[jeff1]

Hi Guy's
Some time back I started a topic called ''lost my firt one to a wfp''.

I won't go into all the details as you can do a search for it.
But some months back, I lost my very first customer to a wfp and this was after seven years of cleaning his house.

I admitted the results of the wfp were excellent.
But to day while I was back in his village, he approached me and asked me if I would like to clean his windows again 
under my breath I said #@*#  #*$ :

but to him I said, why is the wfp not up to your standards, and he just replied back, that he had not seen the guy since.
well I said, perhaps he's on holiday, don't think so he said, its been a couple of month now, well I said, they can earn so much more money now they can afford longer holidays 

anyway cutting a long story short and after a long conversation with him, he said well, when can you clean them.
I just said sorry no room on the books, and even if I did take you back, you would probably dump me again when the next wfp comes along. no no I wont was his reply, good I said because you won't get the chance, picked up my ladders and walked away.
The moral of the story is, he who laughs last, laughs the longest, and I did today.
 

[ronaldo]

I had one just like it Jeff and told her exactly the same i wouldnt even clean hers for double after the remarks she made when i told her i was changing to wfp,now she is the only house in a run of 6 whos windows are minging so fair play to you Jeff ###k em 

[jeff1]

To Right Ronaldo ###k em 
He did offer me another £3 to do them : WOW! Such a tempting offer. 

[Alistair@AWC]

Jeff,

I can see the satisfaction you would have got from that and fair play to you but I cant help thinking that if you had taken him back he would have been your most loyal customer because he would be too afraid to ever cancel you again.

Alistair

[captain lard]

No I think Jeff was right to knock him back and if it had been me I would have done the same,who is to say the customer wouldnt have dropped him again.
Good on you Jeff.

[dai]

I had the same thing happen to me. She asked me to do them again because the trad guys did an appalling job. I took her back on gladly, She is now on my side and warning the others on the estate not to bother with the new guys. After her previous experience she is unlikely to dump me again is she. Dai

[jeff1]

Jeff,

I can see the satisfaction you would have got from that and fair play to you but I cant help thinking that if you had taken him back he would have been your most loyal customer because he would be too afraid to ever cancel you again.

Alistair

Hi Alistair
I see what your saying, but I have hundreds of what I would call loyal customers, and he used to be amongst them,

the loss of one customer is not going to break the bank. and in a village word normally spreads fast, my method has worked in the past, dump your honest reliable hard working window cleaner for some unknown newbie and pay the price.

Over the past nine years I have seen them come and I have seen them go and the majority of my customers have been with me from day one, the trouble is people from the city come to live in a village and think window cleaners grow on tree's maybe they do in the city but here in the country side were as rare as s**t from a rocking horse.

[Alistair@AWC]

Fair point Jeff,

Like I said I kind of agreed with you, just offering an alternate view, although in the heat of the moment I'd have probably done the same.

Ive just had a new customer who after the first clean which meant me spending the best part of an hour scrubbing her filthy frames cancel me for a cheaper WCer who probably wouldnt have touched her window unless I'd cleaned them.

Now I wouldnt touch her with a Water Fed Pole 

Not even if she offered double (actually thats a lie, I probably would do her house for £31) cos it p1ssed me off no end when she cancelled

Regards

Alistair

[jeff1]

That would have really naffed me off, but that can work two ways, you may find the cheaper wc don't turn up, or won't last long or even do a naff job.

I picked up a new one today, first time it had been cleaned in five years, took a little time, but when I finished it was gleaming, customer was really chuffed and gave me an extra £5 

[macc]

No I think Jeff was right to knock him back and if it had been me I would have done the same,who is to say the customer wouldnt have dropped him again.
Good on you Jeff.

Hi Jeff.

Good on you mate, exactly what i would have done. Neigbours talk & it sends out the message that you cant be droped & if they want you back you come running.

Ive been cleaning a large majority of my round over 10 years, its the way i like it, not in to all this chopping & changing.

Macc

[windows_chepstow]

Ive just had a new customer who after the first clean which meant me spending the best part of an hour scrubbing her filthy frames cancel me

Alistair

Alistair,

I've had something extremely similar happen to myself.

This house hadn't had it's windows cleaned in TWELVE YEARS (the customer told me) and we took the time to get the frames and glass gleaming.

I don't charge an initial cleaning charge.

Then a month later, I saw a 'for sale' sign up, and a note stuck in their kitchen window saying 'Window Cleaner No Longer Required'.

It doesn't take a brain surgeon to work out why they wanted their windows cleaned.

This happened nearly two years ago, and I'm still cross about it!!!!

The thing is, I know where these people have moved to and I'm still very tempted to chuck a couple of handfulls of carpet tacks over their drive, every three or four months, for years to come.

 

[JohnL]

I've had a similar recently Tosh.

Old lady and hubby, big house, loads of patio windows, log cabin for the jaccusi and £150 first clean £95 every 6 weeks-ish

turned up to be told - Oh dont need you any more I'm going into a home next week cus of my bad knees  - been waiting 4 years! - but will tell the new people who you are etc

Oh and this place is right out in the sticks and takes 35 mins to get there!

yeah right - thanks for phoning!

JohnL

[captain lard]

 lads both those stories made me mad on your behalf!!

[jeff1]

Wouldn't it be nice if we got a window cleaner revenge Brigade out,  and every time a customer did any of the above to us, we could all go around in the middle of the night  remove there windows, and stack them neatly up on there lawns

[windows_chepstow]

we could all go around in the middle of the night  remove there windows, and stack them neatly up on there lawns

Why 'neatly'?

[captain lard]

A national window cleaning mafia,upset one of us and the whole lot go and wreak revenge. Reapplying bird muck,spiders webs paint spots and dirt etc.

[jeff1]

we could all go around in the middle of the night  remove there windows, and stack them neatly up on there lawns

Why 'neatly'?

Because when they get refitted they might need a window cleaner

A national window cleaning mafia,upset one of us and the whole lot go and wreak revenge. Reapplying bird muck,spiders webs paint spots and dirt etc.

we'll miss the spiders out and just post them through the letter box

[geefree]

Hi, are you not tempted to filthy the windows back up again, especially top windows?


has anyone ever got there own back?

[jeff1]

Hi, are you not tempted to filthy the windows back up again, especially top windows?


has anyone ever got there own back?

Hi Gazza
I wouldn't have to, his house is covered in wisteria (think thats how you spell it) and it doesn't take that long for them to get dirty again, which they already are.

as for getting my own back, No not yet, but I have been tempted.
Start another topic on that one if you want more answers.