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Asked to justify Hourly rate

ECLM
WCF

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The only people who will allow bartering and to be knocked down on price are the ones that need the work.

It's your price and it's there choice weather to take that price.

No one forces them.

 
For people that say it is unskilled, they are just simple minded.

Logo & business name

Creativity

Uniform

Marketing via online, canvassing, signage on vehicle, website, facebook page, google SEO, google business, domain name, hosting service & other marketing sites

Equipment & servicing equipment

Vehicle & maintenance

Working outside all year round

Working from heights safely

Customer management & great customer service

Pricing jobs

Doing the jobs to a highly professional standard

Other services such as gutters, fascia, conservatory, solar panels, soft washing, power washing & other misc services

Accounts, taxes & insurance

Pension, holidays, sick leave

Managing expansion of business if you decide to do so

If you are working for pennies how are you going to provide all of the above long term. It is destined to be mediocre or fail, whilst you are struggling to live and enjoy life in this economy. While your customer sits in a nice house, sipping on wine marveling at their wonderfully cleaned property, or a business is thriving due to one of the factors of a nicely cleaned exterior. It is a vital service, do not belittle the worth of it.

The ability to get off your ass, get out of the normal 9-5 salary based jobs and be your own boss. Actually one thing I have noticed on this forum is how intelligent people are. There aren't many forums about were most people can actually string a sentence together without slang acronyms, bad grammar and spelling.

And as for people saying that electricians, vehicle mechanics or whatever are more highly skilled, that isn't true. A vehicle for example isn't that complicated, it is merely a set of moving parts, a mechanic is just a glorified fitter (this is my trade by the way, so I am not just being an ass). An electrician isn't a hard job either, what do they do, listen to the customers problem and fault find, electricity is just a moving force just like water. None of these trades are rocket science, if they were there wouldn't be so many businesses that specialise in them. Trades like this have a common trend though, they are more high risk businesses to run than a window cleaning business, due to costs to run it. I wouldn't touch a vehicle mechanic business with a barge pole, the costs to run a garage is massive, a mobile mechanic would be a safer alternative but even that would incur high running costs. Clearly people on this forum have the ability to do any of these trades, you chose window cleaning and exterior cleaning because of the cheaper running costs and the market potential; that to me = intelligence.

Regarding price, the price is the price when you put in all your factors, business wise that is your decision. If the customer accepts it, then the deal is done, if they don't and you don't feel comfortable lowering it, tell them politely to contact you if they change their mind. Do a great job, touch base with the customer to make sure they are happy, collect your payment and hopefully you have a regular. Business is business. Protect your brand and do it smartly. In the words of Kalfas, expand the top as you dissolve the bottom.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
For people that say it is unskilled, they are just simple minded.
Logo & business name

Creativity

Uniform

Marketing via online, canvassing, signage on vehicle, website, facebook page, google SEO, google business, domain name, hosting service & other marketing sites

Equipment & servicing equipment

Vehicle & maintenance

Working outside all year round

Working from heights safely

Customer management & great customer service

Pricing jobs

Doing the jobs to a highly professional standard

Other services such as gutters, fascia, conservatory, solar panels, soft washing, power washing & other misc services

Accounts, taxes & insurance

Pension, holidays, sick leave

Managing expansion of business if you decide to do so

If you are working for pennies how are you going to provide all of the above long term. It is destined to be mediocre or fail, whilst you are struggling to live and enjoy life in this economy. While your customer sits in a nice house, sipping on wine marveling at their wonderfully cleaned property, or a business is thriving due to one of the factors of a nicely cleaned exterior. It is a vital service, do not belittle the worth of it.

The ability to get off your ass, get out of the normal 9-5 salary based jobs and be your own boss. Actually one thing I have noticed on this forum is how intelligent people are. There aren't many forums about were most people can actually string a sentence together without slang acronyms, bad grammar and spelling.

And as for people saying that electricians, vehicle mechanics or whatever are more highly skilled, that isn't true. A vehicle for example isn't that complicated, it is merely a set of moving parts, a mechanic is just a glorified fitter (this is my trade by the way, so I am not just being an ass). An electrician isn't a hard job either, what do they do, listen to the customers problem and fault find, electricity is just a moving force just like water. None of these trades are rocket science, if they were there wouldn't be so many businesses that specialise in them. Trades like this have a common trend though, they are more high risk businesses to run than a window cleaning business, due to costs to run it. I wouldn't touch a vehicle mechanic business with a barge pole, the costs to run a garage is massive, a mobile mechanic would be a safer alternative but even that would incur high running costs. Clearly people on this forum have the ability to do any of these trades, you chose window cleaning and exterior cleaning because of the cheaper running costs and the market potential; that to me = intelligence.

Regarding price, the price is the price when you put in all your factors, business wise that is your decision. If the customer accepts it, then the deal is done, if they don't and you don't feel comfortable lowering it, tell them politely to contact you if they change their mind. Do a great job, touch base with the customer to make sure they are happy, collect your payment and hopefully you have a regular. Business is business. Protect your brand and do it smartly. In the words of Kalfas, expand the top as you dissolve the bottom.
Click to expand...
Agree with some of this to a degree but come on ...

It's not a 'skilled' job to clean a window

An electrician or plumber can easily blow up your house

 
For people that say it is unskilled, they are just simple minded.
Logo & business name

Creativity

Uniform

Marketing via online, canvassing, signage on vehicle, website, facebook page, google SEO, google business, domain name, hosting service & other marketing sites

Equipment & servicing equipment

Vehicle & maintenance

Working outside all year round

Working from heights safely

Customer management & great customer service

Pricing jobs

Doing the jobs to a highly professional standard

Other services such as gutters, fascia, conservatory, solar panels, soft washing, power washing & other misc services

Accounts, taxes & insurance

Pension, holidays, sick leave

Managing expansion of business if you decide to do so

If you are working for pennies how are you going to provide all of the above long term. It is destined to be mediocre or fail, whilst you are struggling to live and enjoy life in this economy. While your customer sits in a nice house, sipping on wine marveling at their wonderfully cleaned property, or a business is thriving due to one of the factors of a nicely cleaned exterior. It is a vital service, do not belittle the worth of it.

The ability to get off your ass, get out of the normal 9-5 salary based jobs and be your own boss. Actually one thing I have noticed on this forum is how intelligent people are. There aren't many forums about were most people can actually string a sentence together without slang acronyms, bad grammar and spelling.

And as for people saying that electricians, vehicle mechanics or whatever are more highly skilled, that isn't true. A vehicle for example isn't that complicated, it is merely a set of moving parts, a mechanic is just a glorified fitter (this is my trade by the way, so I am not just being an ass). An electrician isn't a hard job either, what do they do, listen to the customers problem and fault find, electricity is just a moving force just like water. None of these trades are rocket science, if they were there wouldn't be so many businesses that specialise in them. Trades like this have a common trend though, they are more high risk businesses to run than a window cleaning business, due to costs to run it. I wouldn't touch a vehicle mechanic business with a barge pole, the costs to run a garage is massive, a mobile mechanic would be a safer alternative but even that would incur high running costs. Clearly people on this forum have the ability to do any of these trades, you chose window cleaning and exterior cleaning because of the cheaper running costs and the market potential; that to me = intelligence.

Regarding price, the price is the price when you put in all your factors, business wise that is your decision. If the customer accepts it, then the deal is done, if they don't and you don't feel comfortable lowering it, tell them politely to contact you if they change their mind. Do a great job, touch base with the customer to make sure they are happy, collect your payment and hopefully you have a regular. Business is business. Protect your brand and do it smartly. In the words of Kalfas, expand the top as you dissolve the bottom.
Click to expand...

Post of the week.

 
Agree with some of this to a degree but come on ...It's not a 'skilled' job to clean a window

An electrician or plumber can easily blow up your house
Click to expand...
It isn't just cleaning windows though, there are plenty of other services that people offer, window cleaning is just the steady part of the business. Electrician and plumber jobs are average jobs in my opinion, they do not require people with a high IQ level, just common sense and learning on the job. Any job that you are excellent at doing you are skilled at it. My point is, stop devaluing what you do. There is more to it than just cleaning windows.

 
"skill' is all relative...

I've got 2 mates, ones a plumber (2 year apprentice) the other a stone mason (7 year apprenticeship)

Plumber earns considerably more then the stone mason.

My point is, skill is only a part of the earning potential .....

Sent from my CUBOT DINOSAUR using Tapatalk

 
gd thread this been reading through all the posts

forget about who is more skilled plumbers, joiners,sparky,or what ever trade

There are loads of guys on here with trades,so hayho why bhave they decided to clean windows

less stress

high possibity off making gd money (every day)

very little out lay for setting up the business

very little hassle

I honestly believe anyone coming into this business with total commitment, drive.

Will make and make gd living

whats the worst we can do ,not clean a window right.

 
There is a lot to read and I apologise for not reading all of it and if I say what other people say, but I've been the victim of jokes about how much I earn. I don't see how they can joke when I'm earning more than those that do joke. But it's like a "you earn that much for doing that" which I have had said to me and about me while I've been stood there and I always say the same thing:

1. I have a business to run. Being self employed I have to earn enough to pay for sick leave, holidays, ALL my household and business bills, taxes, national insurances and insurances which mean I can work safely, I also do a good job, so good infact I earn what I do.

2. If they wanted to earn as much they should do it themselves and see how "easy" it is? I made the choice from leaving school to do what I do, and have been doing it for 15 years, it's not easy at times. And it has it's draw backs, as all jobs have. But my draw back isn't what I can potentially earn, the draw backs of window cleaning are what you can lose.

I don't always feel a need to explain my earnings though, it's my business. Pay for my services and you'll get my full attention and best work. Don't pay for it and I don't care.

 
Well I'm 'Excellent ' at sweeping up but that don't make me a brain surgeon x
Click to expand...
You ex Army then? As that's what us skilled soldiers did most of the time when not on tour. "Join the Army,Sweep the World" /emoticons/wink.png

 
I'm proud to be a windie Adam

No stigma attached for me

I do my graft and provide well for my family..that is all that i give a toss about not someone elses perception of my choice of business

 
I too am proud to be a window cleaner, people often can't believe what I'm qualified to do, they think I have 'settled' on to the first easy job I enjoy - I recently had a good customer of mine reeling that I earn a lot more on the glass than he does as a qualified sparky. Soon corrected him that his 2-3 years as an apprentice didn't compare to my 6 years as someone's b1tch and without it I couldn't really do what I do!

And yes - it's the full package of owning a business including branding, not just cleaning the odd window.

Sent using the Window Cleaning Forums mobile app

 
A lot of us on here are qualified for other things

I am a body fitter/panel beater as my official trade as that is what my nvq's say from my school having an auto engineering department and then joining the army (Royal electrical mechanical engineers) and got my class 2 licence with them (was driving 14 tonne rigid trucks at the age of 18 on British roads..in civvy street it would have been illegal)

Some guys even give up high powered city jobs for our lifestyle

It's all about finding what suits you

 

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