Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: davids3511 on February 23, 2009, 06:48:32 pm
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Just rang one of my customers for access tomorrow and she told me she has just had a leaflet for some guy quoting £6.00 per house. I charge an average of £10.00 - £12.00 in that area and most of my work is concentrated in there.
Most of the customers I have there have been with me over a year so should I be worried?
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Just rang one of my customers for access tomorrow and she told me she has just had a leaflet for some guy quoting £6.00 per house. I charge an average of £10.00 - £12.00 in that area and most of my work is concentrated in there.
Most of the customers I have there have been with me over a year so should I be worried?
If you do not do a good job be worried, if you give a good service, then dont, there will always be people that offer cheaper prices than you also people that charge more, cheaper is not always better for the customer, if you find you start losing people I would talk the customers into staying if possible
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I don't get complaints and I believe I do a good job so hopefully it will be ok.
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Depends if you are overpriced or he's quoting underpriced, if they like you you'll be fine ;D
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i would only be worried if a couple took him on and he does a good job because at half yor price i think more would follow.
are these overpriced already, what hourly rate will he be on if he gets these jobs you have got to ask your self is it possible for him to do them that cheap if the answer is yes then i would be worried.
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can you live on £6 per house? if not then he wont either i heard that a gang of poles were going around an area i do quoteing £5 a house im £15 weeks i havnt lost one but the poles have now doubled their prices
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Really cheap people fill themselves up with work and then start letting people down, you will always find enough people willing to pay a fair price, just might take a little longer with a wally on your patch...
There is hardly anything in the world today that some man can't make just a little worse and sell just a little cheaper, and the people who buy on price alone are this man's lawful prey.
John Ruskin 1819-1900
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there is a problem with this . in that the new guy may not do the frames in with the price, and if so because you did them it will not become obvious to the customer that the new guy is not doing them for a few months, and usually by then it is too late.
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there is a problem with this . in that the new guy may not do the frames in with the price, and if so because you did them it will not become obvious to the customer that the new guy is not doing them for a few months, and usually by then it is too late.
True enough it's always worth asking, what are you getting for this price. and perhaps suggesting that you get what you pay for, and of course mentioning that unlike your opponent you don't sign on and work or steal people's lawnmowers...
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JUST REMIND THEM YOU ARE insured
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I like that last comment.
I would just add, make it a point to talk to your customers... always ask if they are happy with your standards and is there anyway you could improve your service!
They never forget that and will always call it to mind when approached by the...
UNDER-CUTTER! 8) 8) 8)
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The undercutters come and go because they sell themselves short. However they do ruin it for the genuine ones. I pick up work from undercutters who have packed in and normally find I'm charging double what they were. Customer is nearly always shocked by the new price but they're still on my books several years later.
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all posts above are assuming that the current price is a fair price and maybe they are in which case the posts are correct but we havnt seen these properties or how long each one takes so maybe £10- £12 is too much and £6 is a fair price.
i know lots of cleaners who do houses for £6 and still cover £25 an hour so £6 can be a good price.
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www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-8867544.html?locationIdentifier=POSTCODE%5E3896519&minBedrooms=3&minPrice=175000&maxPrice=240000&displayPropertyType=houses&radius=1.0&oldDisplayPropertyType=houses&pageNumber=3&backToListURL=%2Fproperty-for-sale%2Ffind.html%3FlocationIdentifier%3DPOSTCODE%255E3896519%26minBedrooms%3D3%26minPrice%3D175000%26maxPrice%3D240000%26displayPropertyType%3Dhouses%26radius%3D1.0%26oldDisplayPropertyType%3Dhouses%26index%3D20
This would be typical of the houses I am charging £10 - £12.00 for. Double bays at the front, a door and 2 - 3 windows at the side, double doors at the back, 3 windows.
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For that house I would want £23 (from what I can see!)
I don't think that's expensive, but it's not cheap either!
£25 would be a nice price, but pushing it!
But that is in the South East of Kent! 8)
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i got that last month.... out of a whole area i do.... an idiot posted flyers quoting them all at £6.....
80 houses i do in that area... i lost one... mine are all £7, 10 and 15.
its desperation from all the newbies we see on here!!!!!!!!
in desperate times.
you can take it or leave it guys....
but thats whats happening.... ....
take a look at earnings posts.... help given... and then seeing them undercut you.
whos to bloody blame?
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I qoute that house at £10.5 - west of scotland.
My advice is, you cant do anything if a customer tells you not to come back, but if you get the chance to justify yourself. Let them know that...
1. Some window cleaners, especially ones qouting unprofitable prices, tend not to be working legitimitly, are uninsured, not licenced so may have a criminal record, and as a fly by night wont be regular and most of all wont last, as they eventually get caught or get another job somewhere.
2. I hold a large number of houses in this area and if they only get one or two, you might find they dont come back at all.
3. You really do get what you pay for and quality is very important to a professional, however if someone is charging very low as well as sacraficing the legal requirements the quality of work tends to be pour.
...and if its a qoute you are giving the most effective reply is...
4. and the fact that this window cleaner who was charging to £6 isn't here now is evident to that.
I had one yesterday that I qouted about £20 and the customer said there last window cleaner was £5. Generally when you are of as much as that you dont get the job, but I managed to convince her that my price was fair.
Good luck mate.
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I had this go through some of my customer's letter boxes recently:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v737/tosh0987/dopeywindowleaflet-1.jpg)
Don't worry though, the customer buys the tradesman, not the job; if you're a decent fellow and your customers don't strongly dislike you, you'll be fine.
Of course you may get the odd thick customer who'll unthinkingly go for the cheaper option; but you'd be better off without them.
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Hi,
I posted a thread a couple of months ago about a company called Kung Fu Cleaning who leafleted an area I work in and undercut me on a big house by £20... I was charging £45, and they quoted £25 - The customer left me for them ::)
Last week I cleaned another cusomters house in a completely different area and Kung Fu Cleaning had pushed a leaflet through there door whilst they were out with a quote on it for £12, and I charge £20 - But he said, don't worry we've used you for a while now and are happy with your service so we're not going to change.
Some customers will jump ship for a cheaper clean, but I think most are loyal to you if you are reliable and do a good job.
It's made me sit up and take notice though that now I have a bit more competion... Which is actually a good thing because it keeps you on your toes!
Andy
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I think its halarious when someone puts a price on a flyer like that, I had a job the other day that took 4 hours to complete, I would love to see someone do it for a set £6, I would take great pleasure in laughing my head off as he worked for less than £1 an hour, the only word that comes to mind is twat.
I guess when people do that though they are just going to go for small flats etc and stay clear of the bigger jobs. Still pretty silly, they are going to have to do allot of moving around making them worse off again.
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davids3511 i would charge about the same as you maybe a little bit more on that house link.
dont worry too much stick to your prices and dont compete with the cowboys on there prices but beat them on quality.
a gang of cowboys pull up in a beaten up ford escort estate, or you pull up in a nice sign written van, i know who i would pick to clean my windows
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davids3511 i would charge about the same as you maybe a little bit more on that house link.
dont worry too much stick to your prices and dont compete with the cowboys on there prices but beat them on quality.
a gang of cowboys pull up in a beaten up ford escort estate, or you pull up in a nice sign written van, i know who i would pick to clean my windows
Interesting that, isn't it?
I wonder how many of us window cleaners actually pay for their own windows to be cleaned?
If someone came round like me and quoted "my prices" I wonder what I would say?
I have a good idea... but then I'am tight! ;D ;D ;D
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www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-8867544.html?locationIdentifier=POSTCODE%5E3896519&minBedrooms=3&minPrice=175000&maxPrice=240000&displayPropertyType=houses&radius=1.0&oldDisplayPropertyType=houses&pageNumber=3&backToListURL=%2Fproperty-for-sale%2Ffind.html%3FlocationIdentifier%3DPOSTCODE%255E3896519%26minBedrooms%3D3%26minPrice%3D175000%26maxPrice%3D240000%26displayPropertyType%3Dhouses%26radius%3D1.0%26oldDisplayPropertyType%3Dhouses%26index%3D20
This would be typical of the houses I am charging £10 - £12.00 for. Double bays at the front, a door and 2 - 3 windows at the side, double doors at the back, 3 windows.
a trad clean on this house, a good price would be 7.50/8.00 thats traditional with windows and cills cleaned, and on a compact round.
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You serious Trevor? That house has a small lean-to conservatory at the back and an extension. I've got several in a road like this and I charge £12/£15 depending on the size of the extension. Even without any extension I charge £10/£12.
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6.50 is all you would get round my way stan. i have tried to get upwards of 8 but no chance :(
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Obviously, a young family guy can't compete with those prices, but there are guys out there that can.
Take a guy that's just retired from the police, fire service or army with a good pension.
I know an ex policeman, he gets a pension of £1400 a month and has finished his mortgage, if he can earn an extra grand a month cleaning windows, he's sorted.
I bet for every 4 or 5 new starters, 1 will fit into this bracket, and he will under cut to get work, nothing we can do about it, He's within his rights.
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i would do that for £6.50 but would miss the window over the con ;D
Good job I live down South ;D
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I'd charge €25 minimum for that house,... possibly €30. That'd include a quick wash to the con roof (If it was bad I'd charge a lot more for the first clean).
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Get a £10.00 8 times out of ten i think in the majority of spots i do work in, maybe the odd one at £12.00.....
Still in a row, which they usually are, should do no less than 3 an hour ;)
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TENNER HERE. ;)
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I'd charge €25 minimum for that house,... possibly €30. That'd include a quick wash to the con roof (If it was bad I'd charge a lot more for the first clean).
I was starting to worry 6.50 - 10 wow! 8)
I said £25 at least (+ first clean charge 25%)
I would have to work three times harder than I do now! ::)
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A quick update on this - two weeks on and I haven't lost a single customer. Phew, hopefully it will stay that way. I am a little anal about getting the job spot on so perhaps that has paid off.
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Cheers Stan, I was a little concerned there for a while.