treeclimber101
UNCLE BUCK
please i need help , i have spent all week looking at work for people who i feel were window shopping , does anyone have some advice on weeding them out in the first conversation without being rude
estimating
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TDunk
Addicted to ArboristSite
It's a hard thing to learn how to do. Some people have the knack for it, others don't. BUT, wether they are just looking for a price or for you to actually do the work, you owe it to your reputation to go at least look at the job and give a price. If i think there just looking for a price, i'll bid it high b/c they'll usually try to get you to lower it. I'd rather have a rep. for being to high priced than having a rep. for not showing up at all or not returning calls. But that's just me.
treeclimber101
UNCLE BUCK
yea thats understooed but there are so many guys in this area that offer price matching it seems that i'm the first there to set the bar i want keep my rep good but i'm tired of wasting my time . i see that this is happening more now since work got tighter
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treeclimber101
UNCLE BUCK
i take a lot of pride in being on time to a estimate and to the job . often people call my cell # so i stop what i'm doing and leave sometimes within a hour but i never let a estimate sit more than two days so i'm getting burned for trying to be faster then the next guy wtf:bang:
QUIT WHINING, every company in the tri-state area is feeling the same load. sounds like you should invest in a better sales rep
just kidding
oke:
treeclimber101
UNCLE BUCK
comeon man i don't want any problems with you i take this #### very serious this is how i feed my kids and i was hoping for some new thoughtsQUIT WHINING, every company in the tri-state area is feeling the same load. sounds like you should invest in a better sales rep
just kidding
TreeTopKid
ArboristSite Guru
There's plenty of tire kickers in this game but even some of those can be won over. It's hard to put into words but you have to be in the frame of mind on your way to the job that it's already yours. This confidence is visible to your customer, and they like it. Even then you're not going to win every quote life's not like that.
Hell I'm dealing with plenty of Kippers, and curtains types here that love to get your advice (for free because they've conned you into believing it was a quote when really it was a consultation) then they get the work carried out by Pick up Pete & his sweaty sidekick. I don't lose sleep over it.That is the game.
treeclimber101
UNCLE BUCK
thank you i understand and often i feel stopping what i'm doing getting in the truck and driving over often puts me in the wrong mind frame. often i feel that i am wasting time ,and would rather be finishing what i started i think that i will try to show more enthusiasm out of the gate.
treeclimber101
UNCLE BUCK
recently i feel that actually doing the job is the easy part , getting the work arranging a schedule and paying my bills have taken over as the hard part. i hate that this has changed my opinion of a job that never seemed like work to me
treemandan
Tree Freak
well, maybe you should stop. Taking it so seriously. Like when they call and ask for an estimate, You ask them " Are you serious?"
Ok , maybe not for you but you know one thing? Everybody is a window-shopper, everybody looks around and more than likely everybody is going to have an agenda of their own they are looking to satisfy. They called you to see if they could get you to play a part in their agenda. Its no big deal, well it is, first its big for them ( 1500 for trees?) second its big for you cause it comprises a lot of our business... running around satisfying everbodies agenda that is.
I won't even give an ins claim quote with out getting paid for it, forget it. Often after looking at a job with a customer I ask right out " what is your budget?" If they say they have no idea I know I am dealing with people who actually don't know or people looking to scope me out to see just how much they can get from me without paying.
I actually don't care what their budget is, its a profileing question and also how they answer tells if they are serious or not.
These days , to save paper, ink and just for the hell of it an estimate is something that comes out of my mouth.
TackleTree
ArboristSite Operative
IF you are not working then go bid but dont stop progress to bid. Set a day aside or the appiontment for later in the week. Makes you seem less eager and maybe more professional. If a potential client thinks your busy, they may think you are busy cause you are good. If you do get to where you are working day after day then just plan a day for bidding only. May help you to weed some of them out and give you a shot at price matching yourself. simply make a phone call a few days earlier to confirm appiontments, show up on time and you know the rest. good luck
TreeTopKid
ArboristSite Guru
I also forgot to say sometimes people call and get the quote, and then when they have the information they save up the money (depends what kind of area you're pricing in). It's not unusual in my experience to have the phone ring six months later with a go ahead.
treeclimber101
UNCLE BUCK
i understand thank you recently i see that the overall tone of the estimate has changed from quality and timelyness too one thing price! i am having trouble with this, in the past my focus was good clean tree work that i respected to needing to get in and out like production work where bottom line is the only importance
treeclimber101
UNCLE BUCK
i agree in the past friday was estimate day but now by five o clock the first day the job is gone and here in new jersey work is scarce and it seems that it is getting worse
treeclimber101
UNCLE BUCK
yea i think that is a problem too people need to save now for big expenses and it seems that tree care has become a much bigger expense than it was in the past.
Treetom
ArboristSite Guru
Treeclimber: My first question to a potential client is how they heard of my company: word of mouth, Yellow Pages, etc. Word of mouth means I've already got my foot in the door because of a satisfied client's recommendation, even better if it's a repeat customer. Yellow Pages let's me know they're shopping. If I decide it's worth writing an estimate, I get a list of they're neighbors I've worked for in the past as references, put on my cleanest tree shirt and hat, buff up the truck, head out and do the presentation. During the pre-estimate phase I also ask how many estimates the person already has. Many times they'll say they already have one, but just want a comparison quote, so I'll go out. Two, I will still go out, locally; three only if it's close; four I won't go unless I'll be in the area anyway, this mostly out of curiosity. Besides, this bunch is usually looking for the best price and use no other criteria for they're decision but price, so I'll recommend they call Two Crackheads and a Chainsaw Tree Service. Many times I'll get a call back later to do damage control. Seriously, get as much information as you can on the initial call, and if it seems like a job you want, do a competent presentation when you do the estimate. Every estimate is a job interview. Go out with the attitude that you're the best candidate. (Actually, I am, but good luck anyway.):greenchainsaw:
fishercat
Addicted to ArboristSite
it IS winter.
always a little slow here.mostly emergency work this time of year.i have had a couple jobs but nothing more than i expected.down further south i could see your concern.everyone is price shopping now with the economy.i'm just laying low and waiting for the bad economy to weed out all the "Two Crackheads and a Saw Tree Service" they won't last.a lot of the big guys here who are over their head in debt and overhead are in trouble.it sucks but needs to happen.there is too much saturation in the industry right now.ever landscaper and their brother around here went and got a cheap bucket truck and is a tree company now.i laugh when they call me and tell me the bucket isn't high enough,what should they do now.i recommend taking a ladder up in the bucket next time.
i recommend another line of work for a while.i am doing mechanic and welding work for the time being.
always a little slow here.mostly emergency work this time of year.i have had a couple jobs but nothing more than i expected.down further south i could see your concern.everyone is price shopping now with the economy.i'm just laying low and waiting for the bad economy to weed out all the "Two Crackheads and a Saw Tree Service" they won't last.a lot of the big guys here who are over their head in debt and overhead are in trouble.it sucks but needs to happen.there is too much saturation in the industry right now.ever landscaper and their brother around here went and got a cheap bucket truck and is a tree company now.i laugh when they call me and tell me the bucket isn't high enough,what should they do now.i recommend taking a ladder up in the bucket next time.
i recommend another line of work for a while.i am doing mechanic and welding work for the time being.
Toddppm
Addicted to ArboristSite
I hate to turn down an estimate even if I prequalified them and it seems like there's no chance I'll get the job. But some just deserve to be turned down. How do you do it? I try not to be downright rude?
estimating is the biggest part of tree work....you need to come up with a sniff test but at the end of the day you have to take the bad to get the good.
I have tried everything but you just have to go out and see the job. I try to take the opportunity to find out more about the client and what they are looking to do with their trees on the phone. Are they looking for a one-time deal or do they want a tree guy. The guy calling about a removal may have 50 trees in his yard so maybe the first go around is a flop but maybe the next job will be a winner. I try to weed out the repeat callers are the ones looking for multiple estimates. If I give a guy a couple of bids and don't get the work, I politely tell him I am not interested in bidding jobs as I am in obtaining long-term customers and that I probably will not be the lowest bid and that my quality of work and perks are well worth the premium I charge.
I do tell people I have a minimum charge to show up and go from there.
I have tried everything but you just have to go out and see the job. I try to take the opportunity to find out more about the client and what they are looking to do with their trees on the phone. Are they looking for a one-time deal or do they want a tree guy. The guy calling about a removal may have 50 trees in his yard so maybe the first go around is a flop but maybe the next job will be a winner. I try to weed out the repeat callers are the ones looking for multiple estimates. If I give a guy a couple of bids and don't get the work, I politely tell him I am not interested in bidding jobs as I am in obtaining long-term customers and that I probably will not be the lowest bid and that my quality of work and perks are well worth the premium I charge.
I do tell people I have a minimum charge to show up and go from there.
Here is my problem....capacity....I only have so much time with one crew and I have had two crews at a time and I have found that I never made money with a second crew. If I am not on the job....I will not make money. Plus the quality drops.
I usually get more calls than I can handle on a timely basis and I am trying to manage these calls and weed out customers that may not fit with my company. I have more overhead than most of my competitors as I am one of the few full-time services in the area. I have found that I can't make money doing $200-$400 job unless they are grouped tightly together. I can make money on larger jobs as we are very efficient, especially on removals. Also, with one crew, if I am doing trim work my stumper and tractor and dump trailers and trucks are sitting idle. I still need to make money to cover those costs. So while I try to take all estimates it is not realistic to bid these jobs as they will either not like the price or I can't get those jobs done in a timely manner.
I usually get more calls than I can handle on a timely basis and I am trying to manage these calls and weed out customers that may not fit with my company. I have more overhead than most of my competitors as I am one of the few full-time services in the area. I have found that I can't make money doing $200-$400 job unless they are grouped tightly together. I can make money on larger jobs as we are very efficient, especially on removals. Also, with one crew, if I am doing trim work my stumper and tractor and dump trailers and trucks are sitting idle. I still need to make money to cover those costs. So while I try to take all estimates it is not realistic to bid these jobs as they will either not like the price or I can't get those jobs done in a timely manner.
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