Hinky customers

[PTS]

Went to trim up a couple apple trees for a guy today... We get there and he is an older gentelman he comes out and just wants us to wack the ends of of an already poorly pruned tree. He wacked away on it two years ago. I started fixing the mistakes and he comes back out and wants to know why I don't just wack away like he did so it is done faster and "cost him less money." I just can't do that to a tree. Just can't bring myself to that level. I told him that the way I was doing it was the correct way to prune and that if it takes me a while to complete, I would charge him for the extra time. He seemed ok with it. But I started to wonder....What do you guys do when you are working on ones property and they want you to do something that is "wrong" for the tree and is going to look bad on top of it? My work reflecks on us. So I don't like anything to look poor. So what do you do?

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

The easiest way to get around this is to talk to them more before closing the sale. You did not set the right expectations, so he thought you were going to do it like he has been doing it for longer then you've been on this earth.

I would much rather talk to a potential client on the lawn, prior to the sale then just leave somehting in the mailbox. I can get a better closing rate, sell more then they called me out for and set their expextations to my methods of work.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Earplugs, dood. EARPLUGS!!!

 

[JonnyHart]

Whoever bid the job should explain to the client what needs to be done, and if the client insists on having it his way, either do it to please customer, or don't take the job. Most of us have been there. I love turning ugly apple trees into pretty apple trees. Was this a normal trim, shape, and remove deadwood and suckers? It's fun to rip a big nasty tree down to the ground, but fine pruning gives you a certain satisfaction. Well, if the salesman agreed to hack away at it, and you can't change his mind, what else can ya do. People are strange.

 

[Ekka]

Well I'm from a way different part of town and need to know ... is it a fruiting apple tree like apples you eat or is it some type of ornamental tree?

 

[clearance]

That sounds pretty bogus but check this out. When I am on line clearance jobs (trimming, removals) people will come up and ask you to work on there trees for free! Lady-"seeing as your here you wouldnt mind cutting, trimming my tree blah, blah" Response-"actually maam I do mind" Lady-"Now you see here Im a taxpayer and blah, blah" Response-"good for you maam so am I" Lady-"You are so rude Im calling your boss" Response-" Good do you want a card" And so it goes, like others have said best to walk.

 

[OutOnaLimb]

I had a job just the other day where I was called in to remove 6 tall, spindly cottonwoods, and top 3 more. The home owner was there and I told him that they would look like hell 2 years from now and probibly be just as tall, His was response was he just wanted them down low enough so he could work on them from a step ladder. I then told him that its not a good idea for an unexperienced person to be working in trees off of a ladder, citing several threads in the injuries and fatalities forum. He agreed saying he was afraid of heights. Go figure. I finally talked him into just removing the trees at the same price.( it was actually easier to just flop the lil pecker poles than try and head them back)

Kenn

 

[tinman44]

That sounds pretty bogus but check this out. When I am on line clearance jobs (trimming, removals) people will come up and ask you to work on there trees for free! Lady-"seeing as your here you wouldnt mind cutting, trimming my tree blah, blah" Response-"actually maam I do mind" Lady-"Now you see here Im a taxpayer and blah, blah" Response-"good for you maam so am I" Lady-"You are so rude Im calling your boss" Response-" Good do you want a card" And so it goes, like others have said best to walk.

hahaha i would ask her if she wanted to use my cell that way when she called my partner standing next to me it wouldnt cost us any minutes or have her bring the cordless phone outside so she could let me talk to me hahahhahahaa

 

[treeman82]

Kenn, I wonder what would have happened if you had left those 3 high for the guy to work on off a ladder? Of course I am talking about from an insurance perspective. You DID give him what he asked for, but if he gets hurt while doing the work he wanted to do himself...

As far as bad practices goes, I go on a case by case basis. Sometimes I get really stubborn and just won't do what they want, and do it the right way. Other times I work with them so we both get what we want.

 

[PTS]

The worst part about this whole job (which could be my fault) is that he didn't want them bid, he just wanted us to come over and do it and bill him. As we have grown I have found that a lot more people are saying that. I usually tell them that we will need to look at it first to identify dangers, problem areas etc. but on a little job like this I just told him that a crew would be over. I figure that beings it wasn't bid I would go along to do it myself.

good or bad???


and the trees are APPLE that you eat