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| Never a truer word spoken from the Sparkle King (above). |
So recently I've been going over the window cleaning forums, my favorite being Window Cleaning Resource, when I came across this post from Jesse Green of Sparkle King in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. What struck me from Jesses musings is that although being quite young, he has captured what every window cleaner has been thinking for eons, but couldn't quite put them into words. His thread was a tongue in cheek response from a newer member who exploded on to the forum to boost his ego, or maybe to sell some "how-to" DVDs. Jesse is known as "greenj26" on the WCR forum.
A so-called expert has told you that your all a bunch of bumbling fools.
Fortunately, the solution is as easy as purchasing his marketing DVDs.
“I mean imagine if the craft you are trying to learn is to be an original. How could you learn the craft of being an original?” - JonathanSafran Foer
Fortunately, the solution is as easy as purchasing his marketing DVDs.
“I mean imagine if the craft you are trying to learn is to be an original. How could you learn the craft of being an original?” - JonathanSafran Foer
Hint: the answer isn't the exclusive prize of a secret cabal of ultra-wealthy carpet cleaners.
The very best window cleaning companies on WCR are a mix of styles because they are scattered across the country and exist in a specific ecosystems which they have adapted to.
The problem with cookie cutter marketing approaches is that they are merely one person's success formula (unlike a online business owner community). A narrow slice of the experiential pie, if you will. The simple fact that one person has succeeded with this formula may be a testament to their own drive and perseverance more than to their magic system.
If a system is developed by a super salesman personality and you are a stay-at-home computer nerd, do you really think it will work?
Why not devote your energy to your website?
There's more ways to be successful than you can count.
Who defines success anyways?
Yesterday I came to the realization that I'm really lazy. Then I briefly thought that, maybe I'm just efficient... but I knew that wasn't true. Then it finally dawned on me that I have no self discipline because I am always doing what I want.
On occasion I feel like a failure because I don't have a level of income commensurate with my level of education... and then I roll out of my hammock and pluck a grape from my harbor and pop it in my mouth.
Thinking about creating my own free videos on here for “The Bohemian Window Cleaner.”
I don't know if I could make a million dollars (p.s. A million isn't what it used to be). I know a few millionaires, though. My uncle rose up from a pig farmer to owning a large construction company worth millions. He's had so many ulcers and surgeries - all stress related...
The problem with cookie cutter marketing approaches is that they are merely one person's success formula (unlike a online business owner community). A narrow slice of the experiential pie, if you will. The simple fact that one person has succeeded with this formula may be a testament to their own drive and perseverance more than to their magic system.
If a system is developed by a super salesman personality and you are a stay-at-home computer nerd, do you really think it will work?
Why not devote your energy to your website?
There's more ways to be successful than you can count.
Who defines success anyways?
Yesterday I came to the realization that I'm really lazy. Then I briefly thought that, maybe I'm just efficient... but I knew that wasn't true. Then it finally dawned on me that I have no self discipline because I am always doing what I want.
On occasion I feel like a failure because I don't have a level of income commensurate with my level of education... and then I roll out of my hammock and pluck a grape from my harbor and pop it in my mouth.
Thinking about creating my own free videos on here for “The Bohemian Window Cleaner.”
I don't know if I could make a million dollars (p.s. A million isn't what it used to be). I know a few millionaires, though. My uncle rose up from a pig farmer to owning a large construction company worth millions. He's had so many ulcers and surgeries - all stress related...
No thanks.
I've been in multi-million dollar homes where the homeowner is following me around telling me how stressful it is to be rich, how everyone is after their money.
I was in a mansion of a gentleman who retired from a high position in a computer software development company in Silicon Valley. He said he had to get out before he had a heart attack as was common for that level of responsibility.
There's no magic secrets. The age of the internet is making that abundantly clear. The same information that Scientologists paid thousands of dollars for can be found free on the web. That's unfortunately making it harder for guru types to fleece people of their money. Accountability. Remember Paul McQuillan, anyone?
Kevin Dubrosky, on the other hand, has had hundreds of testimonials from the WCR community.
As far as vehicle wraps, fancy shirts, etc etc.... do whatever works. How can someone in one part of the country - know what works across the country in all the hundreds of distinct neighborhoods.
You have to think and understand biology to survive the new modern economy. A successful organism adapts and harness it's environment. You want to live in Arizona, be a lizard. You want to live in Alaska, be a bear.
Postcards, letters, vehicle signage, websites, email, facebook, newspapers.....they are all tools. Some of them are more effective than others.
Phone book anyone?
Future: Angie's List and other review sites. Website (quality of appearance and content, SEO). Water-fed pole technology (look at the UK window cleaning industry as a guide for where we are going especially with insurance and safety). Soon, I think I may get a dragonfly or some such system for cleaning high interior windows.
Some of these strict business guys think that it's just crunching numbers and having the best equipment doesn't matter. But I find that the better equipment I have, the better and easier it is to do the job, which results in more $ per hour and more confidence in the presentation of my services to the customer. There's a psychological component to business - it's not just crunching numbers.
I have found that a lot of the secret to my own system is just that it allows me to be more confident when I talk to the customer. Knowing your stuff makes you more confident.
The gap between the social classes is widening. The middle class is disappearing – fact. Targeting the more affluent class is becoming more difficult. Many are on do-not-contact lists.
I've been in multi-million dollar homes where the homeowner is following me around telling me how stressful it is to be rich, how everyone is after their money.
I was in a mansion of a gentleman who retired from a high position in a computer software development company in Silicon Valley. He said he had to get out before he had a heart attack as was common for that level of responsibility.
There's no magic secrets. The age of the internet is making that abundantly clear. The same information that Scientologists paid thousands of dollars for can be found free on the web. That's unfortunately making it harder for guru types to fleece people of their money. Accountability. Remember Paul McQuillan, anyone?
Kevin Dubrosky, on the other hand, has had hundreds of testimonials from the WCR community.
As far as vehicle wraps, fancy shirts, etc etc.... do whatever works. How can someone in one part of the country - know what works across the country in all the hundreds of distinct neighborhoods.
You have to think and understand biology to survive the new modern economy. A successful organism adapts and harness it's environment. You want to live in Arizona, be a lizard. You want to live in Alaska, be a bear.
Postcards, letters, vehicle signage, websites, email, facebook, newspapers.....they are all tools. Some of them are more effective than others.
Phone book anyone?
Future: Angie's List and other review sites. Website (quality of appearance and content, SEO). Water-fed pole technology (look at the UK window cleaning industry as a guide for where we are going especially with insurance and safety). Soon, I think I may get a dragonfly or some such system for cleaning high interior windows.
Some of these strict business guys think that it's just crunching numbers and having the best equipment doesn't matter. But I find that the better equipment I have, the better and easier it is to do the job, which results in more $ per hour and more confidence in the presentation of my services to the customer. There's a psychological component to business - it's not just crunching numbers.
I have found that a lot of the secret to my own system is just that it allows me to be more confident when I talk to the customer. Knowing your stuff makes you more confident.
The gap between the social classes is widening. The middle class is disappearing – fact. Targeting the more affluent class is becoming more difficult. Many are on do-not-contact lists.
The most exclusive customers find you. You need to be able to be found.
A little about Jesse of Sparkle King Window & Gutter Cleaning who services Cape Cod, the South Shore, and the South Coast of Massachusetts: "Hi, I’m Jesse Green owner and operator of Sparkle King. I have been helping customers add that bit of sparkle to their homes since 2008. Creating my company, I imagined what kind of experience I would want as a homeowner. I wanted to have someone I trusted in my home, someone with experience and passion, and someone who can explain the process in a simple easy to understand manner. I have sought to embody those traits in my business and hope you will actually enjoy having your windows cleaned when you choose Sparkle King."
