Spring is in the air...

[hobby climber]

It must have something to do with the warm weather we've been getting. An unusually high number of people have been calling me for quotes and once I give them a price, they tell me that "the other guy is cheaper"! My price is my price and if they don't like it then :censored: ! Seems that the warm weather gets people thinking about tree work and they start price shopping. Its this time of year that a number of hacks start coming around low-balling everyone else. This is also the time of year that you hear of or read about some home owner injuring themselves trying to do tree work,(biting off more that they can chew)! Just what is it with spring??? Do people forget that the same thing goes on every year??? Everyone seems to want the best for less, picking & choosing very carefully who they want. Then they'll procrastinate till summer and ending up paying through the nose to the first guy who responds to their call! I just don't get it! Does anyone else notice the same in there area in the spring? HC

 

[okietreedude1]

Yea ive noticed it....sux dont it?

Couple weeks ago I had a guy call on Friday, I gave him a price and he really didnt respond one way or another. Asked when I could do it and when i told him couple weeks, his response 'Well i got someone that could do it monday...'

I dont know if i was cheaper, higher or the same....he didnt say. But sure enough, someone else was there on monday. I wanted to ask him what his hurry was but didnt.

Some people just dont care who hacks their trees.

 

[woodchux]

Some people just don't care about your time & money.
They like to give you the runaround on free estimates.
I get a small kick out of it, when they go with the lowball price...
And the guy never shows back up to do the work .

 

[hobby climber]

I hear ya. Just today I got a call to do a quote to T/D remove, stump & clean up a pine and a good size cherry tree,(rotted at base, dead and overhanging house, fence & shed). I said I'd do it for $650 , The guy told me he's got a guy that would do it for $500 and use a bucket truck. I mentioned that the truck would mess up the yard with ruts and there is his new fence in the way. He said he was going to take down the fence to allow the truck to access the back yard. I thought he was pulling my leg but he was serious! For the $150 difference, I could have done it without messing up the yard or damaging the fence and you would never know I was there once I finished. I don't mind going out to quote jobs but I hate it when they tell you what the other guys price was as if to rub it in your face to suggest your ripping them off! HC

 

[kennertree]

I've noticed that i will give a price and the guy wont call back till weeks or months later. When they call back they say they had a guy to price it cheaper but he didnt show up to do the job.

 

[hobby climber]

Thats exactly the crap I'm talking about. They have you out in the SPRING to quote a job an try to talk you down on your price and then you never hear back from them till much later. I had a guy call back and wanted me to do the job for the same price I quoted him almost two years earlier. If that wasn't enough, he built a shed between two of the trees to be removed! HC

 

[hobby climber]

How about when you quote a job in the SPRING and you don't hear anything from them till mid summer(your busy time & hot weather to work in), and they tell you you got the job because everyone else wanted at least $200 more than you did! What a kick in the nuts Eh!

 

[kennertree]

On your proposals have a statement that says its only good for 30 days.

 

[hobby climber]

My quotes are good for 90 days but that dosen't stop some from asking! HC

 

[Sunrise Guy]

My quotes are good for ten days. I honestly think that longer grace periods give clients more of a chance to forget all about the job and/or your bid on it. When they see the ten day limit, they usually call me fairly quickly, one way or the other.

 

[hobby climber]

Makes sense... been thinking of lowering the length of time my quotes are good for. Thanks for the suggestion. HC

 

[pbtree]

Some people just don't care about your time & money.
They like to give you the runaround on free estimates.
I get a small kick out of it, when they go with the lowball price...
And the guy never shows back up to do the work .

Or worse yet - they do show up, and butcher the trees... :bang:

 

[ROLLACOSTA]

Yes iv'e noticed the 'lowest-price finders' coming out of the wood work ,along with all the other insects!!

 

[xtremetrees]

How do you weed out the price shoppers on the phone. ?

One good indicator for me is if they have the trees marked with tape or paint, tells me they are price shopping and sending treeco's to look at the tree even when they are not home. Do yall price jobs like these?

What seperates me from my competiors should be up front and shiny new.
Along with indicating the clients pain and driving that home. Furthermore I need to be the best solution to his pain and suffering.

I thought I was getting bad bids you folks take it to another level.

Patients does pay off. I bid 10 pines 6 motnhs ago at about 4 grand.
Client calls back today wanting a price on 4 other trees, not gonna have the original trees cut but others, says hell pay for my time to come and price and look. Thats cool and should be SOP being gas is so high.

I know its very frustrating, but lissen folks the 10 day expiring quote is shootin yourself in the foot. Were building relationships with people, were educating them about trees, it takes time to develop these things.

Be patient I know it sucks sometimes it really does suck dealing with the public so give yourself a day off and go fishing.

 

[TreeLady]

Our quotes are good for 30 days too.

What I hate about spring is when you bid then schedule a bunch of pruning then go out to do the work, and the homeowners planted a bunch of flowers & stuff under the trees they want pruned. Then they get pissed when you wreak it all. :bang:

 

[woodchux]

How do you weed out the price shoppers on the phone. ?


Some people actually want a quote "over the phone" HA

 

[hobby climber]

I recall someone mentioning in an old post that charged a $20 for a quote/assessment. If the customer hired him, he'd knock that $20 off the price of the job. If he didn't get the job, he'd keep the $20 for gas. I guess it would depend on the area your in if this would work or not. HC

 

[rebelman]

I postphone pruning jobs till June unless they are super light or evergreens. Some people get the hacks because they want it done now. These customers are from the old school of "you're just a tree trimmer, and you will do what I want to my tree when I want." I get that all the time, people are like, the other guy did "what I wanted." So many times I have to diplomaticly tell them that if that was what they wanted, they are fools, ignorant, uninformed, seriously mistaken, etc. That said most of my customers appreciate the waiting period, I traditionally have January booked in advance, that works snowballs through winter, and It's nice coming out of memorial day looking at a set calender. But this means I go through periods when I need removals, and I'm considering giving a ten day time limit on those so they don't call me suddenly wanting it done when I'm busy.

 

[xtremetrees]

Some trees you may trim on over 10 years or more to reduce a leader and force growth into a central one. I find aits a trees story and it take time.

This applies mostly to young trees less than 5 years old but I still apply it to older ones, sometimes.

 

[MarsCrash]

My owner's quotes are good for up to one year after he gives them. Sometimes you have to go back to take down the trees that the "chainsaw charlies" hack to pieces.

I have noticed that the price shoppers tend to be the same people who wait for you to be all cleaned and packed up, then come out and point at a dozen more limbs they want to take off. I hate that.