This is without doubt the best comment i have seen on this forum in regards to canvassing. Totally agree with you 100% and i haven't even used a canvasser as of yet, but understand that it is an investment and when the round has paid off how much you had to pay for it, anything after that is profit and even if you only end up with 25-50% work after a year, it's all been paid for and now its making you the profits, but you didn't have to invest the time yourself.
My problem is that i don't have the TIME, to canvas as much as i would like too. Ideally i need £500-£1000 more of work, but i'm lucky if i can find the time to go out canvassing once a week, so it's just not quick enough for me to get the work at the rate i need it. I do enjoy canvassing but at the same time, i love the idea of being able to pay somebody and then they bring in £1000 of work to you, all in one hit, rather than scattered like when your canvassing yourself.
For example, lets say i go canvassing once per week for 2 hours. I may pick up £25-£50 in new customers(good day). That's still only £100-£200 in new work every month. That means it would take me 5 months just to hit the goal that i am looking for, which too be honest i need in the next 1-2 months. The quicker i start doing all of this work, the quicker its paid off and the quicker i will see the profit.
This is why i am considering using a canvasser, because its bringing in more work and more money, much quicker than i can bring it in.
Thanks for posting your experience on retention rates from canvassers and your personal experiences, that has helped me to understand just that little bit more clearly the benefits of using a canvasser.
Let's do the math:
Canvassers get you £1000 (80 house for example)
Month 1 - you earn £0 minus expenses (your wage or any employees, fuel, water etc)
Month 2 - you earn -£100 (10% drop off) minus expenses
Month 3 - you earn -£200 (another 10%) minus expenses.
Month 4- you earn £800 minus £300 paid to Canvassers even though lost customers, so £500 then fuel for having gone to 216 houses in last 3 months, say £50, so £450
Month 5 - you earn £650 (another 15% drop off)
Month 6 - you earn £500 (another 15% drop off).
TOTAL EARNED - £1,650
You canvass £200 a month yourself (£50 a week very easily done)
Month 1 - you earn £180 (10% drop off)
month 2 - £340 (20% drop off - 10 this month, 10 again for last month work)
Month 3 - £500 (20% drop off)
Month 4 - £660 (20% drop off)
Month 5 - £800 (20% drop off)
Month 6 - £960 (20% drop off)
TOTAL - £3,440
Even if you earned half that from your own canvassing, it would still be more than the work you bought, and it would be more compact, exactly how you priced it and the rest.
Canvassing only makes sense when you need an extra £10k plus of work and you need it NOW.
Just my 2 pence!