CHANGING FROM TRAD TO WFP!

[paddy]

slowly but surely I'm converting to wfp, been trad 15 yrs.

So what do I do with my existing customers prices, do I explain to a £5.00 fortnightly house that for £10.00 per month I'll wfp the windows, frames , doors , etc etc? Is this realistic do you think? What's your thoughts chaps?

 

[cheapncheerful]

cant you just stick to fortnightly and wfp...

my change is there but ....slow.../emoticons/biggrin.png

a lot dont understand so you have to be gentle with them...

 

[Gavin]

I'd say that's fair you certainly would not need to be wfp their windows every two weeks.

Depends on the house I guess and time it takes you.

Oh god I can here the trad vs wfp stampede coming. /emoticons/wink.png

 

[tench0771]

im trad an wfp i cant beleve u dont clean the fraims when u trad maby im just anel but ive allways cleanrd all fraims an sills an give doors a quick wipe off!! please dont take my post tje rong way not aving a go

 

[cheapncheerful]

nah when I trad I still do the frames sills etc..but..

some dont for sure....

cant believe they dont...in fact that big bungalow I did the other day....they didnt do the frames...mind you the colour of the water they were using...it had stained the white frames black where they hadnt bothered to clean it up...yukky.../emoticons/biggrin.png

 

[Smurf]

Just think of it this way you will earn a tenner for doing only half the work so it sounds a no brainer to me /emoticons/biggrin.png

 

[abs]

Think you'll find customers won't give you the £10 a month for 1 visit less regardless of WFP or not ,you would be better telling them about the change explaining your new WFP will keep there windows cleaner longer.

But I would introduce a price increase

 

[spruce]

Hi Paddy,

The guys down in the southern regions could get away with this a little easier.

I've have found that the average Northerner doesn't think in the same way. Lets use the £5 as an example. Some might go for your £5 every 2 weeks to £10 every 4 weeks, but I doubt you will get away with it in the majority of times as they will feel you are only going to be doing half the work and charging twice the price. Whilst some may see the cleaning of the frames as a sweetener, it won't take long before its the accepted norm and expected.

We bought a trad round where the glass only was cleaned and not the frames. According to the previous cleaners they had 2 prices, glass only or glass and frames. 90% wanted the glass only price. They were charging £5 for glass only for a 3 bed semi every 2 weeks.

We converted the round to wfp as most of the houses were dormers and kept a 2 weekly cycle. Everything was fine for the first couple of months as we exceeded our new customers expectations with clean windows, frames and cills.

But we then started to get 'leave them this time' as they are still clean rejection. Within a couple of months virtually the whole round was doing this, but they still expected a monthly clean for £5.

My advice is to continue to clean them every 2 weeks for the first couple of months and then speak to each with a proposal, either 2 weeks at £5 or 4 weeks at £9.00. Stick to your 'guns' politely but expect to loose customers. Some will come back to you, other's won't.

From personal experience you won't make any money out of the £5 clean every 2 weeks whereas you will doing the same work for £9 every 4 weeks. You will need to get rid of the 2 weekly cleans and grow your round. The running costs of wfp are much more than trad.

You will then need to look for more work at £9 every 4 weeks as you no longer offer 2 weekly cycles.

Changing over to wfp isn't just a change of cleaning methods, it will effect your whole business ethos and the way you drive your business forward into the future.

 

[Jake]

I just kept prices the same when I switched over, then after a while you could raise prices when custys get used to it!

 

[tattoosnhooves]

uI changes over 18 month ago after 9/10 years trad

arthritis in my knee.notified all in writing and told of change over date

a few wernt happy and moaned,i explained all I could,but found the best solution was to sack them on the spot

ive took a lot of new work on because I use wfp,surprised me!!!!!!!!

before you changed over,on ya last clean,wipe all the **** off ya frames,tops and vents esp /emoticons/sad.png

pain on first clean rinses

as for every fortnight,ive never done one.all monthly and two monthly

as for price goin up,as others as said,give it a year,

personally some of mine av stayed same for 5 6 year,id rather do a extra house clean at end of day

hope all advice helps and good bloody luck /emoticons/smile.png

 

[Tuffers]

When I changed over I was doing 4 weekly trad and stayed 4 weekly WFP. I didn't alter my prices. I'm now doing quite a bit more work than when I was trad.

Only a few have expressed a wish to have a longer gap between cleans.

I think Paddy will have to go 4 weekly at a minimum, he can also charge like Spruce said £9 instead of £5 for 2 weekly and then expand his round to probably double the size it is now. Imagine earning double what you're earning now Paddy? Or you could just keep the customers you have now and take it easy and still earn the same as you are now.

 

[Keir999]

Bear in mind WFP is more expensive than trad, so you will defo want to be earning substantially more. Not to mention there's far more to learn and maintain too ...

 

[tattoosnhooves]

totally agree keir

ladders,scrims,wash up liquid n diesel lol

wfp is costly set up,but I can do 6 weeks work in 4 using wfp,now I up to speed n sorted n re sorted me round out,,,,,wish id done it years ago

 

[Posh]

I don't even think you need to clean them every 2 weeks trad or wfp.

 

[Smurf]

This may sound harsh but If people can't afford to pay a messily 10 squid min payment for a monthly wfp window clean then quite honestly they should not be on your books wherever you are in the country.

 

[dredge3]

Customers wont like paying double. You will have to explain that its a better system that costs more, but lasts longer. Also that all the frames etc are cleaned every visit and this transforms them over time (it does). Tell them they were paying £10 per month, but now only £9. See how they react. Most who have it trad ever 2 weeks are set in there ways. My brother inlaw is the same. Water all over etc

 

[tattoosnhooves]

I imagine a customer just sees there window av been cleaned ticket

the fact that they being cleaned on a monthly as oppose to fortnightly

they still just paying for 1 clean.irrelevant of weekly or monthly

just a thwat as I don't do any of them,all monthly

and on the pole,my min price for a house is £6.as long as do my dayrate at the end of day and try n keep up to date

happy bunny

 

[kev]

Think you'll find customers won't give you the £10 a month for 1 visit less regardless of WFP or not ,you would be better telling them about the change explaining your new WFP will keep there windows cleaner longer.But I would introduce a price increase

Is it a fact that using the wfp keeps the windows cleaner longer than traditional methods?

 

[kev]

I don't even think you need to clean them every 2 weeks trad or wfp.

Fornightly means they are clean constantly, it doesnt give time for dirt to build up, but monthly is sufficient

 

[kev]

This may sound harsh but If people can't afford to pay a messily 10 squid min payment for a monthly wfp window clean then quite honestly they should not be on your books wherever you are in the country.

I've put my £4.50 fornightly houses up to £5.50 but it's been taking me a month to get round lately, probably be back up to date fornightly by monday, been thinking about converting to wfp the last couple of months but i just know they wouldn't wear me putting the price up to £10 a month. New customers in a different area fair enough, but not my existing customers, most of my work the houses are next door to each other, like 20 in a street and so on

 

[kev]

Customers wont like paying double. You will have to explain that its a better system that costs more, but lasts longer. Also that all the frames etc are cleaned every visit and this transforms them over time (it does). Tell them they were paying £10 per month, but now only £9. See how they react. Most who have it trad ever 2 weeks are set in there ways. My brother inlaw is the same. Water all over etc

Got to admit the wfp does leave a mess all over the place and water dripping down windows, a guy was working on a house next door to me and i was doing trad but when you looked at the two jobs from the front my one looked the better, windows shining and no mess. It's a conundrum