[ccmids]

if they agree price they cant moan

[♠Winp®oClean♠]

if they agree price they cant moan

In their minds they can, they see how quick you are Vs how much they pay you, add it up to a hourly total & think **** that, I ain't paying a window cleaner £40+ p/hour!!! :

They want value for money!!! right or wrong I honestly think that some do think like this.

If you agreed a price say, for your gutters cleaning out @ £100 & the guy came & did the job in 15 mins would you not feel a little bit done? Especially if you were expecting him to spend 3 hours there!

[ftp]

They don't like it. So much so that they are going to sack the guy whoever he is and use me.

[ftp]

I picked up work from a wfp outfit too. They work as a team - one guy did the fronts whilst the other did the backs. Half a dozen customers and they all complained about the speed, really didn't like it.

[pingu]

The thing is we all have work like that and I for one do  try to complete my work then finish and home in time for tea and medals.

Slowing down just does not work for me...but you can certainly see the customers point of view.

[Sean Dyer]

Its jealousy is all

[Clive McDonald]

It's business not jealousy, i'm part of a front and back team , and on compact work can do ten tens in an hour.You can guess what hourly rate this is.

Times are hard so it's understandable that some should feel resentfull. If i get dropped for this there's not much i can do.

My 'churn' is quite high, and thats why i grab every job i can get.

[pingu]

You can really see the customers point of view...we turn up in our flash vans, uniformed, headed note paper and 500quid poles and charge 20 quid for a 3 bed semi 20 minutes later bing, bang bosh...swag in the bag and the get-away van is running....

We can seem to be over charging...it is certainly food for thought.

[ian1972]

maybso but at end of day decent van as you said uniform and £500 quid pole never mind the time sorting out the pure water filters,not a couple of ripped up t shirts and a bucket of mucky water,

[Clive McDonald]

I often charge ten for a four/five bed detached, with cons it might be twelve, and most are eight weeks.
I clean gutters doors etc as standard and try hard to do a good job.

But..... speed is my thing and i have a very fast wfp delivery system . Side door opens at job, harness round neck, pole in hand i attack the window.Same thing thing happens at other side door.
Hot water, very high flow, slx fan jets, electric rewind on almost frictionless red ash reels.This kit costs money but pays for itself.I have also invested in a rolls royce collection method.

The only food for thought i see is that as i improve so does everybody else.There was a thread about sing written vans and they were all brilliant, very different to examples on here two years ago.

Standards on here are now so high it's scarey. I like to think i'm still a little bit in front of course in one or two areas.

[Gleaming windows]

I often charge ten for a four/five bed detached, with cons it might be twelve, and most are eight weeks.
I clean gutters doors etc as standard and try hard to do a good job.

But..... speed is my thing and i have a very fast wfp delivery system . Side door opens at job, harness round neck, pole in hand i attack the window.Same thing thing happens at other side door.
Hot water, very high flow, slx fan jets, electric rewind on almost frictionless red ash reels.This kit costs money but pays for itself.I have also invested in a rolls royce collection method.

OOO!! You sound like Indiana Jones

[dazmond]

standards are high?ive still got a old car at mo.have good TRAD equipment,dress reasonable and doin well at mo.i pick up work by recomendation usually.the norm iz last cleaner not regular,missed sills etc but also i think its personality.it goes a long way in this game.i choose to spend my money on holidays,clothes and decorating flat but im gona save up for van and WFP next year.nice and simple,low overheads at mo. ;Dbut shiney new van or not im still a goodWC

[pingu]

At times I think that the old image of the old chap, ladder and bucket..working the streets in his local area have not really been forgotten...and the new 'order' does conflict with those old images and when people add a few numbers they do find the equivilient of 40quid an hour a bit steep...ok so I know that 40quid an hour is not normal..but hey thats not what they think is it?

So again it's all about misconceptions.

Dave.

[ian1972]

yes its custys idea of what windy cleaners are your not supposed to earn good money as your a window cleaner,but i do agree going to fast naffs them off they dont think you can do a good job being fast

[Gleaming windows]

Yes very true.

I picked up a new custy today, and was just explaining about payment options, he was gobsmacked when I told him he could pay online. Impressed but gobsmacked.

[matt]

At times I think that the old image of the old chap, ladder and bucket..working the streets in his local area have not really been forgotten...and the new 'order' does conflict with those old images and when people add a few numbers they do find the equivilient of 40quid an hour a bit steep...ok so I know that 40quid an hour is not normal..but hey thats not what they think is it?

So again it's all about misconceptions.

Dave.

shouldnt we be meeting them half way then

i have been in a discussion about uniforms " you can look smart without wearing a uniform " is my point of view, a nice fleece without the logo's etc

does the unifrom just rub the customers nose in it, by wearing a uniform are you trying to justify the high rates ? ? ?

just food for thought

[pingu]

As with all things there is a 'middle way' during the boom that is window cleaning at the moment...a bit like when bank managers were leaving banks and becoming plumbers.

And to a certain extent I think we as window cleaners get a little too focused on the mechanics & image of window cleaning when in reality it is just another service industry..I mean I do not get all wet and gooey when I take the van in for a service and the put it on one of those hydrolic lifts...just another tool really.

As for uniforms (no thinking what to wear required)...I wear a bib and brace get-up, boots, a cap but I think the main thing that sticks out like a red rag to a bull is flash vans...does'nt matter why we have got them..it just say's hey look at the money I have got to spend/waste on looking flash.

I am not knocking anyone who has a flash van...hey I am saving for a Landrover 110 double cab pickup...and that'll be my flash work vech

Perceptions....misconceptions...do you think that we as window cleaners sometime oversell our products?

[dazmond]

im quite happy the way i am and i do earn 40quid an hour sometimes all TRAD.just not every hour and thats in manchester. ;Dbut like i said in an earlier post,personality goes a long way.mind u when i try out this WFP business and get round in half the time then speed of in a smart van i might start losing custys

[cozy]

Good posts on this thread, written by real window cleaners, took a long time.

[G Griffin]

I have lost a few customers due to my badger fetish  .
 But some people are just sett in their ways.

                           Gerry.