[S_RICHARDSON]

Dont you just hate when you don't get a constant wage in. When your customer dont pay or arent in.

How do you escape this?

HELP

[MNWC]

If im not working sat morning then ill go round collecting then !

[steveaqua]

offer other paymant methods (ie cheques, credit cards, paypal, standing orders) then you really only have to chase a very small proportion, more manageable i've found and we're always getting a constant stream of money

[pylofm]

Get them to pay you via bank transfer/internet banking, my customers seem to like it, I give them 14 days to pay....or you could do what some others do here pop a sae into their door and await the cheque..

Cheers
Dave.

[Sir Squeaky]

Dont you just hate when you don't get a constant wage in. When your customer dont pay or arent in.

How do you escape this?

HELP

Just clean people who are in?

[brett walker]

Dont you just hate when you don't get a constant wage in. When your customer dont pay or arent in.

How do you escape this?

HELP

Just clean people who are in?

Squeeky

surely youre not serious, most people are out at work

Brett

[Sir Squeaky]

Not in my area they're not.
Generally older folk, or rich housewives.

You're always going to get people going out,
but of my my 180-odd houses I've only got about 5 or 6 I know won't be in.

I haven't collected yet this year.

[brett walker]

you lucky man

the area i work in theyre all out at work, collecting is a pain in the a**

Ive started leaving a few envelopes but it annoys me when they dont return them

I used to do an area that was mostly old folks you cant beat it they are always in and always come out with the money, unfortunately the work wasnt suitable for wfp it was trad only but i do miss those folk

Brett

[abacus]

Hi mate

I just put sae in with the bill I stress to people I take on that I expect the the cheque to be sent in five working days as this helps to keep the price down and will have to go up if the mones left outstanding  most send it in the five days also if you have a full round you will find that it does not matter to much as the cheques keep coming in  when new and the money was really tight and I mean really tight I use to work till five nd then run round and collect threr were allway some ladies with children back by that time.

regards grant

[LSB]

 I also spent years working until approx 5pm , having something to eat and then going back out for a couple of hours to collect what i could from that day and previous days! sometimes my wife would go instead to give me a break ! now i do a combination of s.a.e. and my retired father going collecting for me eves /weekends and i pay him 15% of what he collects , which seems to work well for both of us ! as im now well established there is always money coming in from that days work or from posted cheques , so i dont worry when some dont get round to paying for a couple of months !

[P®oPole™]

Dont that mess your round up Squeaky, I know on mine it would and probably most normal rounds.

Think about it you do a street a few are not in, it could be a few days till there in, or you catch them your driving about all the time trying to fit people in, then the next month its all thrown out of order.

You knock on the doors before you clean  you must also get "not today mate" all the time. Not good practise in my eyes, put your foot down a little mate!

ProPole

[Pj]

I have always made it my policy, and I let them know from the first clean...

I do not collect.
If you're in, you pay me.
If you're out, you send me a cheque.

The only time I collect is when I am passing their front door, or if they have deliberately delayed payment - few and far between thankfully.

[Sir Squeaky]

Dont that mess your round up Squeaky, I know on mine it would and probably most normal rounds.

Think about it you do a street a few are not in, it could be a few days till there in, or you catch them your driving about all the time trying to fit people in, then the next month its all thrown out of order.

Not at all.

Those who aren't in will send me cheques.
Those who I won't send cheques don't get done.

There's always other work to do.

[dai]

The problem I find with many younger customers is that they don't have cheque books. I too find collecting a real pain. The worst culprits are the ones that live within 200 yds of me. They promise to drop the money off but never do. I have had to drop a higher percentage of local customers than anywhere else on my round. Is it because I live amonst them that they take the p***. It's embarrasing when I pass them and remind them that they have not paid. My advice to newbys,
Don't clean in your own back yard. The people you know socially somehow expect you to charge them less. Dai

[williamx]

Telephone every cusstomer the night before to let them know you will be cleaning their windows the next day, and if they are going to be out, to leave the money, under a mat or plant pot or taped to a back window or where ever is easy to find.

[Sir Squeaky]

Telephone every cusstomer the night before to let them know you will be cleaning their windows the next day...

You've got too much time on your hands!

[steveaqua]

Telephone every cusstomer the night before to let them know you will be cleaning their windows the next day.

use block SMS messaging to customers mobiles takes 2 minutes and send out the same message once.

I use this method to remind people they owe when money overdue!

[williamx]

Telephone every cusstomer the night before to let them know you will be cleaning their windows the next day...

You've got too much time on your hands!

Thats another good reason I have a wfp system, it give me plenty of free time. 

[Toff]

When i started i put a little bit more by each day for petrol built up a petrol kitty, then when i worked out each day what i had earned any that had not payed  that day i took out of the kitty then returned it when i collected, so i always payed myself and could waite a little before collecting worked great.

[Sunshine Cleaning]

Try running window cleaning as a business,

Even if you dont have a business account, have a sepurate account, put all the money into it and pay yourself a wage each week. Add on £50 for personal stuff.

After a few weeks you will see the account gr ow, (surely no-one is daft enough to pay themselves all of their income). Then you ill have a constant wage.

If you find you are paying yourself more than you earn, pay youself less or put your prices up.