I’m a commercial guy, I got tons of commercial accounts. I always thought commercial was where the money was at because of the repetitive business, untill I read the marketing book and decided to give residential a shot. I went for the multi million homes, put out door hangers and Boom! a couple days in and i had multiple jobs. I bid them high and get them, way worth my time. Get paid on the spot, i love it! I also love that i got a guy running my commercial accounts and I’m just doing big residential. It works out awesome, I never thought I’d like Resi, but I MF love it guys!
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Dude if it cost him $648 to get the $600 he doesn’t have the money to buy flyers and business cards and (the IRS) will be coming to reposes his billboard because he doesn’t have enough to pay his personal income taxes.
Do you seriously clean windows for $1 per pane? Do you live in Mexico where rent is $100 a month? Think a little more about your advise.
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No I don’t live in Mexico. The original thought with this whole thing was expanding and keeping this account for side money. If you read the whole sequence of events it wasn’t in the cards to keep this account due to loss of revenue. I would of kept it since I need all the exposure I can get until such a time comes up that I don’t need to step over nickles to get pennies.
But thanks for your advice
You have to make it happen. It can be hard at times and the temptation creeps into your thoughts that “I’ll do this for cheap and someone who values my service will pay what it’s worth at another time.” Yes, at times a promotional offer can work to your advantage, but as with every line of business, promotional offers are only for promoting.
In the context of this thread, It would have been nice if the Shoe Carnival guy would have been receptive to a promotional offer - but - we never got that far because from the get go he wanted the price slashed for cheap and also wanted 30 days credit on $50 to boot. I’m not a bank or lending institution, although I can and have worked with people on pricing. We are also not talking about multiple locations; this was one store manager that views $50 as a maximum for a window cleaning service.
Keep this in perspective, there are THOUSANDS of windows out there worth a fair charge that need cleaning. There are a few folks who say $5 or $6 is too rich for them. The time spent at this store could be better spent at a storefront that realizes the value of the service given.
And sure, everyone is at a different place as far as how low they will allow a potential customer to drag their prices down. Publix wants $3.59 for a loaf of bread, Aldi wants $1.39 for the same thing. I tell Publix I only want to pay $1.39 - they can’t help me.
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Net 30 is not necessary, Its the way a broke company wants to use its vendors as their bank.
Honestly guys, commercial is good but I do hate the fact that it’s always net 30, I’m always waiting on checks, a month goes by and I’m always waiting wondering why people pay late, they would never pay rent late or their lights and gas. It’s frustrating with commercial sometimes, but it’s constant work that gets you through the 4 seasons. I built my business on commercial and it pays well, not as well as resi though!!! Lol just sucks after employees are paid and bills are paid and I’m still waiting on that big check that would make it all worth it. Either way I love to clean Windows, commercial, resi, it’s in my blood.
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For some companies, they can pay you at the time of service. Some can’t. Just depends on how the company is run. On something like a commercial that is a few hundred, then I’m ok waiting on a check. If you can’t afford to wait on a check sometimes, you need to rethink why you are even in business that you are so broke you have to be paid at the end of every job. I can see the frustration if you are basically all commercial, and you have people and bills to pay. But it is afterall, part of the game. If it’s hurting your business having to wait, diversify your services to get that cash flow you need.
But when it comes to petty money, like a 50 dollar storefront, especially one that does cash sales, I can’t see any reason they would need to have terms to pay. That is unless it is a corporate deal where you are cleaning multiple stores.
This thread also points out, why we need to stand firm on our pricing, no matter where you are. Your price is your price. You need it to stay profitable and in business, come next year. You will never get the price you are after consistently, if you are eager to cut a “deal” to get business. Getting desperate can actually cut your own throat.
I’ve never “bargained” with my prices. What I quote is what I am going to charge for the work. Want someone cheaper? Pick one and then you have nothing to complain about when you get what you paid for. Some may think this is an unfriendly way to do business, but it isn’t. You aren’t going to bargain at stores, and you aren’t going to bargain with other service providers. And if you tried, they would tell you “No” and tell you to have a nice day. That is, if you didn’t tick them off trying to bargain them down.
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This.
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@Garry I love residential too! There are some people that love storefront. I think that is great! Everyone has different preferences.
I have ALWAYS liked getting paid the day of service. So residential works for me. Even when I had 2 or 3 storefront accounts, I made sure I was paid the day of service.
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Day of service or drop it in the mail at end of the week works for me. Pretty simple request to pay for services rendered. Truth be told it is just a game to defer payment as long as possible.
I’m waiting on a check now that was supposed to be mailed on the 18th. Office girl said it was going out last Friday, (a week late mind you), that was a lie. Today she said it went out in today’s mail because they were waiting for a big check to clear. Bull, I also talked to the owner and he said no reason for it. Next quarter I’ll be certain she understands the agreed terms.
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Good for you Garry.
So many people are afraid to go to the top to get the ball rolling the right way, because they fear losing an account.
Don’t be afraid…
I ain’t skeered.
Do what you say, say what you do.
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Good convo.
One think I will say about net 30 is for a large percentage of company’s the net 30 terms gives them time to work the invoice through their system from the store manager to the person that signs the check. I have several accounts that have bill paying services handle all their bills. Companies have protocols and this is where your net 30 comes from.
Do I like to wait to get paid? No way. Is it a fact of the commercial world. Yes.
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With the speed of internet and e-mail, things are more instantaneous these days instead of snail mail to Accounts Payable, then perhaps 4 or 5 days of processing, then snail mail the check to you. Those days are done so it’s just an excuse now.
E-mail invoice today, snail mail by end of the the week. Boom, paid.
Then again the origination of this thread - who really needs 30 days to pay $57?
Residential yesterday paid huge by PayPal, it was in my bank this morning after I made coffee and toasted a bagel. 
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Employee theft is one of the biggest problems facing companies today, often greater than shoplifting. Controlling the payouts from HQ minimizes this. Imagine finding out that your invoice had extra numbers added to it every time, and the employee pocketed it.
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All of my net 30s take my tax info as a vendor. For me to refuse it and demand cash at the till, I look like a tax dodger or someone who is hiding things in my books. Not very professional in my book.
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To not be able to live 30 days without 50 bucks makes me look like a ‘small potatoes’ vendor. I feel like I’m getting into ‘day labor’ territory if I demand this.
Am I a bank? No. Do I add 10% to my estimate when I know that they will do net 30? Yes. Do I get junky fidgets because the money isn’t in my hand? No. It’ll come. It always does.
Just my thoughts.
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To not be able to pay $50 with out a vendor advancing credit makes one’s business probably in trouble of paying.
It does not take 20, 30, 60, 90 days to decipher if payment is valid. An agreement is made for $X amount, the invoice matches the agreement, payment is made. Simple. No need to pretend it is anything different.
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Respectfully I dissagree. In all my years of dealing with net 30s, I’ve never had a business fail. Some of my best, most solid customers have been net 30. Even during the darkest point of the recession, they never missed a beat.
Yea, that’s good. It is not necessary though unless you wish to extend a line of credit.
Not all customers get it just by requesting it. There is no shame in getting paid in a reasonable amount of time.
Believe me Garry, getting paid on completion is groovy by me. Certainly preferred. And as your thread is titled - yes this is why I love residential as well. I have two houses to do Sunday for 1k, paid at completion. Truly nothing is sexier than that.
And I think 60 or 90 days is definitely foul, unless those are the terms. But I understand and can play by the company rules if the job is right. And the company has to play by their own terms - 30 means 30.
