I wouldn't have kept him. if you hate doing it then not worth keeping. you will probably replace it with 3 smaller ones that take the same time but earn you more. You may find that he will come back when he realises he was getting it for a good price.
I suppose with any job the novelty can wear off but as Mike Tyson says, discipline is doing something you hate like you love it. For me, I love doing this but there are bits that I hate (admin!) but getting to do this part time is brilliant. Really enjoyed the episode, felt like it was too short (like 20 mins), I had to re check the run time!
I get what you mean, an old manager said to me years ago you have to find the joy in what you do cos any job becomes boring after a time. I think that’s a reason to put content out on RU-vid about your business, it helps you focus on the parts you do enjoy, you get to share that with other like-minded people and it brings an element of creativity to what could otherwise become mundane 🤔
Another good episode 👊🏻 on the note of losing that customer, it's an absolute win that they cancelled, you'll replace that job with a better paying one easily, and you'll be less stressed
@Uncleanablespodcast yes been going to the Expo for year's... I must have missed you both earlier in the year I will keep an eye out next year... Keep up the great podcast roll on next Saturday 👍
Just pressure washing work out this. 365 days a yr. 52 wks x 5 days = 260 working days. - 20 days hols, - 10 days bad weather. - 10 days sick. - breakdowns 5 days. = 215 working days. X 8 hrs days = 1720 hrs working a year. Winter time England typical 16 days snow ice / Scotland 25 days snow ice. Van insurance £600. tool insurance £240. Public liability £250. Mobile internet £240. Website £360. Van maintenance £1k. Advertising minimum £500. AA / fsb / trusted trader/ memberships £300 - £1500. Pension £100 per week. Loan payback ???. Accountant £300+. Replace tools £2000. Average working wage 20k. Is it still looking good.
Ryan you’re very generous with your customers. If some one hasn’t paid and it’s time for their next clean I won’t go. If they are continually late I let them know that their window cleaning is on hold until they have signed up to GoCardless. The ones that are genuine will sign up and the messes leave.
I’ll try and explain better my comment from before. I have my window cleaning spread over 4 weeks. I then tell my customers it monthly. Then if the month then goes into a 5th week I can have the time off before the cycle starts again or I can book some extra jobs in etc. I wouldn’t start the next months work until the month starts again.
as a side note im not sure what ypu mean about cleaner planner been using myself for few years now and where i get you can only see 62 days of work any one time i can still book in work past that if i click on the calander at top any pick any date i want it comes up and can add a job to that date..unless that not what you mean lol...
good podcast..it very hard sometimes to deal with mess you about customers..unfortunately always been this way and prob always will be,,but we always stay cleaning..
Big balls to complete this Ryan big congratulations on sticking it out! You and Dan have worked tirelessly on your build. How much did you end up spending compared to going to Rutland Pumps or PWS. The build looks Incredible, didn’t know you was so handy thought you was just a gas man like me 😂👊🏾
I’ve been catching up on previous podcasts. Just finished the Christmas bucket incident one 💩 😂 You talked about getting an employee in 2024 - is this still the aim? I’d also be interested to hear why you sold your photo booth company? Was that always the plan? Stay Cleaning!
It looks brilliant, well done for sticking with it. Knowing what you know now would you recommend others go for it. I’d imagine it’s still cheaper doing it yourself but taking 4/5 days or more off work to do it might close that gap a bit. I’m not sure everyone would do as good a job to be fair 👏
I really enjoyed it but if it's not your thing that id recommend going with a professional install. my way I got pretty much everything you see please new poles, FSC and lots of other stuff for the same price as just a standard PW installed. I did do most of it on weekend and after work and only had two days on it during the week due to cancellations. but still a lot of work for one person
Thank you for shareing this van build. Nice to see the up's & downs. Been wachting your podcasts for a good while. Nice to see you do it yourselves after being let down by said big boys....!!! Looking forward to the van tour. Bring on my Saturday podcast cast i need it. It makes my Saturdays go off to a good start ... all the best boys
Great vid Ryan van looking sweet im jealous.. Would you be using that softwash for applying bio to a roof can you put a pole with a brush on..or would it be spray over the roofs? I would like to see a tour with links and prices for sure.. Good stuff.. Just a thought about your ladder maybe a racking system that hangs from the ceiling of the van may work..
Most of the American builds I have seen recommend fitting the softwash pump the other way up. The pumps tend to fail when liquids leak from the pump into the motor. If you mount it with the pump at the bottom, it should last longer.
I created a job/quote sheet so when enquiries came in I captured all the customers details, if the quote was accepted and the job completed I would ask the customer if they would like to be added to our mailing list. Never underestimate the power of a customer mailing list as it costs nothing (Mailchimp free version is all I use). I send out a mail in January ever year giving my regulars customers their chance to book a slot that suits them before any new enquiries come in. When we get to the latter part of the year and the leaves are falling off the trees I then send out a mail to book in Gutter cleaning jobs. I also send out a couple of other emails throughout the year. If you aren't doing this you are leaving a lot of revenue on the table.
On the subject of holidays. As my window cleaning is monthly but it’s done in 4 weeks when you get a week like this week where it crosses two months I can get my window cleaning done in both months but take the week off in between and not lose any money.
Good topic as norn guys..I don't chase for commercial myself will do if comes in but before domestic most of the time... I was with check a trade years back come off it the work coming in wasn't justified in the monthly costing..
That was a good chat guys, would be interested in an episode some time about advertising on Google. Maybe go a bit more in depth? I’m pretty tech savvy but still find it a bit intimidating. What’s a good budget to set aside for advertising, things like that?
