Learn How Creating 'Standard Pricing Minimums' For Your Window Cleaning Business Can Keep You Out Of The Poor House

Operating a successful window cleaning business can be easy when you know what types of jobs to take and what type of jobs to avoid. In the following question, you'll learn if a certain type of store front window cleaning is right for your window washing business.

Here's a question from one of my readers...

I Had a chance to bid on the weekly interior / exterior window cleaning of 15 "Fast Food Chain" restaurants. I bid $39 and lost to a $28 bid ... Was I too high or were they to low?

A: According to my calculations, both bids were too low -- IF -- you are planning on performing the work yourself!

Later, I'll explain how the winning bid of $28 per restaurant can be a positive win for your competitor but, let's start by crunching the numbers...

I'm not going to mention the name of the fast food chain but, based on the restaurants average size, distance between locations and difficult environment of having to work around restaurant patrons, I can safely estimate 5 restaurants can be cleaned per day...

...Or, it will take 3 days each week to provide the window cleaning services for this contract. The question you need to ask is...

Is working 3 days a week for 21,840 per year worth it to you or not?

My personal opinion is that my time is too valuable to go after accounts like the one you've given example to. If the account can't afford to pay a minimum of $50 then, that's not the type of customer I want.

Basically, $50 pays me to show up at a job site and write an invoice (no window cleaning included)!

So... How does a business make a $28 bid work?

Answer: By hiring 1 or more employees and paying them very low wages. More likely than not, the window cleaning company that had the winning bid has several low paid employees and has acquired several low paying accounts like the fast food chain in question.

After, paying the employees low wages for a year, worker's compensation, liability and auto insurance, state and federal employment taxes, equipment costs and vehicle expenses...

...A business owner can squeak by and make a couple thousand dollars each year from each account. If this is the type of business contracts you want to go after, you'll need to expand your operations and operating budget.

My job is to help you build the best window cleaning business possible so, if you want to build a big business with tons of employees... GREAT! - I can help you. But, if you want to keep your cleaning business small and work on your own time...

Then, this type of store front contract is NOT where you want to be spending your efforts. They can be GREAT accounts but, you must acquire them on 'your terms' and at 'your price'.

If you want to be a solo window washing act or have 1 partner in business with you, you need to...

Creating Pricing Minimums

I recommend creating standard 'pricing minimums' for your business. Every legitimate business has a minimum price it will cost a person to hire their services... Why should your business be any different?

Pricing standards will help create a professional image for your business. Folks will respect you more and will be more apt to giving you the price you want if you create this standard.

People realize that there are costs of 'doing business', such as insurance, auto, gas, office and other related business expenses.

If you price your services too low, people will be suspicious and wonder if you are for 'real' or a 'fly-by-night' operator. These are the type of customers you need to attract - not the restaurant chain looking for the best bid.

In Chapter 5, Setting Standards for Success of "Your QUICK START Guide to Window Cleaning Profits", I recommend creating standard 'pricing minimums'.

Here are my Pricing Minimums: (You can use them if you'd like)

>> $50 minimum for ground floor work

>>$75 minimum for 2nd floor work requiring no longer than a 24' ladder

>>$100 minimum for 3rd floor work requiring no longer than a 32' ladder

Final Thoughts:

If you are going to build a window cleaning business that specializes in low paying 'route' window cleaning services; then make sure to train 1 or more employees to handle the work for you.

Your employees must work for low wages, have a clean driving record and be lightning fast with window cleaning tools.

Route window cleaning work is, in most cases, not profitable for an owner / operator unless the accounts are created with the use of minimum pricing standards.