Keeping track of customers and booking people in.

[PR Cleaning Solutions]

Hi all, so I started my own business last September now and its going really well. I offer Window cleaning, gutter clearing and gutter and fascia and soffit cleaning.

What I am wondering is, how do you all keep track of your customers, do you have a database or record book, I'm still not at the stage where I just call every month, 2 months etc with my customers, most times i need to get in contact with them and book them in.

When booking in your customers do you call them or text, I found that with texts some people don't reply for days and by this stage I was already in their area.

Also I find it hard to get customers who want their windows done every 6 weeks, most people are every 3 or 4 months and some I've gone back to after this lenght and still said no. Do you ditch these customers or keep getting in touch to see when they want to be done again? Also I find a lot of people need to be home for me to do their house as they are terraced house or have a dog.

Luckily I'm kept going by big houses that want all the works done, gutters windows fascia and soffit, and i find this is where the money is, but I would prefer more regular work from the same customers as eventually I dont need to keep looking for new customers once I have enough regulars.

I would appreciate any advice or tips that helped for you.

Thanks so much

Philip Rowe

PR Cleaning Solutions

 

[Pjj]

We are old fashioned and use spread sheets , I don’t want to be using some 3rd party like theses apps to store my customers details , you are allowing them to control your business if it crashes or goes down and they do , then a lot of information can be lost or not available when you need it , I know I will be in the minority with what I have said but we have done it this way for over 20 years very successfully and never had a problem running 3 vans this way , it doesn’t take much time each month to up date records 

 

[PR Cleaning Solutions]

We are old fashioned and use spread sheets , I don’t want to be using some 3rd party like theses apps to store my customers details , you are allowing them to control your business it it crashes or goes down and they do , then a lot of information can be list or not available when you need it , I know I will be in the minority with what I have said but we have done it this way for over 20 years very successfully and never had a problem running 3 vans this way , it doesn’t take much time each month to up date records 

Yeah this is actually what I have done. Ive used Microsoft Excel. I guess that is the best way to be doing it then.

 

[Pjj]

Yeah this is actually what I have done. Ive used Microsoft Excel. I guess that is the best way to be doing it then.

As I said many would disagree with what I have said and promote this app or that programme ,but all of them over the years have had problems a paper spread sheet and list cannot crash doesn’t cost xxx amount each month and it’s easy to use , but I accept Ime in the minority and a techno dinosaur ???, but it works well for us ,I don’t plan on changing anytime soon .  

 

[ks789]

I just use the old fashioned way too. Sometimes this pc doesnt work etc, plus I find it easy to just look in my folders without having to boot up a computer.

regarding the customers waiting ages between cleans, I guess while you need the work to stick with them, but it has to be a higher price as it will take more time and water. I do text a lot but try and get it so I dont have to if at all possible. in most cases they dont really have to be there, except for locked gate access for some.

 

[Iron Giant]

There has been cloud based apps around for years now which are http://cleanerplanner.com  http://aworka.com http://squeegee.ee these have been discussed multiple times in the past on here and are the top 3 

 

[Incheck]

Same as PJJ never trust a bloomin computer or an app

 

[AGlassAct]

Aworka for me. Tried cleaner planner, squeegee, diary, spreadsheets. Nothing is simpler and more efficient. At £12 a month it’s a no-brained for me - has NEVER crashed or let me down. Auto generates invoices, mark off payments, drag and drop customers to change around. Running debt list, goCardless synchronised including fee deduction, the list goes on. I appreciate what the others have said, but we live in a digital age, your using an ‘app’ to view this on a phone that relies on this technology - how often do you have issues logging on here? how often do you have phone issues? How often does your computer ‘crash’. We constantly swap and change equipment to make our lives easier and an app based planner/organiser does that in spades (for me anyway!). 

 

[Master Jedi Alejandro]

In my day we never used vans, we use to carry our buckets on our head and the ladders on our shoulders! ??
 

No but seriously it’s Squeegee for me! Love using the software and so easy to scale as you grow!

 

[Iron Giant]

Same as PJJ never trust a bloomin computer or an app

How are you managing to reply on here ??

 

[Incheck]

How are you managing to reply on here ??

Lol you know what i mean iron giant ? i’ve just woken up..cant explain...complicated stuff ? 

 

[scottish cleaning service]

I am going to visit my local TSB to see if I can switch over from RBS. They are giving a free card reader and 25 months free banking. I'm rapidly falling out of love with RBS.

 

[Iron Giant]

I am going to visit my local TSB to see if I can switch over from RBS. They are giving a free card reader and 25 months free banking. I'm rapidly falling out of love with RBS.

And the relevance is ????

 

[NoName]

PR...I offer a bespoke freq also,,,but once they 'sign up' I dictate  (within reason) when I'm calling,,,each visit I leave a payment/your windows have been cleaned slip - and on this I give them the date (based on their agreed freq) of my next visit. If needed I move it around to coincide with other jobs in the locale (a few days either side). I don't contact them ever to let them know I'm coming...at sign up stage this is all explained and hand over a 'T&Cs' summary sheet, asking them to unlock gates on the day, give me their pin access no etc..

Keeping track I use a hardback A4 diary, write each job on the day- 10-12 per day (do a lot of large/r hse) and transpose the house/cost/freq to the next date in the dairy when I'm writing out their payment slip (sounds a big deal but takes seconds) that said I'm trailing cleaner planner and will migrate to a software model - for me the advantage - is software is a lot less likely to 'forget' to write up a new custy or transpose to a new date etc and it can capture all the details previously quoted etc so makes it easy when a customer asks can you redo the gutters etc much easier to lookup/find what you charged last time etc...this I reckon should save me money.

Top tip - at quote, say when you raise freq (if you want to still offer bespoke)  'most people prefer (insert your fav freq ?) - every 6 wks or (whatever it is )- would that be good for you? 9/10 say sure that sounds fine - also if you don't mention and put them on the spot and say - what freq do you require - they go blank and panic a bit and just grab a freq out of the air - and a LOT will sheepishly ask - erm what do most people do ? (most like to follow the herd - at least in south of england)

Once you've signed them up - never knock/text and say do you want them done today? - just rock up and start cleaning - that is what they signed up to - don't give them the chance to put you off- you are doing what they agreed!

Seems your looking at it from the custy's POV too much - this is a business and your livelihood!

You're right if you offer other services you want to have say 80/90% regular booked in work and the space in the diary you can fit in adhoc/new work (always add the adhoc stuff to the soonest/ish space so you get it/and leave space in the schedule for other adhoc to go into …(that's if you're widely advertising/getting calls etc)

All the best pal

 

[horatiocarter]

PR...I offer a bespoke freq also,,,but once they 'sign up' I dictate  (within reason) when I'm calling,,,each visit I leave a payment/your windows have been cleaned slip - and on this I give them the date (based on their agreed freq) of my next visit. If needed I move it around to coincide with other jobs in the locale (a few days either side). I don't contact them ever to let them know I'm coming...at sign up stage this is all explained and hand over a 'T&Cs' summary sheet, asking them to unlock gates on the day, give me their pin access no etc..

Keeping track I use a hardback A4 diary, write each job on the day- 10-12 per day (do a lot of large/r hse) and transpose the house/cost/freq to the next date in the dairy when I'm writing out their payment slip (sounds a big deal but takes seconds) that said I'm trailing cleaner planner and will migrate to a software model - for me the advantage - is software is a lot less likely to 'forget' to write up a new custy or transpose to a new date etc and it can capture all the details previously quoted etc so makes it easy when a customer asks can you redo the gutters etc much easier to lookup/find what you charged last time etc...this I reckon should save me money.

Top tip - at quote, say when you raise freq (if you want to still offer bespoke)  'most people prefer (insert your fav freq ?) - every 6 wks or (whatever it is )- would that be good for you? 9/10 say sure that sounds fine - also if you don't mention and put them on the spot and say - what freq do you require - they go blank and panic a bit and just grab a freq out of the air - and a LOT will sheepishly ask - erm what do most people do ? (most like to follow the herd - at least in south of england)

Once you've signed them up - never knock/text and say do you want them done today? - just rock up and start cleaning - that is what they signed up to - don't give them the chance to put you off- you are doing what they agreed!

Seems your looking at it from the custy's POV too much - this is a business and your livelihood!

You're right if you offer other services you want to have say 80/90% regular booked in work and the space in the diary you can fit in adhoc/new work (always add the adhoc stuff to the soonest/ish space so you get it/and leave space in the schedule for other adhoc to go into …(that's if you're widely advertising/getting calls etc)

All the best pal

this has been really useful for me thank you can i ask how do you work out how much profit you want to make? is it just based on what yo uwant to take home monthly or do you have a % of profit?

 

[ched999uk]

I am going to visit my local TSB to see if I can switch over from RBS. They are giving a free card reader and 25 months free banking. I'm rapidly falling out of love with RBS.

Check TSB as the new system where when a custy adds a new payee the name on the account is checked. TSB business banking doesn't support this feature!!!! So some custys can't pay by BACS!!!! Be very careful, get it in writing that the TSB business account works with the new name-checking service as it is applicable to BACS and Direct Debits!!! Brother  in law (plumber) just switched to TSB and is having no end of issues with custys trying to pay into his TSB account!!!!

 

[NoName]

this has been really useful for me thank you can i ask how do you work out how much profit you want to make? is it just based on what yo uwant to take home monthly or do you have a % of profit?

Horatio - work out what your hourly rate you need/want to earn - good idea to have a fairly 'high' hourly rate to offset sickness/wet/frozen days/hols etc) (calc all monthly expenses inc one annual costs etc) and what wages you want/need to pay yourself and leave a healthy chunk for unexpected costs/investments in your biz - new van/repairs/system/going hot etc ) as cost of living round UK difference so does everyones earning potential - but don't aim too low - £30-40-50/hour is fairly common - try to calc how long a job will take plus any expenses, chemical etc and charge by the 'hour' or for some jobs just have a minimum charge i.e nothing less than £15 to rock and clean any windows (i.e 3/4 plus door) and go up from there or guttering clearance min job charge say 90-100-120 etc - you'll get to feel your way and soon will be adept at figuring how complex (time/effort consuming it is) and if you want the work and price accordingly...try to avoid low balling your initial work...as you will be stuck at a really low base price and tricky to get custy to swallow a (needed) price hike later on...easier to start out with an 'ideal' price - you may not get every job...but if you low ball to start you risk never really making enough to make it viable and end up having to chuck it all in...a common start up grab work at any price...fail...vicious circle.    

 

[scottish cleaning service]

Check TSB as the new system where when a custy adds a new payee the name on the account is checked. TSB business banking doesn't support this feature!!!! So some custys can't pay by BACS!!!! Be very careful, get it in writing that the TSB business account works with the new name-checking service as it is applicable to BACS and Direct Debits!!! Brother  in law (plumber) just switched to TSB and is having no end of issues with custys trying to pay into his TSB account!!!!

Aye, there was alot of teething problems when I begun 6 months ago. It kept coming up with account not recognised then you needed to add full name. My TSB business account is fine now and still has another 2 years free banking till I switch or stick with them. I never took the free card reader because I seem to manage without it. I still take about half my windy money in cash which I use to pay someone to help me, when I need it.

 

[swc1]

 I still take about half my windy money in cash which I use to pay someone to help me, when I need it.

Be careful. All money should be accountable.

Your setting a precedence paying out cash. 

 

[scottish cleaning service]

Be careful. All money should be accountable.

Your setting a precedence paying out cash. 

I've got a public pension so cash coming in every month to use as petty cash. I spend all my earnings in equipment but getting near the tipping point where I have everything. After this month, I will have everything in place so maybe looking at a new van or new house.