[Dave Willis]

I don't think texting is your problem.

Personally, I text all mine (8 weekly) with hardly any problems at all. Lots of other window cleaners text too, with no problems.
Also window cleaners who just turn up (without texting), that works well for them too. So it can work well both ways, you just have to decide which way you want to go. Also, you text your 50 good customers and that seems to work?
Personally I don't think it makes any difference whether you text or not, your problem is probably crap customers.

Lets say you go canvassing and get 8 new customers in a day. I would reckon 4 of them will only want it done the once (for whatever reason). Maybe you put them 'on the spot' and they felt obliged to agree, perhaps they just thought 'great, we'll get the windows cleaned', perhaps they can't really afford it...! You'll probably do all 8 cleans at a similar time, which means you will be texting all 8 cleans the next time round.

I think what's happening is you do a first clean and everything is ok (of course it is, you're getting rid of 12 months of crap).
Then when you text for the next clean you get 4 or 5 'not todays' because they didn't really want a regular clean to start with.

Then you start to panic a bit and think what's wrong? Should I text or not text, should I offer different frequencies, should I be firmer with my customers?

The simple fact is...you need better customers.
Providing you're polite, professional, do a good job, be reliable and are priced fairly, nothing else matters!

So moving forward:

1. Don't worry about messers, work out which ones they are (not too difficult) and have a PLAN in place for them.
Lots of ideas have been mentioned above, pick one and stick to it.
Personally, I would say 'no problem' to any cancellations and see if they want it done next time round.
If they do, then you've got some money in your pocket, if they don't then DUMP!  (2 miss rule)
People who cancel twice don't want a window cleaner SO THEY DON'T NEED YOU!

2.  Try and split your round in some way, so you can identify your messers (put them in red or something).
If you've got 80 customers and only 50 are good then you only have 50 customers, in my opinion.
Don't be blinkered into thinking your round is better than it is, be realistic and honest with yourself.
Make sure you look after your 50 good customers.

3. Decide about messers. For instance:
You get a call and you think it's a messer.
A. Will you go and clean it and think...'ok it's a messer but I have some cash' and i'm not bothered if it's long term? or
B. I'm not cleaning it because it's not building a long term business?
You need to make that decision and stick to it.

The reason I say this is because Dan gets all my crap work, he's starting out and he'll clean anything.
Today I got a call for 2 care homes that need to be done Saturday (with all the promises of regular work etc).
That means they have an inspection on Monday and need all the windows cleaned...but it's money up front.
Dan is doing both tomorrow to get the money but he knows it's probably (or likely to be) a one off.
I could be wrong, but that's the way to bet!
But Dan has his mindset right.
He now accepts messers and uses them as a way of earning some money but not to build his long term business.

4. Try to get better customers and less messers.
It's not easy. For me, 1 in 5 customers are good (what I want), Dan gets the other 4.

Some of the things I do are:

I always charge more for a first clean, don't go mad, but be fair. If it takes longer it costs more, simple!
If the customer isn't happy with that I walk away (politely). At least if the customer is a messer, you haven't wasted money on the first clean.

Don't be afraid to ask questions, try and get a picture of the situation.
Have they just moved in, are they selling and moving out, has the last window cleaner left, is it just a one off, is it something they can afford on a regular basis, blah blah.
I want to decide if they are going to be a good long term customer or not, I get it right most of the time, but not always!
Sometimes, I think it's a waste of time, but then they turn out to be a good customer!
When I go to quote, smile, be nice, have a laugh (i'm a funny guy) but then ask whatever questions you want to know.
The all important one is 'are you happy to leave your side gate unlocked, if you're not in'?

Be confident and inform them how you work.
My usual bullpoop is:
'I clean every 8 weeks, sometimes it runs into 9, I text you the day before I come and if you're happy to leave your gate unlocked, I can clean everything for you and leave you a payment slip. You can pay online or leave me out cash or a cheque. Whatever is easiest for you. When I clean, I give everything a good scrub, including your doors and frames and I leave everything soaking wet! It does sound a bit odd, but when it dries, it will be lovely and clean. In fact as i'm cleaning, some of it will be drying so you can see for yourself how good it is. I do clean in light rain as rain water is very pure and rain itself doesn't make your windows dirty. Unless of course it has that sahara dust in it, then we're all knackered! I tend not to clean in heavy rain as this can beat muck off your gutters etc and splash that dirt onto your windows. But light to medium rain is ok. Don't worry if you're on holiday, I'll clean everything I have access to and just charge accordingly. I only charge for what I clean. You can pay me when you get back. Just to let you know all my customers want a regular service right throughout the year and that's the service I provide.

With phone calls I use the same questions:
1. what area are you in?
I'm not interested in anything out my area. Dan gets those.
2. What type of property is it?
I'm not interested in terraced, flats, dogs barking in the background and others that I won't bore you with. Dan gets those
3. Would you like it cleaned just the once?  I used to say 'would you like a regular clean' but I think this way round works better.
eg.
'Would you like it cleaned just the once?'
The people that want a regular clean will, without hesitation, say something like
'your leaflet says you clean every 8 weeks, is that ok?
or
Yes please i'd like it done regularly.

The ones that want a one off will pause or falter a bit and say something like
'Erm er yes probably just the once'
or
'If you clean it, we'll see how it goes'
Some will be honest and say
'yes we are moving so need to get it cleaned.

As I've asked it as the 3rd question, the customer is sort of on a roll with the first 2 questions and this pops up as a bit of a surprise. It does catch people out.

Time for a drink.

Hope some of this is helpful.

Good job I'm also a touch typist.

Beat that then Nathan 

[CleanClear]

90 customers is barely 4 days work -

You (personally) can clean 22 houses a day ?

I have a day where they are all semi's with a couple of detached - 28 cleans all done by 4.30 ( this is the most compact day where I can reach 4 or 5 without moving)

other days we have bigger works so may only get 16 or so done but as an average  22 cleans is a days work

Darran

"i" and "we" seems the same to you ?

[CleanClear]

I didn’t ask why tbh mate, obviously I should of, I’m gonna be a lot more sterner from now on as I think some are just taking the p

Why do you need to waste your time finding out why ? Put your time into getting more customers. Anyone can explain why they had a good "reason", i wouldn't listen to it. My bar is two cancellations and you're off..................... Would it satisfy you to know their dad died a week before, would that make you feel ok ? If their dog died the week before thats not so good ? You're putting yourself through scenario's that do not matter to you. Why..matters not.

[nathankaye]

I don't think texting is your problem.

Personally, I text all mine (8 weekly) with hardly any problems at all. Lots of other window cleaners text too, with no problems.
Also window cleaners who just turn up (without texting), that works well for them too. So it can work well both ways, you just have to decide which way you want to go. Also, you text your 50 good customers and that seems to work?
Personally I don't think it makes any difference whether you text or not, your problem is probably crap customers.

Lets say you go canvassing and get 8 new customers in a day. I would reckon 4 of them will only want it done the once (for whatever reason). Maybe you put them 'on the spot' and they felt obliged to agree, perhaps they just thought 'great, we'll get the windows cleaned', perhaps they can't really afford it...! You'll probably do all 8 cleans at a similar time, which means you will be texting all 8 cleans the next time round.

I think what's happening is you do a first clean and everything is ok (of course it is, you're getting rid of 12 months of crap).
Then when you text for the next clean you get 4 or 5 'not todays' because they didn't really want a regular clean to start with.

Then you start to panic a bit and think what's wrong? Should I text or not text, should I offer different frequencies, should I be firmer with my customers?

The simple fact is...you need better customers.
Providing you're polite, professional, do a good job, be reliable and are priced fairly, nothing else matters!

So moving forward:

1. Don't worry about messers, work out which ones they are (not too difficult) and have a PLAN in place for them.
Lots of ideas have been mentioned above, pick one and stick to it.
Personally, I would say 'no problem' to any cancellations and see if they want it done next time round.
If they do, then you've got some money in your pocket, if they don't then DUMP!  (2 miss rule)
People who cancel twice don't want a window cleaner SO THEY DON'T NEED YOU!

2.  Try and split your round in some way, so you can identify your messers (put them in red or something).
If you've got 80 customers and only 50 are good then you only have 50 customers, in my opinion.
Don't be blinkered into thinking your round is better than it is, be realistic and honest with yourself.
Make sure you look after your 50 good customers.

3. Decide about messers. For instance:
You get a call and you think it's a messer.
A. Will you go and clean it and think...'ok it's a messer but I have some cash' and i'm not bothered if it's long term? or
B. I'm not cleaning it because it's not building a long term business?
You need to make that decision and stick to it.

The reason I say this is because Dan gets all my crap work, he's starting out and he'll clean anything.
Today I got a call for 2 care homes that need to be done Saturday (with all the promises of regular work etc).
That means they have an inspection on Monday and need all the windows cleaned...but it's money up front.
Dan is doing both tomorrow to get the money but he knows it's probably (or likely to be) a one off.
I could be wrong, but that's the way to bet!
But Dan has his mindset right.
He now accepts messers and uses them as a way of earning some money but not to build his long term business.

4. Try to get better customers and less messers.
It's not easy. For me, 1 in 5 customers are good (what I want), Dan gets the other 4.

Some of the things I do are:

I always charge more for a first clean, don't go mad, but be fair. If it takes longer it costs more, simple!
If the customer isn't happy with that I walk away (politely). At least if the customer is a messer, you haven't wasted money on the first clean.

Don't be afraid to ask questions, try and get a picture of the situation.
Have they just moved in, are they selling and moving out, has the last window cleaner left, is it just a one off, is it something they can afford on a regular basis, blah blah.
I want to decide if they are going to be a good long term customer or not, I get it right most of the time, but not always!
Sometimes, I think it's a waste of time, but then they turn out to be a good customer!
When I go to quote, smile, be nice, have a laugh (i'm a funny guy) but then ask whatever questions you want to know.
The all important one is 'are you happy to leave your side gate unlocked, if you're not in'?

Be confident and inform them how you work.
My usual bullpoop is:
'I clean every 8 weeks, sometimes it runs into 9, I text you the day before I come and if you're happy to leave your gate unlocked, I can clean everything for you and leave you a payment slip. You can pay online or leave me out cash or a cheque. Whatever is easiest for you. When I clean, I give everything a good scrub, including your doors and frames and I leave everything soaking wet! It does sound a bit odd, but when it dries, it will be lovely and clean. In fact as i'm cleaning, some of it will be drying so you can see for yourself how good it is. I do clean in light rain as rain water is very pure and rain itself doesn't make your windows dirty. Unless of course it has that sahara dust in it, then we're all knackered! I tend not to clean in heavy rain as this can beat muck off your gutters etc and splash that dirt onto your windows. But light to medium rain is ok. Don't worry if you're on holiday, I'll clean everything I have access to and just charge accordingly. I only charge for what I clean. You can pay me when you get back. Just to let you know all my customers want a regular service right throughout the year and that's the service I provide.

With phone calls I use the same questions:
1. what area are you in?
I'm not interested in anything out my area. Dan gets those.
2. What type of property is it?
I'm not interested in terraced, flats, dogs barking in the background and others that I won't bore you with. Dan gets those
3. Would you like it cleaned just the once?  I used to say 'would you like a regular clean' but I think this way round works better.
eg.
'Would you like it cleaned just the once?'
The people that want a regular clean will, without hesitation, say something like
'your leaflet says you clean every 8 weeks, is that ok?
or
Yes please i'd like it done regularly.

The ones that want a one off will pause or falter a bit and say something like
'Erm er yes probably just the once'
or
'If you clean it, we'll see how it goes'
Some will be honest and say
'yes we are moving so need to get it cleaned.

As I've asked it as the 3rd question, the customer is sort of on a roll with the first 2 questions and this pops up as a bit of a surprise. It does catch people out.

Time for a drink.

Hope some of this is helpful.

Good job I'm also a touch typist.

Beat that then Nathan 

Haha I did think the same, he can take the title

[CleanClear]

Haha I did think the same, he can take the title

You have the title, you may or may not text.. but you write them letters when its raining..saying how you will clean them when it rains, but right now its raining so you're writing a letter to say while its raining............

[Spruce]

90 customers is barely 4 days work -

You (personally) can clean 22 houses a day ?

I have a day where they are all semi's with a couple of detached - 28 cleans all done by 4.30 ( this is the most compact day where I can reach 4 or 5 without moving)

other days we have bigger works so may only get 16 or so done but as an average  22 cleans is a days work

Darran

"i" and "we" seems the same to you ?

Years back it was always business speak to refer to yourself as a sole trader as "we" even although you were just one. It just seems to give your business a bit more body and as "we" you come across as more successful.

In Darran's case he is the boss, "I" but "we" can be either the team on their own or him and the team. Its complicated.

 

[James Styles]

I don't think texting is your problem.

Personally, I text all mine (8 weekly) with hardly any problems at all. Lots of other window cleaners text too, with no problems.
Also window cleaners who just turn up (without texting), that works well for them too. So it can work well both ways, you just have to decide which way you want to go. Also, you text your 50 good customers and that seems to work?
Personally I don't think it makes any difference whether you text or not, your problem is probably crap customers.

Lets say you go canvassing and get 8 new customers in a day. I would reckon 4 of them will only want it done the once (for whatever reason). Maybe you put them 'on the spot' and they felt obliged to agree, perhaps they just thought 'great, we'll get the windows cleaned', perhaps they can't really afford it...! You'll probably do all 8 cleans at a similar time, which means you will be texting all 8 cleans the next time round.

I think what's happening is you do a first clean and everything is ok (of course it is, you're getting rid of 12 months of crap).
Then when you text for the next clean you get 4 or 5 'not todays' because they didn't really want a regular clean to start with.

Then you start to panic a bit and think what's wrong? Should I text or not text, should I offer different frequencies, should I be firmer with my customers?

The simple fact is...you need better customers.
Providing you're polite, professional, do a good job, be reliable and are priced fairly, nothing else matters!

So moving forward:

1. Don't worry about messers, work out which ones they are (not too difficult) and have a PLAN in place for them.
Lots of ideas have been mentioned above, pick one and stick to it.
Personally, I would say 'no problem' to any cancellations and see if they want it done next time round.
If they do, then you've got some money in your pocket, if they don't then DUMP!  (2 miss rule)
People who cancel twice don't want a window cleaner SO THEY DON'T NEED YOU!

2.  Try and split your round in some way, so you can identify your messers (put them in red or something).
If you've got 80 customers and only 50 are good then you only have 50 customers, in my opinion.
Don't be blinkered into thinking your round is better than it is, be realistic and honest with yourself.
Make sure you look after your 50 good customers.

3. Decide about messers. For instance:
You get a call and you think it's a messer.
A. Will you go and clean it and think...'ok it's a messer but I have some cash' and i'm not bothered if it's long term? or
B. I'm not cleaning it because it's not building a long term business?
You need to make that decision and stick to it.

The reason I say this is because Dan gets all my crap work, he's starting out and he'll clean anything.
Today I got a call for 2 care homes that need to be done Saturday (with all the promises of regular work etc).
That means they have an inspection on Monday and need all the windows cleaned...but it's money up front.
Dan is doing both tomorrow to get the money but he knows it's probably (or likely to be) a one off.
I could be wrong, but that's the way to bet!
But Dan has his mindset right.
He now accepts messers and uses them as a way of earning some money but not to build his long term business.

4. Try to get better customers and less messers.
It's not easy. For me, 1 in 5 customers are good (what I want), Dan gets the other 4.

Some of the things I do are:

I always charge more for a first clean, don't go mad, but be fair. If it takes longer it costs more, simple!
If the customer isn't happy with that I walk away (politely). At least if the customer is a messer, you haven't wasted money on the first clean.

Don't be afraid to ask questions, try and get a picture of the situation.
Have they just moved in, are they selling and moving out, has the last window cleaner left, is it just a one off, is it something they can afford on a regular basis, blah blah.
I want to decide if they are going to be a good long term customer or not, I get it right most of the time, but not always!
Sometimes, I think it's a waste of time, but then they turn out to be a good customer!
When I go to quote, smile, be nice, have a laugh (i'm a funny guy) but then ask whatever questions you want to know.
The all important one is 'are you happy to leave your side gate unlocked, if you're not in'?

Be confident and inform them how you work.
My usual bullpoop is:
'I clean every 8 weeks, sometimes it runs into 9, I text you the day before I come and if you're happy to leave your gate unlocked, I can clean everything for you and leave you a payment slip. You can pay online or leave me out cash or a cheque. Whatever is easiest for you. When I clean, I give everything a good scrub, including your doors and frames and I leave everything soaking wet! It does sound a bit odd, but when it dries, it will be lovely and clean. In fact as i'm cleaning, some of it will be drying so you can see for yourself how good it is. I do clean in light rain as rain water is very pure and rain itself doesn't make your windows dirty. Unless of course it has that sahara dust in it, then we're all knackered! I tend not to clean in heavy rain as this can beat muck off your gutters etc and splash that dirt onto your windows. But light to medium rain is ok. Don't worry if you're on holiday, I'll clean everything I have access to and just charge accordingly. I only charge for what I clean. You can pay me when you get back. Just to let you know all my customers want a regular service right throughout the year and that's the service I provide.

With phone calls I use the same questions:
1. what area are you in?
I'm not interested in anything out my area. Dan gets those.
2. What type of property is it?
I'm not interested in terraced, flats, dogs barking in the background and others that I won't bore you with. Dan gets those
3. Would you like it cleaned just the once?  I used to say 'would you like a regular clean' but I think this way round works better.
eg.
'Would you like it cleaned just the once?'
The people that want a regular clean will, without hesitation, say something like
'your leaflet says you clean every 8 weeks, is that ok?
or
Yes please i'd like it done regularly.

The ones that want a one off will pause or falter a bit and say something like
'Erm er yes probably just the once'
or
'If you clean it, we'll see how it goes'
Some will be honest and say
'yes we are moving so need to get it cleaned.

As I've asked it as the 3rd question, the customer is sort of on a roll with the first 2 questions and this pops up as a bit of a surprise. It does catch people out.

Time for a drink.

Hope some of this is helpful.

Good job I'm also a touch typist.

Thank you rob really helpful post that is 👍

[Smudger]

90 customers is barely 4 days work -

You (personally) can clean 22 houses a day ?

I have a day where they are all semi's with a couple of detached - 28 cleans all done by 4.30 ( this is the most compact day where I can reach 4 or 5 without moving)

other days we have bigger works so may only get 16 or so done but as an average  22 cleans is a days work

Darran

"i" and "we" seems the same to you ?

you asked - the answer is I have cleaned the above - but generally "we" thats myself and 5 employees have a mix of works - sorry if my answer was so honest it confused you

 

Darran

[Smudger]

I don't think texting is your problem.

Personally, I text all mine (8 weekly) with hardly any problems at all. Lots of other window cleaners text too, with no problems.
Also window cleaners who just turn up (without texting), that works well for them too. So it can work well both ways, you just have to decide which way you want to go. Also, you text your 50 good customers and that seems to work?
Personally I don't think it makes any difference whether you text or not, your problem is probably crap customers.

Lets say you go canvassing and get 8 new customers in a day. I would reckon 4 of them will only want it done the once (for whatever reason). Maybe you put them 'on the spot' and they felt obliged to agree, perhaps they just thought 'great, we'll get the windows cleaned', perhaps they can't really afford it...! You'll probably do all 8 cleans at a similar time, which means you will be texting all 8 cleans the next time round.

I think what's happening is you do a first clean and everything is ok (of course it is, you're getting rid of 12 months of crap).
Then when you text for the next clean you get 4 or 5 'not todays' because they didn't really want a regular clean to start with.

Then you start to panic a bit and think what's wrong? Should I text or not text, should I offer different frequencies, should I be firmer with my customers?

The simple fact is...you need better customers.
Providing you're polite, professional, do a good job, be reliable and are priced fairly, nothing else matters!

So moving forward:

1. Don't worry about messers, work out which ones they are (not too difficult) and have a PLAN in place for them.
Lots of ideas have been mentioned above, pick one and stick to it.
Personally, I would say 'no problem' to any cancellations and see if they want it done next time round.
If they do, then you've got some money in your pocket, if they don't then DUMP!  (2 miss rule)
People who cancel twice don't want a window cleaner SO THEY DON'T NEED YOU!

2.  Try and split your round in some way, so you can identify your messers (put them in red or something).
If you've got 80 customers and only 50 are good then you only have 50 customers, in my opinion.
Don't be blinkered into thinking your round is better than it is, be realistic and honest with yourself.
Make sure you look after your 50 good customers.

3. Decide about messers. For instance:
You get a call and you think it's a messer.
A. Will you go and clean it and think...'ok it's a messer but I have some cash' and i'm not bothered if it's long term? or
B. I'm not cleaning it because it's not building a long term business?
You need to make that decision and stick to it.

The reason I say this is because Dan gets all my crap work, he's starting out and he'll clean anything.
Today I got a call for 2 care homes that need to be done Saturday (with all the promises of regular work etc).
That means they have an inspection on Monday and need all the windows cleaned...but it's money up front.
Dan is doing both tomorrow to get the money but he knows it's probably (or likely to be) a one off.
I could be wrong, but that's the way to bet!
But Dan has his mindset right.
He now accepts messers and uses them as a way of earning some money but not to build his long term business.

4. Try to get better customers and less messers.
It's not easy. For me, 1 in 5 customers are good (what I want), Dan gets the other 4.

Some of the things I do are:

I always charge more for a first clean, don't go mad, but be fair. If it takes longer it costs more, simple!
If the customer isn't happy with that I walk away (politely). At least if the customer is a messer, you haven't wasted money on the first clean.

Don't be afraid to ask questions, try and get a picture of the situation.
Have they just moved in, are they selling and moving out, has the last window cleaner left, is it just a one off, is it something they can afford on a regular basis, blah blah.
I want to decide if they are going to be a good long term customer or not, I get it right most of the time, but not always!
Sometimes, I think it's a waste of time, but then they turn out to be a good customer!
When I go to quote, smile, be nice, have a laugh (i'm a funny guy) but then ask whatever questions you want to know.
The all important one is 'are you happy to leave your side gate unlocked, if you're not in'?

Be confident and inform them how you work.
My usual bullpoop is:
'I clean every 8 weeks, sometimes it runs into 9, I text you the day before I come and if you're happy to leave your gate unlocked, I can clean everything for you and leave you a payment slip. You can pay online or leave me out cash or a cheque. Whatever is easiest for you. When I clean, I give everything a good scrub, including your doors and frames and I leave everything soaking wet! It does sound a bit odd, but when it dries, it will be lovely and clean. In fact as i'm cleaning, some of it will be drying so you can see for yourself how good it is. I do clean in light rain as rain water is very pure and rain itself doesn't make your windows dirty. Unless of course it has that sahara dust in it, then we're all knackered! I tend not to clean in heavy rain as this can beat muck off your gutters etc and splash that dirt onto your windows. But light to medium rain is ok. Don't worry if you're on holiday, I'll clean everything I have access to and just charge accordingly. I only charge for what I clean. You can pay me when you get back. Just to let you know all my customers want a regular service right throughout the year and that's the service I provide.

With phone calls I use the same questions:
1. what area are you in?
I'm not interested in anything out my area. Dan gets those.
2. What type of property is it?
I'm not interested in terraced, flats, dogs barking in the background and others that I won't bore you with. Dan gets those
3. Would you like it cleaned just the once?  I used to say 'would you like a regular clean' but I think this way round works better.
eg.
'Would you like it cleaned just the once?'
The people that want a regular clean will, without hesitation, say something like
'your leaflet says you clean every 8 weeks, is that ok?
or
Yes please i'd like it done regularly.

The ones that want a one off will pause or falter a bit and say something like
'Erm er yes probably just the once'
or
'If you clean it, we'll see how it goes'
Some will be honest and say
'yes we are moving so need to get it cleaned.

As I've asked it as the 3rd question, the customer is sort of on a roll with the first 2 questions and this pops up as a bit of a surprise. It does catch people out.

Time for a drink.

Hope some of this is helpful.

Good job I'm also a touch typist.

Beat that then Nathan 

Haha I did think the same, he can take the title

this post was so good I thought it was worth quoting again 

[Splash & dash]

I’ve sent my messages out this evening and had 3 say they are on holiday (fair enough) but had 5 say can they leave it this month (which I’m not happy with at all) I’ve said it’s ok this time, c u next month.
I will let it slide this once but if I get it again I will be giving them an ultimatum.
I feel kind of stuck because I think some of it is down to texting customers but the problem is if I don’t I know gates won’t be unlocked or they won’t be in or cancel on the spot also all these customers I’ve canvassed I have told I will always text the day before I can’t just suddenly stop... kind of in a muddle now, really annoyed with these mess about customers thinking they can pick and chose which month they want them doing...
Any advice would be much appreciated, am I doing it right in giving them a pass this time then if it happens again have a stern word?
What would you do?
 

What has happened to your other post about messers ?? It appears to have disappeared? Bit strange don’t you think ??