Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: Adam_london_uk on April 21, 2009, 09:22:47 pm
-
What do you do when the only access is through the house! ie customer has to be in etc?
Its easy to say no but at my early stage I need all the yes's I can get.
-
we dont do these any more, we only do houses that have rear access as when you get bigger ie take on staff it becomes a nightmare. but at the start its ok. and we still have quite a few from back in the day.
-
you will have to work arounfd them find out when they are in and do them then
-
Phone or text them 1 or 2 days before you are due to clean in that area, they can then tell you if and what time they will be in. I still do 3 houses like this only because they have been with me since i started
and i'm not the type of person to let people down :D
-
its a lot of hastle
-
What do you do when the only access is through the house! ie customer has to be in etc?
Its easy to say no but at my early stage I need all the yes's I can get.
I started off with loads like this. If they were out I did front only. Gave them away after a year. I started going out of my home town for work as where I live is like one giant estate without rear access.
I couldn't make my money adequately from them but it sufficed when it was a choice of doing them or doing nothing.
-
"carry throughs" as they are known tend to cost you more in lost time than you may realise. However, a job is a job in the early days when pennies count. Later, when you get get more established try to avoid them but you can't always.
I lost a couple of customers because I wouldn't do a third because there was no access. She wanted me to go over the garage roof and I wouldn't. The three houses were all friends and would pay for each other etc , so they wanted to all have the same cleaner.
Often when you get a referral you are more or less honour bound to take them on even if they are a carry through that you would normally turn down. I have one that is the mother of a good customer, access to the back is via an ally that starts about four houses along and then runs along the back of the gardens.
No way I could get my hoses down there.
A backpack and a compact brush is the easiest thing. Get some slip on overshoes for your feet from Toolstation.
I disagree about doing them trad. Carrying a big ladder through a house is a nightmare.
-
that was my though carrying the ladder through and banging around. ok for 2 people but im on my own :)
-
I clean my hose and take it through the house when they're in and just do the fronts when they're out. No fannying about phoning them beforehand for me either!
-
I reckon 90% of my houses are carry-throughs because invariably the alleyway at the back is choked with prams, nettles, brambles, builders rubbish etc etc...and most times the back gate is rusted closed anyway.
And so: I tell 'em I'm coming (mostly leaving a msg on their ansaphone)...if they're in they get back and front (and ins if they want it)...if they ain't in they get front only and I pop an SAE in their letter box for 60%ish.
It's a bit mish-mashy and you do need a very concentrated round to make it work...happily it works for me.