[Slacky]

I had one get cancelled yesterday because ‘there are flowers growing in front of one of the windows’.

Seriously when their plants are that important to them they need another window cleaner.

Iv had a lot of customers cancel over the years but iv never had that excuse 😂
Maybe someone should start a thread on reasons customers cancel , might be a right larf 😆

Years ago I had one come out with ‘Oh for chrissake, you always come when the dog groomers here….’

[dazmond]

I've had 'we are moving' quite a few times over the years and their still living there 5 years later with filthy windows!

I've also had 'my dog gets too scared when you clean the windows so we will have to cancel'

As well as the 'we re having new windows fitted we ll get in touch when finished'....Still got old windows years later....

[Shrek]

I had one get cancelled yesterday because ‘there are flowers growing in front of one of the windows’.

Seriously when their plants are that important to them they need another window cleaner.

Iv had a lot of customers cancel over the years but iv never had that excuse 😂
Maybe someone should start a thread on reasons customers cancel , might be a right larf 😆

I had a customer cancel because  I severely traumatised her dog and it had only just recovered by my next visit 4 weeks later 😂😂😂😂

Flippin eck, what did you do to the dog?! 😆

[Shrek]

I've had 'we are moving' quite a few times over the years and their still living there 5 years later with filthy windows!

I've also had 'my dog gets too scared when you clean the windows so we will have to cancel'

As well as the 'we re having new windows fitted we ll get in touch when finished'....Still got old windows years later....

😂 iv had that too , ‘ hi , I’d like to cancel please as I’m moving house soon’ ….. I think they must’ve sold their cars with the house because the new owners have the exact same cars , or they’re lieing to me 😢

Iv had a woman say shes having work done so she would like to cancel for the foreseeable future… when I googled how long is foreseeable future …. It says ‘10 generations or 20 years’… 😭

[Splash & dash]

I had one get cancelled yesterday because ‘there are flowers growing in front of one of the windows’.

Seriously when their plants are that important to them they need another window cleaner.

Iv had a lot of customers cancel over the years but iv never had that excuse 😂
Maybe someone should start a thread on reasons customers cancel , might be a right larf 😆

I had a customer cancel because  I severely traumatised her dog and it had only just recovered by my next visit 4 weeks later 😂😂😂😂

Flippin eck, what did you do to the dog?! 😆

Just cleaned the windows it did bark a lot 😂😂😂

[Bungle]

Lost 3 and gained 2 this week. I think it's started.

[dazmond]

Lost 3 and gained 2 this week. I think it's started.

I've not picked any new jobs up for months....which is strange as I normally get a few enquires a month at this time of year

[Mike Burd]

I was reading this thread and thought you’d be interested in our data. I’m not brilliant at collecting everything I could collect data on. The only thing that really interests me is net growth in regular customers.

Last year we delivered around 700,000 leaflets and grew out net number by 900 customers. Numbers slightly rounded obviously. This year to date we’ve dropped just under 1,000,000 leaflets and grown by 650. Same leaflet btw. We’ve got about another 200,000 to go.

I’m guessing long standing single operators will lose some but not an apocalyptic situation. We’re preparing to lose a staff member  if the October domestic fuel increases go ahead as we can’t advertise in the winter to mitigate. I think e have to hope the new PM grasps this issue really quickly. My feeling is that to protect the economy, they have to cancel the fuel increase. Protecting the poor only won’t do much for the economy as those people have already cut to the bone.

I do have some plans to get more work from our base to try to protect jobs. We’ve got 4,000 customers and when the leaves drop, they are getting an email or a text message advertising gutter clearing. My suggestion is to maximise from your base if you see the cancellations becoming a worry.

[Shrek]

I was reading this thread and thought you’d be interested in our data. I’m not brilliant at collecting everything I could collect data on. The only thing that really interests me is net growth in regular customers.

Last year we delivered around 700,000 leaflets and grew out net number by 900 customers. Numbers slightly rounded obviously. This year to date we’ve dropped just under 1,000,000 leaflets and grown by 650. Same leaflet btw. We’ve got about another 200,000 to go.

I’m guessing long standing single operators will lose some but not an apocalyptic situation. We’re preparing to lose a staff member  if the October domestic fuel increases go ahead as we can’t advertise in the winter to mitigate. I think e have to hope the new PM grasps this issue really quickly. My feeling is that to protect the economy, they have to cancel the fuel increase. Protecting the poor only won’t do much for the economy as those people have already cut to the bone.

I do have some plans to get more work from our base to try to protect jobs. We’ve got 4,000 customers and when the leaves drop, they are getting an email or a text message advertising gutter clearing. My suggestion is to maximise from your base if you see the cancellations becoming a worry.

Maybe you’ve saturated the market? Leave some for the one man bands 🥹

[AuRavelling79]

I was reading this thread and thought you’d be interested in our data. I’m not brilliant at collecting everything I could collect data on. The only thing that really interests me is net growth in regular customers.

Last year we delivered around 700,000 leaflets and grew out net number by 900 customers. Numbers slightly rounded obviously. This year to date we’ve dropped just under 1,000,000 leaflets and grown by 650. Same leaflet btw. We’ve got about another 200,000 to go.

I’m guessing long standing single operators will lose some but not an apocalyptic situation. We’re preparing to lose a staff member  if the October domestic fuel increases go ahead as we can’t advertise in the winter to mitigate. I think e have to hope the new PM grasps this issue really quickly. My feeling is that to protect the economy, they have to cancel the fuel increase. Protecting the poor only won’t do much for the economy as those people have already cut to the bone.

I do have some plans to get more work from our base to try to protect jobs. We’ve got 4,000 customers and when the leaves drop, they are getting an email or a text message advertising gutter clearing. My suggestion is to maximise from your base if you see the cancellations becoming a worry.

Maybe you’ve saturated the market? Leave some for the one man bands 🥹

Don't worry about the multi van operators if you are a good one man band,  Shrek. If you are good,  polite and sensibly priced you are likely to retain good quality customers.

You probably have a VAT advantage too.

[Shrek]

I was reading this thread and thought you’d be interested in our data. I’m not brilliant at collecting everything I could collect data on. The only thing that really interests me is net growth in regular customers.

Last year we delivered around 700,000 leaflets and grew out net number by 900 customers. Numbers slightly rounded obviously. This year to date we’ve dropped just under 1,000,000 leaflets and grown by 650. Same leaflet btw. We’ve got about another 200,000 to go.

I’m guessing long standing single operators will lose some but not an apocalyptic situation. We’re preparing to lose a staff member  if the October domestic fuel increases go ahead as we can’t advertise in the winter to mitigate. I think e have to hope the new PM grasps this issue really quickly. My feeling is that to protect the economy, they have to cancel the fuel increase. Protecting the poor only won’t do much for the economy as those people have already cut to the bone.

I do have some plans to get more work from our base to try to protect jobs. We’ve got 4,000 customers and when the leaves drop, they are getting an email or a text message advertising gutter clearing. My suggestion is to maximise from your base if you see the cancellations becoming a worry.

Maybe you’ve saturated the market? Leave some for the one man bands 🥹

Don't worry about the multi van operators if you are a good one man band,  Shrek. If you are good,  polite and sensibly priced you are likely to retain good quality customers.

You probably have a VAT advantage too.

Hmm , I suppose I do still see the odd newsagents & butchers shop around even though Tesco /Asda etc has swallowed up nearly the whole market.

[Pete Thompson]

I was reading this thread and thought you’d be interested in our data. I’m not brilliant at collecting everything I could collect data on. The only thing that really interests me is net growth in regular customers.

Last year we delivered around 700,000 leaflets and grew out net number by 900 customers. Numbers slightly rounded obviously. This year to date we’ve dropped just under 1,000,000 leaflets and grown by 650. Same leaflet btw. We’ve got about another 200,000 to go.

I’m guessing long standing single operators will lose some but not an apocalyptic situation. We’re preparing to lose a staff member  if the October domestic fuel increases go ahead as we can’t advertise in the winter to mitigate. I think e have to hope the new PM grasps this issue really quickly. My feeling is that to protect the economy, they have to cancel the fuel increase. Protecting the poor only won’t do much for the economy as those people have already cut to the bone.

I do have some plans to get more work from our base to try to protect jobs. We’ve got 4,000 customers and when the leaves drop, they are getting an email or a text message advertising gutter clearing. My suggestion is to maximise from your base if you see the cancellations becoming a worry.

I find this information fascinating.

I’m particularly interested to read that your usual conversion rate is 900 per 700,000 - so 0.13%. And now it’s dropped to 0.065%.

May I ask, once you’ve leafleted an area, how long do you wait before leafleting it again?

Also, why can’t you advertise in the winter?

[Arnold Palmer]

You can advertise in the winter, it's just less cost effective because it's dark and people are less likely to even notice that their windows need cleaning.

[G Griffin]

[Mike Burd]

I was reading this thread and thought you’d be interested in our data. I’m not brilliant at collecting everything I could collect data on. The only thing that really interests me is net growth in regular customers.

Last year we delivered around 700,000 leaflets and grew out net number by 900 customers. Numbers slightly rounded obviously. This year to date we’ve dropped just under 1,000,000 leaflets and grown by 650. Same leaflet btw. We’ve got about another 200,000 to go.

I’m guessing long standing single operators will lose some but not an apocalyptic situation. We’re preparing to lose a staff member  if the October domestic fuel increases go ahead as we can’t advertise in the winter to mitigate. I think e have to hope the new PM grasps this issue really quickly. My feeling is that to protect the economy, they have to cancel the fuel increase. Protecting the poor only won’t do much for the economy as those people have already cut to the bone.

I do have some plans to get more work from our base to try to protect jobs. We’ve got 4,000 customers and when the leaves drop, they are getting an email or a text message advertising gutter clearing. My suggestion is to maximise from your base if you see the cancellations becoming a worry.

Maybe you’ve saturated the market? Leave some for the one man bands 🥹

Don't worry about the multi van operators if you are a good one man band,  Shrek. If you are good,  polite and sensibly priced you are likely to retain good quality customers.

You probably have a VAT advantage too.

More or less what I said. Hopefully one man vans will have a level of loyalty from customers that multivans can’t hope to achieve.

[Mike Burd]

I was reading this thread and thought you’d be interested in our data. I’m not brilliant at collecting everything I could collect data on. The only thing that really interests me is net growth in regular customers.

Last year we delivered around 700,000 leaflets and grew out net number by 900 customers. Numbers slightly rounded obviously. This year to date we’ve dropped just under 1,000,000 leaflets and grown by 650. Same leaflet btw. We’ve got about another 200,000 to go.

I’m guessing long standing single operators will lose some but not an apocalyptic situation. We’re preparing to lose a staff member  if the October domestic fuel increases go ahead as we can’t advertise in the winter to mitigate. I think e have to hope the new PM grasps this issue really quickly. My feeling is that to protect the economy, they have to cancel the fuel increase. Protecting the poor only won’t do much for the economy as those people have already cut to the bone.

I do have some plans to get more work from our base to try to protect jobs. We’ve got 4,000 customers and when the leaves drop, they are getting an email or a text message advertising gutter clearing. My suggestion is to maximise from your base if you see the cancellations becoming a worry.

I find this information fascinating.

I’m particularly interested to read that your usual conversion rate is 900 per 700,000 - so 0.13%. And now it’s dropped to 0.065%.

May I ask, once you’ve leafleted an area, how long do you wait before leafleting it again?

Also, why can’t you advertise in the winter?

It’s not quite what I wrote. I was talking about net figures so new customers - cancels = 900 growth last year. I’d guess over 3 months of summer we’d normally lose maybe 100 so probably 1,000ish new ones? The cancels this summer are off the scale. Normally over winter we lose about 3/4%  of customers. We’ll get a lot of those new ones cancel after 2-3 cleans for example. I’m actually expecting less new ones to cancel this year because they all has to agree to 3 cleans plus signed up with GoCardless, but I’m expecting the high cancellation rate among longer standing customers to continue unless the government deal urgently with the energy sector. I had hoped things would settle but with the October announcement they got a lot worse.

 It needs radical action like we had during Covid and the financial crisis under Brown or we may see a lot of deaths as well as businesses failing.

[NWH]

How much are you paying to leaflet 100s of 1000s of houses on a run.

[Splash & dash]

I was reading this thread and thought you’d be interested in our data. I’m not brilliant at collecting everything I could collect data on. The only thing that really interests me is net growth in regular customers.

Last year we delivered around 700,000 leaflets and grew out net number by 900 customers. Numbers slightly rounded obviously. This year to date we’ve dropped just under 1,000,000 leaflets and grown by 650. Same leaflet btw. We’ve got about another 200,000 to go.

I’m guessing long standing single operators will lose some but not an apocalyptic situation. We’re preparing to lose a staff member  if the October domestic fuel increases go ahead as we can’t advertise in the winter to mitigate. I think e have to hope the new PM grasps this issue really quickly. My feeling is that to protect the economy, they have to cancel the fuel increase. Protecting the poor only won’t do much for the economy as those people have already cut to the bone.

I do have some plans to get more work from our base to try to protect jobs. We’ve got 4,000 customers and when the leaves drop, they are getting an email or a text message advertising gutter clearing. My suggestion is to maximise from your base if you see the cancellations becoming a worry.

I find this information fascinating.

I’m particularly interested to read that your usual conversion rate is 900 per 700,000 - so 0.13%. And now it’s dropped to 0.065%.

May I ask, once you’ve leafleted an area, how long do you wait before leafleting it again?

Also, why can’t you advertise in the winter?

It’s not quite what I wrote. I was talking about net figures so new customers - cancels = 900 growth last year. I’d guess over 3 months of summer we’d normally lose maybe 100 so probably 1,000ish new ones? The cancels this summer are off the scale. Normally over winter we lose about 3/4%  of customers. We’ll get a lot of those new ones cancel after 2-3 cleans for example. I’m actually expecting less new ones to cancel this year because they all has to agree to 3 cleans plus signed up with GoCardless, but I’m expecting the high cancellation rate among longer standing customers to continue unless the government deal urgently with the energy sector. I had hoped things would settle but with the October announcement they got a lot worse.

 It needs radical action like we had during Covid and the financial crisis under Brown or we may see a lot of deaths as well as businesses failing.

That’s a lot of cancellations we have a similar  number of customers to you but if we get 10 cancel  in a year we have had a very bad year , yes we get the odd ones move , or die but cancellations are very rare .

[Smudger]

Same here - not up there in terms of regular window cleaning customers but into 4 figures and I wouldn't expect more than 3 to cancel in any one year..

just done a deal to have 47K leaflets printed and delivered for £4500 with VAT

Darran

[Shrek]

Same here - not up there in terms of regular window cleaning customers but into 4 figures and I wouldn't expect more than 3 to cancel in any one year..

just done a deal to have 47K leaflets printed and delivered for £4500 with VAT

Darran

That’s amazing that no one moves or dies in your areas . Iv had around 2-3 per month every month move house for the last year plus customers dieing . I think it comes down to price , I know Windys round here still charging £6-£10 and never lose any, my average price is £22.

The housing market must be completely dead in your areas if no one is cancelling because they are moving house .