[robertphil]

well if youve been going 16 yrs and are still on the tools after that  its not moving forward is it.  
 

lol I never had any intention of coming off the tools. I like my job, I dont want to be sat on my arse worrying, I want to be out there on the coal-face so to speak.

Anyway, just try to answer the question, no need for digs, we all know why people do that, be rational, intelligent, its debate. Re-read it and answer it, its really simple.

you dont come over as somebody who craves being on the tools / im not diggin at you neither  /   the answer to the question about folk underselling themselves is that likely they still earn an ordinary crust at 6 quid a house , say they do 12 a day thats more than many folk earn isnt it
   i think youve done very well to carve out a niche of plum £32quid jobs  altho imagine some of the bigger ones are damaging your body

[MATT BATEMAN (OWC)]

I love being on the tools. I've worked outdoors all my life since I was 16. If i know one thing its that i dont want to work indoors. Initially farming, in the UK and abroad, then landscaping for 11 years now this. And it's by far the best career choice I've made.

Not sure how pricing work higher damages the body though  

[robertphil]

big jobs are more gruelling because theres not the natural breaks that come in between .  iv only about 10 what i call big jobs,old vic nursing homes and factories, even when  iv a crew of 4 on the job   we all hate doing them for that reason .
  i understand where ur coming from when you say you love being outdoors and i do too - however i plan to be off the tools in about another years time rather than wait for a muscle to go pop or click

[MATT BATEMAN (OWC)]

Our average price is more a reflection of sales technique than size of property IMO. Which is why I was confused with the body being damaged. Maybe we just have a decent sales technique, I don't know.


Never under sell yourself. Someone said something in here to me when I was in the market for the new van we got. I was undecided which one to go for. They said something along the lines of 'don't ever lower yourself to the expected norm'. I've always had that attitude when selling our services. Glad I did with the van now too.

[H2GoKent]

Greedy is subjective.

idiot

Calling someone an idiot is usually the last resort of someone with a weak argument.
To massively oversimplify put it this way: If you have room in your schedule for say 300 houses, you can charge an average of £12 and earn £3600, or an average £8 and earn £2400. If you can earn the £3600 why wouldn't you?
Who wants to work hard for less money than they could? A mug perhaps?
It's not greedy to earn a decent living, it's not wrong to have a bit of dignity and not undercharge.
Believe in yourself a bit and don't undercharge because if you do then I think you'll be taken for a mug, it won't make you a better person just a poorer one.

[HampshireWindowCleaning]

Greedy is subjective.

idiot

Who wants to work hard for less money than they could?

A tradder 

[GB Window Cleaning]

Greedy is subjective.

idiot

Who wants to work hard for less money than they could?

A tradder 

 ... Here comes a trad vs wfp war 

[home6442]

I wonder how many on here could honestly say they are getting 100%
of what they could be charging.
Charge £10 you might get £12 charge £12 and you might get £14 and so on.
I know people who would never pay £20 to have their windows cleaned put would
gladly pay £15.
So if somebody has got in first and taken all the £20 customers does that make the
person left with the £15 customers a mug.
A lot of guys on here think that if one person will pay a certain price on a street then
everybody will pay that price if pushed.

[home6442]

P.S.
Trad gives better quality than wfp so should charge more.

[H2GoKent]

I wonder how many on here could honestly say they are getting 100%
of what they could be charging.
Charge £10 you might get £12 charge £12 and you might get £14 and so on.
I know people who would never pay £20 to have their windows cleaned put would
gladly pay £15.
So if somebody has got in first and taken all the £20 customers does that make the
person left with the £15 customers a mug.
A lot of guys on here think that if one person will pay a certain price on a street then
everybody will pay that price if pushed.

good point.
I said an average because even in a road of work there will sometimes be the odd house you do for a lower price cos you throw it in with the others cos you're there.
But to call someone else 'greedy' because they manage to charge more than you is just plain silly.

[H2GoKent]

P.S.
Trad gives better quality than wfp so should charge more.

p.s. WFP does a better job if used correctly and stays clean for longer. The windows on my customer's houses GLEAM. 

[Smudger]

the answer to the question about folk underselling themselves is that likely they still earn an ordinary crust at 6 quid a house , say they do 12 a day thats more than many folk earn isnt it

That in a nutshell is the problem as a business an ordinary is not enough to cover expenses and move forward. as a self employed person you need to cover the times your not working - rain days sick days holidays etc...


Darran

[roundbuilder]

the answer to the question about folk underselling themselves is that likely they still earn an ordinary crust at 6 quid a house , say they do 12 a day thats more than many folk earn isnt it

That in a nutshell is the problem as a business an ordinary is not enough to cover expenses and move forward. as a self employed person you need to cover the times your not working - rain days sick days holidays etc...


Darran

Exactly my point, how with all these low priced shiners are they saving for the future when they dont earn enough for day to day.
I did a bad job when i started out, not with underprincing but by being lazy and taking 2/3 days off a week and not taking it serious and got into debt and struggled daily with stress of not enough money coming in. Soon as i got focused and did a business plan for myself and followed it i found i had more money than all my mates and all my bills and debts were paid. If i didnt charge what i did(the norm) it would still be as if i was taking half the week off by losing out on so much.

[dazmond]

the thing is mick you can charge what you want to a degree!IF you look professional and do a good job!

i have lots of work ive picked up over the last few years which is much better priced than some of the windows cleaners around me BUT they dont clean doors or frames,cant clean windows above connys,velux windows,they dont do add ons like fascias,solar panels and roofs.

with the explosion of WFP that is slowly changing.most of us have undercharged at some point.usually when starting out and esp years ago when overheads were a lot lower when trad only.

and people do window cleaning for different reasons.some are older guys who top up their pension,others are trying to make a few extra quid on top of their regular job part time.others are supplementing their benefits,beer money etc.

i have 8 days of work that are very compact 3 bed semis.lots are under a tenner(i clean the backs as well as the fronts!)i would say these are underpriced but im slowly creeping them up.i earn ok off them and they are good reliable customers.

if you live down south and around the london area your going to charge a lot more as the cost of living is a lot higher(i know cos every time i go visit my brother who lives in wimbledon im shocked by how much everything costs!).

i wouldnt call people who charge less mugs.just as i dont call guys who charge a lot more greedy!

the truth is there is a vast array of different personalities,needs,attitudes,cost of living in different areas around the country etc that pricing will always we different.

and YES different prices in the same areas!


best wishes to you all



dazmond

[roundbuilder]

Daz its not north vs south as im talking about work in the same roads with total different charges by window cleaners.
You run your business is verey well run and have you top equipment so fair play to you.
Imagine knowing you charge half as much as your local competition cleaning the same work and roads!. You would feel a right mug for doing so, or if you charge £15 for the houses on your roads but you know someone else does them for £6 you would think they were a mug.
Maybe mug is a bit harsh of a word to use but you get my drift right??.

[home6442]

Daz its not north vs south as im talking about work in the same roads with total different charges by window cleaners.
You run your business is verey well run and have you top equipment so fair play to you.
Imagine knowing you charge half as much as your local competition cleaning the same work and roads!. You would feel a right mug for doing so, or if you charge £15 for the houses on your roads but you know someone else does them for £6 you would think they were a mug.
Maybe mug is a bit harsh of a word to use but you get my drift right??.

It also depends on the effort you put into the clean you could charge £15 and clean glass frames sills and
doors another guy could charge £6 and clean glass only.

[Mike #1]

Mick in your first post you say charging £6.00 for a semi front & back is stupid .

Not having a go but define a semi is it 2 bed , 3 bed or 4 bed , I charge £6.00 to £7.00  for a 2 bed semi which is on the money for were i live in County Durham .

And i know i am more expensive than most window cleaners in the area were i work , I am pricing new jobs higher all the time by £1 or £2  , As like a lot of us i have under priced work  that i am slowly increasing so by pricing new jobs higher .

I am taking the sting out of doing  under priced jobs for myself . Mike

[Ste M]

ive got loads of work that is what you would call 'mug money' the thing is loads of mine is compact and probably smaller than your houses, my main differences are im happy with it all, i hit avery good hourly rate, but, the main thing is, i lose 5 of my houses for some reason say someone undercuts or oversells then it wont make a big difference to me, however, if you lost 5 of your houses then it would make a difference to you.

I dont feel the need to come on here an willy wave like you are here, good for you if you can oversell your work, made up for you well done. Your a canvasser yes? would i take you on? no would i fook simply cos i dont like being called a mug, youve come across here as a smug git so for me, im out have a nice day

[roundbuilder]

Lol its hardly willy waving. If you read my first post properly im refering to working in the same roads an another cleaner charging less than half of what i do! To me he is a mug for going in that low when he couls be getting much more..
These are the norm 3 bed semis medium. The roads are dartford road and crayford road da1 if anyone knows the area.
I do believe £6 for a whole semi front and back is extreamly low, only my opinion though.
There are many wc who simply dont put prices up over the years or go in to low hence low prices. Maybe mugs is harsh but it is what it is at the end of the day.

[Pro-Poler]

Its Not greed is it?? Its maximising profit at the end of the day. If folk are fine paying £15 then why charge £6?? Its madness.

And if folk would rather pay 6 not 15 and the window cleaner is happy with that that's his perogative