[Doug Holloway]

What is the number 1 plan you have to grow your business in 2009.

Mine is to work even harder at getting my websites into the top rankings and to improve my shop(s)

Cheers

Doug

[Susan Dean (1stclean)]

mine is to get  a web site which is on the way i hope just need some dirty carpet pics now

[derek west]

doug
thats 2
only joking
mine is to somehow target commercial, ive not tried yet and have no idea how too. but thats the plan, all be it slightly flawed at present.
derek

[Doug Holloway]

Hi Derek

My shops are websites so 1 and a half 

Commercial is much harder to target that domestic but potentially more rewarding.

Cheers

Doug

[Mike Halliday]

this year is when I really get stuck into the pressure washing. come summer I want it to be at least 50/50 with the carpet cleaning.

[Shaun_Ashmore]

Is that what you want the space for in the van?

Shaun

[Doug Holloway]

Hi Guys

Mike , do you like pressure washing , especially in the summer or is there just more money ?

Cheers

Doug

[daysdeepclean]

Mine's to stop being a lazy sod and deliver leaflets myself on my quiet days...

[Mike Osbourne]

The tinternet

I don't know about everyone else but at first it was all double dutch. didn't make much progress at first cos everything was new.

Now I feel I have at least a base knowledge to build on.

Would like to be above the directories for my area, not sure if that's possible. After that better conversion and capturing contact info.

Mike

[Mike Halliday]

Shaun, My vans so big it all fits in! but I do have a new P/W machine that i want to bolt into the van.

Doug, more money, easier and more job satisfaction!!

[Shaun_Ashmore]

What PW have you got now? has it got more power or more flow?

Shaun

[Ian Rochester]

Funny that, I've just been going through my objectives for 2009 today.

Of the ones I can tell you about, firstly to get our new workshop sorted out, secondly to put more focus on the commercial side,  window cleaning, office cleaning and carpet cleaning. 

I'd like to put another 650 ltr hot water wfp system on the road this year, possibly another Ionics and I'd like to take on another two teams of office/domestic cleaners.

I also want to review our database and then mail shot all our previous customers with regular quarterly letters.

There are other projects in the pipeline, but can't disclose them just yet.

Mike,  we do a fair bit of pressure washing and gutter cleaning but I find it to be very seasonal.  Got a 4000 psi Honda GX390 and it eats through the work.

[clinton]

Want to get something else off the ground as my c cleaning runs itself now and to earn money when i am not working

Think like mike does offering another service is an ideal way to get you through the quiet times

[mike townsend]

my mission is to get a bigger van & truck mount machine, and expand my current letting agent contracts, lettings have really picked round here the last 3 months or so, so il be pushing that, get my website sorted, and take another part time cleaner on.

[PaulKing]

Take it slow and steady as not sure what this current climate might bring and spend more time with the family, but mikes got me thinking, pressure washing sounds like a nice idea too, especially when it warms up a bit.

[clinton]

The power washing is lucrative but hard work and does take time to get the skills i

A good set up i think is the guttervac

[Mike Osbourne]

Clinton

There's one just come up in the buy and sell section.

[clinton]

Mike

Yes thanks for that i saw that too and spoke to the guy a few months ago about it.

Thing is it needs a gennie and washer so it woukd have to be put in a box trailer

Or can be run from domestics from there electric like our machines.

[Ian Rochester]

We had a good look at the guttervac idea a while ago and there are too many situations where it is not suitable and the only option is to get up there with ladders and pull the stuff out.

Most people will only call you out when the gutters are full, roots are 4ft long and running down the downers........ gutter vac can't cope with that, or when the tiles come halfway over the top of the gutter and you only have a narrow gap to get in, or when there are retainer bars every 4 ft along the length of the gutter.

My opinion is that there are too many situations where it's not suitable to make it worthwhile investing in.

[clinton]

Ian

Same here had a go with one few weeks back and the gutters had those bars every few feet

Didnt want to wear a hard hat too