[benny donnelly]

Ok as you may or may not know im starting out window cleaning this week, will be starting Wedensday and from Monday (yesterday) onwards will have 2 canvassers out 5 hours each day.

First day yesterday and they got 24 in total, which i think is a pretty good start, some even asked about gutter cleaning and powerwashing! so there has be plenty of work out there even with a few other window cleaning outfits on the go!

I have picked up 6 new customer over the weekend, well they are friends and family, and as they were first cleans I took my time, srubbed well, rinsed well and repeated, most came out 100% but others needed cleaned a few more times as they werent coming out clean enough, and a couple which i wasnt 100% with but the customner said was fine, my tds is 000 so its ok, any advise on this?

Ill keep posted as to the canvassing results throughout the week, it will be really interesting to see what percentage of these new cusomters will still be regular in 6 months time!

[magic moments]

24 is great how many canvassers you got going and what rates they charging you? Are they just canvassing evenings?

[Roy Cauldery]

Hi Benny
thats a great result-well done to your team
sounds like your gonna be busy

regards

Roy

[benny donnelly]

ok so have my 1st day cleaning over me today and didnt go to bad, cleaned 10 semi's and 2 detached, just took me time with them i know im using far to much water but more concentrating on a perfect clean for now.

canvassers booked 10 cleans on tues and 10 today so week filling up pretty good!!

one question i have is do many of you use a trigger on your pole? i think that might a good 1st step for me to try use a little less water!

[Crystal-clear]

watch out for the one hit wonders mate , soon you will learn every new customer is a cancelation till proven otherwise! 3 times a payer at least problem is u never know the truth till u got there cash.

[Ste M]

i use a trigger and its one of the best things i bought, spot clean (i think) have them for about 30 ish, i find it gives you more control as well as you control the flow at the flick of a wrist, when i went wfp i used a backpack and i would use about 30ltrs a house, then i got a trigger and i can clean a whole house with half that

[Window Washers]

ok so have my 1st day cleaning over me today and didnt go to bad, cleaned 10 semi's and 2 detached, just took me time with them i know im using far to much water but more concentrating on a perfect clean for now.

canvassers booked 10 cleans on tues and 10 today so week filling up pretty good!!

one question i have is do many of you use a trigger on your pole? i think that might a good 1st step for me to try use a little less water!

triggers are heavy, use something like a flow controller, and a tap, you can get a aquadaper but the price is sky high, a tap on your pole or hose does the same thing.

some one posting here seems to have a chip on their should about canvassed work,  you can tell by talking with people if they are good customers or not, I have had a lot of canvassed work that was poor quality but again I have had a lot that was perfect, customer services plays a massive part on the work you keep or lose which many on here fail to understand.

Well done by the way, keep at it

[benny donnelly]

cheers for the advise so far lads 

Will look into triggers and taps at some stage in the week.

The 2 canvassers are excellent and worth their weight in gold!!! They can talk the talk, have loads door to door experience, can really sell the wfp benefits etc and the most important thing I told them to say is about booking them in for a monthly clean regardless of weather we will be there, as we offer a professional service and will be on time everytime and at anytime they not happy we clean it free...

This seems to be working for now anyway see how it goes

[Window Washers]

 nice

cheers for the advise so far lads 

Will look into triggers and taps at some stage in the week.

The 2 canvassers are excellent and worth their weight in gold!!! They can talk the talk, have loads door to door experience, can really sell the wfp benefits etc and the most important thing I told them to say is about booking them in for a monthly clean regardless of weather we will be there, as we offer a professional service and will be on time everytime and at anytime they not happy we clean it free...

This seems to be working for now anyway see how it goes

approch 

[richardlingard]

i used to think the price of an aquadapter was sky high, until i got one and it saved my temper and patience no end ! in my opinion that is priceless

[Johnny B]

watch out for the one hit wonders mate , soon you will learn every new customer is a cancelation till proven otherwise! 3 times a payer at least problem is u never know the truth till u got there cash.

This is true.

Benny, I too am in Ireland and am still building my run. Nine months in I have around 250 'customers', of which maybe 150 are regular or semi-regular, ie their frequencies vary but at least they are repeat business. The rest are either one-offs or ones who may call me.

I have learned that 'monthly' to us means something different to customers here, so it will be interesting to see what happens when you go back to do the second cleans. Hopefully they will honour their agreement, but you may find that they will tell you the windows are still clean, or to come back next week/month or even that they will call you when they need doing again.

Please don't let any of this put you off. All this has happened to me and it is all part of the learning process. That said, it shows that there is work out there, but it will take time to build a decent business.

You have made an excellent start and I genuinely hope it continues to go from strength to strength for you.

John   
   

[john entwistle]

i'd say get an aqua-daptor soon as m8 i think you can still get the mark 2 pretty cheap and it's worth it's weight in gold imo

[Window Washers]

i'd say get an aqua-daptor soon as m8 i think you can still get the mark 2 pretty cheap and it's worth it's weight in gold imo

its worth its weigh on the pole do you mean ? I really should buy one just to test it out, as I really cannot see the point of it honestly I can't. the saving in water is out weighed by the cost from where I am sat then theres the weight at the end of the pole that is not needed then they break (they do get fixed I agree, but added messing about.

having a tap at the end of your hose reel before the pole hose does the same thing but also allows you to detach pole and use the tap to remove dirt ect on the fly, which can't be done with the aquadapter.
to be it was meanding something that wasnt broken

[Crystal-clear]

cheers for the advise so far lads  

Will look into triggers and taps at some stage in the week.

The 2 canvassers are excellent and worth their weight in gold!!! They can talk the talk, have loads door to door experience, can really sell the wfp benefits etc and the most important thing I told them to say is about booking them in for a monthly clean regardless of weather we will be there, as we offer a professional service and will be on time everytime and at anytime they not happy we clean it free...

This seems to be working for now anyway see how it goes

oh benny benny benny  
i dont wana be negetive but i dont want you to get stung not cos you are getting ripped off but you must understand that each and every person you clean is a mistery its such a numbers game. as long as you wasnt guaranteed anything and you understand its a total risk then thats fine by both parties.

you have to be carefull mate or you could fall into a trap like many do!
no one is going to make another person rich.

if they are selling the benifits too much and gaining customers in that manner it means the customer becomes so curious that they just have to see the pole in action,and many one offs happen this way once they see it its a pat on the back cheers for that mate,

or the other one is "talking the talk" what the customer is buying here is them not you or your services... they are charming them at the door this means the customer wants to do them a favour..once these said yes everything what is told to them goes in one ear and out the other.

when you actually turn up and start cleaning then take a score off em after what they see as "sparying some water on the windows", they go hmmmm ok.... you say see you next month they say yeaaa right , then they will not tell you that they wana cancel but they already did.

if i could have done one thing different when i started hiring canvassers i wish i just took a very small amount of work waited till 2nd clean then choose my options.

i know you wana boost yourself and progress and its frustrating but i would be very carefull and wait till 2nd cleans dont over spend or spend an amount you can afford to lose.

its till you at least get that 2nd clean out the way when you find out where you stand canvassing does work but dont get carried away !

[Window Washers]

cheers for the advise so far lads  

Will look into triggers and taps at some stage in the week.

The 2 canvassers are excellent and worth their weight in gold!!! They can talk the talk, have loads door to door experience, can really sell the wfp benefits etc and the most important thing I told them to say is about booking them in for a monthly clean regardless of weather we will be there, as we offer a professional service and will be on time everytime and at anytime they not happy we clean it free...

This seems to be working for now anyway see how it goes

oh benny benny benny  
i dont wana be negetive but i dont want you to get stung not cos you are getting ripped off but you must understand that each and every person you clean is a mistery its such a numbers game. as long as you wasnt guaranteed anything and you understand its a total risk then thats fine by both parties.

you have to be carefull mate or you could fall into a trap like many do!
no one is going to make another person rich.

if they are selling the benifits too much and gaining customers in that manner it means the customer becomes so curious that they just have to see the pole in action,and many one offs happen this way once they see it its a pat on the back cheers for that mate,

or the other one is "talking the talk" what the customer is buying here is them not you or your services... they are charming them at the door this means the customer wants to do them a favour..once these said yes everything what is told to them goes in one ear and out the other.

when you actually turn up and start cleaning then take a score off em after what they see as "sparying some water on the windows", they go hmmmm ok.... you say see you next month they say yeaaa right , then they will not tell you that they wana cancel but they already did.

if i could have done one thing different when i started hiring canvassers i wish i just took a very small amount of work waited till 2nd clean then choose my options.

i know you wana boost yourself and progress and its frustrating but i would be very carefull and wait till 2nd cleans dont over spend or spend an amount you can afford to lose.

its till you at least get that 2nd clean out the way when you find out where you stand canvassing does work but dont get carried away !

by any chance did you get stung, as you seem to have a problem with canvassing work

[Crystal-clear]

no just some people guaranteed things which were unreasonable
some gave no guarantee and i prefered those
if i was told here is £500 for £1000 you will prolly have £250 left on 2nd i still would have employed them just not so quick problem is you never know the cancelation.
and its easy to get carried away and certain canvassers pretend that the work is amazing and some customers were even programed not to cancel till the last min..
i kinda call that being stung but maybe not so much as others have.
its just so easy to get carried away and Delusional and its important that we all know where we stand and thats the message i hope im putting across that no one has a crystal ball and we cant predict things untill they happen ive yes i have learnt from mistakes so im just passing it on , im sure if i had a penny for every window cleaner who has had nightmares or problems similar to mine id pack in window cleaning and be a millionair!

when it comes to canvassing ive done so much of it that i sometimes know what kind of customer ive got before i clean it, i also know how to keep someone who wants a one off for a little longer but all in all im so sick of it i think thats my main problem;, im always wanting to progress and im meeting a leafleting company who sound pretty reasonable will be saying goodbye to canvassing,while i try out my new venture my gps should arrive soon that perfect recomended.i know the grass may not be green and i will just end up sitting for the phone to ring but fingers crossed 1% or half a percent isnt really that bad when you think of it!

i still think canvassing has its place thou but keeping canvassed work long term is such a nightmare

[benny donnelly]

cheers for the advise so far lads  

Will look into triggers and taps at some stage in the week.

The 2 canvassers are excellent and worth their weight in gold!!! They can talk the talk, have loads door to door experience, can really sell the wfp benefits etc and the most important thing I told them to say is about booking them in for a monthly clean regardless of weather we will be there, as we offer a professional service and will be on time everytime and at anytime they not happy we clean it free...

This seems to be working for now anyway see how it goes

oh benny benny benny  
i dont wana be negetive but i dont want you to get stung not cos you are getting ripped off but you must understand that each and every person you clean is a mistery its such a numbers game. as long as you wasnt guaranteed anything and you understand its a total risk then thats fine by both parties.

you have to be carefull mate or you could fall into a trap like many do!
no one is going to make another person rich.

if they are selling the benifits too much and gaining customers in that manner it means the customer becomes so curious that they just have to see the pole in action,and many one offs happen this way once they see it its a pat on the back cheers for that mate,

or the other one is "talking the talk" what the customer is buying here is them not you or your services... they are charming them at the door this means the customer wants to do them a favour..once these said yes everything what is told to them goes in one ear and out the other.

when you actually turn up and start cleaning then take a score off em after what they see as "sparying some water on the windows", they go hmmmm ok.... you say see you next month they say yeaaa right , then they will not tell you that they wana cancel but they already did.

if i could have done one thing different when i started hiring canvassers i wish i just took a very small amount of work waited till 2nd clean then choose my options.

i know you wana boost yourself and progress and its frustrating but i would be very carefull and wait till 2nd cleans dont over spend or spend an amount you can afford to lose.

its till you at least get that 2nd clean out the way when you find out where you stand canvassing does work but dont get carried away !

Thanks for your feedback most helpful 

This is the deal I have with paying the canvassers:

Canvassers book a clean > I turn up and clean > next month turn up again to do clean, if 2nd clean goes ahead THEN AND ONLY THEN do the canvassers get paid for that booking and I pay them the cost of the clean, so I am getting nothing really from the first clean...this way they sell the benefits right and make the customer more aware that I provide a monthly service...now I know they arent blagging it or spinning lies as ive heard them and they are genuine and of course its in their interests to book it right and make a point about being a monthly service so to get paid...

Now this is new to me and it is trial and error really to find a system that works and i wont know until im a few months in and see how many repeat cleans i get but for now its kinda working.

Today they booked 15 which is great, tbh i was expecting 10 max each evening, but they have started hitting some big estates so they are getting through some numbers but the bookings will decrease as they move out of the area they are in..I do offer a bonus for booking a certain number of cleans and by the numbers so far they will get it this week no problem...

As for cleaning today only got 3 cleans done with the heavy rain, even though was keen to keep just going didnt want to be turning up for 1st cleans in the rain

[Crystal-clear]

hi benny

if they are getting paid after the 2nd clean then that can work
few points thou

what happens if you are hit with 50% cancelation you pay them accordingly but do you think they will kick up a fuss?

how much are you paying them if you dont mind me asking as thats a big factor, that deal you have wouldnt matter the amount of cancelations if you are paying 100%

i think 100% on 2nd clean is a good deal if thats what you got
but then they might not work anymore when the hit rate comes

[benny donnelly]

hi benny

if they are getting paid after the 2nd clean then that can work
few points thou

what happens if you are hit with 50% cancelation you pay them accordingly but do you think they will kick up a fuss?

how much are you paying them if you dont mind me asking as thats a big factor, that deal you have wouldnt matter the amount of cancelations if you are paying 100%

i think 100% on 2nd clean is a good deal if thats what you got
but then they might not work anymore when the hit rate comes

I pay them whatever the first clean costs, so if clean is 15/20/25 etc i pay them that after 2nd clean...

The deal for them is simple really and they were more than happy with it, we sat down and said if they average 10 bookings per evening so 60 per week at the min charge of 15 quid thats at least commission for them of 900quid,

The deal had to be attractive enough for them to take it on as I explained we can do this for 2 months depending on booking success, as I should be pretty booked up at that stage, then maybe leave for a month or 2, i worked a cancellation rate of 50% so in that time should weed out some bad customers, then start back into the canvassing again...

[GDwindowcleaning]

Hi benny,
Are they happy to wait a month to get paid? I have never seen it done like that before and would like to know how the took to the deal. Also do they work just for you? They seem very understanding if you just going to lay them off when you get full and then pick them up again when you need them....