Another "you're too much" thread

Hello all! Sorry, but I can vent with you guys. Priced two jobs for people who are neighbors at homes valued at over $4,000,000 in total. Each came to over $1,000 at our “premium” pricing. First quote, when we knew we wouldn’t get the job: talk with next next quote and see if you can sweeten the deal. Coming from a guy who just closed on his house for $2.5 million. 9k sqft house.

Quote next house, email estimates. First guy follows up with:

Thanks, $1k is a bit much but we appreciate it. I can’t speak for N* but I think she is passing. If it takes one day for my house and one day for hers, I would think $800 each $1,600 for two days of work would be reasonable, but I don’t run your business and wish you the best!

We’re in our slow period and booking work starting 3rd week of February. We’ve done about 10 quotes in this neighborhood over a 3 year period and have landed ONE job there :rofl: and the one we did get griped about the price too.

Anyway, feeling relieved. Between both houses it was a total of 160+ windows and over 1,300 cut ups. Annoyed that someone with their kinda money need to haggle down a small business owner to feed their ego.

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It’s hard to figure out how people think sometimes, actually often. Could be that clean windows aren’t as important ‘having their windows cleaned’.

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Tuesday I am doing a quarterly customer, each time it is for $1,100.
The guy is cheap, move on - or tell him you are offering a 10% discount for the next two weeks. You would be happy to put him on the calendar for $900. :slight_smile:

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Just had a customer ask we schedule him in April…for $1,050. Last fall it was $1,500. Less work for April but nice guy, pleasant to work for. Big house but not pretentious.

I just can’t believe our 10% close rate in that neighborhood lol

same consistent bidding system and

you get a house for 1250, they love you, it’s their second home, they call you every time

you bid a house for 300 they rant and rave, put you down, tell you its only window cleaning, try to bargain and negotiate you lower, try to leverage you against other mysterious bids or last people

you know, a gift shop is easier, they walk in see something they like pick it up look at the price and put it down and either walk out or come up to the register with it lol

right customer for you, right customer for you, right customer for you, it comes down to that every single time

plus a little serendipity with nice people that just like you or whatever at any price

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I’ve realized in this business and in life that the rich (through our blue collar eyes) are the most frugal. Guess that’s how they got and stay rich. It’s funny, my nicest customers willing to pay $380-$900 are typical middle class folks. My the 2-4 upper $20M homes I do are 16k sqft minimum and those guys haggle all the time.

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My summary is no matter what level of income it comes down to personality type

and there may be more of a certain personality type concentrated in the affluent and ultra affluent, which would make sense,

but i’ve found it will still come down who the contact is, is it a pretty cool easy going wife or is it the business grinding eat or be eaten hedge fund manager husband you’re dealing with for example, and it can be reversed just as well

same with the “mass affluent” depends on who the contact is that is hiring us (and going to bat for us if they’re spouse doesn’t feel similar)

I’ve also noticed the higher up the affluence ladder things switch and the more its the husband calling the shots and of course men in general are not as into clean windows as the women are and business men seem to be more likely to have that 'you’re just a breathing labor body" mentality as described above

right psychographic for your business + right demographic = right customer

it can be a tough game for sure

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AllStar said it, rich people get there by being frugal, even with luxury services. You’d be surprised that people driving those Mercedes got them used for pennies on the dollar.

As dcbrock says, I guess I’m one of them guys… I’m pretty frugal, running a limited edition Mercedes, but… I’m not rich. Shucks! Guess I’m rich with love for this biz, and you all my brothers! Hahaha…

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This thread reminds me of a customer I used to have. I cleaned their windows for a while. They paid $10,000 for a living room mirror. Then they don’t really see the value in window cleaning.

Everyone has different things they like to splurge on. Maybe they drive a $250,000 Ferrari, but they don’t see the value in paying 60 bucks a week for lawn care.

It’s all good. There is always someone that will value your services and gladly pay your price.

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We did a commercial Job where my guy by himself made us $1700. in 8 hours!
If that was house what would the say! We mainly do homes but people are funny because they fill we should never make a lot of money just maybe $15.00 an hour! Yet many Window Cleaning company make $1,000,000
with there employees! Sometimes they do not appreciate that a good window cleaner in honest and is out very quickly.

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Used to run into this in certain neighborhoods, usually pretty upscale. I used to tell them if they can’t afford it , we could reduce the costs and just do the outside only…You can only imagine their response. I would always say YOU live here, not me, YOU look out through dirty glass. If they were wealthy due to small business, they almost always tipped our crews. We did an 18,000 sq’ home, the guy just turned 40 and the wife shopped at “Big Lots” and they bought us lunch and tipped.
Affluent people like to brag about having a nanny or maid service etc… but they never bragged about their window cleaners.

Some people are funny…they buy things they don’t need, with money they don’t have to impress people they don’t like…

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I have one customer that I will either have to be dropping this year or setting a minimum she won’t like.

A year or so ago when I was just getting out of my “neighborhood kid window washer” phase, I got a call from a lady who lives 45 minutes away from me. I drive up there and she became a very regular customer! But there’s a catch. She is a NEAT FREAK. she loves on a lake, so horrible horrible bugs half the time that are just absolutely baked onto the glass. She’ll have me do tracks, dusting fixtures, ect. But because she has me do the tracks every time, there’s only a couple dead bugs and a thin thin layer of dust. But she is a lady who literally wears white gloves all the time, and follows me around the house, and while I’m cleaning, “make sure you wipe behind that bit there, here, let me get a butter knife for you to get that little bug, maybe YOU should get some white gloves!” (I swear I’m not exaggerating). I’m fine with all of this when the bill hits $200, but that doesn’t usually happen because she doesn’t have me do full service, and I never know exactly what I’m doing until I get there.

When I started washing she started to lay down a guilt trip in advance telling me about all the different cleaning people she has “gotten started” and how many did such “wonderful work, but eventually they forgot about me and I had to find somebody else”. And now I know why. They didn’t forget about her, she was so particular that she wasn’t worth the 45 minute drive (1 1/2 hours in total) to please her crazy standards and not get paid enough because when you charge too much you hear her little comments about it as she’s counting out the bills and mentioning that “regular work like this should get a discount” and “that’s a lot, how much do you charge for gas?” Blah blah blah. She doesn’t realize just what a deal she’s getting! She thinks I charge too much, just wait until I tell her that no matter what I’m charging $200 minimum this year. I might just join the leagues of other cleaners and landscapers that have abandoned this poor old woman.:roll_eyes:

@ibprofen98 I had a customer that was close to what you are talking about. I was so glad to get her off my schedule. I dealt with her for 11 years! I should have replaced her after the first cleaning, but I was cleaning her windows every 2 months. Her house looked like a museum on the inside. I rather the easy going customers.

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1 1/2 hour round trip for $200 and ungrateful? ($10 per hour minimum non billible hours). That is $15 drive time and $185 to do the job. Set your pricing to cover this issue. track billible hours

I have a customer 3 blocks away that I do the 1st floor exterior only for $96; another a 5 minute drive, 2 story in and out, $1,100 4 times a year. All of my quarterly accounts are well over $200 4 times a year and within 20 to 25 minute drive times. You need to charge for the job, or pass it onto someone else; unless it is something you need to put up with. Life is short, don’t waste your days on minimum jobs.

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I don’t consider rich folks looking to save 100 dollars on a 1000 dollar window cleaning bid as frugal.

They could very well be someone that grew up a rich entitled punk and enjoy beating up on and bossing little guys around. This isn’t the average, but it happens.

If they were actually frugal, they wouldn’t own a 10 bedroom home. That water fall pool ain’t maintenance free. They’re just rich tightwads, plain and simple. Lots of them out there and they need to be avoided.

I have a friend that cleaned a mansion in San Antonio and NEVER got paid. That rich dude isn’t just tight he’s criminal.

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Wait, you’re telling me you conceded to their price?

I like to have fun with folks that want to haggle. I start raising the price. :rofl:

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Been there also , don’t let it get to you . That’s why I like 2k sqft homes . That’s the sweet spot , specially one story homes

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with “rich” people or affluent, I have found its back to who the contact is

it could be the wife who has a household budget she is keeping within

it could be a business owner husband who has learned service companies (or cleaners, landscapers, pool etc) can cave with a little pressure and they want to make sure they are “not paying more than they have to”

construction remodelers, plumbers etc have all earned the art of telling a story of how difficult it will be to do this or that, and maybe he can do it etc etc so that the person gets it

the luxury those guys have is product and materials are mixed in with labor costs and things get foggy real quick for the customer to figure out

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