A Window Cleaning Success Story…

Hey All:

Hope you are having a fine day today. Yesterday I received an email out of the blue from a window cleaner with a business "update". I thought it would make a good motivational blog post for those of you not yet out of the starting gate in your own window cleaning business. And even if you are out and about in your business, sometimes all this negative news that surrounds us each day can dampen our spirit and cause us to lose our focus, our commitment, our attitude, etc. So the post below should pick you back up and fill you with confidence.  There is no better business to be in than the window cleaning business. Enjoy!

Hi Steve,

Been a long time.  Just wanted to let you know how things are going here.  Our customer base is at 350 now - up 85 from this time last year.  And most of the new customers I get now are word of mouth.  We were a little light on the schedule for July and August, so I put out 1000 fliers and got several jobs to help fill the void.  Other than that, I have not advertised this year.  My target has always been between 400 - 450 houses, so we are almost there.  I have one employee who works part time during the school year and full time in the summer.  I have to tell you - the hourly rate has skyrocketed since bringing him on.  I was averaging $350 - $450 days before hiring him.  Now, I average $650 - $850 days.  I hit my highest dollar amount today - $930 for one day of work.

Anyway, I thought of you today when I cleaned a house for a new customer.  I charged $380 for her house - which Travis and I had done in 3 hours.  After we completed the job, I was visiting with her and her husband and they told me she needed them done for a wedding and had called another window cleaner in town.  She said that when he showed up, she looked at him and thought she would rather clean the windows herself than let this guy into her house.  Then (and this is the kicker) when he told her how much it was, she said she thought his price was "ridiculously LOW!!!!"  I never thought I would hear a customer say they thought the price was "ridiculously low."

The last time you and I talked, I mentioned that I was getting 100% of my bids on houses and thought my price might be too low.  So, I started raising prices.  The first raise, I went from $5 to $6 and no one even blinked.  Second raise went to $7 a window.  Still, no one cared.  I am currently charging about $10 a window and still getting 100% of my bids.  So, the big question is, what price point do I stop at?  I guess that is a beautiful problem to have, but still, I don't want people thinking my prices are outrageous.  Of course, I really only bump the prices to that level in the high-dollar neighborhoods.  Average homes with medium income families I stay between $7 and $8 per window.  Oh yea, when I left that house today, the lady and her husband said they knew lots of people with big houses in the area that they would be referring me to.  Two biggest lessons you taught me - 1) Appearance  2) Don't go cheap on your bids.  I am on schedule to potentially make two and a half times more this year than I did as a school counselor.  Thanks again Steve!
 
Tony McCoy

My Response:

Hi Tony:

Good morning.  Thanks very much for the update.  I love the progress you're making.  Cool stuff.  Great news on not having to advertise this year.  A tapped into customer base will continue to come back to you and also provide you that word of mouth advertising as you mentioned.  It all results in us not needing to do as much direct advertising.

As far as price point, there is no definitive answer to that question.  But I definitely wouldn't keep going up and up.  At some point, you need to settle in on a price and stay there (at least for awhile) simply so prospects/customers have some idea what to expect.  My advice would be to go up until you're not closing 100% of your estimate presentations.  That'll give you the feedback right there that you need as far as pricing.  If 90% end up taking your bids, then you're at a price point where folks are now thinking about it.  So that would be a good stopping point for your prices.  Hope this helps.

Anyway…thanks again for the business update and for your comments.  Good stuff Tony.  Take care and have a great day.

Regards,

Steve

Final notes: I remember talking with tony back when he first bought my package. And I remember the concerns that he brought up as far as making the leap from a counselor to the owner of a window cleaning business. Well….those concerns and fears are history.  If we fast forward a couple of years, counseling is a distant memory and $650 to $850 days are the norm. 

So if you have similar fears, concerns, or trepidation, just take the necessary steps, follow the program, stay focused on the end result, ignore the constant negativity that is all around us, and you'll see success in the window cleaning business. Oh one last thing…Tony is a member of my window cleaning software The Customer Factor. This software and successful window cleaners seem to be joined at the hip. 

Have a profitable day.

Steve