Interesting thread!
some people ring for a quote and dont get back intouch so it cant be that cheap other wise why dont they get back intouch
If you think that price is the only deciding factor then you're just as much to blame as the pesky price-shoppers who ring their way through the yellow pages!
It's how you sell the job and how you sound to the customer. Can they hear you clearly? Is there a machine whirring away in the background? Are you puffing and panting because you just had to run down/up stairs to get your phone?
Are you gruff with them? Do you put on a fake phone voice to sound a bit posher? (don't scoff, it works!).
The first impression people get of you is your ad, if that works and they ring you, the second impression is the first couple of exchanges of conversation on the phone. You can win or lose a customer in this tiny amount of time.
As far as selling the job goes, you need to concentrate on the benefits they are going to get from using you to clean for them.
Ever thought that you sound too cheap to people? I wouldn't hire you if you were charging half as much as someone else to do the same thing. I'd be convinced that you do a crap job.
I'm not inferring that you do a crap job of course
But if you're worth it, price to match. Don't get hung up on what other people are charging.
The next 3 quotes you do, work out what you normally quote and add 20%. See what happens.
Do you normally just give pricing out straight over the phone or try to physically get round there and present yourself to customers? I find I have a fantastic conversion rate and get a higher job ticket from on-site quotes, and the phone quotes are no better than 1 in 3.
There are ways of converting "can you give me a price for..." into a home visit.