k on a new van (after all, this is peanuts). It must be BIG, the BIGGER the BETTER, yes BIG, you'll regret it if not, as when you expand, yes, EXPAND, at an empire building rate you never thought possible (with just a magic wand that spits water) you'll be using 2000Ltrs per day.
Spend another 10k (just nut shells) on a top notch HOT (this is a must) system.
Sign writing, uniform, a few staff & you're made for life dude, it couldn't be simpler mate.(could it?)
Once customers see how proffesional you look they'll be throwing themselves at you AND wanting to pay much, much more above the going rate just to get on your books. Trust me dave, i get this all day long, infact i'm taking on a minder next week just to clear my path. ;)
I've a few tips on swiss bank accounts too but i'll give you these next week when you'll need them.
Hope this helps
Tony
that sounds like the ideal solution....how did i never see it before....its so obvious ;D ;D ;D
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You must be doing it all wrong dave, after all (apparently) the more you invest the bigger the return! ???
What you need to do is this-
Go out & spend 20(ish)k on a new van (after all, this is peanuts). It must be BIG, the BIGGER the BETTER, yes BIG, you'll regret it if not, as when you expand, yes, EXPAND, at an empire building rate you never thought possible (with just a magic wand that spits water) you'll be using 2000Ltrs per day.
Spend another 10k (just nut shells) on a top notch HOT (this is a must) system.
Sign writing, uniform, a few staff & you're made for life dude, it couldn't be simpler mate.(could it?)
Once customers see how proffesional you look they'll be throwing themselves at you AND wanting to pay much, much more above the going rate just to get on your books. Trust me dave, i get this all day long, infact i'm taking on a minder next week just to clear my path. ;)
I've a few tips on swiss bank accounts too but i'll give you these next week when you'll need them.
Hope this helps
Tony
that sounds like the ideal solution....how did i never see it before....its so obvious ;D ;D ;D
Yeah, i've 304 "hot" vans on the go now, remember, just throw money at it & watch it grow! :D
Tony
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No, i need more staff to work for me then i can give 24hour cleaning day and night - bound to attract more work that way. Who knows i might even buy up a few thousand pounds worth of rounds. I think my van is too small, not shiney enough (i don't wash it often enough) and my logo is too straightforward and to the point. I need more of everything really- more heat, more leaflets, more staff and more money. Not much to ask for, oh and maybe i could commute to Anglessy. ;D
You only get out what you put in, so i'm going to put LOADS more in i think.
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You must be doing it all wrong dave, after all (apparently) the more you invest the bigger the return! ???
What you need to do is this-
Go out & spend 20(ish)k on a new van (after all, this is peanuts). It must be BIG, the BIGGER the BETTER, yes BIG, you'll regret it if not, as when you expand, yes, EXPAND, at an empire building rate you never thought possible (with just a magic wand that spits water) you'll be using 2000Ltrs per day.
Spend another 10k (just nut shells) on a top notch HOT (this is a must) system.
Sign writing, uniform, a few staff & you're made for life dude, it couldn't be simpler mate.(could it?)
Once customers see how proffesional you look they'll be throwing themselves at you AND wanting to pay much, much more above the going rate just to get on your books. Trust me dave, i get this all day long, infact i'm taking on a minder next week just to clear my path. ;)
I've a few tips on swiss bank accounts too but i'll give you these next week when you'll need them.
Hope this helps
Tony
he might need that swiss bank account deails fairly soon, as soon as his gets the stuff listed above, leave it a evening and then he will be on here askng for it, take that mentioned the time it will take when your big ;)
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No, i need more staff to work for me then i can give 24hour cleaning day and night - bound to attract more work that way. Who knows i might even buy up a few thousand pounds worth of rounds. I think my van is too small, not shiney enough (i don't wash it often enough) and my logo is too straightforward and to the point. I need more of everything really- more heat, more leaflets, more staff and more money. Not much to ask for, oh and maybe i could commute to Anglessy. ;D
You set your goals way too low dave, think "international" I'm nipping over to melbourne next week, got a few top accounts to price up. ;)
Tony
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Tony that's one funny post! ;D ;D ;D
But even you are setting your sights too low - I've teamed up with the Russians for the contract on cleaning the glass on their space-station and now the Americans are going back to the Moon I'm off to Cape Canaveral to secure the contract for there as well!
I've got more vans on the road than Eddie Stobart and Norbert Dentressangle have got lorries!
;D
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Tony that's one funny post! ;D ;D ;D
But even you are setting your sights too low - I've teamed up with the Russians for the contract on cleaning the glass on their space-station and now the Americans are going back to the Moon I'm off to Cape Canaveral to secure the contract for there as well!
I've got more vans on the road than Eddie Stobart and Norbert Dentressangle have got lorries!
;D
Wouldn't bother with cape canaverel malc, popped in last week, they're not prepared to pay more than 3.2 million for their windows cleaned, not even for a "hot" wash. ( tight gits ). ;)
Tony
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Tony that's one funny post! ;D ;D ;D
But even you are setting your sights too low - I've teamed up with the Russians for the contract on cleaning the glass on their space-station and now the Americans are going back to the Moon I'm off to Cape Canaveral to secure the contract for there as well!
I've got more vans on the road than Eddie Stobart and Norbert Dentressangle have got lorries!
;D
Wouldn't bother with cape canaverel malc, popped in last week, they're not prepared to pay more than 3.2 million for their windows cleaned, not even for a "hot" wash. ( tight gits ). ;)
Tony
is that £ or $
as if its £ i just might be interested, but then again, im not in the same league as you big boys
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One day! man...you need to go out more ;D
Andy
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Tony that's one funny post! ;D ;D ;D
But even you are setting your sights too low - I've teamed up with the Russians for the contract on cleaning the glass on their space-station and now the Americans are going back to the Moon I'm off to Cape Canaveral to secure the contract for there as well!
I've got more vans on the road than Eddie Stobart and Norbert Dentressangle have got lorries!
;D
Wouldn't bother with cape canaverel malc, popped in last week, they're not prepared to pay more than 3.2 million for their windows cleaned, not even for a "hot" wash. ( tight gits ). ;)
Tony
is that £ or $
as if its £ i just might be interested, but then again, im not in the same league as you big boys
Sterling matt, i even mentioned the uniform, that the solar panels will be "sterile" afterwards & even threw in the old "pure water technology" but to no avail. anyway, i don't need custys like that so i just dropped them & picked up the whole of florida & texas as i walked out the door, both states appreciate the top job that i do. ;)
Tony
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Tony that's one funny post! ;D ;D ;D
But even you are setting your sights too low - I've teamed up with the Russians for the contract on cleaning the glass on their space-station and now the Americans are going back to the Moon I'm off to Cape Canaveral to secure the contract for there as well!
I've got more vans on the road than Eddie Stobart and Norbert Dentressangle have got lorries!
;D
Wouldn't bother with cape canaverel malc, popped in last week, they're not prepared to pay more than 3.2 million for their windows cleaned, not even for a "hot" wash. ( tight gits ). ;)
Tony
is that £ or $
as if its £ i just might be interested, but then again, im not in the same league as you big boys
Sterling matt, i even mentioned the uniform, that the solar panels will be "sterile" afterwards & even threw in the old "pure water technology" but to no avail. anyway, i don't need custys like that so i just dropped them & picked up the whole of florida & texas as i walked out the door, both states appreciate the top job that i do. ;)
Tony
Hmmmmmmm interesting
how often do they want it done, as if its each 1/4 i could put a disney holiday though the books as a biz expence
ive thought of a problem though, you can still only take 100 ml of fluid onto planes, how would i get my 25 L drums over ? ? ? ?
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Tony that's one funny post! ;D ;D ;D
But even you are setting your sights too low - I've teamed up with the Russians for the contract on cleaning the glass on their space-station and now the Americans are going back to the Moon I'm off to Cape Canaveral to secure the contract for there as well!
I've got more vans on the road than Eddie Stobart and Norbert Dentressangle have got lorries!
;D
Wouldn't bother with cape canaverel malc, popped in last week, they're not prepared to pay more than 3.2 million for their windows cleaned, not even for a "hot" wash. ( tight gits ). ;)
Tony
is that £ or $
as if its £ i just might be interested, but then again, im not in the same league as you big boys
Sterling matt, i even mentioned the uniform, that the solar panels will be "sterile" afterwards & even threw in the old "pure water technology" but to no avail. anyway, i don't need custys like that so i just dropped them & picked up the whole of florida & texas as i walked out the door, both states appreciate the top job that i do. ;)
Tony
Hmmmmmmm interesting
how often do they want it done, as if its each 1/4 i could put a disney holiday though the books as a biz expence
ive thought of a problem though, you can still only take 100 ml of fluid onto planes, how would i get my 25 L drums over ? ? ? ?
What! you mean you don't have the new ionics "pro 1000000000000 hot airbus A70" :o
Man, you need to invest rapidly! 8)
Tony
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Tony that's one funny post! ;D ;D ;D
But even you are setting your sights too low - I've teamed up with the Russians for the contract on cleaning the glass on their space-station and now the Americans are going back to the Moon I'm off to Cape Canaveral to secure the contract for there as well!
I've got more vans on the road than Eddie Stobart and Norbert Dentressangle have got lorries!
;D
Wouldn't bother with cape canaverel malc, popped in last week, they're not prepared to pay more than 3.2 million for their windows cleaned, not even for a "hot" wash. ( tight gits ). ;)
Tony
is that £ or $
as if its £ i just might be interested, but then again, im not in the same league as you big boys
Sterling matt, i even mentioned the uniform, that the solar panels will be "sterile" afterwards & even threw in the old "pure water technology" but to no avail. anyway, i don't need custys like that so i just dropped them & picked up the whole of florida & texas as i walked out the door, both states appreciate the top job that i do. ;)
Tony
Hmmmmmmm interesting
how often do they want it done, as if its each 1/4 i could put a disney holiday though the books as a biz expence
ive thought of a problem though, you can still only take 100 ml of fluid onto planes, how would i get my 25 L drums over ? ? ? ?
What! you mean you don't have the new ionics "pro 1000000000000 hot airbus A70" :o
Man, you need to invest rapidly! 8)
Tony
nah
to be honest, i didnt like the brush it came with, the gold plating reflected the sun too much and caused too much dazzle
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B***ard to park mind, although i've got a 27 mile reel of microbore in mine. ;)
Tony
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B***ard to park mind, although i've got a 27 mile reel of microbore in mine. ;)
Tony
you want a "powered rewind" on that ;)
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Ouch!