# Referrals or finders fee



## rlsaloga (Sep 20, 2013)

What do you pay for referrals from landscapers, lawn and garden services or other tree services?


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## RAG66 (Sep 24, 2013)

Never had an "arrangement" with another tree company. An old friend told me that would be slitting my on throat, rarely does it work both ways. Even right now I talk with a guy who has a bucket and I give him lots of work that I can not do. I found out he is not giving me work back or even leads for estimates. Needless to say I will no longer be referring him for bucket work. I was even under bid by him 3 weeks back and the job got ripped out of my hands. Landscapers I do refer and they also refer me. No fees or strings attached. Your better off just hustling the work and selling your jobs, concentrate on building your name and reputation, advertising, and did I mention work.


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## D&B Mack (Sep 24, 2013)

I didn't do tree service work, I sold kiln dried bundles; so, for me, it was always one way. I gave 5% of net sales for 3 month period for a referral. The referrer got paid once I was paid.


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## Single_Shooter (Oct 6, 2013)

As I have stated in here several times I practically hunt down lawn guys at the gas stations in the early mornings. They hate driving over and around stumps and I like to grind them up so they don't have to do that any more.

I offer them $10 a stump (I charge $85 for stumps 24 inches and under - above that it is per inch charge and I offer them $1 an inch of my fee)...and I have yet to have one of them take the cash when I offer it to them...they are just overjoyed to get rid of the stumps. So far the stumps have led to some tree trimmings...3 tree removals and many more stumps. I am trying to build a network where they refer me to their customers for all that ask about tree trimming and tree removal. So far it has worked out really well for me.

This past week I secured my 4th small tree service who calls me for all their stumps. Most of them just give the homeowner my card and tell them to call me.


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## OLD MAN GRINDER (Oct 7, 2013)

rlsaloga said:


> What do you pay for referrals from landscapers, lawn and garden services or other tree services?



Nothing, and i don't charge for referrals to them...

Bob....


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## ShermanC (Dec 22, 2013)

RAG66 said:


> Never had an "arrangement" with another tree company. An old friend told me that would be slitting my on throat, rarely does it work both ways. Even right now I talk with a guy who has a bucket and I give him lots of work that I can not do. I found out he is not giving me work back or even leads for estimates. Needless to say I will no longer be referring him for bucket work. I was even under bid by him 3 weeks back and the job got ripped out of my hands.
> 
> I feel the same way. Knowing what we are capable of doing safely and knowing other good tradespeople who work other service functions we don't I have built a list of referrals. I have never paid a finder or a finder fee. The referrals I have given have brought me good work later on. What goes around comes around.


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## mckeetree (Dec 22, 2013)

I give these local lawn and lanscape guys 10% of the job if they send us something. I had a couple of marine construction guys that I was referring work to and the deal was they would refer work to me no back and forth commisssions involved. You have to watch that though. I sold one of those guys $120,000 worth of work one year and then found out he was referring tree work to this F'ing dead beat hacker. That particular guy died of cancer a couple years ago but not long before he died he called me and said he didn't know why he did that...he just did. The other marine construction is my neighbor, my damned neighbor now, and I sold him one job alone that was $80,000 and that sorry SOB was sending tree work to my competition ...so you can't trust some of these bastards. I got that one POS SOB neighbor good last summer though, he bid on a BIG ASS boat house job and the guy told me he was going to go with him and I talked him into hiring somebody else and I will do that every chance I get. What goes around comes around.


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## lone wolf (Dec 23, 2013)

10 percent seems to be about right.


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## BRIAN KING (Jul 31, 2014)

rlsaloga said:


> What do you pay for referrals from landscapers, lawn and garden services or other tree services?



Referrals are GOLDEN. You just have to sit down and have lunch once a month, and tell your buddy he better pick up the pace or you will find someone else to refer to. NOT referring / getting referrals NEVER works. You just have to do it right, and hold people accountable.


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