[Davo]

Its all about perception, how you see yourself and your business and more importantly how the customer sees you and your business.

A good example of this was a recent post regarding conservatory cleaning and in particular the vast difference in prices charged for the clean. One particular poster was met with replies of disbelief, that is until he demonstrated the prices he charged were being obtained, and just as importantly he was achieving good levels of new and repeat business.

Why was he able to charge more than the many other posters on that particular topic??

PERCEPTION.... His own perception of what the service he was offering was worth, other posters didnt agree, but he had belief in the value of what he was doing. He knew that if he could show his potential customers the value in the service that he provided then work would follow. Which leads onto the most important part of the perception of value.

THE CUSTOMERS PERCEPTION OF THE VALUE OF THE SERVICE YOU OFFER.

The customers perception of value is what really counts, this is created by many things, but they all work together to create what the customer thinks the service you offer is worth.

If, as a business, you can improve the customers perception of you and the service you offer then an increase in business WILL follow, the rates you charge WILL increase.

However that starts off with your own perception of yourself. Look at ways of changing the customers perception of you AS ONLY A WINDOW CLEANER, because unfortunately, as far as most customers are concerned, you are at, or near, the bottom of the pile.

If any members would like me to expand on the points I have mentioned then please let me know.

Have a prosperous 2008.


Mark
 

[bluez]

Mark, its an interesting point you make and I agree to a fair extent that perception on both the service provider and the customer is important however I would also emphasise that there is a customer for every service.

I know of companies that will charge you €500 plus for gutter soffit and fascia cleaning, and their rational is that if they get two a week they are laughing all the way to the bank.

There is also the issue of competition, the greater the competition levels the better the customer knows what a particular type of service should cost them and the lower the chance you have of getting high prices.

The core point of valueing the service that you povide and not being afraid to charge decent prices is a good one and it is especially valid when it comes to niche areas like cons, gutters, etc IMO .

 

[xpskwindowcleaning]

Totally agree with your points. What I've found when working is that people don't get to see how you'll clean their windows until they've accepted the price, but are trusting you with access to their garden and even their house if they want the insides done. Having a clean, embroidered uniform; a signwritten van and looking smart and professional go a long way towards them saying yes.

[NWH]

The most important thing you can give a customer is the knowledge that they can trust you 100%,if you can establish this you can charge what you like or there abouts.I in some cases charge a lot more than other WC`s and customers know this,but wouldn`t have anyone else bacause of the trust issue.If they can trust you and your reliable and you can do a good job you`ve ticked all the boxes.

[simon knight]

I think the trust element is 99% of the job especially if you're doing insides as well.

[NWH]

I do loads of inside work and speaking to customers they say it`s all about trust,even when it`s just doing the outsides they need to know they can trust you,lots of different jobs i have keypad entry numbers and keys.

[Village Gleam]

You really are very good at this Mark, I agree totally and had similar thoughts about the Mick Hay thread. I don't charge or market as well as he does but it is a lesson learned. I very often charge about £40.

The perception point you made is the whole point. Dp print has sent me another email with leaflet/biz card offers and at £110 ish for .... never mind here.
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As a direct result of the company's continued growth and success,
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[Village Gleam]

So it's worth thinking about leaflets just for this.

My hot thing is very similar(perception) but did you notice the back lash. 

[Paul Coleman]

Its all about perception, how you see yourself and your business and more importantly how the customer sees you and your business.

A good example of this was a recent post regarding conservatory cleaning and in particular the vast difference in prices charged for the clean. One particular poster was met with replies of disbelief, that is until he demonstrated the prices he charged were being obtained, and just as importantly he was achieving good levels of new and repeat business.

Why was he able to charge more than the many other posters on that particular topic??

PERCEPTION.... His own perception of what the service he was offering was worth, other posters didnt agree, but he had belief in the value of what he was doing. He knew that if he could show his potential customers the value in the service that he provided then work would follow. Which leads onto the most important part of the perception of value.

THE CUSTOMERS PERCEPTION OF THE VALUE OF THE SERVICE YOU OFFER.

The customers perception of value is what really counts, this is created by many things, but they all work together to create what the customer thinks the service you offer is worth.

If, as a business, you can improve the customers perception of you and the service you offer then an increase in business WILL follow, the rates you charge WILL increase.

However that starts off with your own perception of yourself. Look at ways of changing the customers perception of you AS ONLY A WINDOW CLEANER, because unfortunately, as far as most customers are concerned, you are at, or near, the bottom of the pile.

If any members would like me to expand on the points I have mentioned then please let me know.

Have a prosperous 2008.


Mark
 

Mark.
You have got it bang on there.  My own business has only improved since I started believing that the service I offer is quality.  After all, I turn up year on year at regular intervals.  The customers know I'm trustworthy.  And, apart from a very rare complaint, they are happy with what I do for them.  It may not sound a great deal to some, but when you consider that the percentage of people who start window cleaning but don't continue with it is in the high 90 per cents, it makes me realise that it is very much an acquired taste that most potential W/Cs don't like.
Just for persevering over the years makes us worth a much higher rate than the fly by nights.  But persevering all year round, doing a decent job, and being reliable stands us out from the crowd,
Self esteem is the key though IMO.  By that, I don't mean self inflated egotism.  I mean a genuine belief that we deserve good businesses and the rewards that can bring.

[Davo]

There is also the issue of competition, the greater the competition levels the better the customer knows what a particular type of service should cost them and the lower the chance you have of getting high prices.

I agree that alot of competition will drive down prices, which is even more reason to alter the customers perception of you and your business.
Move your business upwards away from your competitors, then you're not competing on a LIKE FOR LIKE basis.

Takes a bit of thinking about


Mark

[Davo]

So it's worth thinking about leaflets just for this.

My hot thing is very similar(perception) but did you notice the back lash.

Yes you got "back lash" some posters on this forum are (being kind) quite negative. Comments such as ".....getting above your station..your ONLY a window cleaner". Comments that suggest that cleaning windows too regularly is "conning" customers. The general belief that earning good money is somehow disshonest. Doesnt make sense to me, however with a mind set that theyre ONLY window cleaners, it doesnt really suprise me.

They could be so much more. If thats how they perceive themselves then what do their customers see?.


Mark

[Ian_Giles]

I think that Mark is spot on, total belief in the product/service allows the individual to sell a product or deliver a service.

I'm just going to use Squeaky as an example (sorry rog, it isn't a dig) We both work the same patch, or rather our patches overlap, I have a lot of very well paying accounts, I'm proud of the fact that I don't attempt to short change my customers (neither does Squeaky by the way), I'm thorough in the work I do. I'm quick and efficient too.
I make no claim to be perfect, I know full well that at times I'll leave spots behind, we all do, but the overall job is to a high standard.

I picked up one job that Squeaky once had, she moaned and groaned at Roger about hating WFP (he was still trad at the time).
For Roger it was a £20 job, when he tried to put it up she bluntly refused to accept it.
They have had an extension so there is more work now, but I'm charging her £85 and she accepted the price happily and was more than happy for me to WFP the lot.
Rog was telling me I'd better blade off the downstairs as she won't stand for it...she did of course.
I even tried to palm the job off on Squeaky, nagging him several times to go and give her a quote, but he'd already convinced himself it would be pointless, and when i told him the price he exclaimed that he'd have never got that much for it.

And he is probably right, she would have unconsciously picked up on the fact that he would be expecting knock backs, he would be defeated (even if he didn't realise it) before he'd even started.

We have all heard how Roger has had so many problems, has lost so much business, yet myself and Tosh have not had anything like the problems Roger has had, Tosh has only been going a few years and he has already had to sell a chunk of his round off because he had so much.
And since I converted to WFP the work has kept coming in, and I've done no canvassing whatsoever.

Roy Harding has a tremendous round, some incredibly well priced work and mostly residential, I was shocked when I learned his income level.
Over the last year or two, partly as a result of Knowing Roy, and what is possible my income and hourly rate has climbed a long way.
I have some accounts where up until the middle of last year my base rate was £8.00 per house, a new regiment is in there now and my base rate is now £12.00 for the smallest house, and they accept my prices without a qualm, even though I know that there is another guy charging less than the £8.00 I was charging before.

Perception, you truly do have to believe deep inside that you are worth every penny you charge, if you've made the change to WFP, then you also have to believe utterly in that too, I don't mean blind faith, you have to be aware of its shortfalls of course.
Squeaky has a great many negative thoughts, no end of you have picked up on that fact.
Roger would claim he is simply being honest, perhaps he is, but in Roger's case I can think of no other reason why he has so, so many problems, where others - myself included - have no such problems.

And I also have to stress, cos this might all seem like a dig at him, he always does a top job, there is nothing at all wrong with the quality of his work...I will of course take the credit for that...cos I trained him!!

If you make the mistake of trying to compete on price, then you will certainly drive prices down...your own prices that is, of course there is competition out there, and there is always someone who is willing to do it cheaper than you, that's always been the case.

This year I've now set myself new goals to be achieved by the end of 2008, and I think I will be in with a very good chance of achieving that goal too, and it is double the one I originally set myself when I went WFP, I've bypassed that goal a long time ago....

Ian

[Paul Coleman]

A lot of truth in what you say there Ian (though I can't comment on the specific stuff about Rog as I've never met him).
I did a small thing today that ties in with what you wrote.  It may not seem much but is is all tied in with what's being said about self perception.  I have a job that I originally did trad before I went to WFP.  I charge quite well for it and it used to take me an hour to an hour and five minutes.  Inevitably, as I got used to WFP, I gradually knocked some time off the job.  I even got it down to 25 minutes at one point but I'm more comfortable doing it in 30 - 35 minutes.  It's just one of those jobs that are wonderfully suited to WFP.  Anyway, the people are nearly always out but, on the rare occasions they are in, I did the job more slowly because at some level, I felt a bit guilty about earning so well from it.  Anyway, I did it differently today.  They were in.  I did it in half an hour.  No-one batted an eyelid.
Of course it's impossible to say but if:
a)  I seemed unsure about WFP
b)  I appeared short on confidence
c)   turned up in a tatty old motor
or
d)   was a scruff bag with my rear end hanging out of my trousers

perhaps they would perceive me differently and query my charges.
Perhaps they wouldn't - but I'm sure you get my drift.

[Davo]

N

[Village Gleam]

We do pick on squeaky, but that is only because he is very honest in his posts. He is also very humourous and witty and argumentative. He was the big nemesis of WFP on here. That's why so many had so much to say when he came over. But Squeaky can always hold his end of an argument and does have some insights. (but not about business.)

Ians his friend in real life, so I suppose that's different.

[Ian_Giles]

I really wasn't having a pop at Squeaks, but he was a good example to use with regards to self perception.
No doubt he would not agree with my observations, he is certainly confidant in what he does.
But I honestly cannot understand why he has had so many problems.

Look at most policemen, they often exude an aura of authority, I know the uniform helps them, but individually you feel they have that certain something.

Other people can be massively charismatic, they only have to walk in a room and you can feel it, they have an aura about them, they don't have to speak to you for you to feel it.
It may not necessarily be self perception as such, more perhaps a confidence in themselves, a belief in who and what they are, it shows in the way they carry themselves, the set of their shoulders and no end of others things I'm not bright enough to be able to see and point out!
I was once working at a paper mill when a major fire broke out, (I was a decorator at the time and had a major contract there)  we were working on a tower and looking down at at people running around with faces slack jawed and wide eyed with panic.
But there was one guy, a foreman there who strode through everyone, and even at the distance we were at, you could feel a confidence in him as he controlled and organised things...

Enough musing, I need to be at work!

Ian

[D.Salkeld_Ltd]

Hi Folks,

Thanks for this thread

I've been thinking the same :

I have changed my perception of myself:

From; Dave the window cleaner

To; David Salkeld, Managing Director of D.Salkeld.Ltd Window Cleaning Business.

The main belief I have is:

I'M IN CHARGE!!!

I don't mean that in a belligerent way.  This brings a higher responsibility as well as a higher perception of myself.
I have learned to listen to the advice around me then not be afraid to make the decisions myself.

I am blessed with a fantastic group of supporters around me.  They don't always agree with me but they TRUST and love me.

Changing over to WFP has really challenged my belief in myself and given me the opportunity to prove, TO ME, just what I am capable of.
Now I am reaping the benefits:
Higher Income.
Praise from others (even those who didn't believe in WFP!)

You folks have, and are, a great help to me.  I feel confident enough to offer help to others on here.

As for our good friend Squeaky.  I totally agree with Ian.  Obviously Ian knows Rog personally and has confirmed what I was thinking.

Squeaky seems to be too big headed to listen to advise and seems to have gone over to WFP for 2 reasons:
1. He thinks he can do his work lazier!
2. On here he can prove all what HE said about WFP is true :

I believe Rog is jealous of Ian and Tosh! And if he got his act together he could wipe the floor with the both of them

Come on Squeaks.  Have you got it in you!!

As Ian says; Not having a pop at Squeaks - just want him to enjoy the success we are enjoying

Thanks
David

[xxmattyxx]

Fabulous thread, this describes so much how my attitude to my career has altered gradually over time.

I was talking to a very close friend recently, about my mother, she abhores the fact that Im a window-cleaner, cant bear it, I dont believe she tells her friends what her son does for a living; anyway; I was bouncing this issue off this confidant recently about my mother, and he said 'Matt, you are a window-cleaner, true, but you are also the Managing Director of House and Garden Window Cleaning too'

[Paul Coleman]

Fabulous thread, this describes so much how my attitude to my career has altered gradually over time.

I was talking to a very close friend recently, about my mother, she abhores the fact that Im a window-cleaner, cant bear it, I dont believe she tells her friends what her son does for a living; anyway; I was bouncing this issue off this confidant recently about my mother, and he said 'Matt, you are a window-cleaner, true, but you are also the Managing Director of House and Garden Window Cleaning too'

I once had a girlfriend who wouldn't tell her mother that I was a window cleaner.  I hadn't been doing it very long at the time so I was driving one of those weird looking advertising wagons around to help with the income (it had a big canvas on either side advertising Superdrug).  Anyway, she was so ashamed of what I did that she told her mother that I was in advertising   
Anyone want to guess how long that relationship lasted? 

[Village Gleam]

As usual you've all gone of on a totally unrelated tangent and ended up talking about yourselves/ourselves.Talk about self obsessed. Me, me and a bit more me This thread is about perception in the business sence, that someone, and I believe Mick Hay was the example, could target a niche' market by doing everything very professionally and attract a high volume of customers at prices nearly double what a lot of us charge and still leave customers with the perception that they had had very good value for money and that their conservatory returned to nearly new.

As we are doing bios though I have always been a winner, but have found w/c very difficult. Particulary at the start when I just went knocking doors to set up a test market. I was so embarrassed, and humbled by this, especially as I say I have already been successfull.For a long time my wife said I was playing at it, and thought I wasted far too much money on it.