[qcs cleaning]

I recently have had loads of customers asking for their windows to be cleaned every two months instead of the usual monthly clean.  I tell them that the price will increase to an extra £1 or £2 as the windows will be dirtier and take longer to clean, but they just say, well I will cancel then.

Has this happened to anyone and how do you deal with it?

[geefree]

Just one..... and i got shut,

i may be in the minority but i dont like 2 monthly cleans, i know the advantages but they seem to be tight arsed gits, penny pinching people who class the window cleaner .. and the windows as a very low priority in the maintenan of the home.

but i can understand your concern if a few are doing that to you.... get a few new ones in to replace them first... then dump them.

Gary.

[niceandclean]

I always say that if they want an 8 weekly clean it will be 25% extra. People except it as i do the same as you and say they will be dirtier ect. I have had two say ok keep it as it is.

[supernova77]

All of my customers are x8 weekly... I set it up like that from the start.

Andy

[JM123]

its hard but stick to your guns, anytime anyone refuses just consider it a chance to replace them with some better paying work.

[Paul Coleman]

I don't like the bimonthly cleans so some years back I stuck everyone on 6 weekly.  Unfortunately, it's started to creep in where a few want 12 weekly.  Unless it's a reasonable size job and with a very good hourly rate, I won't do that.  I've had to step back and take a look at things recently and I reckon that I won't do 12 weekly for anything under £50.  This is domestic work.  I may apply a different set of rules for commercial.

[simon knight]

It's the increases in mortgage repayments that are to blame....

People are feeling the pinch and the first things  they cut back on are luxuries...and let's face it having clean windows is a luxury.

I'm going to agree to less frequent cleans and keep my prices the same (for the time being)  because I reckon that if interest rates/mortgage rates keep going higher finding new customers is going to be that much harder.

[pylofm]

The vast majority of my customers are 8weekly and I am trying to get the handfull of 4 weekly to change over....

Is it much more work, no I do not think so...am I getting more money for the same job/actions yes...will the round take longer to build...yes but it will be worth more job for job.

8 weekly for me is the way I want it....why not try it on your own houses for comparisons...

Dave.

[Londoner]

No problem as far as I am concerned. My little friend George takes care of all that stuff. Why should anyone get annoyed about it?
There is a definite trend towards 6 and 8 week cleans so I just go with it. Years ago when we all had books it was a problem keeping track of these things.

 Now I just print off a daily sheet and whatever is on it thats what I do. It doesn't matter to me when the customers were last cleaned, in fact I am not really aware of it most of the time.

Simon Knight has got it right in my view. A customer is a customer, hang on to your customers.

[LWC]

i dont mind to be honest, with wfp every other is ample, i have quite a few every other months, and when th month falls that i dont have to do em its like YESSSS! lol 

[drakestar!]

i just take them on with wfp & wack the price up! we both win!

[LSB]

i have a number of 8 weekly customers , ( none less frequent than that ) and i have no problem with it , i dont charge them any more than if they were 4 weekly ! i dont advertise it , but if thats what they ask for , thats what they get !

[SherwoodCleaningSe]

If it's an increase of only 1 or 2 pound then I imagine that the work is on a housing estate.  If word gets round you'll do them for the same money every 8 weeks you could have big problems.  I'd offer the 8 week service but at an increase in price.  Mortgage rates go up and so on but you still need to pay your bills.

Simon.

[mogy]

You could try  explaining to them how your whole round is based on 4 weekly cycle an how  one customer at 8 weeks leaves a "hole", and tell them they can  be 8 weeks when another customer  allso wants to go 8 weeks ,and so fills the  gap. Or maybe invite them to find a gap filling customer for you !
Mogy

[AuRavelling79]

My newer better paying work is all eight weeks/two months.

If someone wants to change to 8 instead of four I charge them 25% more - if they're not happy then good bye.

[Russell Macdonald]

All my work is 4 weeks, if they want 8 weeks i drop them.

Macc

[Jeff Brimble]

Mortgages, money  etc, I found there is a magic figure per annum that most of my paticular customers can afford whether 4/8/16 etc mines about £100 per annum so if its a £12.50 house  6 2monthly cleans is within their budget but 12 4 weekly is not.
Its not hard and fast but a guide.
8 weekly gives you a srtong customer base. I can go round 7 weekly if I run out of work but George keeps me on track.
I started 4w then went to 6 and then 8 because I hated saying no to work.

[NWH]

Spot on there Jeff,if i take any new stuff i say i work on a 6-8 wkly basis but it normally never is i tell them.I say i`m normally behind apart from when we have a long spell of dry weather and it suits them down to the ground as there always pleased to see me because i`m not to regular,i never have people saying not today ever due to this interval between cleans,it enables you to charge far more being 8wkly.If you do your houses 8wkly normally you would expect 7-8 cleans per year but me always being behind it normally works out 5 times a year,as far as domestic work goes in general if your doing your cleans 4wkly it`s far to regular to be demanding from £35 upwards per house which is the only kind of work i`m now taking on due to the fact i`m stacked out with work.

[Gordon Saunders]

 I thought i was alone doing 6 weekly turnaround but it appears more common than i thought.
  if customers want to switch to 12 weekly well every job is judged individually but am dropping more and more now .  problem is most of my 12 weekly and quarterly work pays really well.
   Gordon

[Clive McDonald]

I spotted this first and used it as a strategy to accelerate the growth of my business like a knife through butter. It's never been about the money for me, but having a winning strategy.

What makes me laugh though the most common complaint about the old cleaner? He wasn't regular enough!

There's still quite a lot about this you haven't put together yet though.