[windows_chepstow]

After about eleven months of window cleaning I received a phone call from the Manager of the Hilton Hotel Newport asking for a quote.

We turned up to quote and he said, 'I want high impact - low cost window cleaning', so we came up with a '3-2-1 quote'.  This meant we cleaned his public areas every month, cleaned the outside of the hotel every two months and cleaned everything every three months.

We did this all for £300 per month.

It was a ruddy nightmare.

We didn't have WFP at the time and the hotel room windows were huge/tall, which meant two ladder climbs per window; one climb to clean the top portion, another to clean the bottom section.  There was 'street after street' of this type of window.

Then there was glass everywhere else.

Looking back, I reckon it would take one trad (hard-working) window cleaner two weeks to clean the whole place, inside and out.

In the end I wrote a letter to the manger saying we'd underpriced and bitten off more than we could chew; sorry you're dumped etc.

I can't believe I/we were so stupid to quote £300 per month for the size of this building!  (By the way, we weren't the cheapest quote; believe it or not).

I'm a bit more 'street wise' now and would've quoted a whole lot extra, and given them a lot less calories, but what has been your worst mistake?

I can't be the only numpty on this forum!

[geoffreyspecht]

we all make mistakes

[DaveBrown]

Been WCing for nearly 3 years now. I seem to make a mistake EVERY time I quote! I always walk away kicking myself - guess I'm scared of losing their custom. I dread what will happen next month as I go WFP!

[Cleaner Windows]

I find its quite easy to underquote when its the sort of job youre talking about, as in an unusual sort, as obviously you dont want to say a small figure and neither one to high, but where is the medium?
its just one of those things where you need to make the mistake to know better next time isnt it!

i suppose you could say to them that it(for instance) will be £2.50 per pane, explain what you would have to do to clean each one, then ask if they have any idea how many panes there are in the building and go from there!..thats what i might do anyway....just to get used to quoting for something that big

[P @ F]

I still do it on every job , i seem to think i need the money and i go in low , this is not the truth and after todays events i have finally learnt my lesson , they need me more than i need them !

 As for biggest mistake , its the same one on every house i go to quote that has a conservatory , always underprice by at least £5 , i just cant stop doing it , and im an absolute t*t when it comes to con roofs aswell .

 But no more , i see the light now !

 Rich   P @F 

[JM123]

huge mansion, takes 2hrs wfp.  £30

I am an idiot.

She makes great cups of tea though.

[Paul Coleman]

I once quoted a job as £30 that ended up taking four hours.  I really underpriced it badly and this was about twelve years ago.  Incredibly, the customer got me off the hook himself.  He stated that he only wanted me to clean the windows when he phoned me.  I heard nothing for six months and then the phone rang.  I was "too busy".  I wonder why 
This guy had a bargain basement price and still wanted to save money by having an ad hoc service rather than regular.

[abacus]

Hi
when we first started we agreed to pressure wash a clients patio for £250 it took over 2 days with 2 of us nice guy said you under priced this but still finished it and gave £500.00  and then went to pay us for the window clean we just couldnt take that as well still have the customer 8years on

regards Grant

[Londoner]

Its when you give the customer the price and they say "Oh yes that will be fine" in the way that leaves you in no doubt they were expecting it to be more.
I too suffer from underquoting syndrome. I seriously think I ought to let my wife go out quoting because she is much tougher than me.

[gaza]

In the opposite way I  quoted £38 for a house 1st clean when I turned up to clean it,it turned out the big house Iwas to clean was 2 houses at  £38 each,so it worked out at £76 for 24 widows laughinng all the way to the Leeds
and Ive got 6 to do today did 5 this week so far
 gaza 

[Paul Coleman]

Its when you give the customer the price and they say "Oh yes that will be fine" in the way that leaves you in no doubt they were expecting it to be more.
I too suffer from underquoting syndrome. I seriously think I ought to let my wife go out quoting because she is much tougher than me.

I did a quote recently and the guy said "Is that all?"  Oddly enough, the quote was a fair one.  Could have kicked myself.

[gary evans]

My biggest problem is not doing them straight away, so the information is not clear in your head still, try to do them quick now though.

Once did big job quoted £300.00, but , hadn,t doubled up to include inside. Big Mistake.

But worked out alright, explained the typing error & increased to £600.00, did first clean at £300.00, but secured the job. Still cheaper than buying work.

Gary

[jeff1]

when I underquote and they say is that all, I jump in and say,
if you would like your frames done aswell, that will be an extra so and so... explane how nice it will look with the frames done, and you normally always get the extra.

Just a little hint to help you increase your prices on a domestic underquote.

[Trevor Knight]

Tosh, when you get situations like that its best to reschedule how your cleaning the building.

Work on key windows, i.e reception, Managers office, Finance office, restuarant area, conservatory if they have one.

These are key windows that the people will look for and expect to be cleaned. I very much doubt the manager will personally check every room.

It is also worth changing the cleaning time and invoice routine to swing this account back your way. If you clean the building early, i.e 7am before the main staff are in. Then invoice at the end of the month, the manager will have a difficult time knowing what windows you have cleaned??

Been WCing for nearly 3 years now. I seem to make a mistake EVERY time I quote! I always walk away kicking myself - guess I'm scared of losing their custom. I dread what will happen next month as I go WFP!

Dave, this is your income you are in control off. Don't give in to cheap pricing thats a mugs game.

If you are not sure how to price then why don't you have a price you want to get i.e. £10 and tell the customer its £15, ask what they think, some will say yes, some will say thats a bit high, when they say that ask what they were expecting and most will say £10.

If they say less say sorry, the service I offer is reliable, through and professional, if you want me to turn up every month then you have to pay for it like all my other customers I have looked after over the last 3 years!!!

Best wishes,

Trev

[Paul Coleman]

when I underquote and they say is that all, I jump in and say,
if you would like your frames done aswell, that will be an extra so and so... explane how nice it will look with the frames done, and you normally always get the extra.

Just a little hint to help you increase your prices on a domestic underquote.

Yep.  I was a bit slow there Jeff. 

[windows_chepstow]

Tosh, when you get situations like that its best to reschedule how your cleaning the building.

Work on key windows, i.e reception, Managers office, Finance office, restuarant area, conservatory if they have one.

These are key windows that the people will look for and expect to be cleaned. I very much doubt the manager will personally check every room.

It is also worth changing the cleaning time and invoice routine to swing this account back your way. If you clean the building early, i.e 7am before the main staff are in. Then invoice at the end of the month, the manager will have a difficult time knowing what windows you have cleaned??

Trev

Trev,

This is corking advice and I've already noted similar in a previous post you gave.

It's probably been the best bit of advice I've read on this forum in a long time, and although it's just common sense; until someone tells you 'this is how it's done', you'd feel like a 'dodgy geezer' implementing this policy if you didn't realise that this is common practice and if you want the bigger jobs; then this is how you've got to treat them.

However,  because of the '3, 2, 1' quote I gave for 'high-impact low-cost' (due to my/our inexperience), it was just unworkable.  We were losing money and grafting 'ard for the little we got; and we were doing similar to what your policy is anyway.

[Trevor Knight]

Hi Tosh,

Glad you have "seen the light". I know what you mean about feeling dodgy but in reality thats how it is done.

I was taught this years ago, I quoted for Ducal Furniture's manufaturing plant, 11 factory buildings including 2 office and 1 show home. Anyway, I priced the job just around £800, which was a fair reflection of the 2 days it would have taken my guy's to do the work.

When I spoke to the contract manager he told me the current company charged him £380!!! I was amazed they could do this for so little.

As it happens I was passing one day and the window cleaners were cleaning the building. I watched them clean one in particular and it was incredible. Clean 1 window, miss 5.

About a month later I quoted for 22 MOD Offices, adopted the same principle and was pleased to see my quote was favourable and accepted and have been doing them for 8 years now.

I know its not the most professional way, but it is the only way in reality.

Good luck mate.

Trev

[Roy Harding]

[]

Tosh, when you get situations like that its best to reschedule how your cleaning the building.

Work on key windows, i.e reception, Managers office, Finance office, restuarant area, conservatory if they have one.

These are key windows that the people will look for and expect to be cleaned. I very much doubt the manager will personally check every room.

It is also worth changing the cleaning time and invoice routine to swing this account back your way. If you clean the building early, i.e 7am before the main staff are in. Then invoice at the end of the month, the manager will have a difficult time knowing what windows you have cleaned??

Trev

Hi Trev

What are you saying? miss out areas that wont be noticed so easly? 

roy

[Paul Coleman]

Hi Tosh,

Glad you have "seen the light". I know what you mean about feeling dodgy but in reality thats how it is done.

I was taught this years ago, I quoted for Ducal Furniture's manufaturing plant, 11 factory buildings including 2 office and 1 show home. Anyway, I priced the job just around £800, which was a fair reflection of the 2 days it would have taken my guy's to do the work.

When I spoke to the contract manager he told me the current company charged him £380!!! I was amazed they could do this for so little.

As it happens I was passing one day and the window cleaners were cleaning the building. I watched them clean one in particular and it was incredible. Clean 1 window, miss 5.

About a month later I quoted for 22 MOD Offices, adopted the same principle and was pleased to see my quote was favourable and accepted and have been doing them for 8 years now.

I know its not the most professional way, but it is the only way in reality.

Good luck mate.

Trev

I wouldn't feel right about working that way.  It may cost me work but at least i can look in the mirror.

[windows_chepstow]

A friend and forum member (Tomo) was asked to quote for a large/posh hotel and golf club.  It was a big job, probably one of the biggest single properties in the Chepstow area; apart from one other I can think of.

He asked me to help him with the work (if he got the job) and with the quote.

We quoted as tightly as we could and ended up with a quote of £1800 per month; after much agonising and guessing how long each section would take to clean.

The company that 'won'; the quote were the current window cleaners; and they dropped their monthly price to under £1000 per month (I know because I clean the head of housekeeping's house).

That's nearly half of what we quoted.

It was quite obvious to all and sundry that they don't do the required work; just achieve the minimum standard for a minimum price.

The hotel management know they do this; but faced with quotes nearly double; they accept this practise.

I don't think it's underhanded; just the way it's done.

High-Impact - Low-Cost!!!!!!