[Murdie window cleaning]

When was the last time time a domestic customer said they were going to obtain a quote from several window cleaners before making a decision ? In my very humble and limited experiance a customer will stay with a window cleaner for 2 reasons, reliability and standard of work. If you were to take the p and price rediculisly high then they may bring price into the equation, but pricing fair for both parties then you should be fine.

[andyjm1]

With more and more window cleaners losing commercial contracts to the so called big companies, i have noticed and increase on the domestic side of things, and i dont mean your summer crew, dont know about peeps on here but i have been talking to some local cleaners and they have said the same more and more sign written van are popping up everywere,

had a long disscusion with a former builder today as well who does not see himself going back into building and was thinking of starting up window cleaning as he said it seams to be a more secure business and is good for cash flow wich is true!

now the bit that will concern some is the way that the commercial side of things is going with rates being cut and those cleaners who are losing commercial work are looking back to domestics to make this back up, now with what is happening in commercial how long is it going to take before it happens on domestics as well

i mean people have lost jobs and will do anything to earn a living and a lot are turning to window cleaning and dont know how much to price and are doing work for far less than some other cleaners, i know peeps will say they will learn to price right but the builder i was talking to said that he has targeted an area where the houses are normally in the £10 range said his plan is to employ workers pay them £10hr and price those houses at £8 now one man i know does 4 houses a hour so that will be 4x8=£32-£10 for worker leaves him with £22 per each man hr now i know his plan is to have 3 men plus himself working  which will give him an hourly rate of £98 and hey it can be done!

Now with so many coming into window cleaning it is going to be hard for newbie startups and i predict some will have to start lowering their prices or lose out, so far my prices have stayed the same but i can see all this price cutting entering into domestics in the very near future!

Good luck to him when he trys canvassing the estate of £10 houses thinking they're all going to suddenly change to him for the sake of £2.00. 
How long does he think it's going to take for him to get enough work to employ three men?

[james44]

So your theory about newbies coming into the game and pricing as low as possible to get the work will completely bugger your DIAL-A-CLEAN concept as surely you wont be able to compete anymore?
By the way how is Dial-A-Clean going........

Quite the opposite as some customers are going for the every other month clean and the dial-a-clean and as you know from cleaners on this forum they dont want these customers!

money is tight at this time for a lot of people and window cleaning is not high on their priority list,

hence why the dial-clean is busy

[james44]

Good luck to him when he trys canvassing the estate of £10 houses thinking they're all going to suddenly change to him for the sake of £2.00.  Grin
How long does he think it's going to take for him to get enough work to employ three men?

If you get someone who is as good as you and does the same job to the same standard as you not long!

if you were given the choice  to pay £10 or £8 for the exact same service and quality which would you choose!

[james44]

wonder if all these newbies will blade the window after they wfp

Barry you can laugh, maybe if they did they would not be so many posts on here about problem windows a problem window is only a problem if you let it be,

Whats wrong with blading the odd window here and there if it solves your problem!

[andyjm1]

Good luck to him when he trys canvassing the estate of £10 houses thinking they're all going to suddenly change to him for the sake of £2.00.  Grin
How long does he think it's going to take for him to get enough work to employ three men?

If you get someone who is as good as you and does the same job to the same standard as you not long!

if you were given the choice  to pay £10 or £8 for the exact same service and quality which would you choose!

So how does the customer know what quality and service they will get?
How do they even know if the new cleaner will turn up at all, never mind on a regular basis?

They don't, which is why most stick with what they know.

[james44]

Same way as they did with you! did they know if you would turn up!

[Paul Coleman]

Yep know what you are saying stu-mac


But there have been thousands of people lost their jobs and have mortgages and are looking to window cleaning as a way to pay the bills and some will stick it out!


bulders, plumbers, decorators go in with lower prices to get the work the same will i believe happen in window cleaning on domestics in the very near future!

That's where WFP can bite us in the bums.  People who would once have been one summer wonders can now stick with it because the ladder climbing is unnecessary (mostly).

[Paul Coleman]

There really is nothing to fear. Firstly, there will always be more windows than window cleaners in the world, secondly, there are several reasons why a human brain makes a purchasing decision, and price isn't the only one.......level of service, whether or not you 'buy' into the service provider and quality of cleaning.

There will always be new entrants into the marketplace, no matter what sector you're in. And the smart, well organised businesses will prevail.

If these new entrants, raise the standards of the industry with new signwritten vans, that's gotta be better than the scruffy chain smoking dole cheats who use milk crates to stand on !! Not to mention make some wc's think twice about 'dumping', often without notification, some customers 'cos they can clean another house quicker or for more money in another street !

Had to smile at that one.  The last milk crate I used disintegrated.  Beer crates are much stronger.  Seriously, they were a very good hop-up for taller windows    .  And no, I wasn't a dole cheat.  Nor did I drink or smoke.  I just found a beer crate useful  .
No need for them with WFP though.

[Paul Coleman]

Good luck to him when he trys canvassing the estate of £10 houses thinking they're all going to suddenly change to him for the sake of £2.00.  Grin
How long does he think it's going to take for him to get enough work to employ three men?

If you get someone who is as good as you and does the same job to the same standard as you not long!

if you were given the choice  to pay £10 or £8 for the exact same service and quality which would you choose!

For many things I would pay £8.  For a window cleaner I would stick with what I've got if I liked him.  I'm not saying that just because I'm a window cleaner either.

[dazmond]

you cant be that busy james if you been on ere all afternoon!


your just scaremainering james!lets all just enjoy the weather(glad im not a newbie starting out though!)

the builder friend is going to get a shock if he thinks custys will sack another cleaners for 2quid(unless he s rubbish which he s prob not!).

to get enough  work to make a living for one man takes time.to get enough for 3 men!well itll take years!

he sounds to me like the typical guy who thinks he can take over the world window cleaning with big shot ideas!very few even get anywhere near!!

regards

dazmond

by the way another 2 windys have tryed canvassing parts of my round(2 last month as well!)not lost one!!

[Jack Wallace]

Customers know quality and reliability is king, 
I was asked to quote by a lady who works in my bank about 2 weeks ago, but forgot.  :

I saw her today; she said "I had a guy knock on my door this week asking if I need a window cleaner!" Oh right I said, I guess that serves me right for not turning up. Oh no she said I will wait for you, you are an established firm, I don’t want someone who will probably disappear in six months. 

Guess I better get round first thing monday morning 

[Sunshine/Cleaning]

I think it prob will be harder for newbies to get a FULL round organised as there are more around, however for established rounds I don't see much of a problem. A customer today was quoted £10 from someone canvassing. I charge £25, she is sticking with me! There is more to it than just price. I wont be altering my prices to compete but the newbies might have to in order to compete for the customers who are left.

[davids3511]

Good luck to him when he trys canvassing the estate of £10 houses thinking they're all going to suddenly change to him for the sake of £2.00. 
How long does he think it's going to take for him to get enough work to employ three men?

This is very true. I recently had a guy leaflet all my £10/11/12 customers offering to do it for a flat £5.00. Not a single customer left me. It isn't all about money to them. They want to like and trust you too, you will be on their property at times when there is nobody home, the lady is home alone, their kids are playing in the garden and so on. If your price is reasonable they then buy into the person offering the service. Offer a good level of service and you will keep the majority of them.

[james44]

you cant be that busy james if you been on ere all afternoon! Wink Grin Grin

Health reasons dazmond but the work still gets done!

[cleewindows]

You are a bit paranoid.you are perhaps no good James or someone is taking all your work off u
 

you cant be that busy james if you been on ere all afternoon! Wink Grin Grin

Health reasons dazmond but the work still gets done!

[cleewindows]

You are a bit paranoid.you are perhaps no good James or someone is taking all your work off u
 

you cant be that busy james if you been on ere all afternoon! Wink Grin Grin

Health reasons dazmond but the work still gets done!

[Craig 72]

I started just over a year ago and it's fair to say I'm glad I started then and not now.I cleaned one of the roads I do a couple of weeks ago and it was almost laughable how many cleaners were in the same road,must have been 5 or 6 in one small road.That's just in the hour or so I was there so god knows how many in total work the area.I had previously honestly not seen any in the previous 6 months I had done that road.Don't mean to put off guys starting up now,I'm still picking up work just not at the same rate as this time last year.Just means people will have to work a bit harder with the leafletting and canvassing.One thing I have found in my 14 odd months of doing this is that the vast majority of my customers are very loyal indeed.I have a great rapport with them and have had many tell me chancers have tried to undercut me but they've told them to sling their hook.If you do a good job and are friendly I think customers will stick with you regardless.

[Sunshine/Cleaning]

I think all newbies should be discouraged from now on.  :

[hotsteam]

If you turn up on time and do a good job no problem.
You do'nt win customers someone has to lose them ! Regards Hotsteam

P.S Do'nt lose them   :