What are some advantages you guys may have over other pressure washing businesses in your area. Like what do you do thats so different. Trying to get a few ideas
Your asking people to give up their advantages/secrets to a “stranger” on top of that our/their competition also visit these forums. You have to figure this out on your own and come up with a way to separate your self from your competition by yourself. You cant expect people to spoon feed you trade secretes when you been a member for 2 days with 2hr of read time. It may sound harsh but people (at least me) are not going to give just anyone information that has taken years and hundreds of dollars to learn. Use the search tool and read all you can. Read marketing, and advertising books to get your brain in the business mindset.
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Hundreds of dollars… more like thousands and countless hours researching, testing, learning.
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Equipment is one thing but I have found that most of your competitive advantage comes in way of marketing, partnerships, and peering agreements. Chamber of Commerce memberships, partnering with real estate agents, local business associates, even non-profits and performing services at-cost/donation can provide an opportunity to set yourself apart from the herd.
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Like @Donte55 said, on top, you have no bus profile.
…#1 be honest, that is the first rule in any business
Marketing, sales, and customer service are far more important than fancy machines and pretty trucks. Read the reviews of your competitors if they have any at all. That’ll tell you why customers are or aren’t buying.
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Heat, higher gpm, surface cleaner, online resources. jumping website, proper insurance, shirts, simple lifestyle, snazzy business cards, workers comp, a youtube channel, written estimates.
Now the stuff that matters:
Caring about people
Calmly Listening
Good communication
Asking meaningful questions
Educating customers
Poise
Not using profanity
Staying up on industry news and trends
Having a couple trusted business confidants
Having a sense of humor with customers
Taking a personal interest
Knowing my numbers
Going in high on estimates.
Doing a little extra
Bathing.
Smiling
Eye contact
Remembering names.
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Awesome advice. This is true in any business. Just to add to what you said, the most important part of getting someone to buy something from you is getting them to trust you. The easiest way to get someone to trust you is to connect with them. It doesn’t even have to be about work. Talk to them about the weather, or how nice their house is, or their car, or if they have their dog barking, talk about your pets. Now you’re not a company, your a person. When they trust you, they buy.
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I was only asking! I think thats why i joined this forum dont you. If you don’t have an answer you dont have to comment
Thanks everybody that did offer something i was only asking thats all
This is probably the most overlooked marketing tool and an absolute necessity.
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@Trevord he’s right. You gotta figure out what works best for your company, but by testing stuff that other successful people are doing.
90% of the advice I give on the forum I’m effectively stealing from people way smarter than I am who were kind enough to share it or write a book about it. Then I tested it.
Also, you gotta set up a business profile and introduce yourself here to earn trust from the long-timers because the only real trouble I’ve seen comes from the secretive pressure washing phantoms. It’s like the wild west. The community is suspicious of newcomers with their hat pulled low because history dictates they usually bring trouble.
Be careful not to burn bridges. Once we all get to know you the @Donte55’s of the forum will likely save your butt someday by giving you hard earned information.
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Yeah you NEED a USP (Unique selling proposition) . The WHY should someone hire you should never revolve around you being the cheapest. LOL .
WCR Nation Episode 30 - Are You Unique | Window Cleaning Podcast - YouTube
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Our USP is being 100% mobile…two trucks with 1400 gallons of water and 14 days to pay. We don’t require our customers to be home when we get there or do the service and email invoices and give 14 days to pay. Customers love this, and this also allows you to schedule on your terms and not theirs. In the past two seasons I’ve only had one person not pay a $400 bill and a month later when I was in the neighborhood the house was for sale and vacant…$400 is not worth even worth worrying about.
The water thing is a selling point because for some reason people around me are under the impression that power washers use thousands of gallons of water and will add a $100 to their water bill…
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Keep shopping. Lol. JDW is a weird outfit. Search insurance here to find out why.
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The two times I’ve been stiffed it was houses on the market. Weird deal. You’re the last thing on their mind when they sell.
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My advantage is my equipment…my competition is mostly lawn guys.
Yes that’s who we have. They are one of the few that have a classification for pw.
