Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: ftp on August 25, 2009, 05:46:43 pm
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I've just realised i'm one of them I've joined the club!
Ican't possibly keep up with all my work so loads of custies are now months behind - I can't do it anymore. I have to face loseing them or start working in the rain.
Think i'll just have to lose them. :-\
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Lose them yourself, dont let the good ones cancel, weed the crap and keep the cream, !!!
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where are you based ? if near enough I will take some off you
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Why are you months behind??
Even if you work in the rain you will never catch up that much ???
bob
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Too much work haven't even had a holiday. :o
Work just keeps pouring in and I hate to turn it away. Trouble is when I started I took on everything whatever the frequency of clean. I'm totally snowed under and it just keeps coming. Turned five away already this week, got to quote one in half an hour some customers are two months behind now - time goes so fast. Worked eight till eight yesterday and haven't dented it.
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I've just realised i'm one of them I've joined the club!
Ican't possibly keep up with all my work so loads of custies are now months behind - I can't do it anymore. I have to face loseing them or start working in the rain.
Think i'll just have to lose them. :-\
Pass em in my direction ftp ;D
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Hi Trippy
Out of interest, where are these customers getting their leads from - Yellow Pages?
Whatever advertising you are using, it certainly sounds successful - even more impressive if it's just via recommendations.
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FTP
Do you realise how long you have spent writing and reading on this forum
Total Time Spent Online: 44 days, 8 hours and 37 minutes.
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FTP
Do you realise how long you have spent writing and reading on this forum
Total Time Spent Online: 44 days, 8 hours and 37 minutes.
What do you want him to do ? Clean in the dark an use flood lights? ???
FTP, time to think about employing?
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44 days :o
Well the laptop goes on first thing in the morning for a quick read then often I'll rush out and leave it on then every evening is spent on here 'cos the telly is crap. ;)
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44 days is the time you have spent on cleanitup :o
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What do you want him to do ? Clean in the dark an use flood lights? Huh
No but in the summer a 10 hour day for a self employed person is not excessive
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Depends how young and fit you are though Glyn, I want to be home for a rest after a couple of houses myself ;)
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Too much work haven't even had a holiday. :o
Work just keeps pouring in and I hate to turn it away. Trouble is when I started I took on everything whatever the frequency of clean. I'm totally snowed under and it just keeps coming. Turned five away already this week, got to quote one in half an hour some customers are two months behind now - time goes so fast. Worked eight till eight yesterday and haven't dented it.
employ someone...maybe parttime
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What do you want him to do ? Clean in the dark an use flood lights? Huh
No but in the summer a 10 hour day for a self employed person is not excessive
I left house before 7 and was back for 5 - over ten hours, if it was for thunderstorm would have worked till 6 :)
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Now have a house with conservatory and indoor swimming pool windows to do.
That came from a free line in Yell.com. Only about the third decent job that's come from there in a year and a half. Funny thing is they had a cleaner but he was unreliable and too fast when he did turn up ;D
I have signwritten van which brings in some work, a couple of free lines on the top googled sites like touch local, yell.com and another one that i can't even remember.
This customer has never seen my van about either. I never leaflet, door knock or do anything. I did get my wife to door knock for the first couple of months. I have a website that brought one job in last year - totally useless.
I haven't done anything - at the beginning of the year i had some large holes in my schedule and helped another cleaner for a few days.
Several have said employ but I really don't fancy that - i don't think I have a business brain at all.
I've just been lucky lately - it will probably change.
My advice would be to get listed on every free site you can find near the top of the listings and don't waste your money on a trendy website.
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get some work into a compact order and sell it,im always behind and every now and then i sell some,sold some last June and then again last week,and i still have more than enough
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Just put the prices up the ones are too low.. they;ll soon dump you or you'll just get paid more for rushing around like a fool..
win win!
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what area of the country you in ftp.
Chris
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My compact work is my best so reluctant to get rid of it really. Some of my outstanding work is big country houses that I can't be arsed to drive to probably because they are underpriced and many jobs that I don't enjoy doing. The forecast isn't great tomorrow so if it pees down all day I won't be out (another day on here Glyn).
The weather has a lot to answer for, but i don't want to start cleaning in downpours even if it does work. I'm in a position that I never thought would happen to be honest and don't like it that much.
Yes busy fool is possibly a good description - price increase would be a good solution.
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Hey someone else that admits to having jobs they just do not enjoy doing...thought I was the only ungrateful window cleaner....earning a not too bad wage...
ps...Ftp dont stop telling us all about your days...they make me feel my life is not so bad after all... ;D
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Yeah Dave, he makes me feel good about work too lol. If I had some of his custies I'd carry a shotgun in the motor every day ;D I still reckon he should get some part time help though.
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Why not sub-contract. It could be as simple as getting another WC to work a day a week with you for 35% of the days take.
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That would be ideal. Trouble is all the cleaners I know are full to the brim - need a newbie hungry for work maybe (like i was).
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Cull the crap, increase the prices on the country pads & create your perfect round! I'm in the same position as you, I just gave some well paid work away- 'cos I hate doing those particular jobs. I'm culling some more lower paid/too much hassle work too.
I find it more stressful having too much work & constantly being well behind than having holes in my schedule!!
You're in control now mate, you call the shots! ;) ;)
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I have found its a case of balancing up whether you want to be (and I dont mean this in an insulting sense) a busy fool or someone with a well trimmed round, which you are able to 'milk' efficiently and earn from it what its worth and has as a potential.
I have found you're likely to be able to earn at least the same if not more by having the well trimmed smaller but efficient round, WITHOUT the unwelcome need for the extra hassle caused by having a round which is simply a burden and overly large; causing you unwelcome pressure and unecessary grief.
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That would be ideal. Trouble is all the cleaners I know are full to the brim - need a newbie hungry for work maybe (like i was).
Yet again....where are you based?
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I have found its a case of balancing up whether you want to be (and I dont mean this in an insulting sense) a busy fool or someone with a well trimmed round, which you are able to 'milk' efficiently and earn from it what its worth and has as a potential.
I have found you're likely to be able to earn at least the same if not more by having the well trimmed smaller but efficient round, WITHOUT the unwelcome need for the extra hassle caused by having a round which is simply a burden and overly large; causing you unwelcome pressure and unecessary grief.
Spot on! ;)
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It's a funny thing I almost feel grateful to some of my custies for giving me work in the first place! I would rather give them to a decent cleaner than dump them. Some of them I like even if their property is crap. Most replies are common sense really.
Tony, did you increase prices across the range or on selected properties?
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Why don't you ever answer the question about where you are?
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Sorry, Wilts.
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It's a funny thing I almost feel grateful to some of my custies for giving me work in the first place! I would rather give them to a decent cleaner than dump them. Some of them I like even if their property is crap. Most replies are common sense really.
Tony, did you increase prices across the range or on selected properties?
Grateful? I know, I still have some "loyalty" customers!
I increased underpriced work I wanted to keep to my current level. Work I didn't care if I lost I increase to more than that level. I'm still in the "trimming" process though, kind of seeing what works best.
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Sorry, Wilts.
Now we're getting somewhere ;D I presume a lot of your work is rural so people should understand if you put your prices up to cover all that travelling between jobs.
I have a few £50 plus jobs out in the sticks. I do feel slightly 'bad' about the time it takes to do these jobs but by the time you add on travelling time, the hourly rate comes down.
Stick the prices up and get more for doing less, with those that drop off.
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ftp
your round must be at least 15 k a month to be 2 mnths behind....WOW... ;D ;D ;D ;D HAPPY DAYS and well done ;)
whats the secret?
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I'd say its time for a cull.
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ftp
your round must be at least 15 k a month to be 2 mnths behind....WOW... ;D ;D ;D ;D HAPPY DAYS and well done ;)
whats the secret?
I wish, no I'm nearly always between thirty and up to sixty jobs behind every week, some of my compact work is bang up to date every time it's the rest that's gone to pot. If I put in some mega hours to pull it back then in five weeks time I'll be inundated again when it comes back round.
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been there ftp on more than one occasion :'( then i thought sod this and i gave loads of work away, dumped some and sold some and uped the price on some
i still fall behind now but not by months and i kept the cream and reduced the stress and just take on work that suits now
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I'm getting the same :-[
Haven't caught up since my 2 weeks holiday 6/7 weeks ago.
Said to myself I'm not taking on anymore work.......... Then the next door neighbour to the one I'm doing comes out and want's theirs doing too, don't even have to move the van..... how can I say no?
Then a customer want's me to do their old mums/aunts etc etc coz they can trust me..... how can I say no?
And so it goes on ::)
Cull the crap you say? but the one I want to dump I also do their neighbour/mother/sister/best friend arghhhhhhhhh.
Then to top it all Hurrican Bill is heading for me :o
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ftp
your round must be at least 15 k a month to be 2 mnths behind....WOW... ;D ;D ;D ;D HAPPY DAYS and well done ;)
whats the secret?
I wish, no I'm nearly always between thirty and up to sixty jobs behind every week, some of my compact work is bang up to date every time it's the rest that's gone to pot. If I put in some mega hours to pull it back then in five weeks time I'll be inundated again when it comes back round.
ok..sorry m8 there was a bit of sarcasm in my post.. you must refine your round, be ruthless, go through it and put prices up , boot out low paid jobs etc... remember its about quality not quantity... ;)i wish i had that much work, I would have a round at 15k a month , plus :o ...I hope this makes sense withot being condasending or big headed....
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Sorry, Wilts.
I will take some of your work on if you want ? especially rural ones
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??? can't see you driving from Berkshire to do the work I don't want to do right on my doorstep.
Holidays? how do you guys manage a two week break? That's two full weeks of work I'd have to skip because there's no way to catch up again. I try not to let the whole round slip behind (can't see how to adjust it on George anyway) so anything in that period would be lost.
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dyou have little bits of paper littering your van floor with folks details scribbled on .thats the sign that youve reached the upper echelons ,lol
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??? can't see you driving from Berkshire to do the work I don't want to do right on my doorstep.
Holidays? how do you guys manage a two week break? That's two full weeks of work I'd have to skip because there's no way to catch up again. I try not to let the whole round slip behind (can't see how to adjust it on George anyway) so anything in that period would be lost.
where in Wilts are you ?
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Holidays? how do you guys manage a two week break? That's two full weeks of work I'd have to skip because there's no way to catch up again. I try not to let the whole round slip behind (can't see how to adjust it on George anyway) so anything in that period would be lost.
After 3 years of doing WFP and not taking a holiday in that time I just had to go for it this year, I told every customer I saw I would be late for the next clean and the ones I don't see I added the info to my "your windows were cleaned" slip.
You obviously lose 2 weeks money and are 2 weeks behind when you get back, but just keep at it and the 3rd week you get back there is nowt on George for the next 2 weeks(your hol weeks) so try to pull it all back then.
If anyone moans about you being late coz you took a holiday....... you know what to do ;D
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Crank up your prices for definite. You'll have natural drop-off and a good round.
When I get behind I look at my lists and do the best hourly rate stuff first, or the most compact (which is sort of the same thing) and then find time for the rest later.
Try not to get too dewy eyed these people would drop you if it didn't suit them. Look after your self and your family first.
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I am flying out to spain today, I just told a week that I would skip them a month, and they where fine with it. Its the first I have been away in three years also, so am looking forward.
I would say that I am doing good at the moment, could take on a couple more but not much, however I work on a scheduling system, as supposed to what most do. I can really see these types of post appearing more and more as the weather goes down hill, it sucks doesn't it.
Ftp, you should take someone on part time for a bit, and test the water with it. You will always be high on demand when when your ability to supply is low. Would diamonds cost a fortune if they were not the rare stones they are. Unfortunately there is only going to be more and more window cleaners as the economy goes south, so better they work for you, than take your work from you.
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ftp
sounds like you need to draw up a business plan ftp.make some hard decisions and as suggested get some help,employ some one for three days a week? and crack the back of the problem dont take on any more work or say to any new customer it will be a month before you can fit them in,that way you organise the round and yourself and then are in a postion to take on more good work
bob