Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: rg1 on December 02, 2009, 07:13:33 pm
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Apart from the price, what's the difference??
Only asking as I want to invest in one or the other.
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the best thing to do mate is download them both and trial them it's all down to personal preference and what you actually need from them . basically they both do the same thing but in different ways..
paul
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So the fact that wcp costs more doesn't mean it does more for the money or is easier to use?
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RG - as stated trial them both
on a personal level i have trialled both and am going to use WCP - i found it far more user friendly, professional, and more importantly did things the way i like them done.
couldn't be happier and have just purchased my copy today.
but you may find George does just what you want.
Darran
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this topic come up every few months, George does the job, but after using WCP, i prefer it.
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window cleaner pro is great i would use it if i was you
only £16 a month for a year i think
or pay up front about 150 ish
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neither is my answer, just set up a few exel spreadsheets, free, have it do what you want, move it from pc to pc when you want, doesnt go wrong. simple
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Lee - i started out doing that but found that once you get over a couple of hundred customers the excel sheets get a bit unweldly - at least the programs (WCP) takes care of debts,schedules etc..
Darran
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I'm a bit surprised that someone as enlightened as you lee should think this. You have built a great company, but should consider the possibility that you are wrong on this issue.
As for a side by side comparison george is easier and does most things. Wpro is more comprehensive, harder to learn, but probably worthwhile.
As just one example; the search function.Often when you get a bank payment, a cheque, or for some other reason you have to figure out which job it relates too. In george you put either the name, or the address (you have a choice), but it's surprising how often you can't find what you want. In pro type in any word you remember from the job (avenue as an example and it will show you everything with avenue in it- or jones or whatever).
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with the free trial downloads are there any difference between them and the actual one you pay for? i dont want to trial it and decide i like it and then find out its different
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the Trials are the full programs, but with a limited license, so when you make your choice, you pay your money and get the full license activated. all your jobs are just the way you left them ;)
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Clive
Freeform search does just that in George, also they have just added half a dozen new features.
I am beginning to like George again, strange how things can change so quickly, i hated it last month.
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whats the difference in price between them both?
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i downloaded george the full program for £50 with free internet backup for 6 months!great!took me 6 hours to input 320 custys though with full addresses,frequency and price!easy to use and does the job.never tryed WCpro.i heard one guy on ere paid £277 with internet backup for 12 months! ;D ;D
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daz what do you use though? your pc? ive just got a blackberry and ive heard you can put all the info into this, does anyone know if this is true and if it works ok
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ive got it on my laptop.just bought a brand new one with windows 7 on and a new printer.i print worksheets for the week,then debt lists for collecting! ;) ;)some have got pocket george on a cheap pda palm but im ok with this for now.i used a notebook,pen and diary for 15 yrs so this is new to me!my accountant will be impressed! ;D ;D
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so basically each night do you just input what you have cleaned and also if they have paid ot not? do you find it a lot easier than pen an paper and is it worth the money?
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yes!it takes 10 mins every night after work.its really easy!once youve inputted all ur custys,its a doddle!!defo worth the money!dont know why i didnt do it years ago.prob cos i used to have a computer phobia! ;D ;D
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right then, i will download the george one over the weeknd and put them all in. lets see how it goes over the next 3 months and then i can make my decision based on that. cheers daz ;D
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Have downloaded the trial of George before and thought it seemed very good. Very simple to use, very straight forward getting you to input one thing a time with prompts.
Just downloaded trial of Wcp and think im going to buy it.
Seems so sophisticated. Very on the ball with being able to manage things, very smart look, and just generally seems like its very good.
Looks a lot more professional than George, but also a lot harder to work.
I think if you want something easy go with George.
Question for anyone with Wcp, Does it print off all your expenses etc, and make spreadsheets or overviews of monthly income/expenditure to make tax return a doddle?
Sorry if that makes no sense or is waffle, Getting very tired.
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slumpbuster i see where your coming from, fact is i designed a custom system that i had a programmer write for me, later we fell out over money and i had to stop using the system, so tried wcp, and although i can see it is very good i just couldnt get on with it. so heres how i do it on excel.
i have a master sheet with all the custys on and all there details that i only see. active or not is indicated by colour as are one off customers
we now offer a choice of 6 or 12 weeks to customers so i have 12 separate week lists arranged in the best possible order for efficientcy if they are 6 weekly they appear twice in the 12 week list, once for 12 weekers. so start of week 1 we print all the customers in order for that week rather than doing a job sheet every night, and then simply work through the list in its pre arranged order as long as weather allows, when that week list is done, print the next one and so on, sometimes were behind sometimes were ahead. we spread the work evenly throughout the weeks so they are all roughly the same value.
So what about the end of the day and outstanding payments? if someone pays us on the day they are simply crossed of in pen on the printed worksheet. if not then i open that weeks sheet and copy and paste them into another for outstanding payments, this page has colums for date in was done, invoices, late payment letters sent and so on.
it really is so simple, maybe spend about 20 minutes at the end of each day.
obviously there is more to it, so anyone who wants to learn more about how i do this and its advantages is welcome to email me to talk about it in more detail. lee@pryors-uk.com
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slumpbuster i see where your coming from, fact is i designed a custom system that i had a programmer write for me, later we fell out over money and i had to stop using the system, so tried wcp, and although i can see it is very good i just couldnt get on with it. so heres how i do it on excel.
i have a master sheet with all the custys on and all there details that i only see. active or not is indicated by colour as are one off customers
we now offer a choice of 6 or 12 weeks to customers so i have 12 separate week lists arranged in the best possible order for efficientcy if they are 6 weekly they appear twice in the 12 week list, once for 12 weekers. so start of week 1 we print all the customers in order for that week rather than doing a job sheet every night, and then simply work through the list in its pre arranged order as long as weather allows, when that week list is done, print the next one and so on, sometimes were behind sometimes were ahead. we spread the work evenly throughout the weeks so they are all roughly the same value.
So what about the end of the day and outstanding payments? if someone pays us on the day they are simply crossed of in pen on the printed worksheet. if not then i open that weeks sheet and copy and paste them into another for outstanding payments, this page has colums for date in was done, invoices, late payment letters sent and so on.
it really is so simple, maybe spend about 20 minutes at the end of each day.
obviously there is more to it, so anyone who wants to learn more about how i do this and its advantages is welcome to email me to talk about it in more detail. lee@pryors-uk.com
Hi Lee,
Ive tried to call a few times and left an answer phone message to give me a ring when your free as I am more than happy to visit again and get you sorted on WCP?
Cheers
Ian
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Both programs are very good. If you are just starting up, then George will do everything you need and is still being improved. In fact a new update has just been announced adding more features.
If your business grows you might need to move to another program.
The back up with both programs is second to none!
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ian i am happy for you to make a visit but the thing isnt working at all. not sure its for me, i dont like all this separate jobs business. we provide different services, like gutter clearing, jet washing, gutter clearing and so on, its very long winded inputting all this as seperate jobs. also i dont want to do job sheets every night, im sick of it. i just want to work with a rolling list, not to due dates. if you still think wcp can work for my business then im listening mate.
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Lee, I found that to be the advantage of WCP - i like it that i can have a reg clean with a custy then add a gutter clean as 1 off job and all the details are stored under custy name addy also the schedule allows me to look ahead and when done its all stored and have a record of the customers jobs/ prices
i like this for the 1 off jobs as i put it on a 26 week cycle so i can promp custy for a repeat on the job!
Darran
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ian i am happy for you to make a visit but the thing isnt working at all. not sure its for me, i dont like all this separate jobs business. we provide different services, like gutter clearing, jet washing, gutter clearing and so on, its very long winded inputting all this as seperate jobs. also i dont want to do job sheets every night, im sick of it. i just want to work with a rolling list, not to due dates. if you still think wcp can work for my business then im listening mate.
i do really like the programme and i can't praise it enough since really adjusting to it but to me what Lee is explaining here is still its short fall. with a few other minors but to me this is still quite an issue ;)
I just think that window cleaners are more versatile nowadays with wfp and offer additional services. to see them all in different screens and as seperate custys (even though they are the same name) to me is all backwards. i still have a debt of £140 in my task menu because the same custy is in credit £140 on another screen. totally confusing. We are moving more general cleaning services onto our business in the new year so to add aditional cleans/services to the same custy would be good, although i know that is more personal to me.
How many of us now with wfp add services like con roof, fascias, gutters etc what about hotels or shops that may have certain areas cleaned on different parts of the month at different prices?
I've already said to ian if i needed to pay for a bolt on to my wcp app to do it i gladly would. i wouldn't expect him to do it all for nothing.
PS Ian i ain't having a pop fella, just reinforcing my beliefs that has been highlighted already.
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ian i am happy for you to make a visit but the thing isnt working at all. not sure its for me, i dont like all this separate jobs business. we provide different services, like gutter clearing, jet washing, gutter clearing and so on, its very long winded inputting all this as seperate jobs. also i dont want to do job sheets every night, im sick of it. i just want to work with a rolling list, not to due dates. if you still think wcp can work for my business then im listening mate.
i do really like the programme and i can't praise it enough since really adjusting to it but to me what Lee is explaining here is still its short fall. with a few other minors but to me this is still quite an issue ;)
I just think that window cleaners are more versatile nowadays with wfp and offer additional services. to see them all in different screens and as seperate custys (even though they are the same name) to me is all backwards. i still have a debt of £140 in my task menu because the same custy is in credit £140 on another screen. totally confusing. We are moving more general cleaning services onto our business in the new year so to add aditional cleans/services to the same custy would be good, although i know that is more personal to me.
How many of us now with wfp add services like con roof, fascias, gutters etc what about hotels or shops that may have certain areas cleaned on different parts of the month at different prices?
I've already said to ian if i needed to pay for a bolt on to my wcp app to do it i gladly would. i wouldn't expect him to do it all for nothing.
PS Ian i ain't having a pop fella, just reinforcing my beliefs that has been highlighted already.
As always we are open to constructive feedback and we are well under way to getting the new customer screens completed which should solve your current problems as well as make customer management and input a lot faster and easier.
Thanks
Ian
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ian i am happy for you to make a visit but the thing isnt working at all. not sure its for me, i dont like all this separate jobs business. we provide different services, like gutter clearing, jet washing, gutter clearing and so on, its very long winded inputting all this as seperate jobs. also i dont want to do job sheets every night, im sick of it. i just want to work with a rolling list, not to due dates. if you still think wcp can work for my business then im listening mate.
i do really like the programme and i can't praise it enough since really adjusting to it but to me what Lee is explaining here is still its short fall. with a few other minors but to me this is still quite an issue ;)
I just think that window cleaners are more versatile nowadays with wfp and offer additional services. to see them all in different screens and as seperate custys (even though they are the same name) to me is all backwards. i still have a debt of £140 in my task menu because the same custy is in credit £140 on another screen. totally confusing. We are moving more general cleaning services onto our business in the new year so to add aditional cleans/services to the same custy would be good, although i know that is more personal to me.
How many of us now with wfp add services like con roof, fascias, gutters etc what about hotels or shops that may have certain areas cleaned on different parts of the month at different prices?
I've already said to ian if i needed to pay for a bolt on to my wcp app to do it i gladly would. i wouldn't expect him to do it all for nothing.
PS Ian i ain't having a pop fella, just reinforcing my beliefs that has been highlighted already.
i agree and would also pay as i think most would
paul
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while your on here ian, is it possible to print off an invoice for a job before it's done, i have 2 pubs to clean now that require and invoice be left when i have done the clean but i don't know if i will be paid there or then or later depending if the landlord is there or not so i want to print the invoice off in the morning before i start the day so i can leave it with them.
thanks
paul
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while your on here ian, is it possible to print off an invoice for a job before it's done, i have 2 pubs to clean now that require and invoice be left when i have done the clean but i don't know if i will be paid there or then or later depending if the landlord is there or not so i want to print the invoice off in the morning before i start the day so i can leave it with them.
thanks
paul
Hi Paul,
This is only possible by entering the clean and then printing the invoice off at the moment but it is something that will be included in the future.
Thanks
Ian
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ok, how would i actually do it, do i have to put it on the day's worksheet then go to the end of day part mark it as done and then print an invoice or is there a easier way.
thanks
paul
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I have been running George for a few years now and have always been very happy with it, However I recently looked a changing to WCP for a couple of reasons, mainly because Palm have changed their operating system so George is no longer compatible, Paul says he has no plans to change that or to make it work on any other OS which is a shame.
That in my eyes makes George behind the times and so will surely become obsolete.
I tried WCP and found it a good solid piece of software but have decided not to buy as I am in the process of making lots of expensive changes to my company so cash is tied up elsewhere.
I did consider the pay monthly option but having worked out the extra cost felt it was ridiculously high, as bad as the bloody credit cards in fact, I was so shocked at the APR I uninstalled the trial and decided to stick with George.
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ok ian
i will call you next week to arrange a day to meet up.
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I have been running George for a few years now and have always been very happy with it, However I recently looked a changing to WCP for a couple of reasons, mainly because Palm have changed their operating system so George is no longer compatible, Paul says he has no plans to change that or to make it work on any other OS which is a shame.
That in my eyes makes George behind the times and so will surely become obsolete.
I tried WCP and found it a good solid piece of software but have decided not to buy as I am in the process of making lots of expensive changes to my company so cash is tied up elsewhere.
I did consider the pay monthly option but having worked out the extra cost felt it was ridiculously high, as bad as the bloody credit cards in fact, I was so shocked at the APR I uninstalled the trial and decided to stick with George.
The reason the price is higher as we get charged by paypal for every monthly transaction. Secondly we have to monitor and update the license every month. It works out at £3.82 extra per month which covers paypal and admin costs.
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I print a pub invoice before i do it, so didn't really ubderstand ians reply ???
Anyhow while your here ian, i have a science park with six different building that want cleaning at different times, how do i include the other five jobs?
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I print a pub invoice before i do it, so didn't really ubderstand ians reply ???
Anyhow while your here ian, i have a science park with six different building that want cleaning at different times, how do i include the other five jobs?
how do you do that then slumpbuster
paul
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Had to go to pub like you , so used search to find job, clicked maintain, clicked print invoice.Invoice printed.
I think thats how i did it.I am not very good in the programme still learning.
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i tried that but then when i went to the end of day on the program worksheet it then showed that the pub owed twice 1 for the clean that i did that day and 1 for the pre raised invoice. I would double check yours just to make sure it hasn't done the same mate..
paul
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will do, cheers.