What's a window cleaning teenager progress?

[Chet Shen]

I'm going to do it! Tomorrow I'm going to wash windows for the first time in my life! I'm going to buy a squeegee today and learn as much as I can about washing windows. I'm 15 and turning 16 this year and I've never done this before and I'm quite nervous. I've been inspired by

piano's thread (idk how to link threads)​

I've seen the comments and I thought:" Hey, why not start a small and easy business since all I do is pretty much watch porn(yea, teen problems) and workout

There's some things that I'm quite worried about:
-I'm 15 and I'm going to go knocking on people's door, so I don't have any kind of transport except for my bike
- I'm not a pro at washing windows
- Sometimes I get introverted
-IVE NEVER DONE KNOCKING ON DOORS BEFORE, IM SCARED
- I can overthink stuff

Questions I have are:
- Do I walk around and knocking on people's door holding my equipment?
- How much should I charge? I've seen videos about charging 50¢ per window and in the window washing industry, I don't know how charging works
- My equipment are going to be a squeegee, microfiber cloth, a glass cleaner spray, bucket of water? Is this enough to go knocking on people's doors?
- Should my pitch be like "Hi! Local window washer here! Do you have any windows you want to get cleaned?" Saying it like an energetic teen?
-Should I be energetic the whole time when washing windows?
-I hear people talking about insurance and ABN and taxes. Should I do insurance and worry about taxes as well? I'm scared of taxes

Other than that, please leave tips for me as I've done nothing about producing but consuming my whole life and feel like this business could supply my family for the things they are going thru right now. I am going to do my best and help out financially for my mom and dad as Im in a bad family situation.

If you guys want to say anything please say it, I want to give out my best and be the best window cleaner in my community! Maybe more advance equipment later on. Other than that, IM GOING TO DO IT!

​

 

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[perchboy]

Do I walk around and knocking on people's door holding my equipment?
Yes. Do the windows on the spot right when they say yes.

- How much should I charge? I've seen videos about charging 50¢ per window and in the window washing industry, I don't know how charging works
Charge enough that you will make over $50/hour

- My equipment are going to be a squeegee, microfiber cloth, a glass cleaner spray, bucket of water? Is this enough to go knocking on people's doors?
Yes

- Should my pitch be like "Hi! Local window washer here! Do you have any windows you want to get cleaned?" Saying it like an energetic teen?
Yes

-Should I be energetic the whole time when washing windows?
Yes

-I hear people talking about insurance and ABN and taxes. Should I do insurance and worry about taxes as well? I'm scared of taxes
No

Stop overthinking it. Simply just go knock on doors and clean their windows. How much easier do you want it to get?

I helped my friend start window cleaning and he made $200 in the first day.

Here's what he did - step by step actions for you to follow:
1. buy squeegee, extension pole, microfiber attachment for pole, bucket, window cleaning solution
2. ask ChatGPT how to clean windows
3. knock on doors saying "hi my name is Lawtiti and I'm offering my window cleaning services in the neighborhood" they will either say no or ask for a price. estimate how long it will take and charge so you make $50/hour to start
4. clean their windows
5. collect the money
6. go in to school feeling like the F*cking man knowing that you make in the evenings what the teachers make during the whole day

you're going to feel like you're ripping them off charging so high. its because you feel like youre worth $10/hour. they are not paying you for your time, they are paying you to get their windows clean. anyone would pay at least $50 to get their house windows cleaned. some people even charge $500 for window cleaning.

"but im only 15"
I'm 15 as well and charge $200 for jobs that take 2 hours so take my word for it.

if you have any tactical questions like what solution to use, dont overthink it. simply ask ChatGPT and do whatever the first thing it says. NOTHING IS AS BIG AS IT SEEMS it just seems big when you're starting out

anyone can make AT LEAST $100/evening after school following these steps. once you pass the mental hurdle and get paid for the first time you'll realize how easy it is to make money

 

[constant]

I'm going to do it! Tomorrow I'm going to wash windows for the first time in my life! I'm going to buy a squeegee today and learn as much as I can about washing windows. I'm 15 and turning 16 this year and I've never done this before and I'm quite nervous. I've been inspired by

piano's thread (idk how to link threads)​

I've seen the comments and I thought:" Hey, why not start a small and easy business since all I do is pretty much watch porn(yea, teen problems) and workout

There's some things that I'm quite worried about:
-I'm 15 and I'm going to go knocking on people's door, so I don't have any kind of transport except for my bike
- I'm not a pro at washing windows
- Sometimes I get introverted
-IVE NEVER DONE KNOCKING ON DOORS BEFORE, IM SCARED
- I can overthink stuff

Questions I have are:
- Do I walk around and knocking on people's door holding my equipment?
- How much should I charge? I've seen videos about charging 50¢ per window and in the window washing industry, I don't know how charging works
- My equipment are going to be a squeegee, microfiber cloth, a glass cleaner spray, bucket of water? Is this enough to go knocking on people's doors?
- Should my pitch be like "Hi! Local window washer here! Do you have any windows you want to get cleaned?" Saying it like an energetic teen?
-Should I be energetic the whole time when washing windows?
-I hear people talking about insurance and ABN and taxes. Should I do insurance and worry about taxes as well? I'm scared of taxes

Other than that, please leave tips for me as I've done nothing about producing but consuming my whole life and feel like this business could supply my family for the things they are going thru right now. I am going to do my best and help out financially for my mom and dad as Im in a bad family situation.

If you guys want to say anything please say it, I want to give out my best and be the best window cleaner in my community! Maybe more advance equipment later on. Other than that, IM GOING TO DO IT!

​

Welcome to the window cleaning crew.
Here are top 5 tips:

1.Don't buy Leifheit, buy Unger equipment
2.Expect to get rejected, expect rejection to hurt, expect to keep moving forward
3.Even if some building's windows are only slightly dirty, still pitch your services to them. People with clean windows often pay for their windows to stay clean, while people with dirty windows often don't care about clean windows.
4.Don't reject yourself, before being rejected by others. If you don't know if a person cares about clean windows, at least try.
5.Don't make your cleaning solution too concentrated, or it will dry and leave spots very easily. I personally got best results with water and a small dash of Fairy dishwashing liquid.

 

[Chet Shen]

Welcome to the window cleaning crew.
Here are top 5 tips:

1.Don't buy Leifheit, buy Unger equipment
2.Expect to get rejected, expect rejection to hurt, expect to keep moving forward
3.Even if some building's windows are only slightly dirty, still pitch your services to them. People with clean windows often pay for their windows to stay clean, while people with dirty windows often don't care about clean windows.
4.Don't reject yourself, before being rejected by others. If you don't know if a person cares about clean windows, at least try.
5.Don't make your cleaning solution too concentrated, or it will dry and leave spots very easily. I personally got best results with water and a small dash of Fairy dishwashing liquid.

I'm completely new to this so I have a few questions:
1) what the hell is leifheit and unheard equipment?
2) what do you mean by not making my solution TOO concentrated
3)I bought a squeegee which is 455mm, is it too big?
Other than that, that's it

I think a ladder and extension pole will be in my equipment later once I get enough money after cleaning. Any questions you have or any things you want to tell me, please tell me! I WILL ABSORB IT LIKE A SPONGE!

 

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[constant]

I'm completely new to this so I have a few questions:
1) what the hell is leifheit and unheard equipment?
2) what do you mean by not making my solution TOO concentrated
3)I bought a squeegee which is 455mm, is it too big?
Other than that, that's it

I think a ladder and extension pole will be in my equipment later once I get enough money after cleaning. Any questions you have or any things you want to tell me, please tell me! I WILL ABSORB IT LIKE A SPONGE!

1. Leifheit and Unger are companies who produce window cleaning equipment. Buy Unger equipment, since their products are a lot better in terms of quality.
2. If you buy professional window cleaning liquid, then you usually have to dilute it with water. If you add too little water, then it becomes a pain to work with.
3. No, that's a great size for most windows, but I would buy a smaller one too for small windows.


Also, check out piano's advice on d2d: here

 

[Chet Shen]

1. Leifheit and Unger are companies who produce window cleaning equipment. Buy Unger equipment, since their products are a lot better in terms of quality.
2. If you buy professional window cleaning liquid, then you usually have to dilute it with water. If you add too little water, then it becomes a pain to work with.
3. No, that's a great size for most windows, but I would buy a smaller one too for small windows.


Also, check out piano's advice on d2d: here

I see. I think that I will start cleaning windows with the 455mm squeegee, 2 microfiber cloth, dishwasher mixed with water and a bucket first then I'll start buying other equipment like extension pole, ladder, a Unger.
Btw how to link text?

 

[constant]

a Unger.

Unger is the company that makes squeegees, scrubbers, extension poles and etc.





Click that button and fill in the blanks.

 

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[Gordon]

I'm going to do it! Tomorrow I'm going to wash windows for the first time in my life! I'm going to buy a squeegee today and learn as much as I can about washing windows. I'm 15 and turning 16 this year and I've never done this before and I'm quite nervous. I've been inspired by

piano's thread (idk how to link threads)​

I've seen the comments and I thought:" Hey, why not start a small and easy business since all I do is pretty much watch porn(yea, teen problems) and workout

There's some things that I'm quite worried about:
-I'm 15 and I'm going to go knocking on people's door, so I don't have any kind of transport except for my bike
- I'm not a pro at washing windows
- Sometimes I get introverted
-IVE NEVER DONE KNOCKING ON DOORS BEFORE, IM SCARED
- I can overthink stuff

Questions I have are:
- Do I walk around and knocking on people's door holding my equipment?
- How much should I charge? I've seen videos about charging 50¢ per window and in the window washing industry, I don't know how charging works
- My equipment are going to be a squeegee, microfiber cloth, a glass cleaner spray, bucket of water? Is this enough to go knocking on people's doors?
- Should my pitch be like "Hi! Local window washer here! Do you have any windows you want to get cleaned?" Saying it like an energetic teen?
-Should I be energetic the whole time when washing windows?
-I hear people talking about insurance and ABN and taxes. Should I do insurance and worry about taxes as well? I'm scared of taxes

Other than that, please leave tips for me as I've done nothing about producing but consuming my whole life and feel like this business could supply my family for the things they are going thru right now. I am going to do my best and help out financially for my mom and dad as Im in a bad family situation.

If you guys want to say anything please say it, I want to give out my best and be the best window cleaner in my community! Maybe more advance equipment later on. Other than that, IM GOING TO DO IT!

​

Might add a reason for doing it, such as: "Hi I'm Lawtiti, and I am trying to save money for college so I don't have lifelong debt. You will get clean windows and I'll get some college money." Along with some sort of Interrupter, such as a scratch off lottery ticket. Good luck and get out there and try.

 

[Chet Shen]

Might add a reason for doing it, such as: "Hi I'm Lawtiti, and I am trying to save money for college so I don't have lifelong debt. You will get clean windows and I'll get some college money." Along with some sort of Interrupter, such as a scratch off lottery ticket. Good luck and get out there and try.

UPDATE!

I went and locked on 20 doors, all of them rejected, though I gave my phone number to one house as her husband was not home.

My pitch went like this "Morning! I'm offering window cleaning services so I can get enough money for tafe! Do you want your windows clean?"
And I did it in a rainy day, because today is supposed to be the day where I ACTUALLY do it!(stupid rain)

I went like 30min and came back as the rain is back and I'm wondering if I should wait until the rain stops then I go door to door again?

I actually got a bit emotionally upset at one point but came back to normal after that since I got rejected again and again.

People were saying like "No thanks!" Or "it's raining" Or "You can't get to the second story"(I live in a place where 2nd story houses are common)

Maybe I should clean my neighbours house for free?IDK

Now I'm just waiting for the stupid rain to stop then I'll continue

 

[Chet Shen]

UPDATE!

I went and locked on 20 doors, all of them rejected, though I gave my phone number to one house as her husband was not home.

My pitch went like this "Morning! I'm offering window cleaning services so I can get enough money for tafe! Do you want your windows clean?"
And I did it in a rainy day, because today is supposed to be the day where I ACTUALLY do it!(stupid rain)

I went like 30min and came back as the rain is back and I'm wondering if I should wait until the rain stops then I go door to door again?

I actually got a bit emotionally upset at one point but came back to normal after that since I got rejected again and again.

People were saying like "No thanks!" Or "it's raining" Or "You can't get to the second story"(I live in a place where 2nd story houses are common)

Maybe I should clean my neighbours house for free?IDK

Now I'm just waiting for the stupid rain to stop then I'll continue

After that I went to knock on 10 more doors and gave to 2 people my phone number. I also got a sale but I actually cried when she asked about my family(unintentional) since my family situation is quite bad. Then after that, she told me to clean 4 of her windows and gave me $50 and I gave her my phone number. That was very unprofessional and weird but at least I got $50 so I guess it's good?

I got a few questions:
1)One of the objections that came to me was that I can't clean the second floor as my pole is too short, should I buy a longer one?
2)I gave people my phone number and wondered should I get cards with my phone number and put it in letterboxes and give it to them?
3) I feel weird about buying an extension pole, squeegee, scrubber and potentially a ladder as I'm scared of the price like $150-$200
4)Should I knock on the same doors as today next time?

I felt a lot more confident about talking to people now and probably need to change my pitch into more like helping a teen to achieve his college goals. Some people's I asked were rental houses so I guess I'll be seeing them more now. Knocked on 30 doors and got $50 today

 

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[Chet Shen]

After that I went to knock on 10 more doors and gave to 2 people my phone number. I also got a sale but I actually cried when she asked about my family(unintentional) since my family situation is quite bad. Then after that, she told me to clean 4 of her windows and gave me $50 and I gave her my phone number. That was very unprofessional and weird but at least I got $50 so I guess it's good?

I got a few questions:
1)One of the objections that came to me was that I can't clean the second floor as my pole is too short, should I buy a longer one?
2)I gave people my phone number and wondered should I get cards with my phone number and put it in letterboxes and give it to them?
3) I feel weird about buying an extension pole, squeegee, scrubber and potentially a ladder as I'm scared of the price like $150-$200
4)Should I knock on the same doors as today next time?

I felt a lot more confident about talking to people now and probably need to change my pitch into more like helping a teen to achieve his college goals. Some people's I asked were rental houses so I guess I'll be seeing them more now. Knocked on 30 doors and got $50 today

Question that I got is what if I come as annoying to the homeowners? I feel like they might be annoyed at my presence and tell me to F*ck off anytime as I'm selling them something, do I just make my pitch funny enough to make them less annoyed?

 

[perchboy]

Maybe I should clean my neighbours house for free?IDK

please dont do that. thats desperate. demand $50/hour and you will soon make $50/hour

1)One of the objections that came to me was that I can't clean the second floor as my pole is too short, should I buy a longer one?
you can either buy a longer pole, or avoid those types of houses. I'd recommend buying a longer pole once you have the money for it so then you can charge higher for those higher houses.
2)I gave people my phone number and wondered should I get cards with my phone number and put it in letterboxes and give it to them?
good idea but not necessary. buy once you make enough profit
3) I feel weird about buying an extension pole, squeegee, scrubber and potentially a ladder as I'm scared of the price like $150-$200
make $200 profit first and then reinvest it.

4)Should I knock on the same doors as today next time?
no. if the people were interested and told you to come back then yes.

Question that I got is what if I come as annoying to the homeowners? I feel like they might be annoyed at my presence and tell me to F*ck off anytime as I'm selling them something, do I just make my pitch funny enough to make them less annoyed?
Who gives a F*ck if they're annoyed? Just go to the next house. They're not going to do anything to you aside from verbal abuse.

Good job so far @Lawtiti . Keep up the hustling

 

[Gordon]

Question that I got is what if I come as annoying to the homeowners? I feel like they might be annoyed at my presence and tell me to F*ck off anytime as I'm selling them something, do I just make my pitch funny enough to make them less annoyed?

Pardon me, I might get a bit long winded here. Why window washing? Also, YOU will be annoying, as are ALL door to door salespeople. Before you invest another dime in this, explore other options. For time vs money, for a young person there are possibly better things to offer.

One of them is HEADLIGHT cleaning. Do a little searching, you'll see this is a big business. And you need very little equipment. As compared to other car "detailing", inside/out, upholstery restoration, etc., etc. Cleaning headlights brings in the most money in the minimum amount of time. But you could easily do both can't you?

See, carrying extensions, squeegees, buckets around on a BIKE, not a great idea, is it? One small bucket, walk the neighborhood, and if cars are parked on the street, even easier, you can offer a free inspection and free test cleaning.

Now, you could be selling stuff too, but that gets sloppy, and you want to keep things dirt simple. Since you like to work out, maybe a JUNK to curb service, garage cleaning, basement/attic thing.

Of all the door to door that I have done over a lifetime, the headlight cleaning business has been at the top of the profit scale, if you keep things simple.

Also, your approach to the knock needs a lot of work, and as was spelled out in the thread about DtD, some very good advice on mindset.

Keep trying the window cleaning, when you get to 100 attempts, or rejections, give yourself some time to reconsider or to recommit to doing it. It may be easy for one person, and hard for another. You need to find something that matches your personality as well as your skills.

Window washing, yard work, lawn mowing, gutter cleaning, labor, painting addresses on curbs or porches, or installing ring cameras, and 101 other things you could do...why choose one that requires you invest in more equipment when one of the alternatives might suit you better?

 

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[Chet Shen]

please dont do that. thats desperate. demand $50/hour and you will soon make $50/hour

1)One of the objections that came to me was that I can't clean the second floor as my pole is too short, should I buy a longer one?
you can either buy a longer pole, or avoid those types of houses. I'd recommend buying a longer pole once you have the money for it so then you can charge higher for those higher houses.
2)I gave people my phone number and wondered should I get cards with my phone number and put it in letterboxes and give it to them?
good idea but not necessary. buy once you make enough profit
3) I feel weird about buying an extension pole, squeegee, scrubber and potentially a ladder as I'm scared of the price like $150-$200
make $200 profit first and then reinvest it.

4)Should I knock on the same doors as today next time?
no. if the people were interested and told you to come back then yes.

Question that I got is what if I come as annoying to the homeowners? I feel like they might be annoyed at my presence and tell me to F*ck off anytime as I'm selling them something, do I just make my pitch funny enough to make them less annoyed?
Who gives a F*ck if they're annoyed? Just go to the next house. They're not going to do anything to you aside from verbal abuse.

Good job so far @Lawtiti . Keep up the hustling

Thanks you so much for the support! For the Update:

I knocked on 22 doors today in the afternoon and came back home for lunch. Gave 8 people my phone number as when they rejected my window cleaning service, I offered general cleaning(pressure washing, lawn mowing,etc) and most of them said they will call me back when they need it. Is this what MJ DeMarco meant when he says don't do multiple business???So I pretty much have to learn how to do those general house cleaning now...

One guy said that he will have a cleaner come the next day and will call me back next week and I gave him the estimated price of $150 for the exterior.

One guy also said he will call me back as his lawn is interfering with the pathways to the windows around couple of weeks and one old lady said she'll call me back as she has to think about it(said that she really need it done)

After lunch, I kinda felt overwhelmed that I told people I offered them general cleaning and I feel like I have to take a new notebook out and learn how to mow lawns, pressure wash, all those stuff and write it all down. So I kinda just sat there and research on my tafe college thing since our selected few school students will take a look at tafe physically. I'm buying a squeegee and window scrubber from Amazon($75 total).

My dad has a friend and I offered her to clean her windows in exchange of taking photos of before & afters and referrals. I think if I do a great job on the houses, I'll ask for referrals and ask them if they know anyone who needs window cleaning. Maybe I can do general house cleaning services plus window cleaning? Saw some Facebook posts in our community group about general house cleaning.

Other than that I feel more confident and happier. I've started to incorporate some Josh Lester lines into my pitch, like:"So what we do is we handscrub every inch of your windows" & "If you don't mind, I'll go around the house, count up the windows and give you a price, it'll take me like 30 seconds" or "handsome guy" I think I'm starting to imitate him and feeling more confident about myself. Feeling like a salesman now! My dad says that I should go get a job at KFC or McDonald's or something. I feel that I should just keep on going door to door and eventually I will get someone to pay me $150-200 for the interior and exterior like Josh Lester! Freaking Legend with the pitches!

 

[Chet Shen]

Pardon me, I might get a bit long winded here. Why window washing? Also, YOU will be annoying, as are ALL door to door salespeople. Before you invest another dime in this, explore other options. For time vs money, for a young person there are possibly better things to offer.

One of them is HEADLIGHT cleaning. Do a little searching, you'll see this is a big business. And you need very little equipment. As compared to other car "detailing", inside/out, upholstery restoration, etc., etc. Cleaning headlights brings in the most money in the minimum amount of time. But you could easily do both can't you?

See, carrying extensions, squeegees, buckets around on a BIKE, not a great idea, is it? One small bucket, walk the neighborhood, and if cars are parked on the street, even easier, you can offer a free inspection and free test cleaning.

Now, you could be selling stuff too, but that gets sloppy, and you want to keep things dirt simple. Since you like to work out, maybe a JUNK to curb service, garage cleaning, basement/attic thing.

Of all the door to door that I have done over a lifetime, the headlight cleaning business has been at the top of the profit scale, if you keep things simple.

Also, your approach to the knock needs a lot of work, and as was spelled out in the thread about DtD, some very good advice on mindset.

Keep trying the window cleaning, when you get to 100 attempts, or rejections, give yourself some time to reconsider or to recommit to doing it. It may be easy for one person, and hard for another. You need to find something that matches your personality as well as your skills.

Window washing, yard work, lawn mowing, gutter cleaning, labor, painting addresses on curbs or porches, or installing ring cameras, and 101 other things you could do...why choose one that requires you invest in more equipment when one of the alternatives might suit you better?

Why window washing?
Saw piano post and thought, why not give it a go? I actually didn't go to Facebook and see if anyone needed it in our area, just went d2d and started selling.

Cleaning headlights brings in the most money in the minimum amount of time. But you could easily do both can't you?
I could tell them that I offered window cleaning and headlight cleaning, I guess. I saw one house where their car has white paint on their car headlight. I'm just not sure

Since you like to work out, maybe a JUNK to curb service, garage cleaning, basement/attic thing.
I'm sorry but, what does maybe a JUNK means? Don't really quite understand

Also, your approach to the knock needs a lot of work, and as was spelled out in the thread about DtD, some very good advice on mindset.
Do you mind sending the link?

I just wanted to do something, really just anything so I came upon piano thread about window cleaning and thought:"hey, I can do that" and just did it. Did d2d window cleaning simply because I wanted to do something and not join McDonald's or KFC working as a cashier. I think I will learn more wide variety of skills later on and improve what I'm doing and maybe do something more than just window cleaning (potentially plumbing or carpet cleaning) when I make more sales

 

[perchboy]

Its good that people took down your number. Dont expect them to call back though. Some people just say that as a nice way to reject. Keep giving your number out though because some of the people will call you or refer you in the future.

That is not what MJ meant when he said sont do multiple businesses. You are a home service business that offers multiple home services. Also, you aren't really operating a business. You're operating a side hustle. You can call yourself a business when you have an employee and customer service rep. You're not operating a CENTS business you're tryna stack up some money right now.

@Gordon is semi-right. There are many other things where you can get way higher ROI on your time but you did the right thing of taking action right away. Now that you have experience making money, everything should come easy to you. See what servies are in demand in your city.

Google Ads - Sign in

Advertise with Google Ads in the Sponsored Links section next to search results to boost website traffic and sales.

ads.google.com

Press keyword planner and put in the keyword "service" "city"
eg; "window washing seattle"

It shows how many people search for/need it (demand).

Take into account these things:
- how many people search for it
- the competition
- pricing
- how easy it is to outsource (for scaling in the future)

Ideas off the top of my head:
- lawn care
- carpet cleaning
- car detailing
- driveway sealing
- gutter cleaning
- pressure washing
- roof cleaning

Please take this advice: become a doer. Dont overthink about how to pressure wash or lawn mow. Again, nothing is as big as it seems. When someone asks you something, dont think whether you can do it or not. Say yes, and then learn how to do it after. If I get a call and someone asks if I can fix the leather wearing off of their steering wheel I just say yes and then search up how to do it. The worst that will happen is that you dont know how to operate the pressure washer and you go home. If that's the worst that can happen, then go head first into it right away.

Also, try nextdoor as well. In my first week of business I made a post saying "hi neighbors i do car detailing so give me a call" and i booked 10 people in the coming weeks

 

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[Gordon]

Why window washing?
Saw piano post and thought, why not give it a go? I actually didn't go to Facebook and see if anyone needed it in our area, just went d2d and started selling.

Cleaning headlights brings in the most money in the minimum amount of time. But you could easily do both can't you?
I could tell them that I offered window cleaning and headlight cleaning, I guess. I saw one house where their car has white paint on their car headlight. I'm just not sure

Since you like to work out, maybe a JUNK to curb service, garage cleaning, basement/attic thing.
I'm sorry but, what does maybe a JUNK means? Don't really quite understand

Also, your approach to the knock needs a lot of work, and as was spelled out in the thread about DtD, some very good advice on mindset.
Do you mind sending the link?

I just wanted to do something, really just anything so I came upon piano thread about window cleaning and thought:"hey, I can do that" and just did it. Did d2d window cleaning simply because I wanted to do something and not join McDonald's or KFC working as a cashier. I think I will learn more wide variety of skills later on and improve what I'm doing and maybe do something more than just window cleaning (potentially plumbing or carpet cleaning) when I make more sales

I just wanted to do something, really just anything

And it is great you are ambitious and want to do better than a "kid's" job at fast food places, so good for you. I'll leave this thread and give you some food for thought, OK? And this is a true story:

One Saturday morning I made 85 cents selling flowers door to door in about 15 minutes, and right after that I helped a man wash and wax his car for 25 cents. It took an hour. My mother pointed out that I made 3X the money in one quarter of the time by selling the flowers, which grew behind their homes in a field. Anyone who gave me a nickel could have walked out their back doors and gotten all the flowers they wanted for free.

Fortunately, the man who roped me into wax on/wax off gave me some magic words to use on these folks.

Since then, in over 60 years, very few times has trading TIME for dollars (DOING/labor) beaten selling something.

I'll say over 90% of the time a salesman selling a 'thing' beats a person DOING something. So while it may take you an hour to clean some windows, say for that 50 bucks, the TIME could have been used selling something and in most instances you make more money. Not always of course.

So, think about what you are doing. If you listen to your dad, you will trade your time for some low wage in a fast food joint. If you wash windows, clean, carry, or DO anything you are trading your time for money.

Since you are learning how to knock on doors anyhow, and the more you do the better and easier it will get for you, consider selling some THING to whomever answers the door. Once you have a customer, they could easily be sold other THINGS, get good at selling (basically on commission or buying at a discount) and you will find it beats trading time for money 6.5 days a week.

Good luck, stick with it, and whatever you choose to do, thanks for sharing your journey, and it is good time for you to learn and get skills which will last you a lifetime.

 

[Chet Shen]

Its good that people took down your number. Dont expect them to call back though. Some people just say that as a nice way to reject. Keep giving your number out though because some of the people will call you or refer you in the future.

That is not what MJ meant when he said sont do multiple businesses. You are a home service business that offers multiple home services. Also, you aren't really operating a business. You're operating a side hustle. You can call yourself a business when you have an employee and customer service rep. You're not operating a CENTS business you're tryna stack up some money right now.

@Gordon is semi-right. There are many other things where you can get way higher ROI on your time but you did the right thing of taking action right away. Now that you have experience making money, everything should come easy to you. See what servies are in demand in your city.

Google Ads - Sign in

Advertise with Google Ads in the Sponsored Links section next to search results to boost website traffic and sales.

ads.google.com

Press keyword planner and put in the keyword "service" "city"
eg; "window washing seattle"

It shows how many people search for/need it (demand).

Take into account these things:
- how many people search for it
- the competition
- pricing
- how easy it is to outsource (for scaling in the future)

Ideas off the top of my head:
- lawn care
- carpet cleaning
- car detailing
- driveway sealing
- gutter cleaning
- pressure washing
- roof cleaning

Please take this advice: become a doer. Dont overthink about how to pressure wash or lawn mow. Again, nothing is as big as it seems. When someone asks you something, dont think whether you can do it or not. Say yes, and then learn how to do it after. If I get a call and someone asks if I can fix the leather wearing off of their steering wheel I just say yes and then search up how to do it. The worst that will happen is that you dont know how to operate the pressure washer and you go home. If that's the worst that can happen, then go head first into it right away.

Also, try nextdoor as well. In my first week of business I made a post saying "hi neighbors i do car detailing so give me a call" and i booked 10 people in the coming weeks

You are damn right! It felt easier to do now, especially I'm expecting to do something myself. I'm feeling like a DOER now, I feel more better now.

I posted my ad in nextdoor, I literally said I want to get money for tafe in my ads for nextdoor and Facebook, should I keep it like that?

Maybe I'll focus on general cleaning because the people who doesn't want my window cleaning most of the time take my phone number down when I said that I also do general cleaning.

Is the Google Ad the site for looking the searches in my area?

Other than that, thanks for the contributions! I really love it when people comment and post their opinion, really gives me some food for thought! Thanks you so much!

 

[perchboy]

You are damn right! It felt easier to do now, especially I'm expecting to do something myself. I'm feeling like a DOER now, I feel more better now.

I posted my ad in nextdoor, I literally said I want to get money for tafe in my ads for nextdoor and Facebook, should I keep it like that?

Maybe I'll focus on general cleaning because the people who doesn't want my window cleaning most of the time take my phone number down when I said that I also do general cleaning.

Is the Google Ad the site for looking the searches in my area?

Other than that, thanks for the contributions! I really love it when people comment and post their opinion, really gives me some food for thought! Thanks you so much!

Sorry, I wasn’t clear. Posting an ad in Nextdoor does nish. Just make a community post and put a picture of a grown man for the pfp.

Don’t tell them you’re a general cleaner General cleaners get paid per hour. People who specialize get paid per job.

If you need something feel free to send me a message

 

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[Chet Shen]

Sorry, I wasn’t clear. Posting an ad in Nextdoor does nish. Just make a community post and put a picture of a grown man for the pfp.

Don’t tell them you’re a general cleaner General cleaners get paid per hour. People who specialize get paid per job.

If you need something feel free to send me a message

So I go to school 1 hour away from our house when when walking to school, I always notice some storefront who needs their stores windows clean(single story) should I ask hen if they need window cleaning? While wearing a school uniform?

 

[perchboy]

So I go to school 1 hour away from our house when when walking to school, I always notice some storefront who needs their stores windows clean(single story) should I ask hen if they need window cleaning? While wearing a school uniform?

So I go to school 1 hour away from our house when when walking to school, I always notice some storefront who needs their stores windows clean(single story) should I ask hen if they need window cleaning? While wearing a school uniform?

Of course. Why tf do you even have to ask that?

 

[Chet Shen]

I'm going to do it! Tomorrow I'm going to wash windows for the first time in my life! I'm going to buy a squeegee today and learn as much as I can about washing windows. I'm 15 and turning 16 this year and I've never done this before and I'm quite nervous. I've been inspired by

piano's thread (idk how to link threads)​

I've seen the comments and I thought:" Hey, why not start a small and easy business since all I do is pretty much watch porn(yea, teen problems) and workout

There's some things that I'm quite worried about:
-I'm 15 and I'm going to go knocking on people's door, so I don't have any kind of transport except for my bike
- I'm not a pro at washing windows
- Sometimes I get introverted
-IVE NEVER DONE KNOCKING ON DOORS BEFORE, IM SCARED
- I can overthink stuff

Questions I have are:
- Do I walk around and knocking on people's door holding my equipment?
- How much should I charge? I've seen videos about charging 50¢ per window and in the window washing industry, I don't know how charging works
- My equipment are going to be a squeegee, microfiber cloth, a glass cleaner spray, bucket of water? Is this enough to go knocking on people's doors?
- Should my pitch be like "Hi! Local window washer here! Do you have any windows you want to get cleaned?" Saying it like an energetic teen?
-Should I be energetic the whole time when washing windows?
-I hear people talking about insurance and ABN and taxes. Should I do insurance and worry about taxes as well? I'm scared of taxes

Other than that, please leave tips for me as I've done nothing about producing but consuming my whole life and feel like this business could supply my family for the things they are going thru right now. I am going to do my best and help out financially for my mom and dad as Im in a bad family situation.

If you guys want to say anything please say it, I want to give out my best and be the best window cleaner in my community! Maybe more advance equipment later on. Other than that, IM GOING TO DO IT!

​

Update!

I'm coming back from school now and the post in nextdoor has made 1 person asking me to do it today for 5 standard window and 1 sliding window, I said $50 and she accepted it. Another person told me that she has a double story house and has 20 windows to clean. I might have to buy an extension pole now

 

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[Chet Shen]

Update!

I'm coming back from school now and the post in nextdoor has made 1 person asking me to do it today for 5 standard window and 1 sliding window, I said $50 and she accepted it. Another person told me that she has a double story house and has 20 windows to clean. I might have to buy an extension pole now

The person I went today was actually a tenant living in the client's house, supposed to clean inside and outside, I didn't know that and she told me to clean the outside only, and now she's asking me why I didn't clean the inside, looks like there's some miscommunication. Gonna do it this Friday she says

 

[Chet Shen]

The person I went today was actually a tenant living in the client's house, supposed to clean inside and outside, I didn't know that and she told me to clean the outside only, and now she's asking me why I didn't clean the inside, looks like there's some miscommunication. Gonna do it this Friday she says

Sorry if I hadn't replied to the thread at all for like 2 days. I ordered an Unger squeegee 12inch as I need a smaller squeegee and a glass scraper as I remembered that I went to a house that has a tough dirt on the window before. Today I'm going to clean the landlord's interior window part. Tbh I really don't know how to clean interior. All I know is to put water and dishwashing liquid into a small bottle to replace the bucket. So instead of dipping the scrubber into the bucket, I will drop the soapy water onto the windowand scrub it.

Btw I'm actually very nervous on approaching storefronts, I have a few questions:
1) Do I just go into the store and ask for the manager? Would they even let me talk to the manager?
2)Should I bring my equipment while talking to them or just bring nothing? There's a place where I go to school that's near a city and has a lot of stores there, should I just wear my school uniform and bring nothing? Should I bring my equipment into the store?
3) What should I say? I think storefronts are scarier than residential houses so PLZ give me ANY tips

 

[Chet Shen]

Sorry if I hadn't replied to the thread at all for like 2 days. I ordered an Unger squeegee 12inch as I need a smaller squeegee and a glass scraper as I remembered that I went to a house that has a tough dirt on the window before. Today I'm going to clean the landlord's interior window part. Tbh I really don't know how to clean interior. All I know is to put water and dishwashing liquid into a small bottle to replace the bucket. So instead of dipping the scrubber into the bucket, I will drop the soapy water onto the windowand scrub it.

Btw I'm actually very nervous on approaching storefronts, I have a few questions:
1) Do I just go into the store and ask for the manager? Would they even let me talk to the manager?
2)Should I bring my equipment while talking to them or just bring nothing? There's a place where I go to school that's near a city and has a lot of stores there, should I just wear my school uniform and bring nothing? Should I bring my equipment into the store?
3) What should I say? I think storefronts are scarier than residential houses so PLZ give me ANY tips

Got a message back from someone who needs window cleaning, but it's bad news

What should I types back? Do I just say okay and go about my day? I do have a pole that measures up to 8 foot and have a window squeegee and scrubber so I'm pretty sure I can do it. I think he says this because I said in the post that I'm 16 and want to get money for tafe. What should I do??

 

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[perchboy]

Saying you’re 16 desperate for money means that they expect to pay you $10/h

Being a window cleaning professional means they’ll pay you $100/h

 

[Chet Shen]

Sorry if I hadn't replied to the thread at all for like 2 days. I ordered an Unger squeegee 12inch as I need a smaller squeegee and a glass scraper as I remembered that I went to a house that has a tough dirt on the window before. Today I'm going to clean the landlord's interior window part. Tbh I really don't know how to clean interior. All I know is to put water and dishwashing liquid into a small bottle to replace the bucket. So instead of dipping the scrubber into the bucket, I will drop the soapy water onto the windowand scrub it.

Btw I'm actually very nervous on approaching storefronts, I have a few questions:
1) Do I just go into the store and ask for the manager? Would they even let me talk to the manager?
2)Should I bring my equipment while talking to them or just bring nothing? There's a place where I go to school that's near a city and has a lot of stores there, should I just wear my school uniform and bring nothing? Should I bring my equipment into the store?
3) What should I say? I think storefronts are scarier than residential houses so PLZ give me ANY tips

Got a message back from someone who needs window cleaning, but it's bad news
View attachment 48650
What should I types back? Do I just say okay and go about my day? I do have a pole that measures up to 8 foot and have a window squeegee and scrubber so I'm pretty sure I can do it. I think he says this because I said in the post that I'm 16 and want to get money for tafe. What should I do??

Saying you’re 16 desperate for money means that they expect to pay you $10/h

Being a window cleaning professional means they’ll pay you $100/h

Should I just erase the "I'm 16 wanting to get money for tafe" part and replace it for something professional?

 

[savefox]

Should I just erase the "I'm 16 wanting to get money for tafe" part and replace it for something professional?

Yes. Make it about THEM, not about YOU

 

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[Chet Shen]

UPDATE!

Cleaned the woman's window yesterday and it was my first time cleaning the interior part of the house. I took longer than usual as there were harden drops of paint on the window and the window were much dirtier than expected. I should've went there physically to see the window myself to give a price but only asked her to take a pic of the exterior part of the window. Next time I'll make sure to go there physically to give a price instead of asking for a photo and making the price there.

I also realised that my bucket of water turned black and I had to refill it with their clean water like 3 times, even using their dishwashing liquid as I forgot to bring mine! That's very unprofessional! @piano how do you clean the interior windows? I just use a bucket of water and dishwashing liquid and just make sure that I don't drop, & if I do, I just wipe it off with my cloth

Other than that, two guys in nextdoor messaged me asking for window cleaning. I changed my "ad" to look more professional. I think that I need to start adding pictures and make a Facebook business page to get reviews on as well

 

[piano]

@piano how do you clean the interior windows? I just use a bucket of water and dishwashing liquid and just make sure that I don't drop, & if I do, I just wipe it off with my cloth

Just like the exterior windows, only a bit different. I first dump my scrubber into the water and then wring it out or whatever the verb is (basically, squeeze the water out so it's way less wet, you don't want to make a mess).
Then I lay a (bath)towel underneath the window so it catches any drops. Optionally you can also add the double handed fanning technique (scrubber + squeegee) to catch the liquid directly. If you're fast enough with that, you might not even need the towel. I mean, you don't *need* it generally, but it's good to have.
Don't fret asking any other questions btw.
I'm sure I can give better advice than @Subsonic