[Katie Lou]

Hiya all!!

As above states Ive been lurking in this forum for a while now and read some brilliant advice and just thought id would introduce myself and explain my situation to see what you all think! :

I left my full time optical job in january this year when my son started school as i wanted to work around his school hours, i started a little business selling handbags at a local market but it went nowhere, after 3 months i packed it in as i couldnt afford to wait 2 years to see if it was going to be worth it!

April the first I decided out of the blue that i would put up a little sign in my village shop offering cleaning,ironing services etc. I have worked for a cleaning agency in the past so i know the job.

And its just gone really well since then! I had 2 ladies call me the first week and 5 the following. Ive got work coming out of my ears and Im so pleased (for now!!)

Its just me working for myself and im filling up the school hour slots i have available. Ive just got mondays to fill then im sorted!

I wanted to charge £9-£10 per hour, the first lady i went to said her last cleaner (who was awful she told me) was £6 per hour

So we decided on £8 per hours in the end, same for her neighbour! even though the company i used to work for charges £13 per hou.

So thats my story really, earning myself a good little wage and it would be lovely to see if any of you have any tips or guidance for me! I feel im doing ok at the mo but this forum has really helped so thankyou!!!

[martin19842]

hi there

well done so far, but at those prices you will always have a waiting list of potential clients.

you can bet your bottom dollar that the previous cleaner at £6 per hour was purely cash, wasnt insured, and just filled a couple of hours a day.

you have to ensure that you have you got all your insurances in place and that you are declaring etc, that will ultimately drive your hourly rate up.

yes its great to work hard, but but increasing your hourly rate a little your hard work will earn you a bit more.

on the other hand it does all depend on what your personal circumstances are and how much you need to earn

regards

martin

[Colin Day]

Shame you're in Shropshire.... I hate ironing

Get tough with your prices "NOW!" It's one of the hardest things to do, but I recently kicked myself up the bum with oven cleaning, as my minimum charge was £28..... I won't work for anything under £45 now and I still get plenty of work, I do lose a few jobs but hey.... It's their loss...

Good luck and welcome to the forum!!!! Colin.....

[Katie Lou]

Hiya Colin and Martin

Thankyou for your input!

Yes i very much agree with you re price structure. The one lady i 'do' pays £10 per hour but she lives 15 miles away from me.

All of the ladies I went to see said my price was ''too steep'' and ''a bit much'' that was when i quoted them £9 per hour so i dont work for less than £8p/h.

Obviousley id love it to be more, but as im only looking for 20-25 hours p/w i thought id better just accept any work i can get for the minimum and then hopefully build on it from there.

So far the ladies have been very suprised when i turn up with my caddy and tabard! and looking smart! i feel like saying thats why i want £10 p/h as i believe im worth it! i have declared to the IR that im self employed but how do i go about insurance?? do i just need public liability?? Sorry for my lack of knowledge in this area i should have done this

thankyou again guys for your valuable input!


katie

[DREAM CLEAN]

Hi Martin,

How you doing?

What you up to?

Nick

[derek west]

your not working for £8 an hour, it will work out at around £4 an hour, heres why

tax
insurance
accountants fee's
petrol
van car wear and tear, ie....tyres mot's service oil etc.....
car van tax insurance

now the big one,  advertising.

then theres webites, all the work you do for free like designing adds, up dating you books, marketting etc....

you seriously can't run a business charging less than you can earn stacking shelves at tesco's.

my advice, give up or get real, sorry to be blunt but have a good think about the above. i'm amazed some of these guys on here can make a living charging £13 an hour! for all that stress and hastle that running a business brings, no thanks.

good luck

[martin19842]

hello Nick



i'll buzz you an email

regards

martin

[suffolkclean]

I totally agree with Derek, when you start out you don't always think about all the extra costs involved. There will always be customers that think £10 is too much due to people working for cash in hand & not declaring it.

Eventually you will get to the stage where you need to hire cleaners - it will cost you around £8 per hr for staff with their wage, holiday pay, insurance, your time to arrange cleans & deal with the paperwork involved. So I'd suggest £13 per hour from now on for any new customers or your going to struggle when you need to hire staff to make a profit. If they say that's too much let them look elsewhere.

Barbara

[Daria Taylor]

I totally agree with Derek, when you start out you don't always think about all the extra costs involved. There will always be customers that think £10 is too much due to people working for cash in hand & not declaring it.

Eventually you will get to the stage where you need to hire cleaners - it will cost you around £8 per hr for staff with their wage, holiday pay, insurance, your time to arrange cleans & deal with the paperwork involved. So I'd suggest £13 per hour from now on for any new customers or your going to struggle when you need to hire staff to make a profit. If they say that's too much let them look elsewhere.

Barbara

Barbara,

Well said, how are you getting on in the new year i have not seen you on here for a while.

I hope you are well

regards
dash t

[Gilbert Sprous]

I think on this thread I would have to agree and disagree with some of the posts.  If Katie is supplementing her house hold income she is on the right track by gaining clients for a rate she is happy with.  8 pounds an hour is low but it gets some income right now.  You do need to check into how much it is costing you to conduct business though and make sure that your wage is still in a range that you are happy with.  I would say insurance is a must.  One place you could check is Cactus Insurance.  They do insurance by turnover of the business and can sometimes work out cheaper.

What you do need to include into your costings
 
Insurance
Petrol
Chemicals and equipment
If you are using your own vehicle and would have it taxed anyway I dont see how this is a factor
MOT and wear and tear of your vehicle.  With most of your work being so close at present this would be minimal so That is up to you if you include it at this point.
Sounds like advertising so far is free and you are not wanting to grow your business to the point that it would interfere with your family schedule so that is not a factor.

If I disagreeumption is correct, that you are not interested in growing to the point of taking on employees and your costings match up with an income that you are happy with.  Fill the time you want at the price you are happy with but dont stop the free advertising and any future potential clients should be quoted at a higher price, give up the cheaper ones with the correct notice and take on the higher margin clients.  In a year or so you might be able to fill your time with 10 pounds or 11 pounds per hour clients.  If then in the future you decide that running a business with employees might be an option then you will have a margin that you might be able to start that with.

But I will say that if your ambitions at this point is to grow and take on employees, with the current price you will be struggling.

Gilbert

[Katie Lou]

thankyou all for your very helpful comments!

Derek,

at the moment 99% of my clients are in walking distance so the car issues are not a problem (yet!)

I will be earning just below the tax free allowance a can earn in one year (roughly £5,500) so tax will also not b a problem.

Barbara and Gilbert

thankyou very much for taking the time to right your replies they are very helpful and i will certainly go with your ideas.

I have just met a lady this morning who wants 3 hours per week and we've agreed on £10 per hour which is on the right track for now!

thanks again guys

katie

[suffolkclean]

Hi Dash

I'm great thanks, business is good - we're looking forward to the year ahead with as many new customers as possible

Have you done anything about the email marketing you posted about? if so have you had any response this is something I want to do (when I get the time)! What advertising source do you gain your contracts from?

Barbara