Clean It Up

UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: jo5hm4n on January 17, 2020, 09:01:03 pm

Title: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: jo5hm4n on January 17, 2020, 09:01:03 pm
Personally i dont take on customers who are friends or family or even people i know that know me personally in any context.

Done it before and if any of the following happens it can be a real pain and super awkward or just a PITA.

They turn out to be bad payers / Cancel the clean when you send text reminder / house turns out to be mega awkward / Job is underpriced and you feel bad to up price because you know them too well / or they have dodgy window seals that never come up good with wfp and then your worried your not doing a good enough job. - The list goes on i've had it all.  Now i just turn these down because if you ever have to bin them off or they bin you off it can make things awkward i find afterwards.

What do you lot do?

Yes im bored its friday night and im on here doing a Nathan.

 ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
Title: Re: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: deeege on January 17, 2020, 09:07:43 pm
I don’t take on friends family or neighbours, did it once, never again.

I get asked constantly I just tell them I don’t really do houses, just commercial stuff, seems to work for me.
Title: Re: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: jk999 on January 17, 2020, 09:21:12 pm
I do alot of friends n family yeah i offer some discounts but i tell them an higher price first the give them the discount but its still same as other customers lolb😁never ever had a problem
Title: Re: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: the king on January 17, 2020, 09:31:47 pm
dont do it i done it never again you have been warned  :)
Title: Re: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: dazmond on January 17, 2020, 10:12:53 pm
I clean them for free every now and then...girlfriend and parents...no distant cousins though!👍
Title: Re: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: nathankaye on January 17, 2020, 11:11:31 pm
The cheek!  ;D

Nope, dont clean friends n family for same reasons as yourself.  Learnt that one a good while back
Title: Re: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: lee_dewing on January 18, 2020, 12:24:04 am
Done some neighbours,
Never again 🤦‍♂️

Late payers.

Clean my parents.

Most of my friends are not local enough, wife’s friends tell them I only do my neighbourhood.

Other excuses, “thanks for asking but full up, one man band can’t fit anymore in, been doing 15+ years”

Any new neighbours move in near me, which seems to be every 18 +months

I just tell them straight, thanks but I don’t work for friends, family or neighbours

People move in nowadays barely answer if you greet them good morning

Then suddenly they act like a long lost relative when they want a favour i.e borrow tools, jump leads,

Let neighbour in my road use my ladder who’d locked themselves out and he went in through an upstairs
Window

Lucky if he says “good morning”

I’m just a miserable old sod 😆

As  OP  says steer clear of anyone you know.

Someone who lives up the road
On my estate I’d cleaned for 10 years, bit of a snob🤥 and always gossiping, always lose 10+ minutes listening to her crap 😴

Started getting funny.
I got a dog 2 1/2 years ago.

Her dog is a real pain in the arse!

Kept bumping into her walking the dog 😁

I’d always say good morning though,
Keep moving, bad enough she wastes time at windows!

In the end it seemed she get annoyed bumping into me 🤔

I never stood jawing,

Said good morning last month while walking dog.

Got a  blank and a dirty look.

She’s now sacked!!👍

Another reason not to work too local
Title: Re: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: Pete Thompson on January 18, 2020, 02:25:12 am
Started doing some of the mrs family a while back. Ok for a while, then a huge family argument erupted (not related to window cleaning obviously)

Now I have the awkward decision of carrying on with it even though the mrs is no longer on good terms with them, or stopping and appearing petty. Made much worse by having a normal customer 2 houses down.

Never again! My advice would be just make an excuse!
Title: Re: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: james peters on January 18, 2020, 09:49:52 am
only my daughters, but they both work for me ;D

wont do friends or family
Title: Re: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: Granny on January 18, 2020, 11:08:00 am
No.
You don't c**p on your own doorstep!
Title: Re: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: Simon Trapani on January 18, 2020, 03:31:29 pm
I’ll take on any work I want to as long as the money is right & the house is not a complete nightmare. Even if it’s on my own doorstep. Doesn’t bother me. I’m confident in my window cleaning ability. If they don’t like it they can get somebody else. I think that about all customers. I’ll do my Mum & Dad’s for free & a very select one or two very close friends for next to nothing or even free.

I’d like to think I don’t crap on anybody’s doorstep.
Title: Re: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: TomCrowther on January 18, 2020, 03:58:36 pm
I wonder if gynaecologists have the same dilemma?
Title: Re: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: jk999 on January 18, 2020, 05:49:49 pm
Same as you simon ,i cant see what the problem is probably your right maybe they haven't got the confidence in their work and dont want friends n family taking the Michael out of they are crap window cleaners
Title: Re: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: spudd on January 18, 2020, 06:37:25 pm
Yup do plenty of friends of friends , they all understand payment terms and are priced well.
Title: Re: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: Ste M on January 19, 2020, 03:50:02 pm
I have about 10 friends and family that i do for free, the lads don't know which ones my friends are so its a way of keeping an eye on people when they're working. Also in my opinion if you can't afford to do a few freebies here and there then I don't think you're doing as well as some make out on here. Ive got over 900 customers so about 10 freecleans every 6 weeks is hardly going to break the bank
Title: Re: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: nathankaye on January 19, 2020, 05:32:28 pm
I wonder if gynaecologists have the same dilemma?

Nope as im sure the women wont be asking their friends to take a look in the first place!
Why does ur mind go their
Title: Re: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: the king on January 20, 2020, 06:53:52 pm
i met a chap on fb we now go fishing ect realy nice guy he pop'd the question will i clean his windows i said sorry im stacked cant take any more on ect, any way pop'd round his house to do a deal on some rods he had for sale and went through back garden and there was dog craap every were glad i turned him away as it be awkward as he friend
Title: Re: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: deeege on January 20, 2020, 10:35:48 pm
i met a chap on fb we now go fishing ect realy nice guy he pop'd the question will i clean his windows i said sorry im stacked cant take any more on ect, any way pop'd round his house to do a deal on some rods he had for sale and went through back garden and there was dog craap every were glad i turned him away as it be awkward as he friend

Congratulations, when’s the big day?
Title: Re: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: Johnny B on January 23, 2020, 06:55:43 pm
i met a chap on fb we now go fishing ect realy nice guy he pop'd the question will i clean his windows i said sorry im stacked cant take any more on ect, any way pop'd round his house to do a deal on some rods he had for sale and went through back garden and there was dog craap every were glad i turned him away as it be awkward as he friend


Congratulations, when’s the big day?

😂😂😂

John
Title: Re: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: Missing Link on January 24, 2020, 09:34:28 am
Why does ur mind go their

Because he's a red-blooded bloke with a brain - evolved over millions of years - to go right there; straight away?
Title: Re: Do you take on friends / family?
Post by: G Griffin on January 24, 2020, 02:13:43 pm
i met a chap on fb we now go fishing ect realy nice guy he pop'd the question will i clean his windows i said sorry im stacked cant take any more on ect, any way pop'd round his house to do a deal on some rods he had for sale and went through back garden and there was dog craap every were glad i turned him away as it be awkward as he friend

Congratulations, when’s the big day?
Dog craap or not, I hope he got down on one knee.