plainpainter

My gross sales are pitiful, Scott. I haven't effectively found work for 5 months of the year, this is the first winter where I am planning on making money based upon computer type work - but that's still in the planning stages. But many of my expenses continue well into the winter months. This year will be better - but I spent alot of money in advertizing last year and didn't shop my insurances as much as I should have - and my total operating overhead as a result was like 2k/month. Despite how profitable folks think house washing is - it takes like 40 house washes to gross about 15k in sales. Deck sales were way way off - although I topped last year's sales, only because I got other advertizing in place. But my deck sales from my newspaper ad alone dropped 90% from last year. As well, since historically I haven't been able to get work from November through March - any 'extra' money is needed to invest back into my company come the spring. I just think of it this way - a company like mine that does deck restorations and house washing type services has an exponential sales curve over the years, and without a business plan and a starting budget - I am forced into the 'flat' area of the curve for a longer period of time. I have seen scenerios looking at my numbers where growth could triple or quadruple in one year alone - but I am working very hard at sowing the 'seeds' now for customer for future customer relationships. I have yet to enjoy any real 'maintenance' work, as my first wave of potential maintenance jobs came and went without any sales - due to the economy I imagine. But I am keeping my nose to the grindstone and one day that will change.

I had a 'lean' year this year, I am use to it now. I think the way I will plan for it, will be to roll out 10x the amount of marketing I did this year. Like I said about learning valuable lessons - I learned that effective marketing isn't necessarily expensive and expensive marketing is necessarily effective. I am actually looking forward to having a harder time getting leads - because now I have faith I can go and get leads, it will make it that much more harder for my competition to survive. And I have learned many financial lessons as well. The top 10% of household incomes do 50% of the all the domestic purchasing, which in turn makes up 70% of GDP. This is equivalent to household salaries of 125k and up. I also learned that the stock market is under pressure of forces outside the realm of our borders. If chinese manufacturing stocks do well, which are listed on the NYSE - the dow will go up. If the dollar tanks, the dow will go up. The dow will go up for lots of reasons that have no bearing to whether or not the bottom 20% of households are employed or not. So armed with this information, if folks confront me about how the economy isn't doing great. I will politely recite some of this information - so they will know that I know that they aren't doing badly. Sorry ma'am - your household income is over 250k, which puts you in the top 1.5% of household income in our great nation - you can afford me. Then I'll walk if I have to. Of course I won't quite say it that way to folks, but that will be my attitude.

50 degrees isn't a great temp to wash gutters - but I've washed homes well into the mid 40's. Which means approx mid november.

Scott - I don't think the economy is going to come roaring back full steam ahead like the years of '95-'99. And even though many economic factors are improving at break neck speed - some of them pertain to very narrow industries or regions of the county. Like in Massachusetts - O'bama through all his programs was perhaps responsible for the 3.5% national growth in the 3rd quarter through programs like cash for clunkers and the investments in highways, etc. But in a very local sense MA has seen a 1.1% negative decline in growth - cars aren't made in massachusetts among other things. So a very 'broad' market recovery is years in the making. But I think we have seen the worst, we've learned many lessons and gained many tools along the way to help out in the tumultuous months ahead. One important lesson that I learned is that you don't need everyone to have money to purchase deck restorations or house washes. There is enough folks out there that will pay - if you know how to target them. In years past we as contractors had the luxury that a high degree of folks were capable of affording our services, everyone you sent a flier to was potentially your customer. Now, things are different, I've gotten some of my very largest jobs this year. Now I don't think I am in an economic climate where I could get 10 crews out there. But if I squeeze real hard there is just enough 'blood' in this economy for me to make through.

Jim - the national economy grew 3.5% in the 3rd quarter, but the economy in Massachusetts had a decline of -1.1%. So perhaps things are similar in Connecticut? Sometimes I don't get it, I've never seen such flaunting of wealth with big homes, big cars, tons of 'diva' high end beauty salons - and yet I've never seen such penny pinchers at the same time.

I started on a shoe-string budget and constantly robbed peter to pay paul for my first 3 years, then made the plunge with a final robbing of peter to start my washing business. I'd say without starting capital, without a business plan - it will take you 5 years before you can even consider a salary - and that's if you are your own mechanic fixing your own truck and pressure washers - and are technically inclined to do your own SEO - and have a friend that is advertizing/marketing that can help you if you help him with other things like paint his shop and stuff. And of course there is luck - I barely survived the past two years. Had I not started in '04 with all the experience of mistakes and setbacks - I don't know what I would be doing now. Not to mention in my area all forms of print traditional advertizing are extremely expensive - with loads of indications that they no longer work. So even if you have a sizable advertizing budget - it's unclear where you can even spend it? Websites work best in Metropolitan areas, but if you are in suburbia their effectiveness drops dramatically. I just barely squeeked by, major kudos to guys coming in now - hope it works out.

Yeah - it's my last deck of the year - only have gutter work from here on out.

But just barely!

So here we are still in Iraq and Afghanistan - and there is still bombing going on in Iraq. So can we can effect real change in the middle east with military involvement? I use to buy the argument that even though O'bama didn't start this war/engagement - that he can't just pullout, because that would be a disaster. But I don't know anymore - I am starting to think O'bama is just as much under the thumb of the military/industrial complex as Bush was. I am starting to think no real change will ever be achieved with military occupation - and that we're going to be over there for 60 years like we are in Japan. We admitted to 'failure' in Vietnam and pulled out with our tails between our legs, but with ongoing policy afterwards - Vietnam is now a place that an American Tourist can go visit today. I want to see Real change that O'bama promised. We should just get out of the middle east. The middle east is a lost cause that drains our budget - we have to seek real change, maybe the CIA can put in place an effective government in Afghanistan - but I have my doubts. We tried in Iran and look what that happened there. Those folks have to come to real change on their own.

Guys who say they get customers from referrals, I'd like to know if they actually ask each customer how they found out about them. I worked off the referral system back in the 90's - the unsolicited type of referrals. I'd say that unsolicited referrals are like 5-10% of my business now, where as it was 90% of my business 15 years ago. And even then that's if you send newsletters and reminders constantly. Anybody who doesn't think you have to be proactive about getting referrals and offer incentive programs are simply out of their minds, or to put it more mildly harbor much cognitive dissonance. Everyone I know that is truly busy {last I checked, they aren't} are because they are dirt dirt dirt cheap. 90% of contractors in this day in age that attain business due to unsolicited referrals are dirt cheap. In richer communities where I live - folks don't even know their next door neighbor anymore - let alone talk about great pressure washers. Only folks that are on the low side of middle class talk to each other about contractors - which is no longer my customer base.

Thanks to Fenner, I have a different mentality now with clients. Lately I have been 'eating' a few type handyman jobs. But now I look at it as a learning experience on how to make clients happy - or at least better educate them in the future what it will take to make them happy and the ensuing price tag to meet their expectations. In the past I would have blown up as I saw my profits dwindle into nothing and created bad blood. But now I realize that the responsibility of how jobs are conducted rests on our shoulders and homeowners simply don't know. And that I have to be better at building 'systems' to anticipate this and price it into my price structure. And have a marketing model in place to ensure enough leads to procure the amount of work I need. In short - I took things very personally - but now I am more detached and analytical. Because of this detachment and adherence to some of my pricing models - I am able to consistently deliver well priced proposals and count on a certain winning percentage - where as my competition is all over the map. I win some jobs just because I am actually cheaper at my SF rate pricing! But that's because I am adhering strongly to my pricing model - and this allows me to concentrate on customers relationships and future work.

Now let's get one thing clear - as far as acrylic latex solid stains go - deckscapes is a great product in my opinion. This is their oil based toner - but please view at your own risk, it gets real ugly.......

Finally went back today after the snows had melted to take some 'after' photos

trying to find a 'natural' color solution for client - and I had just remembered Scott sent me these samples. Although it's on white pine - hopefully the client will find one of these acceptable. The bottom is light walnut, middle is cedar tone, and then natural pine, and then the nano clear above that.

For the indecisive ones, yes.

Scott, Savers Systems/Defy has a nano-technology stain and it isn't listed on your store. I have a difficult customer that wants the most natural look possible yet retain durability - I figure this product is my last hope of meeting her expectations. The problem is I went to the only local dealer near me that carries it, including tax it cost me $53/gallon. Will you be able to carry this product for a cheaper price? If it's true the average coverage that's displayed on the side of the can is only 100-150 SF for 2 wet on wet coats. The this is potentially a very very expensive product to use. Keeping materials at 15% of total cost implies that 300 SF of decking should be billed at $1,000!!!!!!!!!

Is there any pigment/protection in A.C.'s 'natural' toner? Or is it just a pigmentless oil base?

....not. I think after the rains finally cleared we had maybe one month of summer this year? Well that's ok - seems to always balance itself with an unusually mild winter. Well that idea is shot with snow a couple of days ago. Looks like I will be doing lots of work on my website and marketing this winter - as it seems I've got a full 5 months of unemployment to look forward to. And to make matters worse - I can't seem to make a dent in SEO optimization for painting. This is going to be a looooooonngggg winter.

you guys all have trucks - I have a rear wheel driven van, not exactly a winter vehicle, let alone for pushing snow.

I can't figure out a snow cleaning model - I am max'd for equipment parking - I can't spring for a truck to do plowing. I could get snow blowers and load up the van - but that takes a lot of dedication to get up at 4 AM to do $35 driveways. I figure it's just better tighten the belt and just focus on marketing for a few months - do all my own illustrations, get all my graphics ready to be printed for flyers and mailers. The downtime last winter in retrospect saved me from total bankruptcy - had I worked hard snow blowing all winter and just relied on last years advertizing and didn't get my website up. I'd be dead in the water this year. Everything I do seems to have lots of inertia - I am just glad next month my website will be up one year. I also have other areas in my marketing that need attention that I didn't have time to do this year. I just get anxious when money stops flowing - even though I can ration what I have until spring - it still really bugs me.

Ken - I am beginning to think there doesn't exist a business model in the trades, perhaps get back into exterior painting for the 'down' months. You can always schedule an exterior months and months in advance for the lull times. But that's equally susceptible to weather. If there was any respect in the painting trades - I think all year round interior painting is the best model so far. Mathew - I am with you on the gutter cleaning. I don't know about having guys - but so far by myself I have done pretty well cleaning gutters. I am glad to see your pricing - I started seeing what others were charging over on ptstate and I started getting miserable. I am pushing more for gutter cleaning this year - which includes pushing my newspaper advertizing longer - more online coupons - and some SEO for my gutter page. But alas - my marketing advertizing always seems to be a very long term very slow and steady rise. I never seem to come charging out of the gates. As to the marketing like crazy this winter - the only thing that really sets me back is how Google treats your rankings - if you start optimizing in Late December - you'll already be old news by late March. It seems you have to let the website rest and then re-optimize just a few weeks prior to the season starting. But I have a lot better focus on what to do.

mind if I call for a few recipes - I think u can explain why a customer is seeing red and what to do?

Rick the similar thing is happening to a couple boards on my pressure treated with timberoil. Afterwards when I stripped it - I noticed that the natural color is 10x lighter than the surrounding wood - I think the pigment is just soaking in and out of view. Jim - that's just gross

I have many homes where decks butt right up to the painted exterior of their home - I tried covering with plastic in the past and nothing stayed put once I broke out the washer. Now a days I do my best not to get any overspray of stripper on the paint - but invariable some does - that's why I have cut back on downstreaming stripper for now. And invaribly some paint comes off when I wash right next to the home. My attitude thus far has been to not mention anything and do touchups if the homeowner raises the question. What are you guys doing? Are you just including these return trip touch ups in your estimates - or do you put wording that excludes you from being responsible - or do you just never affect the adjacent painted surfaces? I've thought of fabricating some shields made of sheet metal that I could line the exterior wall with - but it just seemed to be too much work.

Lots of great suggestions so far, thanks guys.