Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Frequently Asked Questions & Useful Resources => Topic started by: T. A. Cleaning on November 07, 2003, 12:53:36 pm
-
Hi All,
Whats the best way to price up domestic and commercial window cleaning work?
Price per window?
Thanks.
-
Hi
I am new to this game so have been doing a lot of pricing up latley, I know how much I need to be earning to cover my costs such as diesel, insurance, and deepheat,(for my aching arms) add on how much my wife wants me to earn, a little bit for me. THEN GUESS!!!
Most of the time I seem to be about right, sometimes high sometimes low but after you have done a few you seem to get a feel for it.
I have leaned to NEVER ask how much there last w/c was charging coz they never tell you the truth and that then puts you in a difficult position. Do you, seem expensive by putting up the price, or say OK i will do it for that price and then kick yourself when you get back to the van?. Think of a number add a couple of quid and go for it they can only say no. besides when they see how good you are they know they are getting a good deal!!!!!
-
Another tip ,If someone comes out while you are cleaning a house and asks you if you can clean there windows , and then ask how much will it be. Dont give them a price until you have had a look around the back as they could have more windows around the back than they do at the front , 8)
-
Wylie, I will admit that when I price up a job on a non average house (you know, semi, terraced, bungalow etc) I do ask what their last cleaner charged, and I always seem to be a couple of quid dearer and i still get the job ??? ::)
Mikey
-
Bones,
Maybe I have just got too much of a concience or perhaps i am not tough enough yet but once they tell me what they were charged the Mr nice guy in me takes over! And then I hate myself for the rest of the day lol. :D
-
Wylie, I too have this Mr. Nice Guy inside (especially for the stunners ;)), but now I know i ain't going to be getting another wage packet from full time employment he hide away a bit more.
When I ask and she/he say's £6 I'll always say well i can't do this for less than £8 but I wipe your frames and your sills. and that usually get's me the job,..... I think ???
Mikey
-
I havent got any stunners on my round but more Nora Battys than is fair:( :( :(
-
If you want to get some stunners on your round this is how to do it ;) ;)
When you're out with the lads in the club or pub just wander up to the birds and give them the hello darlin', and when they give you the reply "oh no" or "you're joking", just say, "sorry luv, I don't wanna get in your knickers,.. I just wanna clean your windows" and give her your card ;) ;) ;)
Mikey
-
It only goes to show, one mans Nora Batty is another mans stunner.
Ive been doing this job on and off for 25 years and still haven't a clue what to charge. Pricing is the difficult bit.
What I have come to realise is that if you canassed and said to the customers you would clean their windows for a pound some people would still say you are too dear.
The higher your price the more refusals you will get but you still get those that agree to the price.
It works out better in the long run to clean less windows for more money than the other way round.
If only I could practice what I preach
-
slightly different slant on this one, i canvassed & priced jobs at what ithought was a reasonable price at the time, having had 3 weeks worth of windows behind me now i realise not so. when i go back to do first clean i expain briefly that ive realised ive undercharged :( :-[ & could i reqoute so far all customers have agreed to my revised price ;) sometimes almost twice the price my point is dont be scared to value the job at what it is actually worth youll be suprised at at what the customer will agree to. at worst they can refuse so you either walk away or accept original with a grimace. :-/
-
Dont forget to add your "first clean" rate on top, say 50%extra
-
What ever happened to Mikey Warner
-
I saw him a year or 2 back. He said he had his van stolen and then he disappeared. There was a post last year asking if anyone knew where he was. It got deleted.
If you're reading this mikey, give us a call mate. I'd like to do redisham hall if you are not doing it anymore.
dewy
-
We price a job by window counting, and it seems to work, no matter which window cleaner we work with, a standard 2 pane window can be anything from 50p per window, right up to £2 in chiswick!
So at the £1 rate, a 2 pane 'standard' window is £1, a 3 pane window is £1.50, 4 pane £2, patio door, £1.50-£2 ea, small windows, 50p.
It is much easier to do the counting of windows first, then just multiply by the rate per window you are prepared to work at.
Paul
-
i have now found this easier by looking at the job and charging varying prices depending on how difficult it is and how long it may take also is there other earning potential in the area or is it a single house in the middle of no where,ive been going about 8 mth and have only had 1 person say no over the price.i also give the frames and doors a wipe people seem to like that, :)
-
I work my prices out by giving each window a a time - e,g 4 mins per ladder climb, and 3 mins for a 2 pane standard window - add all your mins up - then multiply by your rate per minute ( hour/60) + plus add on any access problems, or any extra risk your taking, and then round it up or down to the nearest pound.
I find this gives me consistency with my pricing , and generally allows me to earn my target rate
It really helps when you come to a big property, with lots of windows, and ladder climbs - I also think the customer like to see you get your calculator out, that gives a definite result rather than one appears to come from the head :-\.
-
In my opinion, you can't charge enough, I massively overquoted a job, 1,5Hr, £72. Not even a blink, just yes please! Can you do the inside too?! Big house in the sticks, in Surrey. Your area might vary, but if they have enough money they usually do not mind at all.
-
I work it out per window on big jobs, small ones per job
-
Think of a figure and double it ;D
-
It certainly helps if you are not desperate for work. Someone asked me to clean just two dorma windows the other day, I didnt really want the job, so I said £40. She said when can you do them. Perhaps I should have said £100.
I normally charge between £7 and 10 for 3 bedroom house.
-
After reading the different ideas last night I went out today and put it to the test. I was asked to quote on a small bungalow, normally I would have said £4.50, possibly £5 if i was feeling cheeky. The lady wasnt in so i wrote a note, first i thought £7.50 then I thought of one of the comments about doubling. So I wrote £9.00. Two hours later I got a call to say when can I do it.
Thanks again for the ideas.
Regards
Tony
-
If in doubt have a set price for a standard 3 bed semi job with no conservatory (£7.50 here in Leicester). then add £5 for doing the conservatory (not inc roof/gutters), £1 for each bay window, £12.50 set price for anything over ground+1 floor.
But areas vary. Estates might have to start at £5 per job. Country hotels..well charge per hour (£25/30 per hour)
-
Sanity has raised a big point, regional prices. If you take an average 3 bed semi as your benchmark, whats the going rate in your area?
Here in the London suburbs its about £15 but there are still window cleaners charging £8-10. My friend John had a window cleaner for 14 years who charged him £4 and never put the price up in all that time. He probably still is charging £4 but John moved house last year.
Sanity mentions £7.50 for Leicester, that seems a bit low to me but lets go with it for a while. If you price a house that is bigger you estimate how much bigger than a standard semi it is and scale your price accordingly. So a "house and a half" would be £11.25 and a "double house" would be £15. This effectively is called banded prices.
As you get more experienced you start to look for other things. When I was trad a big problem for me was cars in the front garden. So many house round here have paved their front gardens and park several cars right where you need to put your ladders.
You can waste loads of time while they move the cars back and even then trying to manoever ladders around expensive cars is stressful.
Access is another problem, recently I took on a new customer, access to the back was through the garage so no problem. I won't do "carry throughs" anymore.
The garage was a bit cluttered but she said she would get her husband to clear it. First time I went the garage was jammed solid and it took her ages to clear a space through for me. "Sorry, I did ask him to clear this."
Went again this week, took ages to answer the door, "Sorry, I was upstairs changing a nappy"
The garage was worse and it took even longer than last time to clear. Then the key for the garage door at the back was missing and she had to phone her husband to ask where it was, then she had to go and find it.
The time lost in all of this was about 20 minutes. Time is money in this game. I should have seen this one coming but I didn't. If its going to be like this every time I go there the job is underpriced.
-
when you clean a house for the first time do you always clean the frames and when there realy dirty is it best to use a damp cloth on them ive bin cleaning for about a year with a mate but never had to do it could some one let me no about this thanks
-
Hi
All the prices here R for window cleaning but inside of house? Or outside?
What if I have 3 Bedroom House with 6 normal size windows and 2 small windows, I want cleaning outside and inside... ow much would you charge?