[David lyddon]

Got there canvassers all over us in Bury,lancs at the moment.
getting fed up with custies ringing to say someone is trying
to poach my work.
One knocked on my door tonight(bloody liberty)and asked if i was happy with
my windie/gave him a bit of stick to be honest,he said he was just
trying to make a crust,how can they get new business when they
are quoting much more than everyone else is charging.

[8weekly]

Got there canvassers all over us in Bury,lancs at the moment.
getting fed up with custies ringing to say someone is trying
to poach my work.
One knocked on my door tonight(bloody liberty)and asked if i was happy with
my windie/gave him a bit of stick to be honest,he said he was just
trying to make a crust,how can they get new business when they
are quoting much more than everyone else is charging.

More than you are charging you mean. Surely you can't speak for everyone. And if they are so expensive why are you going onto a public forum and complaining? 

[PoleKing]

Poaching and canvassing aren't the same thing.

OP perhaps he didn't know you were a shiner.
If I'm canvassing and know where a local guy lives I won't knock his door.

[David lyddon]

Poaching and canvassing aren't the same thing.

OP perhaps he didn't know you were a shiner.
If I'm canvassing and know where a local guy lives I won't knock his door.

i am going to put my tin hat on now and wait for the flack.
perhaps im old school,when i started up twenty odd years ago
i paid for all my work,you bought a round,it worked well.
a lot on this forum choose to doorknock,and not spend a penny.
there are to many windies who pull up ,take ladder off,
clean one house and go.
i have compact work,a proper round if you like.
i have built mine from word of mouth,not knocking and pi**ing
off other windies

[Smudger]

Poaching and canvassing aren't the same thing.

OP perhaps he didn't know you were a shiner.
If I'm canvassing and know where a local guy lives I won't knock his door.

i am going to put my tin hat on now and wait for the flack.
perhaps im old school,when i started up twenty odd years ago
i paid for all my work,you bought a round,it worked well.
a lot on this forum choose to doorknock,and not spend a penny.
there are to many windies who pull up ,take ladder off,
clean one house and go.
i have compact work,a proper round if you like.
i have built mine from word of mouth,not knocking and pi**ing
off other windies

Yep, your 20 years out of date along with the corner shop that closed for an hours lunch break just when every one had lunch did 1/2 day closing Wednesday and Saturday never stayed open after 5 pm or opened on Sunday

Times have changed, thankfully. Or we would all still be driving horse and carts, and doffing our caps to the local lord.

At some point your 'brought' work would have been canvassed would it not?

Darran

[dazmond]

david lots of companies and individuals have canvassed and leafletted my work over the years.ive not lost any work  to my knowledge.

if your 20 years established and do a good job for a fair price you have absolutely nothing to worry about!!

take it in your stride and CHILL!!


best wishes


dazmond

[H20cleaning]

If you do a good job and have a good relationship with customers you keep your work.
Anyone who leaves due to pricing or frequency you dont need anyway.
Loose one and you usually gain 2 the next day

[barry mallett]

David I'm half with you on this one . You will get some flak on this forum for preferring a compact round that you bought years ago , same as me . A lot on here don't seem to mind 1 house on every street and constantly knocking or paying canvassers .just do a good reliable job and you won't lose any to this lot .back to the uk window clean   , canvassing  / poaching your work .i had em trying to poach some of my best compact detached work a few months back .there prices were were ridiculously high .i didn't lose any just made me look better . I've also had the cheaper poacher / canvasser round last year . I didn't lose any then , most custys stay loyal after 20 / 30 years . Just crack on .cheers barry

[Archer]

David Lyddon,

your outlook on window cleaning is the same as mine, and i wouldnt worry too much about what others say on here about being out of date/your not with the times etc.

You are obviously cut from the same cloth as window cleaners that have been around longer than some who have not been at it as long.

I will tell you this though, by keep your beliefs on how you believe you should behave towards other window cleaners will only get you a good name, where a lot of the others who don't give a toss where they knock or go, will NEVER see your point of view at all.

You are the type of person by the sounds of it, that people with quite a bit of work would take time to try and help out,

Well done mate.

[C o z y]

The nerve of some people eh? Canvassing an area where you work. That's terrible, then having the nerve to actually knock on your door!
I had a guy ring me once and tell me to "stay away" from his customers. I don't know who his customers are, so how can I stay away?
Here's a tip, paint a big red X on your customer's doors, and ring up the firm "poaching" your work, and tell them to stay away from all those doors with a red X on. Then if they still canvass those customers, you can stamp your little foot.

Hope that helps.  

[Smudger]

^^^^^^

Lol

[Ian101]

I guess if rounds were selling for 2 and 3 times value then more would buy I rekon however my last batch I sold for 8 times so kettle and pot and all that

[David lyddon]

I guess if rounds were selling for 2 and 3 times value then more would buy I rekon however my last batch I sold for 8 times so kettle and pot and all that

8 years and I'm out of this game,
going like the taxi game, to many at it and a lot
are clueless. The end is nigh.don't say you
wernt warned.

[H20cleaning]

I guess if rounds were selling for 2 and 3 times value then more would buy I rekon however my last batch I sold for 8 times so kettle and pot and all that

8 years and I'm out of this game,
going like the taxi game, to many at it and a lot
are clueless. The end is nigh.don't say you
wernt warned.

window cleaning has been around forever... what makes you think there is more now than before?
you will find most newbys will start and finish before they ever build a good round, any others will just buy other peoples work.

[C o z y]

I guess if rounds were selling for 2 and 3 times value then more would buy I rekon however my last batch I sold for 8 times so kettle and pot and all that

8 years and I'm out of this game,
going like the taxi game, to many at it and a lot
are clueless. The end is nigh.don't say you
wernt warned.

You could have a certain point there. 10 years ago, before you could go into window cleaning, you had to be able to work off a ladder and not fill your pants up there. A certain amount of time to learn some basic skills and a few tips and tricks of the game. Work in all weathers and learn to handle some other people's opinions of you being a ladder monkey, because we're all thick, and can't do anything else.  

Now, all shiney vans, and warning signs and bells and buttons. Anyone will have a go at using a WFP set up, and they could be seen as specialists   So naturally, more people are ready to have a go at window cleaning. It will level out at some point, as soon as every customer has learned to trust WFP etc. There are only so many customers out there, so there can only be so many windies to clean their windows.

The population of UK is growing, more and more buildings will be built, and need a window cleaner to keep the windows clean.

If you can't handle that fact, and expect every firm to stay away from your area, then you are in for a hard time mate. There are hundreds of windies on here and a lot of them, like me don't worry about what other firms do near where we work. We look after our custies and work to our standards at  our prices. If some of us can do that, why can't you?

I canvassed all my own work, and I enjoy love knocking doors, so I find getting work fun. If you don't like doing that, find another way,........................ or sink. 20 years now since you started, and your round is that weak? Man up mate, and go get some more work. Even if you have to buy it, or pay Whizz or Mick to get it for you, but bleating on here will get you nothing.

Good luck, and hope that helped too  

[brad t]

Very good post Cozy,worry about what your not doing and not what others are doing.

[DG Cleaning]

Change is inevitable.
Its how you deal with it that's important.
While its admirable that you and Archer have these views are you really of the opinion that the only way you should get into window cleaning would be to buy a round?

[Tom White]

I will tell you this though, by keep your beliefs on how you believe you should behave towards other window cleaners will only get you a good name,

It really doesn't matter a jot what anyone believes; people will still canvass work.

It's pointless whining about it.

[Archer]

DG Cleaning,

My opinion relating to the original post was that is how i was brought up learning window cleaning, and i keep to the same way of thinking as David Lyddon.

I also totally agree, yes there are a lot more window cleaners now than years ago with numbers around the north west going up and up as more and more people see the potential earnings and that ladders do not have to be used, eliminating the need to work at height which some would be scared of.

Window cleaners have been looked upon for years as people looking for beer money, signing on, generally bottom of the pile, who people look down at.

How wrong are they ? Window cleaning can be a very lucrative business which some members of the public resent, as we should not be earning more than them.

I have experienced first hand on this forum, how desperate some people are where work is related, desperate to back stab others, people i would NEVER EVER trust at all as they seem to have no morals at all.

I always say treat people how you want to be treated, as you never know when others can offer help when you need it.

So i was basically saying, because David Lyddon was similar to me, i would trust him more than a lot of others on here and if i needed help with any of my work, i would certainly be more confident with him near my work.

[P.C.S.]

I had UK Window Clean canvass a whole estate I work on.

At first I was a bit worried about losing customers, then I found out how much they were quoting & within a few weeks I had a sudden influx of work from walk-ups & recommendations.

Their canvassers were doing the hard work of explaining & selling the WFP method but not at the price they were hoping for...

They can canvass my "patch" again if they like!