[matt]

matt ,as usual December 4 06    8.22 PM     

do you mean this post ?? ?? ??

they do 1

ionics will sell you a 5 K system that will change your life

then sell your customers a "home kit"  : : :

i pointed out they sell a "home kit"

which i think you might find they do

is that putting down ionics ? ?? ?? ??

learn to read eh, before you make anymore silly remarks

[GRAHAM.K]

dearest matt,

cannot you see how bitter and sad your postings are.

"ionics will sell you a system that will change your life, then sell a customer a home kit"
you said it !
 
yes i can read.

what do you mean??? you can't help it can you ?


you didn't just say they sold a home kit, you infered that if you buy an ionics system you've been suckered in to some big advertising scam by some two faced fly by night company.

on this site it's always the diy crew on the offensive, ready to slag off any factory fitted options,.



I like Ionics gear and my new van (two years old). its about image, presentation,professionalism and basically looking the part.
When I go for a job I look the part ,act the part, and most times I get the job.

I can afford it, it makes me feel good, it makes money and thats the bottom line.
Times change ,(duh) I see window cleaners every day who look like they are stuck in the 1970's. Charging 70's prices as well. (Scrims flying from the ladder is always a goog indicator) .  Well guess what some of us have moved on...(shock!!!).

Your,re very fortunate you can spend your nights drilling brush heads and making poles, I have niether the inclination nor time for such hobbies.
I v'e seen home made gear on this site. Some good , some so bad i would have to work nights. Water butts tied to sack carts........dont thinkso...

As long as some people treat this business as an easy alternative to full time employment others will reap the benefits.

If you walk like a cowboy, look like a cowboy ,chances are you are a cowboy.


yeeeeeeeha

[steveaqua]

i've got bow legs does that make me a cowboy

[matt]

.

[Sir Squeaky]

.

The only answer you can give to such a person Matt.

He's got a new van and expensive kit, so he must be a good window cleaner.
Makes him look more professional you know.

Tool.

[macc]

Come on Rog, we know you want one 

[Sir Squeaky]

 

If I did it wouldn't cost thousands, just so I could tell people that.
I think a few heads need to be extracted from some bottoms...

[master cleaner]

back to the original topic and they wont because they cant be bothered so dont worry about it , just remember how many problems we had after changing to wfp and we are proffesionals with the knowhow of how to clean windows just think if we were novices what a mess we would make then . also most of the training for wfp for me has come from this site which my customers dont know about.

gary

[DASERVICES]

Selling WFP to domestics will not catch on, what you have to watch is selling to
the Commercial side that's when it will have an impact. The Maintenance Manager along with Accounts will soon cotton on once the likes of Ionics start to target this side.

[macc]

also most of the training for wfp for me has come from this site which my customers dont know about.

gary

My thoughts exactly Gary. When i think how i started using wfp a year ago & how i use it now, there is no way i would be were i am now, if i was on my own with out this forem. The truth is i would have proberly given up.

[trevor perry]

i am sorry to disagree but washing windows with a pole that squirts water isnt brain surgery anyone can do it and when you think a lot of window cleaners are charging upto a pound a window the customer is bound to question its worth unless their loaded.
     most people wash their own car and only get them professionally valetd maybe once a year, most people mow their own lawn and dont pay a gardner a lot of people dont really want windows cleaned every month but realise this is only way to retain a window cleaner so yes  i do think there is a threat especially if someone makes a system that sells at under thirty quid .

[ray l]

On the original question.

I don,t think many will clean there own.

1) How many of you clean bugalows (they don,t need a pole)

2) How many do you think will pay for £80 - £100 for a pole plus the cost of water DI ( in hard water area ) or a RO unit.

I believe most of our work is time saving service for the customer.

Ray

[windows_chepstow]

i am sorry to disagree but washing windows with a pole that squirts water isnt brain surgery anyone can do it and when you think a lot of window cleaners are charging upto a pound a window the customer is bound to question its worth unless their loaded.
     most people wash their own car and only get them professionally valetd maybe once a year, most people mow their own lawn and dont pay a gardner a lot of people dont really want windows cleaned every month but realise this is only way to retain a window cleaner so yes  i do think there is a threat especially if someone makes a system that sells at under thirty quid .

Trevor,

There was a documentary about a year ago about the domestic cleaning industry being a boom industry nowadays.

It went along the lines of that most couples are dual income (with or without kids) and they have less time for running a home, especially since here in the UK the average employee does more hours at work than our European neighbors.

They buy take-away or ready-made food, shop on-line; have groceries delivered to their door and employ cleaners (domestic/car valets/window cleaners) to do the the mundane chores they don't have time for.

I don't think we're under-threat from customers cleaning their own windows, what-ever 'home window cleaning kits' are available.

I think it's the Kosovans and the Polish that we have to watch out for!

[Ian_Giles]

I think it's the Kosovans and the Polish that we have to watch out for!

I'll go with Tosh on this one, people doing their own windows will never be a problem for us, there will always be a few who will do so, there always has, but no matter what kit they have, they rarely do as good a job as a pro can do.

The DIY WFP systems are usually DI systems, they have colour change change resin and gobble it up very quickly.

And contrary to what Trevor says, not anyone can do a good job with WFP, there are a fair few so called Pro's out there who do an awful job, and they are using it day in and day out.
It's only a semi skilled (whichever method you use) but it still takes time to learn.
Half hour every couple of months (which is all they'll end out doing it) is hardly enough to become accomplished.
They should still be able to do a good job, but it will still take them 4 times as long as a pro to acheive the same high standard...and if they are taking 4 times as long they are going to use 4 times as much resin as they need too.
If they happen to be in a hard water area they might even deplete the resin reservoir on just one clean

I wouldn't lose any sleep over it

Now the Poles and the Kosovans are another matter

Ian

[matt]

when the easten europeans catch on we will really be up against it

if people think a odd dole cheat is bad, wait till the work ethics of the easten europeans take hold, 15 hour days and happy with 5 quid a hour, not paying tax etc etc, and people who think that the bigger comercail stuff wont accept them, you will just have a " figure head from the UK " running the show