Tree scales

[sgreanbeans]

hey guys, just a thought, how come we dont have a scale to price jobs? i know that it would not be easy, but there are only so many varibles that you can throw in. i think with some help from the elders, this could be done! what do you all think?

 

[treeman82]

I remember this as being a topic in a TCI a little while back. There was an article on how to rank trees at least.

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

Because this is a competative market. You decide how much you want to make each day, and bid accordingly.

Thsi is why good tree people need to sell themselves instead of the prosses. Everybody pruners trees. Most companies do a good job. What sets you above the rest so you can charge more and pay your crew a higher then average wage?

the sales visit is an interview, when I was selling my work I always tried to "walk and talk" with the prospective client. Talked about more things then what was on the origional call, "What do you expect from the work?" "you've got me here do you have any more questions?" "I noticed the broken branches in the green ash, should we get those too?"

Show your knowledge and passion for your proffession.

 

[treeman82]

I like to do what you are saying JPS about walk n` talk. However one of my customers advised me not to do that. I try to get some kind of connection with a perspective customer. If I see that they drive a certain type of car I may ask about it, or if they have a certain type of job I may ask about it to learn more about the world. This guy suggested though that I just go, bid the work, and keep my mouth shut. I don't like that approach, but whatever.

 

[sgreanbeans]

i hear ya, and i do that right now, how ever i still think that if you have a reference to refer too that will make you look more desirible, do too the fact that the customer knows that your not shooting from the hip.
i try not let what type of car is in the drive have a influence, but a ferrarri.....well thats a different story!
i dont believe in the "give the bid and shut your mouth" approach.
i try to relate as much as possible, this allows me too get a feel from the customer on wether or not im gonna have a problem collecting and wether i should ask for a deposit or not.

 

[UrbanEarth]

I find that if I spend the little extra time getting to know the customer, I have a better success rate on my bids. They tend to trust me more and usually listen to my advice.
Of course as Treeman's customer shows, not all customers can be approached in the same way.
IMHO, if you are showing a genuine interest in the customer, most will appreciate that, but if you are just talking about stuff to get the sale, that will come through as being fake and turn off a lot of people.

Alan

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

It's realy all part of the same thing. In the ferst few minutes you'll be able to tell if they want to listen or not. Some people are happy to get a tree phys 101 lecture, while a few just want a number. tehn you take your boiler-plate breif statements as to why you do what you do.

If you have a script that you can easily adlib to then you wont sound all "um ahh err yaknow", practice it on the help, the kids, the wife, and the dog. I know the gist of what I said to Mrs smith about here Norway maple 6 months ago because I use the same general statements most of the time and the same thing goes for detailed notes on the bids. Boilerplate language that you can write while doing something else, or have in your computer to cut and paste.

But I digress, al;l customers are different, but you can gorup them together and treat different types accordingly without being dishonest, it's just part of the service.

Just watch out for the lonely old ladies that just want someone to talk to but cannot afford the work. The thing to do here is find something small you can do for them for a little cash to cover your trip, 15-20 min pick-pruning the front phitzer as you talk.