[dazmond]

must be 5 times already this year on some parts of my round

canvassing companies,other window cleaners trying to pick up work and undercutters

ive lost one customer as he was £3 cheaper

keeps me on my toes to keep providing a good service at a fair price!

[dazmond]

last week it was a canvassing company in another area of work i clean.this week already ive had 4 customers telling me another guy is going round asking how much i charge and that he,ll do it cheaper!

[Clever Forum Name]

I think in my area we are too cheap, but if i am doing £30 - £50 an hour i dont really care tbh.

[dazmond]

i decided a few years ago that i would keep my ultra compact work(8 days work on 2 estates) a bit cheaper than other work as there is no driving about,i can clean 20-25 houses a day some days. i have crept the prices up a bit over the last 5 years but they are still cheapish(£7-£15).

my other reasoning is guys that do pick up the odd job on these estates(they are usually the ones ive dumped for messing me about!)wont pick up much more work and ive found this the case over the years.

then usually they sack the work off altogether after 6 months or so when they either give up or find better paying work in another area.

its always these estates that get leafleted/canvassed the most!

[Walter Mitty]

It's hard to say because customers won't usually be honest about it to avoid appearing tight.

[dazmond]

It's hard to say because customers won't usually be honest about it to avoid appearing tight.

my customers tell me!and often hand me the leaflet/business card thats been pushed through their door!

they usually start by saying "someones been round again trying to poach your work!"

[wpclean]

It can cause a bit of stress if you lose more than a couple, but I think now that if a customer is going to leave you for the sake of a few quid, you are better off without them.        There are plenty of decent customers out there, the trick is get them, and look after them.

[Shane sharples]

Personally I never try to poach anyone's work, but if you don't knock on doors then you'll never get any work, if the customer says they have a windy, I just say ok thank you, I don't ask them if they'r happy with them or anything, I just go to the next house.
On one cul de sac I got 5 new customers next door to each other then got to the end of the street and was told a windy does the whole cul de sac, so if if have been there first and believed them, I wouldn't have got those customers

[AuRavelling79]

Occasionally.  If I have lost any it's hardly noticeable.

The only irritation is that sometimes a custy I've dumped manages to find another window cleaner to mess about for a while. But it's not a financial consideration at all.

[Johnny B]

When I was in the UK I used to be told fairly often that someone had been canvassing. I never knowingly lost anyone, but actually would pick up new work when a canvasser had been round.

Here in Irelend I have been told once or twice that someone was trying to undercut me. I always smile and tell then that at the prices they are being quoted, they won't last. Again, it's had no negative impact at all.

John