I had a customer ask for an estimate for window cleaning, and based on her count of the windows I told her it should be between 325 and 375. right after that I get a notification from next door on a thread about our business where she commented how much I had quoted her and asked if that sounds right because she had heard about other people doing it for $99. Somebody commented that they have a window cleaner do their house for 99 outside or 198 inside and out.
my question is should I jump on there and comment or just leave it alone?
Iām thinking I would reply with something like āhi ______ iām one of the owners, weāve done dozens of other homes in your neighborhood for between $200 and $500 depending on how many windows they have. based on the window count you gave us it sounds like youāre right there in the middle. We understand that we are not the cheapest cleaners in town, but we believe we offer the best service, as youāve read on here and you can see on other places online such as yelp and Google all of our customers have been happy with our work. We hope you give us a chance to make you smile at how clean your windows are but we understand if you lād rather go with someone elseā
Yea, it is tough when you have no idea what the scope of the $99 job is compared to the service that you are quoting. Your thought of a response sounds reasonable.
Nope !!!
I wouldnāt comment on the thread. Just leave it be. There is nothing you can do.
If they ask you personally , then your response is fine.
Iāve come to the conclusion with all this banter with customers about price . That I really donāt owe anyone an explanation about how I charge. You donāt have to use me. Iām not holding a gun to your head.
I keep it short an sweet Just to be professional when questioned about price . For the most part, If asked !
Just like with any business therr will always be someone cheaper.
An thatās the truth !!
So why do we feel the need to say wellā¦ I get 10 for a double hung. 12 for a French pane. 30 for a storm. Bla bla bla bla.
Here is the price for the job ā¦ thatās it
No good ā¦ no worries !!!
Oh An the other guy this am the other guy that
Other guy has nothing to do with me.
I understand where @Majestic66 is coming from, and this is usually the way I operate. Unless someone requesting a quote says something to me directly, I just donāt care to explain to anyone why my price is āXā. Maybe I need to work on my sales pitch IF I come across a situation like @leavingnc is asking about, but at this point I feel like itās a complete waste of time.
Truth be told, itās pretty hard to convert someone who is buying service based on price alone, unless YOU are the cheapest guy to give the quote. Good or bad, some people only want to spend a little and get the world.
About 85% of the time weāre within our estimate and if not i just let them know āyou told us you have 15 windows, we counted 20, were there any Windows you wanted us to skip?ā they usually say no and so I say āokay itās going to be X more than the estimate I have given youā and Iāve never had anybody be upset about that.
the other person commented the $99 was for the exterior, and then itās 198 for inside and out, which means weāre not even double their price. They probably just run off of a cheaper business model and perhaps donāt do all the things that we do or have such as insurance Etc
I donāt so much feel like I want to explain why we charge what we charge, but I do feel like I need to explain what differentiates us from other companies.
I personally donāt go that route either. In many cases, very little differentiates us from our comp. And to be honest, many times the comp is better or at least just as good.
Several of the local Fish franchises in my area are more expensive than I am and their quality is pretty good. Iāve gotten to know several other companies through the local supply store, and many are very nice, well mannered guys.
So to compete with them, I donāt tell a customer that Iām the best or tear the other guys down. I just focus on what I have to offer the customer. Itās arrogannt to pitch yourself as the ābestā when the others are just as good. Many customers are suspicious of negativite marketing as well.
If the customer wanted your input, they wouldāve asked for it. Butting in on a conversation where theyāre trying to get feedback from other homeowners, seems a bit desperate, imo, no matter how tactfully you may write your response.
I do not think jumping in is a bad thing. It is a thread about YOUR business. It is like, replying to a review. I, believe what you want to say is good and professional.
I, also believe a lot of people are ok with satisfactory work, as long as they donāt pay much. They just want someone else to get it done. Let her quote shop, what ever, but donāt be afraid to value yourself, and show that you pay attention to your threads. It doesnāt hurt to sell your sale. And she will remember you more, if she decides to pay the extra. And, I do not think in a negative way.
I think ādesperateā is replying with a price war. Trying to steal the job for cheaper than the cheap guy. You arenāt pushing for the job but ātaking careā of business.
Iām with you on this one, IF its really thought out before posting. Running it by the wife or someone to see how it sounds.
Even excusing yourself before saying anything, then a brief USP and gracefully exit with your number and if they have any questions to call you personally or something like that. If it was me, and I couldnāt get it to sound right, I wouldnāt do anything.
Its NOT a review at all. A response isnāt called for but I think if done with intelligence it should be tasteful. Not with the goal of gaining new clients so much but guiding the public gently about your brand instead of a label getting slapped on ya.
This is true. If a response now is because of perceived loss of business or anticipating negative reactions then it turns into a āhe said/she saidā thing. No way to win that. If the outcome is some sort of boycott of your business then perhaps a well worded rebuttal.
Sears is cheaper than Nordstroms and Chrysler is cheaper than a Bentley.
I wouldnāt respond.
This is a customer who believes money is the only valueā¦ if thatās the case, quality is not top of mind.
99$ companies will arise in any businessā¦customers may stray and be lured by a low price but those who truly value quality, professionalism, and experience will come back. And thereās no value in competing with a strictly price based model.
