Hi everyone I’m new here. Just started my business earlier this year in April. I live in sort of a rural town in Georgia. This is where I feel most of my problems are coming from but I have already bought a house here and have to make it work. I did good this summer with plenty of residential work and good paying customers but now going into the fall and winter I feel stuck. Work is slowing way down and I dont know what to do. I’ve been trying to get recurring work with storefronts and the like but most businesses are at least 45 mins to an hour away from me. So I’m just not sure if I can make it profitable. I’m planning to start advertising for gutter cleaning coming into this fall but other than that I just dont know what to do. It feels like my mind has gone blank. I’m not opposed to getting a job until next spring to pay the bills but I would really like to keep the business running. Any thoughts and suggestions are welcome. Thank you!
don’t wait to advertise gutters. if you wait until it’s time to clean them it will be too late. you want the potential customer to already have your info when the rain comes and they first think about cleaning the gutters.
spend every minute you’re not working knocking on doors and pasding out flyers, if you did nothing but that all day you could put out 300-500 a day and that will get things going, don’t stop doing this when the call start to come in since it has a delayed reaction. if you wait till you’re out of work to put out flyers expect that it can be 2-6 weeks before you see results.
Where abouts are you in Georgia? I’m in Powder Springs. Work typically slows this time of year but we have decent winters. Not like some of the people up north. I’m assuming your in west Georgiax I always think near AL as rural lol. Congrats on the business we should network if your near by.
Try to get used to the ebbs and flows of the window cleaning business. Start learning to mange your money early on. It took me years to learn to be disciplined enough to set money aside every month for the slow times.
Since window cleaning is a business that you build on to the customer base each year it’s a matter of years before you don’t have that slow time if your customers are returning.
I’m in Rockmart. My parents live in Powder Springs, that’s where I grew up. We should definitely network sometime. I drive over there to visit them frequently.
I completely forgot about that. I need to call all of the customers I serviced earlier this year to see if they want another cleaning before winter time.
Your residential customer list would be a great start to offer fall gutter cleaning. Also by offering that service may get them to possibly realize their windows are dirty too.
I have no clue what you’re circumstances are, but could it be possible to rent out for house and move closer to a big city? I have had a couple of friends buy houses rent them out and continue to live at their parents, until they get married…
That may be possibility…
cut ALL unnecessary expenses now.
Advertise your Fall services now
Your call, hustle non-stop for yourself or supplement your income with a job.
What we did on many route work was outside every month and insides every 3 months.
we can start early and just get all outsides done first. Many ad soft washing and pressure washing drive though monthly . Hit up all the fast food places for window cleaning and pressure washing clement.
We have caulked too ! just about any type of maintenance to keep the cash flow. Check the janitor company and see if you can sub their work too.
I didn’t see you mention power washing. Yes, it is a different animal, and a different forum. However, the income potential is huge. I don’t do it, so am no expert, but many here do. And…there is a power washing forum like this that will help get you started. Window customers are good potential power washing clients. Just some food for thought, and oh, it ain’t over yet, I may go there myself. I do bring this up because you can pretty much do window cleaning, power washing, and gutter cleaning year around…if you don’t have hard winter. Hang in there. I think you’re doing great. And…you can clean windows in winter, it’s just a different animal. Do a search here and read up on it. You can get your PHD in window cleaning here.
I agree with everyone’s comments. We started off over 20 years ago doing everything…interior house cleaning, commercial janitorial cleaning, small painting and caulking jobs, gutter cleaning, power washing, etc. It helped me to realize I was primarily in the sales & marketing business, especially in the early years. Once I was more focused on the marketing side of things (like handing out a few hundred fliers as mentioned before) and doing it with consistency, then our window cleaning business really started to grow.
Of course, there are still ebbs and flows, but we look forward to them now. The other thing that changed my particular business (which is in a small town 3 hours north of Detroit) was figuring out how to add quality staff. I found I could actually charge more per hour because the customer’s perception changed. They were supporting a crew, and not just me. So a $275 job was now around $345. With extra hands, we could raise our professionalism too. Carefully moving furniture, carrying ladders and double-checking each other’s work. Yes, employees can create other problems, but I wouldn’t have stayed in this business without them.
Hope this helps! Stay after it everyday and you will see the fruit of your labor.
Thank you for everyone’s replies! I am calling on all businesses to offer window cleaning and putting out door hangers everyday. As of right now I don’t have enough money to cover the bills by the end of the month. I have never been in this situation so I’m very nervous. But I will keep everyone posted as to how it all turns out. Thanks again for all of the positive advice!
Caleb, went to your website. Dang. You’re gonna be huge. Get out there and go after the big, rich houses…then get referrals. Network. Talk to realtors. Quality literature, hangers. Hang those houses again…the rich neighborhoods. C’mon, you got this. Maybe the folks can help with bills. Maybe you bought a house too soon. Sell it, go rent…build the biz, then get the house of your dreams. Maybe try for a mortgage line of credit. Don’t give up, you’re a sharp one. Maybe double up with another window cleaner. Just brainstorming. Great site. Knew a kid like you years ago. He painted. His brother called him a working fool. He worked. He’s rich. 
