[Lee Burbidge]

Read the report here:What is your game plan?

http://www.windowcleaningmagazine.co.uk/blog/growing-trend-of-new-window-cleaners-stay-on-top-uk/

[Splash 4 Cash]

I see this type of practice every day in my area. I saw a fellow stepping of a side of a ladder with one foot on the ladder and one fooT on a sill 3 foot away and one foot higher . Inviting death and injury to his door. Many think it’s an easy job and it can be but dangerous if you don’t know what risks you are taking. There are more and more newbies I feel like writing a tread on the pitfalls of the industry. An income is one good thing but there are many more negatives one needs to look out for.

[mister bit]

good article lee food for thought today for me

[Mike #1]

Good article Lee one the best you have posted recently , Mike

[Ian101]

Glad I dont have work in Nottingham 

[dazmond]

the truth is for me personally lee is im already doing the best i can in my business.in fact im doing better than ever as a sole trader window cleaner.lots more window cleaners in my area and also lots of my customers have told me of other guys and companies leafleting and canvassing my work.

i already use WFP for most work,offer conny roof/fascia cleaning,have sign written van,uniform,business cards etc.i also offer online and SAE payment options.

most importantly i do a good job for a fair price.im reliable and trustworthy.always do what i say im gonna do and im very professional with a polite,friendly manner.im also well established with 18 years experience in window cleaning.

the simple fact is my customers are not going to leave in droves because of other window cleaners canvassing/leafleting my work!!in fact i would say lots of customers are sick and tired of people canvassing for window cleaning,selling stuff,double glazing salemen,scrap metal guys etc,etc.

the areas i work are considered the land of milk and honey as its mainly very affluent areas.although there are plenty of people struggling to make a living in these areas as well as millionaires!!

i reckon us established cleaners have nothing to worry about.im also passionate about my business even though its only "window cleaning"!!!

i see window cleaners all the time.some are good lads and are legit and some are just playing at it working on the side very cheaply.

i find it staggering the amount of window cleaners that are stuck in their ways and wont invest in new equipment/WFP etc.dont offer add on services like conny roof/fascia cleaning and barely scrape a living together.most of them their hearts not in it i reckon.theres the difference right there!!mine is!!

the amount of new customers i pick up that are surprised at my professionalism and attention to detail is staggering!!

[Total shine cleaning services]

Same as dazmond, I have pulled so many jobs lately from people who say they will never use the water fed pole system again, I turn up tp quote when they ask for a trad service and then convert them back to wfp by doing a test clean on a couple of windows, some of the cleaners who were in before me were shocking..! But I agree, a professional approach and pride in your work will keep you busy when others fail..!

Graham

[bobplum]

always remember.......cream settles on the top 

[Londoner]

Its true of course, my customers are getting canvassed all the time. Its always been the same in times of recession.

However, even your loyal customer base dwindles over time. People die or move away, others lose their jobs or just get squeezed by the cost of living.

However, this recession is only just starting, things in Europe are reaching breaking point and although we are not in the euro its still going to have a big effect on us.

There were pictures on TV last night of people in Greece queuing up for food handouts. They weren't street homeless people either. They were ordinary people who had lost their jobs and had no income at all. Spain is going the same way. Its going to be around for a long time and we are going to see a dog eat dog mentality emerging.

Its not just window cleaning, friends of mine who are taxi drivers in London are moaning about how much their takings have dropped and they are struggling.

[Owen R]

Yes, it's a sad fact of life that quite a lot of the people I speak with have had a negative experience with windies using WFP. I can only guess and say that they can't have been maintaining the equipment properly. It takes quite a lot of persuading to change their minds.

[gary999]

not a bad read..but nothing new in the imformation im afraid this forum and
others have been putting out this info for a long time.

like dazmond i put the effort on a daily basis which includes and i know its
a dirty word "collecting" its a useful tool in a customer service industry,it helps
me touch base with most of my customers instead of becoming a faceless wonder
i pick up work from it and helps me tweak my service to any minor problems that
can occur with wfp.

each property and customer gets treated as an individual and being able to
speak to customers on a regular basis helps this.

i pick up work on aregular basis normally one or two jobs a week which 90%
are from recomendations i lose very little apart from the natural wastage e.g.
death and people moving.

ive been cleaning 7 years and  now feel established in my area, as a sole trader
my business ticks over above the rate of inflation with what i consider little effort
this due far as im concerned to good habits ive got into.

[Lee Burbidge]

I see this type of practice every day in my area. I saw a fellow stepping of a side of a ladder with one foot on the ladder and one fooT on a sill 3 foot away and one foot higher . Inviting death and injury to his door. Many think it’s an easy job and it can be but dangerous if you don’t know what risks you are taking. There are more and more newbies I feel like writing a tread on the pitfalls of the industry. An income is one good thing but there are many more negatives one needs to look out for.

Great post  can you email me lee@windowcleaningmagazine.co.uk

[Lee Burbidge]

Good article Lee one the best you have posted recently , Mike

Thanks Mike.

[Lee Burbidge]

Glad I dont have work in Nottingham 

lol

[Lee Burbidge]

good article lee food for thought today for me

Thanks matey - just continuing to do it the professional way with a few tweaks is all you need to ride the storm.  

[Lee Burbidge]

the truth is for me personally lee is im already doing the best i can in my business.in fact im doing better than ever as a sole trader window cleaner.lots more window cleaners in my area and also lots of my customers have told me of other guys and companies leafleting and canvassing my work.

i already use WFP for most work,offer conny roof/fascia cleaning,have sign written van,uniform,business cards etc.i also offer online and SAE payment options.

most importantly i do a good job for a fair price.im reliable and trustworthy.always do what i say im gonna do and im very professional with a polite,friendly manner.im also well established with 18 years experience in window cleaning.

the simple fact is my customers are not going to leave in droves because of other window cleaners canvassing/leafleting my work!!in fact i would say lots of customers are sick and tired of people canvassing for window cleaning,selling stuff,double glazing salemen,scrap metal guys etc,etc.

the areas i work are considered the land of milk and honey as its mainly very affluent areas.although there are plenty of people struggling to make a living in these areas as well as millionaires!!

i reckon us established cleaners have nothing to worry about.im also passionate about my business even though its only "window cleaning"!!!

i see window cleaners all the time.some are good lads and are legit and some are just playing at it working on the side very cheaply.

i find it staggering the amount of window cleaners that are stuck in their ways and wont invest in new equipment/WFP etc.dont offer add on services like conny roof/fascia cleaning and barely scrape a living together.most of them their hearts not in it i reckon.theres the difference right there!!mine is!!

the amount of new customers i pick up that are surprised at my professionalism and attention to detail is staggering!!

You are already a winner, my friend 

[Lee Burbidge]

Its true of course, my customers are getting canvassed all the time. Its always been the same in times of recession.

However, even your loyal customer base dwindles over time. People die or move away, others lose their jobs or just get squeezed by the cost of living.

However, this recession is only just starting, things in Europe are reaching breaking point and although we are not in the euro its still going to have a big effect on us.

There were pictures on TV last night of people in Greece queuing up for food handouts. They weren't street homeless people either. They were ordinary people who had lost their jobs and had no income at all. Spain is going the same way. Its going to be around for a long time and we are going to see a dog eat dog mentality emerging.

Its not just window cleaning, friends of mine who are taxi drivers in London are moaning about how much their takings have dropped and they are struggling.

Sign of the time, that is true.

[Lee Burbidge]

Yes, it's a sad fact of life that quite a lot of the people I speak with have had a negative experience with windies using WFP. I can only guess and say that they can't have been maintaining the equipment properly. It takes quite a lot of persuading to change their minds.

....and once a custi looses confidence in wfp, its even harder to turn them around in some cases.

[trevor perry]

 Hi Lee
  i posted that this would happen a couple of years ago, large office cleaning companies work for a very small profit margin but because window cleaning used to be mainly ladder work they left this sector untouched or subbed the work out the reason was it was very hard to get competant ladder users to carry out the work anddifficult for someone without hands on knowledge to manage a large team, but now with water fed poles it is easy to train someone pay just above minimum wage and make a large profit margin i think pretty soonthese companies will target domestic customers aswell as commercial

[H S and Son]

I can only guess and say that they can't have been maintaining the equipment properly.

Uneducated in the use of WFP more than likely.