[dai]

Honest guys, I have never seen it like this before. I have had one cancellation again today, and one leave them till April.
I have read on here that it's all swings and roundabouts, well it isn't for me, my 24.5 day round has shrunk to 22.5 in the last 6 months, a net loss of two days work.
I have noticed a pattern in recent losses, 70% of the time it's customers that owe for more than one clean.
Having to pay out £20 or £30 for two or three months cleaning is the killer punch. I know collecting is a pain in the rear, but I can no longer afford to let the bills mount up for fear of losing more.
Am I the only one experiencing this? I've had no complaints as far as my standard of work goes.

[Pole 2 Pole]

No mate, ya not alone. I mentioned on a post a few days back that it's the bigger domestic jobs that i seem to be losing. To make things worse,they're not even biting at every 2 months. Not losing any small jobs at all..........

[Dean Aspects]

I have lost two jobs so far two awkward jobs so not to bothered about them so not really affected that way but i have noticed that i am not picking up any new work and cheques are alot slower at coming in i am going to start offering bacs payments to customers so the money comes in a little more often hopefully and that way it should only be one months payment they are making and then they shouldnt notice it too much

[Moderator David@stives]

Dai

Maybe its time to go collecting more if that is the reason, this will serve 2 purposes, the second one is to maintain good contact with your customers.

The number one way to keep a customer is to speak to them  more.

[dai]

Dai

Maybe its time to go collecting more if that is the reason, this will serve 2 purposes, the second one is to maintain good contact with your customers.

The number one way to keep a customer is to speak to them  more.

Your dead right Dave, and that's what I'm doing. just starting to worry when I knock and they owe for more than one clean

[Sure Cleaning]

Your're not alone... and I think it will get worse after Christmas.

We have noticed over the last month or so that the larger domestic customers are cancelling... slowly but surely. We are not talking about £40 plus jobs we don't have very many of those..but £15 - £20 jobs.

Jobs £10 and under seem stable and all work recently picked up have been in this price range..whenever we now quote for a job £15 and over customers are not saying yes like we have been used to.

Just like any business competitive pricing is needed, we are always monitoring our business and currently finding smaller jobs are at present more secure.

I feel sorry for people just starting out and trying to build their business..very tough times ahead. On the bright side as always it will pass and good times will follow again.

Steve G

[windowwashers]

Honest guys, I have never seen it like this before. I have had one cancellation again today, and one leave them till April.
I have read on here that it's all swings and roundabouts, well it isn't for me, my 24.5 day round has shrunk to 22.5 in the last 6 months, a net loss of two days work.
I have noticed a pattern in recent losses, 70% of the time it's customers that owe for more than one clean.
Having to pay out £20 or £30 for two or three months cleaning is the killer punch. I know collecting is a pain in the rear, but I can no longer afford to let the bills mount up for fear of losing more.
Am I the only one experiencing this? I've had no complaints as far as my standard of work goes.

it's happening to me aswell Dai, I am losing upto 20 a month at the mo and gaining 5/10. al  lot is time of year some the credit crunch, then saying that I picked up a new commercial today that covers my loses for last couple of months and picked up 2 more houses, it seems when I cant be bothered work rolls in and at the mo I really have had enough as mind is not on the job.

[JSMC]

lost a few also recently. wonder how the high rollers are gonna cope losing all these 20-30 quid houses they do.

[geefree]

only lost 2 all yeardue to money, lost a few to deaths and moving but these will be replaced when new people move in,plus side about 40 new customers this year and the month is not long enough,will have to look at selling some work

or shift some around to 5 weekly maybe ??

or even get a man on the road for you.

[L.Doubtfire - The Blade Runner]

Dia,correct me if  I`m wrong,but you`ve been losing work heavily
If not `like the clappers`for the past 2 years or so.Possibly longer?
It was,I seem to recall about a year ago for you things were really
Really bad on that score?Unless you replaced the work and have
Started to lose that here and there etc.I`ve lost over £4,000 worth
Of commercial and high end residential in the last month.
Things are very quiet for myself,although I`m starting to cut down
On work now anyway.I`m not 21 anymore and it`s a young mans
`game`.even if ya are WFP.Around my way I see lots of nice sign
Written vans doing even the council estates.Most are young fella`s
At that.The cold weather is`nt putting some of em`off,just the opposite
It would seem.Thought I`d have a moan to the country,oaky moan over.

[Paul Coleman]

Honest guys, I have never seen it like this before. I have had one cancellation again today, and one leave them till April.
I have read on here that it's all swings and roundabouts, well it isn't for me, my 24.5 day round has shrunk to 22.5 in the last 6 months, a net loss of two days work.
I have noticed a pattern in recent losses, 70% of the time it's customers that owe for more than one clean.
Having to pay out £20 or £30 for two or three months cleaning is the killer punch. I know collecting is a pain in the rear, but I can no longer afford to let the bills mount up for fear of losing more.
Am I the only one experiencing this? I've had no complaints as far as my standard of work goes.

I have lost the odd one but it has been balanced by new work coming in.  I know what you mean about people cancelling when two cleans are owed though.  Maybe I don't get this too much because I started my "no collecting" bit a fair few years ago so a lot of the double payers have either already cancelled or have been cancelled by me.  It was more turbulent in the first two years of not collecting though.

[dai]

We all lose work at some time, people move and the new occupiers may not require your services.
I have never experienced losses like this before, it doesn't help when the area you work has the lowest pro ca-pita income in the UK
A lot of the problem is having too compact a round, I know this sounds daft but it's true.
If you do 70%of the houses on any estate and the rest don't want a window cleaner, your not going to pick up work there are you? I get the odd enquiry from a passing car, but I always refused small jobs in another area. As most of you know I'm knocking on a bit so intend taking things a bit easier anyway.
Last year when I reached 65 I was entitled to buy an annuity with my personal pension fund, I chose not to do this and left it there for growth, that pot has shrunk by 20 grand in the last 3 months. If I fell into a bed of roses I would come out smelling like sh**.[ don't want to upset the mods}

[matt]

im going to lose a house tomorrow

last year just before christmas a house asked me to miss it this time as its christmas and its expensive time of year blah blah blah, i said ok, but made some remark about its expensive for me aswell, she said well i own my own business i must be loaded  : :

well tomorrow i clean the same house, this time though she owes me 60 quid ( 4 X cleans ) i know we will have the same discussion, when i say " ok, i will miss you this time, but can you pay the money you own me now " she will moan and have a go at me and say, you should call around to collect, keep in mind this area i dont collect from, she has had a "payment slip " each and every clean

[ftp]

We all lose work at some time, people move and the new occupiers may not require your services.
I have never experienced losses like this before, it doesn't help when the area you work has the lowest pro ca-pita income in the UK
A lot of the problem is having too compact a round, I know this sounds daft but it's true.
If you do 70%of the houses on any estate and the rest don't want a window cleaner, your not going to pick up work there are you? I get the odd enquiry from a passing car, but I always refused small jobs in another area. As most of you know I'm knocking on a bit so intend taking things a bit easier anyway.
Last year when I reached 65 I was entitled to buy an annuity with my personal pension fund, I chose not to do this and left it there for growth, that pot has shrunk by 20 grand in the last 3 months. If I fell into a bed of roses I would come out smelling like sh**.[ don't want to upset the mods}

That's terrible Dai you'd have made more money if you stuffed it in your matteress! Trouble is, the same thing is happening to customers too - there doesn't seem to be any winners in this climate. (apart from the fat cat bankers picking up their bonuses)

[dmlservices]

Honest guys, I have never seen it like this before. I have had one cancellation again today, and one leave them till April.
I have read on here that it's all swings and roundabouts, well it isn't for me, my 24.5 day round has shrunk to 22.5 in the last 6 months, a net loss of two days work.
I have noticed a pattern in recent losses, 70% of the time it's customers that owe for more than one clean.Having to pay out £20 or £30 for two or three months cleaning is the killer punch. I know collecting is a pain in the rear, but I can no longer afford to let the bills mount up for fear of losing more.
Am I the only one experiencing this? I've had no complaints as far as my standard of work goes.

for a long time i have been of the opinion that once winter sets in if thgey have to pay for 2 - 3 cleans it makes them think twice about retaining your services through a cold wet winter,

for that reason i try not to let debts build up in winter, even if it means collecting,

but even then i am carefaull when i collect, collecting at this time of year when it is raining , is giving them an invite to cancel,

with the way things are now, the above becomesd even more imprtant

daz

[Wayne Thomas]

I lost loads at the beginning of this year which I've managed to replace. Amazed I'm actually gaining more than I'm losing now and it's not because of the Xmas rush because I'm telling them I can't fit them in now until in the New Year. Must have been my old aftershave or something, mind you my head was all over the place at the start of this year with woman problems but all's sorted now so I'm back on form.

[ftp]

Wot?
you've got a headache and a bad temper? Thought it was just my Missus that suffered with that. 

[DASERVICES]

Only lost one as put up prices but there is still work out there to be had. Looking at the stats coming in from the SLWCN site there is still a lot of people looking for a window cleaner. All enquires I have had have been passed on.

I tend to find you have one of those days you may loose one but around the corner comes a couple of new ones.

From the stats lots of people looking for gutter cleaning so may be an idea for those with websites to add this function.

[SherwoodCleaningSe]

The majority of the ones I've lost are between the £10 - £20 rate, slightly larger house with more expensive utility bills that your standard semi.  Some say can you come back in spring, others we can't afford it anymore.  I think that things will get a lot worse after the Christmas crunch.

Simon.

[peter holley]

i started collecting again in may 2008, as i could see a change in payment times.... as for losing jobs , i have lost 5 this year but gained about 40, but i have been putting my service about a bit more... i am currently paying a part time employee to leaflet drop each week to keep things ticking over