okay i am kinda new to this website/forum thing…and i love it.
i can’t help but notice the “industry” is dominated by guys. are there any other women out there washing windows or running a company? not that it really matters, it’s just a nice to know.
anyway…thanks for all the helpful information you “guys” provide!
robin
Robin our very best window cleaner is a woman. She puts the guys to shame.
There are some and they tend to have a leg up (pardon the expression) on sales for obvious reasons.
You’ll likely find it rather easy to sale. Best of luck to ya.
The AWC mag did an article on females working in the industry not long back. More power to the women - they definately have the upper hand when it comes to interior resi’ work.
My wife and I work together. She usually works on the insides and talks w/ the customers while I handle the outs. We have found many of our customers stay w/ us because we are a husband and wife team!
well thanks for all the encouragement.
i have been in this business for 14 years and have solely run my own company for 6 years. most people can’t believe that i can carry a 24’ ladder and get on roofs…
i did marry into the business and i learned a lot from my husband. i was just curious if there were any other women owners out there!
thanks again, this has been fun…
btw…we (girls) do have a “leg up” on you guys when it comes to sales! i have about a 90-95% close rate!
Same thing happens to us, I bought this company back in May, and my wife has been working full-time with me for over a month now. It really makes people feel more “secure” if that’s the correct expression.
On the other hand, and that doesn’t have to be a bad thing, it makes your company look smaller, from my perspective at least. Is really good sometimes, others no so good.
But yes, WC’ing is a good place for women. And kudos to you Robin if you carry a 24 footer without help, by the end of the day sometimes it feels like carrying a 40ft.
Then you might be too cheap.
i regurgitate, of course, the national average.
At that rate, it’s time to raise your prices!
actually i am one of the highest prices in the entire window gang company…that’s nation wide. this is a small market, and i have little to no competition as well.
thanks anyway. i ain’t no cheap, ho! 
In the video where Kevin is speaking, you can see quite a few women in the crowd. One said they are an all girl company.
Also in one of Kevin’s photos on his site, I saw a female employee carrying a ladder.
pardon the ignorance, but who is kevin? and which video do i watch to see this?
thanks…
Agreed, even if I was already charging $20/pane and still closing 95% of the time I would raise my rates.
Oh and Kevin is PainlessPerfection on these boards. He is a marketing genuis and window cleaning business coach.
thanks again…
for all the input.
one final question, in all of your opinions, what’s the national average for window i/o? i’m just curious how much you all think i should raise my prices?
My daughter has worked for me on and off for 2 years and one of the best wc’s i’ve had, never have to check her work. Just about all my repeats always ask me where’s your daughter. At the IWCA conventions I noticed more and more women working and running companies in the industry during the past 4 years that i have been attending the conventions
The national “average” has less to do in your market than the 90-95% close rate you mentioned.
Find out what your market, and specific customers, will bear. Play around with higher prices on future quotes.
My daughter will work with me this coming summer again. So will one or two of my sones. At 16 I’m not yet comfortable with daughter doing more than step-ladder work I’m thinking she is strong enough to use a wfp up a couple stories for a short time. She is talking about college and I hope she gets a vision to start her own company in whatever college town she lands. I would much rather see her build, run and then sell a business when she graduates rather than flipping bugers to make some money during college.
Eric
the ladder work/strength thing…well really with a 24’ it’s about balance more than strength. although w/ the 32’ i can move it around, but i cannot take it off and put it back on the truck. of course, y’all probably are invisioning a 2-ton helga, but i’m only 5’4" and no i am not overweight…i’m average. but i will say on those windy days at the beach the 24’ is a real challenge!
One of my best female washers was only 5’2" and weighed in at 110. Small thing but she was one of the best. She was awesome and I wish she would come back. My wife accutally runs the office here and I manage the washers. My wife has never cleaned a window but my daughter at age 5 is already starting to pick things up. She will wash our office windows for fun. sad thing is that she is better than most my new trainees a week into training.
Hey Robin, Kevin here…
I also have a couple of ladies working for me, too, one of which can be seen in the photo on my website’s homepage:
Some advice about your prices:
It sounds like you are basing your pricing on supply-side factors, not client-side factors.
Here’s what I mean by supply-side price calculation:
- You “charge more than other window gang guys.”
- You “make great profit with your pricing.”
User-side pricing calculation moves us to ask “I wonder how much money this prospect would be willing to pay for these services? How much monetary value would they perceive in this?”
For instance, when looking at a job, you may think “Hey, this job is gravy, and my guys can bang it off in 30 minutes, which will cost me about $65 in gas, labor, and insurance, so if I charge $165, I can make $100 profit.”
That’s supply-side.
User-side teaches us to think “Okay, so its gonna cost me $65 to get this done. I wonder how much I could persuade this client to pay us? What would I have to do to get them to agree to a $500 price?”
Sorry about the rant! It just crossed my mind when I noticed your comment about pricing, compared to your fellow franchisees.
I don’t care if you’re charging $100 a window. If you’re closing 90-95%, you’re leaving money on the table that the client is ready to put in your pocket if you ask for it…
