Canvassing company?

[boarcity]

youd be on the road a lot. but once organized it could be a good life each yr . summer on the west coast of scotland or over to ireland , wales for autumn etc .

 

[peter rogers]

wat the **** do u want to come to ireland for summer lol

 

[Green Pro Clean Ltd]

wat the **** do u want to come to ireland for summer lol

Pi$$ing my self laughing Peter, after all the wettest summer I ever knew was the summer I spent in Ireland (both of them) !

:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:

 

[boarcity]

id think that you being the business owner wouldnt walk the streets yourself too much , otherwise walking Ireland/scotland/wales etc would get you very footsore. youd likely need a couple of employees to make the job enjoyable else itd get lonely on your todd in a strange town after a while . course the costs then mount up , B and B for 3 .

about a year ago on Fb window cleaners page there was a genial guy starting up canvassing calling himself East Mids canvassing.

he bought a brand new Toyota RV and on announcing his intent he had loads of enquiries. i just looked him up on Fb out of interest,seems he didnt do it for very long and now has become a windie with a Vivaro

 

[pdale]

from wat i gather paul dale and whizz bizz is worth waiting on
but i no adamangler had bad experience with paul ...

Interesting ... Is that what he has said?

I'll start by saying that I only tend to stick to the Midlands these days for a few local guys, as I haven't taken on new clients this year or really traveled due to some health concerns.

In 2014 I had Adam book me in Wakefield and another guy in Leeds who wanted me to do some of the more upmarket villages outside of the city about 10 miles from Adam. I decided to book the two weeks together to save traveling back, though due to some heavy rain and a few hard days it took me three weeks to do both guys. I didn't have any issues with the villages I did for the other guy and subsequently declined an offer to come back for six weeks this year as I'd since decided against traveling.

The estates I was on in Wakefield was tough to knock to get decent prices as there were a number of really cheap window cleaners (£4-£5 for three bed semi's) in those areas. Most of the work I got for him was more than double these prices and during a rainy time in November which didn't help. I did leave him with a surplus to cover any potential messers but was informed in December that there were more than the usual rate of cancellations for differing reasons and a final figure was given in January. I'll wait and see what's in his review before I go into my own observations.

We agreed to refund those cancellations, rather than replace ... which I did. Normally if there are cancellations I'll come back to replace and top up ... Adam has been the only guy to date that I've refunded money for lost work.

As far as I was aware we parted on good terms and take note of the fact Adam in his post has called me a 'decent guy', so I'm a little surprised to see the above comment.

 

[Green Pro Clean Ltd]

Pete Dale, by 'bad experience' I think that Peter Rogers simply meant that Adam did not see the kind of results he was hoping for, perhaps a bad choice of term on P.Rogers part?

I spoke to Whizz on the pone myself and he did say it was a seriously difficult area on the estates due to the existing 'low price' guys in the area.

I have only ever driven through Wakefield so I would not consider dissing it in any way whatsoever but in the defense of the canvassers (both P.Dale and Whizz) if you get :turd: to work with then all you can be expected to produce is :turd:.

I make that last statement on the grounds that I consider myself a dab hand at canvassing and we have a couple of notoriously :turd: areas here in Notts that when I first got started again I canvassed not realizing how :turd: they were and all they produced for me was :turd:.

I think if you, like myself and Adam happen to live in an area with a lot of :turd: around you need to be more understanding of what to expect from a canvasser.

I am sure there are also canvassers out there that say they can canvass anything but there is a big difference between towns like Windsor and towns like Wakefield, I know full well when on a canvassing roll it is easy to think you are unstoppable but then all of a sudden you run into that one estate or street that will break your spirit quicker than a weekend omnibus of Coronation Street.

Please note that I am not speaking for P.Dale, Whizz or Adam, this is just my interpretation of how things may have been.

Adam was going to post a review after tea last night, must have been one hell of a tea! /emoticons/tongue.png

 

[Diwrnach]

Interesting ... Is that what he has said?
I'll start by saying that I only tend to stick to the Midlands these days for a few local guys, as I haven't taken on new clients this year or really traveled due to some health concerns.

In 2014 I had Adam book me in Wakefield and another guy in Leeds who wanted me to do some of the more upmarket villages outside of the city about 10 miles from Adam. I decided to book the two weeks together to save traveling back, though due to some heavy rain and a few hard days it took me three weeks to do both guys. I didn't have any issues with the villages I did for the other guy and subsequently declined an offer to come back for six weeks this year as I'd since decided against traveling.

The estates I was on in Wakefield was tough to knock to get decent prices as there were a number of really cheap window cleaners (£4-£5 for three bed semi's) in those areas. Most of the work I got for him was more than double these prices and during a rainy time in November which didn't help. I did leave him with a surplus to cover any potential messers but was informed in December that there were more than the usual rate of cancellations for differing reasons and a final figure was given in January. I'll wait and see what's in his review before I go into my own observations.

We agreed to refund those cancellations, rather than replace ... which I did. Normally if there are cancellations I'll come back to replace and top up ... Adam has been the only guy to date that I've refunded money for lost work.

As far as I was aware we parted on good terms and take note of the fact Adam in his post has called me a 'decent guy', so I'm a little surprised to see the above comment.

I'm not far from you @pdale just the other side of Stratford Upon Avon though guessing you are fully booked anyway?

 

[peter rogers]

when i first heard this @pdale i actually said i heard you were a great canvasser this is on another thread

sorry for my bad english i didnt mean you r a bad canvasser

and also @pdale i was chatting to you at start of year about coming over to me

/emoticons/tongue.png as i know you are gd at your job sorry for misunderstanding

 

[adamangler]

I havent actually said anything about anyone only that ive used both so dunno where thats come from, there may be one or two on here who have pmed me asking how it went who may know a bit more and hearsay has spread some rumours i dunno

its funny really the internet lol

i was going to write a review just as a bit of feedback for you lot but having seen pauls post i think ill not bother as whatever i say im sure someone will get offended and a whole shitstorm will ensue, things get taken out of context.

whilst its true to say results where less than expected from both as a general overview, its untrue to suggest anything other than both were decent guys who did what they set out to do and both refunded any work short and there were reasons as to why it fell short which is what i was going to explain but for the record ive no problem with either, as im sure mark @Whizz\-Bizz will tell you if he sees this we both agreed it was a nightmare and mutually agreed to pull the plug early.

i might post further if it helps anyone but if no ones interested ill keep quiet as it doesnt matter to me anymore dont want to be simply stirring any rumours.

@Green yeah was a big tea, ha you cant diss wakey living in shottingham mate.

to be fair wakey is typical of west yorkshire, it has decent areas and not so good areas but its a bit medieval when it comes to window cleaning. most areas have been done traditionally for years for a fiver

Ive found this when canvassing/leafletting/facebooking myself, to be fair paul did pretty well, was happy with his prices. whizz struggled with prices more but he didnt canvass the same areas and was seeing cleaner after cleaner whilst out and about.

the conclusion ive drawn from all this is it wasnt just me all along it really is a difficult area, two well known canvassers struggled here and ive struggled.

wakey is difficult and probably a bad example of canvassing in general

 

[Diwrnach]

See round here I think it would be a piece of cake for someone, I know Whizz did some in the town I live in for someone who turned out to be a timewaster, but won't go into details, but he said it was a piece of cake.

Ideally would want some work in Moreton in Marsh, Stow on the Wold and Bourton on the Water, all well off towns in the Cotswolds.

I'll see what this happy canvassing turn out like then, amazing how hard it is to get a canvasser, really is a big opening in the market.

 

[Diwrnach]

Quick question, do you get the work on the canvassers system? for example I only really do 6 weekly now and charge a minimum of £10, would a canvasser do that or would they do it their way? if that makes sense.

 

[pdale]

I havent actually said anything about anyone only that ive used both so dunno where thats come from, there may be one or two on here who have pmed me asking how it went who may know a bit more and hearsay has spread some rumours i dunno
its funny really the internet lol

Cool ... chinese whispers travel quickly on the internet lol

wakey is difficult and probably a bad example of canvassing in general

The results after cancellations were less than I expected. I have had similar issues with pricing in other mining towns (Cannock/Mansfield), I think it's something in the psyche of people living there. I'd think about working outside of Wakefield, travel 15 miles or so as I did well for the other guy I worked for, so there is decent work out there. There was the one area of Wakefield I did a day or two on that was a little more upmarket, but not enough houses there to build a decent round.

I make that last statement on the grounds that I consider myself a dab hand at canvassing and we have a couple of notoriously :turd: areas here in Notts that when I first got started again I canvassed not realizing how :turd: they were and all they produced for me was :turd:.

I know what you mean about Nottingham, I have worked it regularly from 2013-14. There are some decent areas, but equally there are some bad ones where they expect cheap pricing.

I'm not far from you pdale just the other side of Stratford Upon Avon though guessing you are fully booked anyway?

I've worked Stratford upon Avon and got some good results there with decent pricing ... a couple of jobs £40-£50, though he'd leafleted that area before I went. I can work the other side, so long as it's not the town itself. At present though I'm not doing much knocking other than very local due to some health issues, but plan on being back up to speed in the new year - spring.

when i first heard this @pdale i actually said i heard you were a great canvasser this is on another thread

sorry for my bad english i didnt mean you r a bad canvasser

and also @pdale i was chatting to you at start of year about coming over to me

/emoticons/tongue.png as i know you are gd at your job sorry for misunderstanding

Cool, sorry for taking your comment out of context ... I haven't read the other thread.

Quick question' date=' do you get the work on the canvassers system? for example I only really do 6 weekly now and charge a minimum of £10, would a canvasser do that or would they do it their way? if that makes sense.[/quote']
I work on your system, so long as the window cleaner is realistic about pricing, but can't talk of other guys. A minimum of £10 isn't an issue generally and I doubt very much it would be an issue in the Cotswolds.

 

[Diwrnach]

Cool ... chinese whispers travel quickly on the internet lol


The results after cancellations were less than I expected. I have had similar issues with pricing in other mining towns (Cannock/Mansfield), I think it's something in the psyche of people living there. I'd think about working outside of Wakefield, travel 15 miles or so as I did well for the other guy I worked for, so there is decent work out there. There was the one area of Wakefield I did a day or two on that was a little more upmarket, but not enough houses there to build a decent round.

I know what you mean about Nottingham, I have worked it regularly from 2013-14. There are some decent areas, but equally there are some bad ones where they expect cheap pricing.

I've worked Stratford upon Avon and got some good results there with decent pricing ... a couple of jobs £40-£50, though he'd leafleted that area before I went. I can work the other side, so long as it's not the town itself. At present though I'm not doing much knocking other than very local due to some health issues, but plan on being back up to speed in the new year - spring.

Cool, sorry for taking your comment out of context ... I haven't read the other thread.

I work on your system, so long as the window cleaner is realistic about pricing, but can't talk of other guys. A minimum of £10 isn't an issue generally and I doubt very much it would be an issue in the Cotswolds.

Thanks for taking the time to reply, much appreciated, I do have some work in Stratford, but to be honest I avoid it as for some reason all my messers, late payers etc are all from Stratford, where as in the Cotswolds I get no issues at all.

£10 is my minimum on houses apart from those really tiny ones I will do for £8, same with bungalows.

Might be worth messaging you, though I was just wondering what your minimum charge is?

Ideally wanted to hire small amount regularly rather than massive chunks, but not sure if that is not worthwhile for you.

 

[Diwrnach]

Also hope your health is better now, know all about health issues, had a heart attack at 27, health issues suck.

 

[SolarPanelCleaning]

I'm sick of canvassing.

Getting a canvasser in once a year looks like a great way to grow. Spend a grand and get 5 or 6 grand pa back? Looks too good to be true....

 

[Diwrnach]

I'm sick of canvassing.Getting a canvasser in once a year looks like a great way to grow. Spend a grand and get 5 or 6 grand pa back? Looks too good to be true....

That is my thinking, get someone else to do the canvassing leaves me free to run the business and not worry about it, I am hoping to hire someone maybe 6 times over a year to start with, on short stints, I don't want a massive load of extra customers in one go really, maybe £250 a month extra every couple of months, then go from there.

Seems this is nigh impossible to do though, all the canvassers seem to be booked up for months if not years /emoticons/sad.png

 

[adamangler]

that was exactly my plan diwrnach, use a canvasser twice a year and eventually get to a point where your stacked out and grow from there.

ive had to rethink it but going to just advertise local now for a young lad or two and go out with them knocking. mind you im getting quite into carpets now so i may even go this route and just let the windows build steady from fb/website which.

did a carpet today £60 for an hours work, hard work but im getting to like carpet cleaning.

 

[Diwrnach]

Sounds like me with pressure washing, did £100 for just over an hour last week and got a £50 one hour job on Thursday, that's obviously not including the bigger jobs, but they don't pay as much as the quick small ones.

Might be an idea to advertise locally and see if anyone fancies the job? pay them commission or something, getting a canvasser seems like bloody hard work.

 

[adamangler]

It is mate lol. theres not many about theres definately a huge market for someone who fancies it.

I couldnt be on the road that much dossing in hotels, i like my own bed too much

for some reason i cant get pressure washing work but carpets a lot easier to get work and ive marketted pw loads last year.

 

[peter rogers]

@adam have u done a info leaflet up for ur regular customers ? on carpet cleaning i say they be more likely to take u in rather than a stranger there u have access to dozens of leads and good customers

 

[adamangler]

Hi mate, not made a massive push on it yet as between the bad weather, windows, part time job, car valeting & carpets im stacked out at the minute and cant catch up. plus im waiting until ive done some training in a few weeks before i really get stuck in as i dont want to ruin a carpet, just been doing the odd one for now practice as you go lol

im at the point where i need to make the leap to full time to really get to the next level but would ideally like another 200-300 worth of regular window work first, i have a baby on the way so need to be a bit carefull. at the minute im as busy as ever but im concious the phone call could dry up next week so dont want to be too hasty.