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You will not get them prices round here

I have managed to convert my last two customers to wfp or I was dropping them. In the end they had no choice so its now the future for window cleaning. Trad guys are slowly disappearing and wfp is gaining traction because it ticks all the right boxes. When you reach enough customers you don't need the hassle and can make up your own prices. Price too high and you won't get that many, price too low and you will feel depressed because you are working too cheap. Find the middle price and your business will flourish each month, that's what I have found out. tbh ?

 
A trad guy says I wounnt get the price that I charge around this area 

sick off offer trad guys  
To be fair they probably wouldn't and before the trad guys start saying I'm knocking them I'm not. I believe, in my area anyway, it is perceived that WFP is more expensive as our systems cost money, quite often our appearance is more business like, sign written Van's and the trad guys are cheap as they are not declaring everything.

When I first started my target price was £10 and the majority of the time my phone went dead as soon as I said it. Nowadays we get the majority of enquiries at £12

 
To be fair they probably wouldn't and before the trad guys start saying I'm knocking them I'm not. I believe, in my area anyway, it is perceived that WFP is more expensive as our systems cost money, quite often our appearance is more business like, sign written Van's and the trad guys are cheap as they are not declaring everything.

When I first started my target price was £10 and the majority of the time my phone went dead as soon as I said it. Nowadays we get the majority of enquiries at £12
Don't know where you are but that sounds very cheap. £20 is fairly average in a nice part of East Hampshire, add on £1 per pane for a conservatory is my formula. 

 
Don't know where you are but that sounds very cheap. £20 is fairly average in a nice part of East Hampshire, add on £1 per pane for a conservatory is my formula. 
I'm in the NE and I'm fairly certain that @spruce@Iron Giant others from up here will agree the majority of our competition are sub £10 for standard 3 bed semis.

I have work down your way and can earn 2 to 3 times as much down there as up here.

 
I'm in the NE and I'm fairly certain that @spruce@Iron Giant others from up here will agree the majority of our competition are sub £10 for standard 3 bed semis.

I have work down your way and can earn 2 to 3 times as much down there as up here.
Fair enough. House prices and rents are at least twice as expensive down here so it's all relative. I had a break in Cornwall and had a chat with the air B&B windie, he lived locally in Cornwall but also spent a lot of time cleaning in Salisbury. He said the rates in Cornwall were a lot lower.

 
Don't know where you are but that sounds very cheap. £20 is fairly average in a nice part of East Hampshire, add on £1 per pane for a conservatory is my formula. 
As @Part Timersays; we are still competing with the £5 back and front 3 bed semi guys. The further east we go the lower the prices.

£9 is still the high end of perceived window cleaning price in my experience around here. I'm hanging onto some I've got for £10, but £10 around Redcar & Cleveland is the tipping point for an average house. Most still expect a price of £7 to £8 and an increase of 50p occasionally. ?

I put one up by a £1 and I thought he was going to have heart failure.

One of the local lads quotes higher than I do but has a large customer turnover.

 
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As @Part Timersays; we are still competing with the £5 back and front 3 bed semi guys. The further east we go the lower the prices.

£9 is still the high end of perceived window cleaning price in my experience around here. I'm hanging onto some I've got for £10, but £10 around Redcar & Cleveland is the tipping point for an average house. Most still expect a price of £7 to £8 and an increase of 50p occasionally. ?

I put one up by a £1 and I thought he was going to have heart failure.

One of the local lads quotes higher than I do but has a large customer turnover.
Stop being shy and put your prices up 

U can easily get £10.00 for a 3 bed house if KK are charging £12 for a 3 bed house  

 
As @Part Timersays; we are still competing with the £5 back and front 3 bed semi guys. The further east we go the lower the prices.

£9 is still the high end of perceived window cleaning price in my experience around here. I'm hanging onto some I've got for £10, but £10 around Redcar & Cleveland is the tipping point for an average house. Most still expect a price of £7 to £8 and an increase of 50p occasionally. ?

I put one up by a £1 and I thought he was going to have heart failure.

One of the local lads quotes higher than I do but has a large customer turnover.
On new build estates I have no issue getting  £8 for a 2-3 bed semi which have the same amount of glass to clean I get £9 for the older build 3 beds, Near enough all my prices will be getting a 50p increase  this year even though some went up by £1 last year, 

With using Cleaner Planner and can see exactly how long each job has been at it's current price so this helps me lot with my bad memory and also I can let the custy know when the last increase was if they ask, I am sometimes surprised that some jobs are well overdue an increase. 

 
I dont understand any window cleaner putting prices up by 50p in this day and age...i always put mine up a quid or two...
Because a £1 increase on an £8 job is 12.5% which is a bit of a steep yearly increase. Not going to get into the is £8 enough question.

 
I dont understand any window cleaner putting prices up by 50p in this day and age...i always put mine up a quid or two...
Depends how often you are putting them up, if you are waiting 2-3 years between increases then £1 is fine, putting them up every year at 50p is reasonable,

GoCardless jacked their fees up last October which saw my monthly fees double so I need to balance my books with that plus inflation and other rising costs all come into play.

 
Depends how often you are putting them up, if you are waiting 2-3 years between increases then £1 is fine, putting them up every year at 50p is reasonable,

GoCardless jacked their fees up last October which saw my monthly fees double so I need to balance my books with that plus inflation and other rising costs all come into play.
I never put prices up every year....its too often in my opinion..that means if it's a 2 monthly job your putting their price up every 7th clean....

Usually its every 2 or 3 years for me (smaller 4 weekly jobs)..some larger jobs every 5 years...even then some customers moan that I only put their price up 'last year'!??

Larger jobs go up a fiver,smaller jobs a quid or two....

 
Depends how often you are putting them up, if you are waiting 2-3 years between increases then £1 is fine, putting them up every year at 50p is reasonable,

GoCardless jacked their fees up last October which saw my monthly fees double so I need to balance my books with that plus inflation and other rising costs all come into play.
Agree. The problem is the perceived price in the customer's mind. Manchester is closer to London @dazmondwhere people are influenced by a different cost mentality than in our part of the world.

The 'gold standard' of pricing here seems to centre around the minimum wage. You shouldn't be seen to be earning more than the hourly minimum rate. They also usually forget that the hourly they are paid of say £9.00 cost an employer much more than that an hour. That conception appears to also include employers as so many of them just pay the minimum wage to their staff.

Oh btw, I've had a few quotes rejected because 'they aren't going to pay more for their windows to be cleaned by me than they earn.

 
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Agree. The problem is the perceived price in the customer's mind. Manchester is closer to London @dazmondwhere people are influenced by a different cost mentality than in our part of the world.

The 'gold standard' of pricing here seems to centre around the minimum wage. You shouldn't be seen to be earning more than the hourly minimum rate. They also usually forget that the hourly they are paid of say £9.00 cost an employer much more than that an hour. That conception appears to also include employers as so many of them just pay the minimum wage to their staff.

Oh btw, I've had a few quotes rejected because 'they aren't going to pay more for their windows to be cleaned by me than they earn.
Yes for example when u do a £15.00 job on a maintenance clean and it takes u 15-20 minutes to clean with a good smooth flow, and then the customer cancels you... purely for the reason cos they just paid u £15 and it took u less then 30 minutes! haha....Ive had a few of these in my years ?  I once had 1 women challenge me about me earning above the hourly minimum wage,, i told her all the ins and outs of the cost of running business , and she was gobsmacked and said sorry to me lmao , some people dont understand the running costs of running a business

 
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Were in Cheshire, and for us, I've put our minimum charge to £13.00, I've had a quite a few cancellations since I started adding the v.a.t onto the price. 

Also had a few custys ring up this week because door knockers are going round saying they can do them for £10, on a property we charge £15.00 for. Asking for a price match! 

Empolying 3 staff on a salary and running costs, I couldn't justify any lower £13.00!

 
I never put prices up every year....its too often in my opinion..that means if it's a 2 monthly job your putting their price up every 7th clean....

Usually its every 2 or 3 years for me (smaller 4 weekly jobs)..some larger jobs every 5 years...even then some customers moan that I only put their price up 'last year'!??

Larger jobs go up a fiver,smaller jobs a quid or two....
That would make your increases on par with mine so no difference really, 50p a year is nothing and less than a blow than a quid but I've never had a custy bat an eyelid in the past, but most of them I never see, 

I am still competing with lads doing 4 bed detached houses for less than £10 never mind 3 bed semi's 

 
Agree. The problem is the perceived price in the customer's mind. Manchester is closer to London @dazmondwhere people are influenced by a different cost mentality than in our part of the world.

The 'gold standard' of pricing here seems to centre around the minimum wage. You shouldn't be seen to be earning more than the hourly minimum rate. They also usually forget that the hourly they are paid of say £9.00 cost an employer much more than that an hour. That conception appears to also include employers as so many of them just pay the minimum wage to their staff.

Oh btw, I've had a few quotes rejected because 'they aren't going to pay more for their windows to be cleaned by me than they earn.
Yes, very different up here peoples perception of what a window cleaner should be paid is outdated and those still charging lower prices are doing non of us any favours. 

 
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