[Haz]

We have just entered a new decade and this window cleaning game will see a drastic change in the next 10 years... Here is what to expect in the next 10 year... some people will disagree with me and some may agree with me but i know my market well and have been in the business for over 7 years and have plenty of knowledge about the window cleaning industry.

* People will be shopping about with window cleaners just like they do with phone contracts / insurance etc
* People do not care at this present time about there window cleaning price but in the next decade you will see people change window cleaner just for the price, the economy will be changing heavy in the next decade and the window cleaning industry will be a lot more competitive this coming decade
* WFP is not a skilled trade - its on the same level as a car wash, no qualifications required a little start up capital is all is required , car washes are now at rock bottom charging rock bottom prices and window cleaning will follow in them steps.
* We have customers who are pretty old and they will come and tell us... "oh i had a window cleaner offering it for cheaper but i told him to sod off"  the older generation has a lot of loyalty but the generations as they go along decade by decade the loyalty gets lesser and lesser.... in this day and age loyalty is a dying culture.
* You will get window cleaning companies competiting with each other just like Asda and Tescos compete with each other.
* Big outfits with 10+ vans will find it tough to compete with 1 man band prices
* Traditional window cleaners will become very rare and a thing of the past
* 3/4  window cleaners will not know how to clean a window traditionally

Window cleaning is accessible by anyone due to the low cost start up, why would someone want to go to college and do brick laying when they can just get into window cleaning and earn more money in the long run..... All they need to do is watch a few youtube videos and bit of research and they are good to go, my town has had 20+ window cleaners starting up in the past 12 months, there is plenty of work out there but more and more window cleaning firms will be coming in to every city/town in the UK.... this will drive the prices down. the amount of start ups in every town in the UK is high... but the amount of start ups in the next 5 years will be 4/5 times higher then it has been in the past 5 years if that makes sense.

20 years ago car washes were good money but now car washes are a tough business to be in because the polish/kurdish have come over and driven the prices down, this will happen with reach and wash window cleaning especially with the cheap systems you can buy on todays market.

Spotless water will also play a big part in the next decade, purified water is more easily accessible then ever and they also encourage people to start a window cleaning venture.
Job center is now also advising people to start a window cleaning business due to the low start up cost.

I am based in the North East of England, our prices are already rock bottom so i cant see it getting much worse for us, but for all the Southerners out there who charge £25.00 for a 3 bedroom house they will see 1 man band unsigned vans kitted out with reach and wash systems doing it for £10.00-£12.00 instead of there £25.00

This is my OPINION of the next decade... good luck for the new decade people   

[NWH]

A lot of people still like familiarity what you are saying is right to a point it’s 2 generations time I worry about,commercial work I agree though prices in some cases are dreadful

[Owenhargreavesmidf]

Good post, thank you for the heads up.

[Nick Day]

A really interesting post. Thankfully I am retired now, but I can envisage somebody turning up on Dragons Den with an app that lets you book a date and time, pay there and then  to have their windows cleaned with no long term obligations.

[NWH]

Maybe Nick but we will all be sitting in a big room together having a sing song with the nurses in the home by then pal.

[Richard Groves]

My prediction is that as the current generation of regular customers dies off, so will the future of "the regular round". With a saturated market as you suggest, one off appointed cleans will gradually become the norm.

[nathankaye]

Not sure really.  I can kinda understand where you are coming from as currently the vast majority of what you are saying has been happening during the 20 yrs of being in this work. Ie, competitive market etc and saturation etc but life goes on  and people get older and wiser.    So a lot near me still charge ridiculous low prices and will try and convince ones that they can not possibly charge more    however plenty do!

You have to be adaptable, for instance there are plenty of trad guys still working on a fortnightly rota      when i was trad it was always 4 wkly and so this continued as i went to wfp. However im offering 8 wkly more than 4 now! This is for 2 reasons, the first being much higher prices and 4 wkly seems to be too quick. 
I have many young ones and they all seem happier with the price of an 8 wkly clean in comparison and this is the way forward.  People are getting busier as the years roll on and I doubt very much that they can be ar$ed to clean their own windows still.

Lol, in america they work completely different and dont have such a thing as 4 or 8 wkly rotas.  Things change, adapt with it and all will be good

[Haz]

My prediction is that as the current generation of regular customers dies off, so will the future of "the regular round". With a saturated market as you suggest, one off appointed cleans will gradually become the norm.

Nah... its more cheaper to get your windows done monthly and keep your home clean all year round... people who never wanted a window cleaner are now getting used to the idea of having a regular window cleaner , in the USA its total different they only do one off cleans, the UK is educated to have a regular window cleaner , it is now a chore for UK households to have a regular window cleaner

[NWH]

You think people will be bothered but it’s because it’s you business you think of these things,at the end of the day people don’t want the hassle some maybe but not the vast majority

[Jonny 87]

“7 years experience” you say?

Your probably classed as a newby on this forum.

[nathankaye]

We are in the time period where people are aware more and more of being clean and green lol.  Save the planet, save the oceans etc. Eat heathy etc etc and so people will always want clean windows and that clean appearance to others.  Therefore regular rounds wont die off and become random one off's!  Just not on the regular 2 wkly rotas that some offer and perhaps the 4 wkly rota will slow down to a longer duration

I think the biggest thing to change our market is the environment and global warming.  So start getting used to working in the rain lads!

[Haz]

“7 years experience” you say?

Your probably classed as a newby on this forum.

I clearly am a newbie as i have under 20 posts  and yes over 7 years experience ,  how long have u been licking windows for Mr CIU God

[NWH]

Not in our lifetime are things gonna change over the next 30 years No,crack on then lol.

[Richard Groves]

We are in the time period where people are aware more and more of being clean and green lol.  Save the planet, save the oceans etc. Eat heathy etc etc and so people will always want clean windows and that clean appearance to others.  Therefore regular rounds wont die off and become random one off's!  Just not on the regular 2 wkly rotas that some offer and perhaps the 4 wkly rota will slow down to a longer duration

I think the biggest thing to change our market is the environment and global warming.  So start getting used to working in the rain lads!

😂😂 Diesel vans, carbon poles, 1000's liters of water,  dionising resin. Saving the planet ?! 💦🌏🤣

[M & C Window Cleaning]

Where I live and work there has been a considerable change in the last 30 years to people’s attitudes regards wanting their homes to look smart and clean.
Thirty years ago more people would have their windows cleaned not just for their own benefit, when they look out of them, but also to keep their homes looking nice. Now many of those houses look filthy and sadly the householders seem not to care.  I’m not talking only about those who rent, I mean also those who own their own homes.

[Rob.Hall]

10 years ago a few people on this site said the market was getting saturated.
More vans on the road.
Competitive prices....
Well yes...around us there are more vans.
Prices are competitive but I would not say rock bottom.
Seems to be loads more houses being built and new clients wanting windows cleaned.
I remember someone saying about a recession to, but an old CIU bod said he had been wc since 74 and not noticed much of a change in any downturn.
Customers come, customers go.
Just keep your head down..do a good job...keep working towords your goals/ targets. You will still be here when the newbies have packed up coz they cannot work in the cold or heat or suddenly realize this job is not as easy as the vids or sales teams make out..

[Slacky]

[Slacky]

“7 years experience” you say?

Your probably classed as a newby on this forum.

lol he's just a nipper compared to most on here.

[deeege]

 :-\7 years experience 😂😂

I disagree with pretty much every point you posted.

I’d say 75% of my domestic customers fall into the 40-55 age range. Are all these 40 year olds going to magically lose their loyalty within the next 10 years and drop me to save a couple of quid a month? Don’t be silly, it’s isn’t going to happen.

Also there will always be trad window cleaners. Anybody who thinks that there will be no trad window cleaners within 10 years obviously doesn’t know this industry very well at all I’m afraid. There are atleast 10 trad window cleaners near me that would struggle boiling a kettle, never mind setting up and maintaining a WFP system. They will be tradders until the day they die/retire.

Lastly, assuming that people will chop and change their window cleaners like they do with energy suppliers is way off the mark. You’re forgetting the one fact that makes us different from faceless service providers and that is we are trusted to be on the customers property. Who in their right mind would invite some stranger onto their property just to save a couple of quid a month? Again, isn’t going to happen.

[Dry Clean]

I predict you're going to get more shiners calling their customers clients and a lot more NK types making a simple job as hard as possible but other than that I cant see much change.