Top Three lessons Learned

Conversation
41

so true, especially #2

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  1. Buy yourself a Wagtail pivot control with pad… really… it changed my game.
  2. Pricing - if you get it wrong, you’ll hate yourself, hate the client & the job.
  3. Find your niche in the client base. Do your homework, aim for your most profitable market. Work smart not hard.
43

I’m a big fan of number three…

44

Yes.
You’re right…

From now on, I should replace the phrase “planning for upcoming winter”
to “freaking out, about the upcoming Winter.”

I hate it… what can I say?!? :frowning:

45

Although I likely don’t have as much experience as most people here - here are my 3!

  1. People are everything

    • Hire the right people and take as much time as it takes to be sure - prioritize personality & work ethic over skill, the large majority of people can be taught window cleaning plus people with the right work ethics often learn quick!
    • Your customers are people too, so again, go for the right people - don’t go to neighborhoods where they wouldn’t have the extra income to spend on window cleaning. It’s hard to convince people window cleaning really is a NEED

  2. Stay ORGANIZED

    • One of my biggest lessons is to not let anything slip through the cracks - when in busy season, it’s really easy to forget about some information, a call back, a cheque to pick up, etc. - I’ve found that the best way to stay organized is to invest in software! At first I thought it wouldn’t be worth paying monthly fees, but it’s saved me so much time :wink:

  3. Set goals!

    • Your running a business for something, what is that something? Why is it that? How will running this business reach that? Break it down from 5 years to what you can do this year to what you can do this month to what you can do THIS WEEK! And keep yourself accountable to your goals! If you need to do $5000 in revenue this week and on Friday your at $4500, you FIND $500 OF BUSINESS!

Hope this helps :slight_smile: Let me know if you have any questions!

1 Like
49

Hiring the “right” people has been mentioned a few times, but it’s just as important to develop your people.

Sent from my iPhone using Window Cleaning Resource

51

I’ve got a long way to go, but I try to pursue knowledge and keep improving everyday.

Sent from my iPhone using Window Cleaning Resource

52

grooming talent has more to do with communication than anything else. can you impart your vision to someone else in a way that makes them invested in that same vision? how do you know what will hit home with any given person?

the big problem most of us run into is that we are our own worst enemies. entrepreneurs (i use that term loosely here) are usually type A personalities, used to expressing their opinions, visions and passions and acting on them with great purpose. it’s hard for us to check out of the moment, slow down, and really focus on anything someone else is saying. we have our side of communication, EXPRESSION (at least, in the business world) down pat. it’s the other, more important side that gets neglected: LISTENING.

if we don’t learn to REALLY listen to people, we can’t learn what their motivations are, what resonates with them, or how to help them achieve a sense of accomplishment or purpose with regard to their professional life. Another facet to this is that sometimes we learn to be great at listening to customers, and that helps us be great salespeople and deliver great customer service. but that’s a whole different category of business. if we don’t listen to our staff with the same vigor and deliberation, we are only addressing half of the equation.

i’ve struggled with this for a long time, and i have to work daily at slowing down, taking a moment, and listening to what the people who are important to my business have to say, and then finding a way to make what’s important to them fit into my overall vision for our business. i still suck at this, and this post in and of itself is a reminder of that. i’m going to try to do better tomorrow.

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53

Ill go ahead and give this post a little bump :). Great thread. First full thread i’ve read since joining (which was about an hour ago).

Ive been working with my sister for over 10 years now…we’ve built a very successful auto detialing company (thus the name windows and wheels) but are just now re-focusing (or at least i am lol) on the window side of the company.

How did you go about finding good employees…what was your search process like and what did you look for?
Also, what is a “rain policy” ? I live in Arizona so we don’t have a lot of rain but when it does come jobs tend to re-schedule.

Again, great thread, hope to learn more from this forum. Thanks all.

54

Ill go ahead and give this post a little bump :). Great thread. First full thread i’ve read since joining (which was about an hour ago).

Ive been working with my sister for over 10 years now…we’ve built a very successful auto detialing company (thus the name windows and wheels) but are just now re-focusing (or at least i am lol) on the window side of the company.

How did you go about finding good employees…what was your search process like and what did you look for?
Also, what is a “rain policy” ? I live in Arizona so we don’t have a lot of rain but when it does come jobs tend to re-schedule.

Again, great thread, hope to learn more from this forum. Thanks all.

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Welcome To WCR!

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we have a 48-hour “No Rain” guarantee. if rain spots up your windows within 48 hours we’ll return to touch up at no charge. it has greatly minimized reschedules, and we probably get called back 2-3 times a year.

sidebar: i did a small focus test and found that the term “48 hours” resonates more with middle aged women of means than the term “2 days”.

1 Like
58

This is a good one.

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59

Another good thread Chris.
Keep digging them up!

60

But it’s…
“no longer relevant”
“things went off topic for a while.”
“stop bumping old threads”

I swear, if some of this forum’s members had their way…
the only posts would be direct responses to their individualized questions.

I’m with YOU @wcs and @Chris
Good topics are good topics, and not everyone has seen/read everything here.