A cold bead of sweat slips down your spine.You can’t believe how BIG this house is.The owner himself just pulled up in his charcoal Aston Martin, his Armani jacket carefully draped over the passenger seat.You notice that it doesn’t have a single wrinkle. Must have just been dry cleaned.How much could this house be worth? […]
ok. but what about the guy who’s lookin to get a deal on getting his business window’s cleaned and theres guy’s going around bidding the jobs for practically nothin.
The last job I did I only got because they said I do outstanding work. and thats after I low balled myself trying to get some work. I ended up pricing my work at around 12 n hr and the other guy who came in was still $100 cheaper than I was. I was extremely lucky that they really like the work I do…I really thought when I gave them my low price they where gonna be excited. Instead they where like: yeah but this guy gave us a qoute for $100 cheaper. you must be too high priced…When I’m actually too low…What can I do?
this post is kinda irrelevant only because you can’t go to a house & know exactly what they would be willing to pay… So throwing out $80 hr or more on someone that probably wont pay that will only make you look like your not giving a set amount and you will be shooting yourself in the foot in the long run… how about just stick to one set hourly rate for everyone that way you don’t ever have to worry about renigging on your price…
for one man… you have to stick to your guns and want to stay in business… let that guy give them a $100 cheaper quote and he won’t be in business much longer… Also, I guarantee those people were lying to you just to get as much out of you as they can for next to nothing… I’m new to this and know that much!
pps… Kevin reminds me of a typical Multi Level Marketer that picked window cleaning as his nitch and this forum and others on youtube and wherever else he markets to with ideas that sound great but don’t have proven results… Just my opinion only because ive done MLM before and the way he talks about stuff does not seem realistic.
thanks man…I’m great at cleaning the windows not so good at pricing them and I’ve been reading how much these guy’s charge and if I charged 1/3 or even a 1/4 what these guy’s charged one customer would look at me like I got ten heads and I’d never get business… oh and There really is a guy goin around cuttin throats like that…he really was 100 bucks cheaper…they showed me his qoute…I didnt believe em either so they showed me.
$12/hour? Sounds like you are the low-baller to me. Don’t people realize that someone will ALWAYS beat your price? It’s even worse in this down economy. Jesse, tell me…how do you pay taxes, fuel, insurance, bonds, marketing, material and equipment with a bill rate of $12 per hour? I would guess that you don’t. You are your own worse enemy, you are competing with yourself, look in the mirror because the lowballer is you.
Forgive me but for twelve bucks an hour, I’d rather go work for someone who knows how to run a business.
So here is what you can do. Take your business seriously, price your service accordingly, don’t underbid yourself. My price is my price, like it or leave it, because there will always be some lowballer down the line that will tear my price apart, and it has happened. But I’m getting used to it. Try to market where price is not the determining factor.
Good luck.
I get what Kevin is saying and he is right, as to the psychology that most
of us have. It is proven by the responses here.
Whether a competitor “low-balls” us $100 is irrelevant. I have seen guys
damned near pay to wash someones windows. That guy who beats you
by $100 may get beat from some other guy by $100.
That is why learning how to market your service is so important. When
I put out ads I have almost no competition. People don’t read my ad
and start getting quotes. They get on the phone and schedule.
I don’t think Kevin is saying we are all too low in price, but many of you
likely are. If you bumped your prices and added just $30 per [U]day[/U]
(not per job) you could have an extra $10,000 by the end of the year…
for the same amount of effort!
I don’t think many of you should double prices, but you should be thinking
of reasons your service is worth more [I]and[/I] make sure you’re not leaving
money on the table.
that’s what I think
Brandon,
Before you give your opinion, it might be good to see if in fact there are proven results. You may have done marketing before, but how effective was it? What Kevin is saying, is that many people are stuck in a frame of mind that our service is only worth X amount per hour. When really, its not. What makes your company stand out from the rest of them? Why are you so much more expensive than the rest? What is THAT worth? He is talking residential, but the same concept can be used for commercial as well. Let me tell you, I have only been in business for 3 years, and I charge high when I can. Sometimes it comes down to 200 per hour, sometimes 50. The other guy who said that he was doing 12 per hour…
THATS JUST INSANE! He should have walked away from that job. You need to have valid reasons why you charge so much, and you will get what you want. I have.
As for Kevin lurking in forums or youtube, do you know who Kevin is? Do you know anything about him? Did you know he will be speaking at the IWCA convention next year? Did you know that his marketing materials have proven results that are still being documented by members using them?
I understand what you are saying friend, but just for a minute, ask yourself, “what if it IS possible?”…wouldnt it be worth it to check it out?
Dont discount yourself or what you do as a professional.
I agree excepting the job at 12 n hr was insane, but I had to in order to keep the job. What I’m saying though is this one guy didnt just go to this one job and place a low as hell bid. he seems to have done it everywhere. I only lowerd my self at the one job cause i really needed the money, But I know my work is exceptional and I need to charge more, but this guy’s goin aound makin everyone believe his price is the norm when its not…What can I say and/or do to get these jobs, besides demonstrate how much better of a job I can do>>… and a side note if anyone wants to send me a private message and help me set my self straight on the pricing…That would mean a whole lot to me and youd make a new freind.
I literaly just started my business…I learned how to clean window’s professionaly in miami…Getting married in a year but where poor…So I decided to dedicate my self to starting my own window cleaning business…I apreciate everyones info and any advice is greatly welcome…If theres a convention anywhere near Georgia I’ll try and make it out there so I can meet you guy’s. Again Thank You.
Likely “everyone” is a lot smaller number than you think. I guarantee you
he is not raking in the jobs or he would raise his price.
I really don’t see the problem. This guy is not effecting your business. Maybe
he is the scape goat for being slow. Do you know how many low priced
companies/individuals I go against daily? LOTS. Not “a guy”.
Quit worrying about him setting some make believe standard and create your
own. If you want to keep your prices up your perceived value must stay in
tact.
Nobody has ever experienced ‘highest quality at the lowest price’
Forget him/them and take care of you and your future
Jeese - like I said earlier, if you are working in an area where “price” is the determining factor, then market somewhere else if possible. I cannot believe that one or even a few guys/companies have a market locked down to the point of zero entry. Set teh new standard of pricing and quality. If this guy has captured so much market share, he would never be able keep up with all of the work. Maybe his work is crap, but his price is tempting, so the customer books him one time…gets poor results, and then never books him again. Well if the customer was satisfied, why don’t they book teh other guy again? And remember…you always get what you pay for…good luck
Kevin is right, you should try to get a read on the customer. But not all customers pull up in Austins. Most of them are hard working, middle class people who want a good job at a good price. Nobody ever wants to feel like they’ve been taken.
Thank’s guy’s. Very valid points. Thanks for the reassurance. I needed to know where I stand in the pricing relm. I always do exceptional work. Now I need to go refigure my pricing standards to reflect the work I do. and then actually stand my ground on the price…
Again I thank you guy’s for taking the time to give me advice. Any more is definately welcome…and I take criticism well so even thats welcome…How else am I gonna learn.
Thank You.
You might want to find out who Kevin is before you pass judgement. I have been in business for less than six months. The first time I laid a squeegee to glass on a commercial job I averaged $25 an hour with a company that is known for taking the lowest bids(and their windows when I got them looked like it too). I live in las vegas where I am constantly underbid by illegal aliens that are unlicensed, uninsured, and unrelieble. Larger commercial jobs in general don’t hire these types and in general most affluent people don’t want someone they don’t like or trust in their home. Find a way to compete with the big boys.
If I can guess right, are you talking about a storefront job or some kind of route work? I completely understand if you are hungry and broke that you gotta do what you gotta do…but the problem with that is, this price is what they will expect from you. What do you want to make a day? 500, 1000, 1500? Each of those number ARE realistic for a day’s take. Even for someone starting out. My goal is 700. Many days I fall below that mark, but if I market well enough to have the customers to keep work comming in for 340 days out of the year, then things will be pretty good. I can tell you, I am NOT pulling in that kind of money…last year I made 65, but that was only my 2nd year in business which in my opinion aint too bad. No matter WHERE you are, you can ALWAYS improve…
For instance, there are guys on here that have been doing a great job at their business for 15 some odd years, but still ask questions so they can refine how they do things.
This is why online forums are so good, because you get like-minded people together to really fine tune your approach, and possibly see things in a whole new light and take your business to a higher level you never thought possible.
I would say you are targeting the wrong kind of customer. This type of customer is price-based, and doesn’t care about window cleaning.
Many wealthy people drive Mercedes, some drive Hyundais…some drive Ferraris.
And also, don’t spend too much time on finding high-paying commercial, focus on high-paying residential instead.
Its easier and faster.
Use whatever you wish.
I’m simply encouraging you to revisit your own reasoning behind your current pricing strategy.
You said they “probably” won’t pay more. Have you ever tried giving them a crazy high price, Brandon?
Try it on your next bid, you may be pleasantly surprised.
Of course, as I said, you have to flex some marketing muscle, too. That part is essential.
I cleaned a restaurant just this morning in 90 minutes (monthly account) and billed them $265 for it. They are a very happy customer, too. And they pull down probably a couple to a few hundred thousand dollars a month.
I cleaned the Exterior of a big house last week in 3.5 hours and charged them $677.
I’ve sub out a yearly job and make $2,000 for a half hour site visit. What’s that?
$4,000/hr?
Silly, isn’t it?
But also reality. No smoke and mirrors here.
K first off Kevin knows what he is talking about. He has proven himself successful, and by taking tips form him I have myself improved my income drastically.
But its true, why have a set rate? True we typically fall into the 60-80 dollars an hour average, but why not try for higher? From experience i know some clients that won’t even blink at the thought of paying up and over 2-300 and hr average (just dont tell them your charging them that much per hr.)
I personally have a rate that i never want to fall lower than, but with some clients i throw a much higher rate than the norm, and i walk away happy and so do they once the job is done. Set your business apart, some people love paying higher prices …even for window cleaning!
[FONT=“Georgia”]Hi Jesse,
The IWCA Convention was just in Atlanta this past February, sorry you missed it, but the 2010 IWCA convention is on it’s way fast. I know it is in Reno which is no where close to you, but it would be a great investment in getting your new business really rolling, Kevin is one of the keynote speakers, we have sessions on bidding projects, and add on services you can look into to help you diversify your business. I just posted the full listing of session in another thread: http://windowcleaner.com/vBulletin/mwcoa-iwca/6083-2010-convention-seminars.html
I did not even mention the 2 other big bonuses to attending the convention and that is the Trade Show where you can put your hands on all kinds of tools to help you do your jobs faster and more efficiently and then the WCR faithful that will be in attendance (hopefully en masse this year ;)) who you can meet and make connections with that you can then reach out to the entire year for help and advise. Take a look at the sessions, the full registration info is on it way, to really consider making the trip to Reno in January.
Shelby Diltz, CMP
IWCA Convention Director
400 Admiral Blvd.
Kansas City, MO 64106
Phone: 816.471.4922
Fax: 816-472-7765
Email: [email protected]
Web Site: IWCA - International Window Cleaning Association
Join us at the 2010 IWCA Annual Convention & Trade Show: Your Best Bet
January 27 – 30, 2010 at the Silver Legacy Resort & Casino
Reno, Nevada
For more information keep an eye the convention pages of the IWCA web site at IWCA - International Window Cleaning Association - Convention [/FONT]
