Gift Vouchers for current customer's friends, Discount Vouchers to drop through letterboxes

[DannyB]

Hi everyone,

I am still in the first year of my window cleaning business and need more customers. Most customers I've got so far have been acquired by snippet dropping and subsequent door knocking. I've also acquired few referrals from my older customers, and even less people have been attracted over my website, Facebook fan page and van ad.

Now I am considering launching a gift voucher campaign. I want to give my current customers gift vouchers for their friends and/or relatives. If someone asks me to redeem the voucher they have received from my current customer, I will give the gift voucher holder a 33 percent discount on the first three cleans, and after me getting paid for the fourth clean from them, I will also once clean for free the windows of the older customer, who's previously passed the gift voucher on.

On the top of it, I am also considering the introduction of another type of discount voucher. I want to hand out this type of discount vouchers to the paper boys and various other people who drop leaflets through letterboxes. This discount voucher will be marked by the initials of every participating paper boy. If any such voucher is redeemed, the new customer, acquired that way, will get a discount, and at the same time, the particular paper boy who dropped the discount voucher, will get a fixed commission (e.g. the first £15 I will receive from the new customer).

Has anyone tried such or similar marketing methods? And to any avail?

Thank you for any relevant experience or well substantiated opinion.

 

[Rosewood]

This sounds as though it's going to be very complicated to administer, if a customer passes on three or four vouchers over several months it's going to be a minefield to keep track off. Imo if you need more customer recommendations just ask your loyal customers, if your honest with them they will go out of there way to help you build your business and you won't have to work for free.

 

[Dave B]

I just leave a couple of flyers with my customers and say if you know anyone who needs my services give em one of these

They are all happy to do it

 

[DannyB]

Imo if you need more customer recommendations just ask your loyal customers, if your honest with them they will go out of there way to help you build your business and you won't have to work for free.

The word of mouth works very slowly for me. I ask my current customers to recommend me all the time, but the tangible results have been very meagre so far. On the other hand, my old customer retention is not that bad. Neither do I get effectively recommended too much, nor do too many my old customers defect. I am afraid the word of mouth will kick-start in the moment I already have a full round.

 

[Green Pro Clean Ltd]

Just go knock some doors Danny, don't sod about with vouchers etc.

Tomorrow make it a policy to knock 3 doors each side of every house you do. If not home drop a card and move onto the next clean.

When knocking next to existing customers, I just say 'Hi, I do the window cleaning for Mary next door, can I give you a quote?'

Keep it simple.

 

[Rosewood]

Perhaps your pushing the recommendation thing a little hard, you can only ask a customer once, anymore smacks of desperation. A true recommendation comes without asking or cajoling, when a customer recommends you they effectively put there reputation on the line. The last thing they want is for there friend/relative to say to them "that windy you recommended is rubbish " with that in mind the best way to get recommendations is to provide a good reliable service, do this and they will start to come through

 

[Clisty1989]

I mention that if they know anyone that needs a window cleaner ask them to give me a shout after 1st or 2nd clean then dont mention it again. Adding to what green said knock 3 or 4 either side of each clean, put a card in those who dont answer, take a note and knock the non answers again next time, plus an extra one each side, then the time after start knocking those opposite. By doing a few each time your not wasting hours knocking and able to keep things compact

 

[DannyB]

I mention that if they know anyone that needs a window cleaner ask them to give me a shout after 1st or 2nd clean then dont mention it again. Adding to what green said knock 3 or 4 either side of each clean, put a card in those who dont answer, take a note and knock the non answers again next time, plus an extra one each side, then the time after start knocking those opposite. By doing a few each time your not wasting hours knocking and able to keep things compact

Thanks. But the overwhelming majority of my customers are on streets that I have knocked through several times each anyway.

 

[Clisty1989]

Target the minority, another tactic i use is after about 10am make as much noise a reasonably possible to get neighbours attention, work suprisingly well

 

[Dave B]

Thanks. But the overwhelming majority of my customers are on streets that I have knocked through several times each anyway.

It still doesn't hurt to knock again

Persistance is key

 

[adamangler]

too much fannying imo. Just post leaflets.

The last thing you want is people signing up to an offer, when people are signing on an offer it means they are price orientated, thats not what you want. You want customers who want a window cleaning firstly, lealfet will do this the best, they will ring if they want you.