[AuRavelling79]

It seems most of us put up prices by a modest amount once a year but has anyone had the nerve to really up the rates and been prepared to lose some of the business (E.g £7 up to £10 or £10 up to £15)?

[Duke]

only on very old customers, and not by that much....most about 50p a year..

[Roy Harding]

I have doubled the price before now, and said I under stand if they dont want me any longer. And most have stayed with me, but that has only been when they are really under priced.

[replacement]

I have increased alot of mine already i dont bother with 50p's and have min £1 price increase also increased some of my higher priced work up £5 over the totally of 70 i have increased so far i have lost 1 client. But i am more than £100 plus quid better off per month on T/O.

Justin

[bobjarrett]

depends on area houses 30 plus maybe extra 3quid  as a rule though bungalows 50 p houses 1 pound ' if u do a good job and they value you ,. go for it . spoke to window cleaner he was cleaning hse next door to me . similer hse he was only charging 8 quid  me 12 quid , he couldnt believe it , he stopped cleaning that st , what he should have done was speak to his customer,s etc put prices up what they should be . anyway they asked me to clean them told em 12 quid , she said last etc i said where is he then , anyway she has some one cheaper now i  wonder how long for  , ..

[thewindowcleaner1]

I have One customer who increases his own price every year for me usually £1, He points out that infact you are putting your prices up to keep up with higher overheads, fuel, insurance ect.but in the main I increase by  .50p a year and point out to the few that frown that the increase is a lower % than last year and even lower % than the year before this normally confuses them enought to keep them quite.

[Stuart Webster]

It can depend who is desperate them or us, i have too much work so i put mine up alot, one went up from £7.50 to £15, muttered somewhat but still needed me, so they pay.

[windows_chepstow]

I've already raised my prices for a quarter of my round, using the letter method I posted earlier, and have been out this morning raising another quarter of my round.  Some I've really hiked, as I got greedy.

I didn't have the testicles to double them though.  £6.50 became £10.00 and £10.00 became £13.00.  That sort of stuff.  If I get a 20% drop out rate, then that'll be okay.

If it's more, I'll get a part time job in Tescos stacking shelves and I'll blame you 'orrible lot for encouraging me to increase the prices this much.

Oh, I have got one street of about 10 houses who I plan to double.  It's either that or drop them as they're very hard work the traditional way - a real groaner to do.  They're the modern houses with 'fake' Georgian windows, where the window pane dividers are 'stuck' to the glass. 

If I lose them, I'll tell Ian_Giles where to go to canvass them.  They'd be a lot easier with a WFP.

Oh, last night a customer (who's price I increased last month), told me we were very expensive, but she would keep me as she liked the job we do.  I charge her £8.50 for a 3 bed semi.

I challenged her about this, saying I know guys who'd charge her £10 to £15 pound for the same job.

She replied with, "Well my Father lives in the same type of house as me, in Channel View, and his window cleaner charges him a fiver, and my sister in Caldicot is the same, a fiver - and they're both good".

I didn't really have a proper reply, apart from look slightly astonished.  I reckon she would drop me, but I have the whole area where she lives cornered - as she knows it.

Anyway, she's signed up for a Standing Order payment, saying it'll make it harder for me to put up the price again!

Anyone got anything to counter the remark I received? 
 

[Stuart Webster]

She replied with, "Well my Father lives in the same type of house as me, in Channel View, and his window cleaner charges him a fiver, and my sister in Caldicot is the same, a fiver - and they're both good".

I'd tell her to employ him! He probably, at that price, does not have insurance, or pay taxes. Call her bluff. Don't be intimidated by her!
You sound like you do the whole area, nobody will come to ane house for a £5 house

 

[texas girl]

I too raise my rates periodically, and the beginning of the year is a great time to do so. I have over 300 commercial accounts and that is where I have been increasing by what I consider to be market.

I do base my profit by volume so in some cases I will increase only slightly so the worker gets the increased profit.

 I do have the largest business in the area; but I have my share of competitors so I have to be careful. You are only as good as those who represent you.  As I always say. I will get mine in the long run. Always do.

The only residential customers I increase are those that I have done for 15-20 years. I give my lowest rates to those, but increase slightly. Most people understand.
As far as new I look at it this way;

If you are getting 100 % of your bids, you are probably too low.  If you aren't getting any, you're probably too high. Be fair, but pay yourself what you are worth.

I haven't done any residential this past month at all. There was a time when I couldn't have made it without doing houses, but it feels good to be able to rely on the commercial if necessary.

I am behind on residentials, so will get going this next week weather permitting.  Love to see those checks coming. I always am reminded how thankful I am to  have the residential leg of the business. 

That really is where the money is, but the commercial work is our daily bread and butter.

Take care!
Hugs,

Texas Girl

[AuRavelling79]

Actions speak louder than words windows-chepstow so I reckon the fact she's staying with you shows you do a really top job compared with the other guys. If they're that good why doesn't she change?

There's no reply to her remark except to smile sweetly and carry on!

[thewindowcleaner1]

windows-chepstow I've found that the few try it on and try to intimidate you into submission,
I blame the missus for spending more and more of my money, that normally get a smile from the women and an understanding frown from the fellas and any way the other cleaners charging less than you would soon get brassed off cleaning a property next to you for a fraction of the price, they would soon change thier priceing Policy (if they have one) that is if they managed to avoid the tax man / or dodge the dole

[windows_chepstow]

windows-chepstow I've found that the few try it on and try to intimidate you into submission,

They way I put my prices up, I use a standard letter printed from my computer.  It tells them the cost of the new clean and the reason why.

The cowardly-coward I am, it means I'm not explaining why there's a large increase to each customer.  I just push the letter through their letter boxes a week or two before I clean them.

I've had one phone call from a lady this morning's leaflet, saying I'm too expensive, thank you for your work, but no to the increase. 

I'm expecting to get a handfull of them though.  Someone on this forum (was it Roy Harding and was he quoting someone else?) said that unless you get a 20% drop out rate, you haven't stuck your prices up enough.

A friend who's a walking computer, university educated and an all round 'good bloke' advises me to be as ruthless as possible.  He reckons that's what being self-employed is all about. 

I try, but it's difficult, especially if you like certain customers on a personal level, or they're pensioners, or appear to be a young family struggling with kids and finances.

For example, one of my customers pays for four other of her neighbors, when they are out at work, because she's always in (being a pensioner). 

I raised all her neighbors prices, but not hers.  She confided in me that they 'whinged', but did not let on that hers stayed the same.  I just gave her a wink, and told her one good turn deserves another.

So I'm pleased I've had a 'drop out'.  It shows I'm getting there.

[Roy Harding]

Nope wasnt me that said it.

[Roy Harding]

I have in the past done this.

I wanted to put a job up from £10 as it was under priced, I wanted to  put it up a fiver, but felt bad about doing it. So I said to the customer that I would like to put the price up, what did they think was a resonable increase he said £4.  I was happy so was he.

[windows_chepstow]

I have in the past done this.

I wanted to put a job up from £10 as it was under priced, I wanted to  put it up a fiver, but felt bad about doing it. So I said to the customer that I would like to put the price up, what did they think was a resonable increase he said £4.  I was happy so was he.

Genius!  I will remember that one.

[Stuart Webster]

I'm expecting to get a handfull of them though.  Someone on this forum (was it Roy Harding and was he quoting someone else?) said that unless you get a 20% drop out rate, you haven't stuck your prices up enough.

It was me, and its true. There not friends but customers, however if someone is paying for others, good to do her a favour. Modest increase for older ones, skys the limit if they own a Lexus

[thewindowcleaner1]

Windows Chepstow.. I too put a leaflet throught the door of the (clients ) that are out informing them of the price increase on the next clean... then I send the missus out collecting... so far lost Three this year.. and the missus's happy she takes 20% of the money she collects.. so she encourages me to "make the buggers pay"

[Ian_Giles]

I have never been able to put all of my customers up every year, in fact I have few customers who would fall into that bracket.
I'm not interested in putting them up by odd amounts, round figures only, always units of 50p or multiples thereof.

I even have a couple of shops that have only increased from £1.50 up to £2.00 in 20 years
If I had increased them by 5% each year, I'm not sure without working it out, but I would be charging them probably over £4.00 now. £120 per hour is nice if you can get it, but I don't think I could get away with it
A little different with domestic stuff though.

21 years ago I was charging roughly 25p per window (domestic) average 3 bed semi.....oh, about £3.50 (standard casement) that has now just about trebled, same house will now be about £8-10.00.

But unlikely I will have got it up that high if it is an account that has been with me 20 years.
New accounts no problem.
Hats off to you all who can put all of their prices up every year, or every 12 or 13 cleans.

Ian

[texas girl]

I am with you chepstow;  I too have created a letter explaining why rates must increase, etc.

Let the note do the dirty work!  It is true that we need to increase our rates because of many reasons!

One of the most important reasons is because of gas prices

You got the right idea!

hugs,
Texas girl