[clearlyclean]

you say about being professional and telling customers where to get off,The customer has a say in how frenquent they have their windows cleaned.its up us to charge a fair price the following time(first clean rate) or when you have a full round replace them that is business they dont owe you a living

Of course they do. And we have a say in whether we want to do them or not.
If you agree a price and frequency, cancellations change the agreement then.
So charge more or concentrate on your regular customers.
It`s a two way thing. Some customers need to know that we can cancel them, as much as they can us.

We have control,when I started window cleaning I use to put up with all sorts of rubbish spread out work and irregular customers awkward access but as my business grows they get put to the bottom of the list and a new guy will probably pick them up just as I did when I started,I remember cleaning this house and said to the lady" I see you next month" and she said "I was only looking for an Irregular window cleaner",It was my second day in the game and it puzzled me at first,I think i cleaned her house 3 times over a year and then after a while forgot to knock as I was too busy.I suppose she got her irregular window cleaner or another guy got the same patter of "my window cleaner has'nt been for a while,He use to just turn up when he liked" sounds familiar.

[bad trippy]

Best ever advice i have heard on this forum is.. CCC... Canvass, Clean, Cull
Do this and the messers automatically get what they deserve!

[Spruce]

Hi,

I love posts like these.

As it was once put, your customer base is not fixed, but fluid, which means it keeps changing and we have to adapt to the change.
If a customer texted me with that message, I would welcome it as we probably wouldn't clean them anyway this month. We are in the North East and we have worked 1 day since the middle of November due to the weather.

I wonder if this will be the same advise to dump them that W/C's will be giving in a couple of years time. The Irish bailout has done nothing to eleviate their situation - Italy now on the list with issues as is Belguim and Germany with the threat of bankrupcy if the whole EU goes belly up. America has made it clear that it is looking toward the East and not interested in Europe or the Euro. At the rate that the world financial situation is collapsing we could end up in the replication of the 1930 depression in America - looking for work but finding none as no one has the money to pay you. Will we be looking to barter other essentials for doing work - ie vegetables, eggs etc.

We as window cleaners are part of the whole financial institution and take our living from it as are our customers that provide that living. Its scary times for us all, fuel and heating price rises along with the cost of food. We are being bombarded with advertising to buy large cost items now before the VAT increase in January - there is always something.

Maybe we have to look at ourselves and modify the way we work - extend cleaning times as has been suggested to accomodate our customers as they are also squeezed financially. Yes is bugs me when you get cancelled for stupid excuses, which usually boil down to them not having any money, but they still have money to spend on booze and cigs.

IMO customers are not worth raising your stress levels for.

Spruce

[GB Window Cleaning]

some really good responses here guys, thankyou soo much, reading these has made things clear in my mind and also made me smile at times 

I can tell this subject is close to the heart of many windys on here, as it is  mine!

thanks once again everyone

best regards g.b

[cozy]

I once had a custy ask me what I do when a custy is a bad pyer or a messer. I told her that custies like that need a new window cleaner. She laughed and looked suprised, then I explained how we work. We supply a service, there are more custies out there than we could possibly do, so we pick who we work with/for. The smile dissapeared and it dawned on her what I was saying. She always pays on time.

Some people need a helping hand to see how reality is.

Never dump a custy, replace with two new ones. That way, your business runs under your control and not your custies control.

We all get this mate. Tempting to get a baseball bat innit?

[james44]

All you posters who were ready to dump customers because they asked you to leave it this month, how are you feeling now as you would not have got round to doing them anyway!

And how will you feel if they dump you for not doing them this month! cant use the weather as an excuse as you would not take that as an excuse from the customers!

[Spruce]

All you posters who were ready to dump customers because they asked you to leave it this month, how are you feeling now as you would not have got round to doing them anyway!

And how will you feel if they dump you for not doing them this month! cant use the weather as an excuse as you would not take that as an excuse from the customers!

Good point made there

[cleantech-westmids]

If they do it more than once i dump them! she clearly doesn't appreciate you cleaning her windows all year round and the time of year you need it most she tells you to leave it. get rid son!!!

[boshravie]

Hi,

I love posts like these.

As it was once put, your customer base is not fixed, but fluid, which means it keeps changing and we have to adapt to the change.
If a customer texted me with that message, I would welcome it as we probably wouldn't clean them anyway this month. We are in the North East and we have worked 1 day since the middle of November due to the weather.

I wonder if this will be the same advise to dump them that W/C's will be giving in a couple of years time. The Irish bailout has done nothing to eleviate their situation - Italy now on the list with issues as is Belguim and Germany with the threat of bankrupcy if the whole EU goes belly up. America has made it clear that it is looking toward the East and not interested in Europe or the Euro. At the rate that the world financial situation is collapsing we could end up in the replication of the 1930 depression in America - looking for work but finding none as no one has the money to pay you. Will we be looking to barter other essentials for doing work - ie vegetables, eggs etc.

We as window cleaners are part of the whole financial institution and take our living from it as are our customers that provide that living. Its scary times for us all, fuel and heating price rises along with the cost of food. We are being bombarded with advertising to buy large cost items now before the VAT increase in January - there is always something.

Maybe we have to look at ourselves and modify the way we work - extend cleaning times as has been suggested to accomodate our customers as they are also squeezed financially. Yes is bugs me when you get cancelled for stupid excuses, which usually boil down to them not having any money, but they still have money to spend on booze and cigs.

IMO customers are not worth raising your stress levels for.

Spruce

Couldn’t put it any better :-)