I don’t care about your emotional projections and how to influence other people and the branches of those subjects, I’m basically taking about managing a transition to a new method of window cleaning. The question is simple, do you explain to customers about what WFP is ?
It’s really that simple. If you need help with the thread ask a friend.
Hey walk up with a video here this is how we do it . My plumber an electrician an carpenter at my house just did the same thing
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“There are no problems, only solutions.”
- John Lennon
Don’t make things into problems. Tell the customer that you have found a solution to really cleaning up the ledges with 'lots of clear, pure water. Pollen, smog, glass etching salty sea spray… gone, poof. Through your diligence as a professional window cleaner, you have researched a great way to clean the customer’s windows even better.
They can still decide to have their windows cleaned the traditional way, but you have gone the extra mile by offering the latest window cleaning technology.
The worst thing to do is mention how it saves YOU time and / or money. Or even that it is safer (people may think that you are just worried about your own skin and trying to play that off as an advantage to them).
Perception and presentation are everything.
Of course, you already know that, right?
[MENTION=7269]Majestic66[/MENTION]
I keep meaning to get a tablet and put some before and after pictures, some videos etc for customers. Let your work speak for itself.
Hey bud your on a forum you asked a question I think post numbers 3 4 6 7 8 11 16 were good answers to yur question if you don’t like them then come up with your own solution .
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I did. Thank you for the advise. Best.
You should care about how people view you and the way you present your company.
WFP is not new by any means its been around for decades, it may be new to you but not the market.
In my opinion you need to get off your high horse and become a informed professional in more ways then one.
Your right, very wonderful. Thank you.
the simplest way I’ve been able to explain wfp and pure water window cleaning is as follows.
[I]For decades the professional window cleaner would scrub the windows with a solution of water and soap. This would put all the loosened dirt into a solution suspended on the glass. Next he would take a squeegee and pull that solution off the glass leaving it clean. The soap used in the solution would also make the squeegee rubber glide better across the glass.
The only downside to this method is that the operator had to be in front of the window most of the time and this meant dangerous ladder work.
Along came pure water systems/carts that could remove all the minerals out of ordinary tap water. The operator will run this pure water up through tubing on telescopic poles with a brush head. The brush and pure water acts like the tradtional scrubber and soap to work the dirt into a solution. Next, the operator will switch from agitating the glass to rinsing the entire glass surface with this pure water pulling all the dirt off the glass much like the tradtion squeegee used to do.
The benefits of this methods include safer working conditions, less possible damage to customers walls, window sills etc, less soap/chemical usage. And because there is no soap used in the process which may leave a residue, the windows will generally stay cleaner longer[/I]. Waterfed poles and pure water also does a much better job of cleaning window and door frames.
I usually tell my customers that the tools I use and what I am doing is the same concept as a spot free rinse in a car wash, that the pure water style of cleaning is popular in Europe but is not widely used here in the us. They get a “wow” look when I tell them that my company invested in a pure water “system” which contains 3 special filters and that their windows will dry completely spot free. Sell it to them as a “progressive” company - you are not some dude using a car wash brush and garden hose.
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Everything needs to be sold. People want to feel good about the product / service they are purchasing. Recommend the best course of action based on your past experience and knowledge and persuade them that you know what you are talking about. People want an expert to take the lead.
If you deliver the goods, and the job comes out fantastic, it is accomplished in a timely fashion, etc. etc. then people will feel that they received a good value for your services.
You still need to sell. You don’t have to be heavy handed about it but you always need to be emphasizing how you are delivering your customer value and that you appreciate your customer’s business.
There’s more than one way to clean a window. WFP or trad, you can get excellent results with both. Windows cleaners can get in debates arguing which system makes them more of a professional but to the customer, they could probably care less how the window was cleaned.
They start to prefer the method that gives the best results. But the market can get ruined by some bad operators. If the town / area has had a lot of poor quality WFP cleaning going around fro a few years, they may associate anyone who uses WFP as being a hack. The reverse could be true with trad.
So, you have to know the area you are servicing and the history of window cleaning service there. Your marketing has to reflect local concerns.
The same thing happens with carpet cleaning. Good results can be achieved with a variety of systems. What makes a good window cleaner is the experience in trying out every system, every tool and then deciding what course of action to take (whether wfp or trad) based on what will work best and not just doing what is easiest or most convenient.
After basic skills are mastered, what makes the best companies stand out is the customer service aspect. Many more people will choose the B+ work quality company who is extremely reliable and courteous to the A+ work quality company with C- customer care.
Nothing but positive feedback so far, and everyone is really enthusiastic about it as I am. Great, thanks!
I usually tell people I have been cleaning windows for 16 years I got this , But bunker an Mark if for some reason I have to get into detail that’s a good way to explain it. Honestly though why do we as window cleaners have to explain how we are going to clean there windows . this drives me crazy do plumbers electircians carpenters have to explain how they use there tools.please someone make sense of this for me. I haven’t had to explain to anyone except for one wacked out lady.
I have pickup lots of business from other guys using a WFP and not telling there customer what it’s about. To the customer, it looks as though the window cleaner could be taking water from the tap and brushing off their window and leaving them wet and in an incomplete state. This can present issues because the general public don’t know how WFP can be beneficial. The entire perception is corrected with a simple well thought out explanation that could be a 3 second email or a 1 minute conversation.
Thats what Im saying Mike.
It all comes down to Professionalism. I have never had to explain to a customer how I was going to clean their windows…Maybe because I FOCUS on being Professional from the first contact and through out their “experience” with me and my company.
I don’t believe you!!! Mr fairline if you are getting business from your comp. then godbless ya!!! Your comp is incompetent an new to window cleaning . It doesn’t matter how WFP can be benifical what matters is that when you leave the windows are clean Duh!! Here is your well thought out explaintion tell them your a pro an they called the right person.
Thats a key point you brought up, A window cleaner should never leave the customers home before the window cleaning process is complete,A window cleaner should never leave a wet window or windows and think their job is complete,because the job is incomplete you need to give each window a detailed look to make sure the windows are clean and your customer is completely satisfied with the work and their “experience” with you (or your crew) and your company.
[MENTION=6741]wcs[/MENTION] well said !
You can snag some pretty good talking points from this link:
This thread also inspired us to make a little one page version of the above to print off for any concerned clients. That will be released this week I believe…
[MENTION=33798]GinaWCR[/MENTION]
We took your advice and created a handout for everyone!
We’ve made two different handouts, one for Photoshop and one for Microsoft Word.
Here you will find the new Water Fed Pole Window Cleaning Handout, which simply explains what WFP window cleaning is, how it works, and how it will benefit your customer. There is a place where you can edit your company’s information, making it that much more personalized for you and your business.
To download the Photoshop file, follow this link:
http://shopwindowcleaner.com/guides/wfp-handout.psd
To download the Microsoft Word file, follow this link:
http://shopwindowcleaner.com/guides/wfp-handout.docx
