Wasting time with customers

[Dadatwins]

Received call from someone wanted several stumps removed. Made appointment to estimate job, show up on time. Customer is an older 70+ guy has several 30" stumps that were from
trees that were removed from inside deck. Deck was built around these trees and after crawling under the deck I see deck is anchored to trees Builder used trees as posts for deck.
Told homeowner he needs to contact contractor to support deck and then I could cut trunk wood lower so he could repair hole in deck. Homeowner wants to know why can't I do it. I told him I do not do construction. Homeowner insist he wants stumps ground out like my card says not lowered. He is worried about them growing back??? Spent another 20 minutes with this guy telling him we could put some chemicals around stump to prevent new growth but it was unlikely that tree was going to grow back from under a closed up deck. Trees were oak no new growth around base. Told him my grinder does not fit under 3' high
deck and I was not bringing up
on deck and grinding through hole on top. Other stumps were in a decked in garden area that I would need to ramp machine into garden but
would need access to neighbors yard to set up ramp. Now the guy starts telling me he does not think that is a good idea and wants me chop them out with axe or something. Told him I do not chop out 20" oak stumps. After spending about 40 minutes with this guy he decides that I am not the company for him and he will find someone else. Feel bad for the old man but what a waste of time. Makes me think why a lot of bigger companies charge for estimates.

 

[MasterBlaster]

He was right!

You are NOT the man for him!

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

You have more patience then I do! After i told him once what I could do for him, then i would have been on my way.

How old was the deck? If you could tell that is.

 

[ORclimber]

FLMAO. You lasted 40 minutes, that's some patience. I can relate, but my patience need help.

I got a call last Thursday from an old man wondering where the heck I was. He said he'd scheduled a bid with my business and I didn't show. My heart started beating a little faster, but could find no record of him calling. So I set up a bid for this morning at 7:30, about a 40 minute drive. When I get there he tells me some other guy came a few days ago and that he'd be coming to do the work in a few days. I asked who was doing the work and he said my company name. He asked for my card and I told him it looked like he had it under control and left without leaving one.
I hope he has family that can take care of him.

My first bid for this evening was someone that I'd given a bid to last spring and they found someone else do the work. I commented on the light under their weeping Japanese maple that had been my idea. Unfortunately they had raised the skirt wrecking it and planted flowers around it. The guy said he hated that tree. I told him that was too bad that they are really nice when pruned right. He probably picked up my annoyed tone, and won't be calling this year either.

My second bid for this evening wasn't home. I had to psyche myself up to sound positive and leave a message on his recorder to reshedule.

 

[ORclimber]

Good point Rocky.

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

Originally posted by RockyJSquirrel
Someone that calls you out to give a bid is NOT a customer.

Too true, i think of them as potential customers. How do the rest of you think of them?

My potential customer is any tree or landscape service I bump into. I will try to feel them out to see how much potential there is before I go into selling myself.

 

[ORclimber]

Originally posted by John Paul Sanborn
Too true, i think of them as potential customers. How do the rest of you think of them?

It's like dating. Sometimes it's not so easy to weed out the psycho ones.

 

[NeTree]

1- Don't confuse a free estimate with a consultation, which is PAID.

2- If I schedule a bid, I'm there on time. If they aren't there, I bill them. Period. My time is too valuable. They don't always pay it, and I really have no recourse, but at least it recovers some of the lost revenue.

 

[Guy Meilleur]

Originally posted by ORclimber
My second bid for this evening wasn't home.

A potential customer usually slows down the bid process, so why not just write the estimate and stick it in their door? I use colorcoded flagging if there's any doubt about what trees I'm referring to.

Erik's on the right track, tho--your time is valuable enough to charge for, esp. if you're certified. When I give free estimates for neighbors of clients, etc. I let them know that and put a time limit--3 min, no more than 10 min. When they get tedious I look at my watch and say I have to go.

 

[jmchristopher]

My terminology:

Customer: Somebody that comes to me for a service.

Client: Somebody I take an active interest in looking after.

Prospect: Somebody qualified to buy but not signed yet.

Call: An unqualified name/number.

If I don't get a chance to interact with a client ahead of time, I don't believe I have any business writing a proposal for them. I try to keep work and fishing separate.

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

In my vocabulary the client is the customer that is a revolving account. You are sure to get work from them every year or every other year.

A potential customer usually slows down the bid process, so why not just write the estimate and stick it in their door?

I've usually found I can close a deal better if I can talk to the desicion maker face to face.

 

[ROLLACOSTA]

most of us do it ,FREE BIDS/ESTIMATES,if we all charged for bidding that would weed out all the time wasters...the ones i hate are those sneaky people who try and get free verbal consultancy man i hate them people

 

[Trees Company]

As you gain experience, you will hopefully learn to weed out people like that over the phone, before driving out. The fact that you spent 40 minutes with him is no one's fault but your own. From the way you describe the yard, I could see maybe 5 minutes to be polite and then make your exit. The other 35 minutes is time YOU wasted.

Thats a little much, maybe the guy had ???? loads of work for him or the job was a posibility of great money, not every body has the desire nor the reason to walk away from a customer he wasn't that out of line. I hate when stuff like that happens its just part of dealing with people as you know and you probably learned a few good points to cut a conversation like that off before it starts.

 

[ScottyStump]

samething happened to me

That beats my story but here it goes. Same deal, 80 year old dude, can't hardly walk. Shows me a stump that has grown between the asphalt drive and a rock wall. I spend 15 minutes telling him that I'll get some of it but not all do the wall and the drive. He says quote me anyway, meanwhile Babs his 90 year old wife and she wears the pants in the family hobbles over to beat me up.

So in the end , naturally, she tells me that my price is too high and that they could be dead next year!!!!


So , naturally, I say, well maam, if you plan on dyeing next year why are you bothering me for a proposal? she stares at me blankly and does not reply.

I have been doing this for many years and even I get sucked in once in a while.

Don't let it bother you , chalk it up as a comical 30 minutes and think about of all us reading your story in amazement.

-Scotty

 

[Dadatwins]

Agree I wasted some of my time on that "bid". I do try to screen out people before hand with usual questions about fences, access, utilities that sort of stuff. Do not usually ask if stump is in the middle of a structure or has structure attached to it??? I also like to explain to potential customer exactly what and how I am going to perform service. I do not like surprises and do not believe homeowners should be surprised either. Normally 10 - 15 minutes on each single item bid and see you later. This was above the norm.
I try to look at every one potential customer as several job oportunities around each location. Have been turned down at one house and picked up work on the way back to truck from a neighbor. Just chalked this bad "bid" up to experience and can laugh about it a few days later. Felt good to vent here the day it happened though.

 

[Nathan Wreyford]

I realize there will always be out of the ordinary things, but it is a lesson in qualifying leads.

When there first question is "do you give free estimates.."

I ask zip code, if I am a reference, who else has bid the job.....

 

[ROLLACOSTA]

after 15 years bidding ,im never sure about anything ,some of the people who call me up for a bid i think well they are going too be a waste of time ..and they turn out great clients ..and vice -versa ..
this tree larks a funny old game!!!

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

Originally posted by ROLLACOSTA
after 15 years bidding ,im never sure about anything ,

I've had some where I never get a call back on a message after the bid was left in the door. I allwasy stry to keep plugging away on some of those. (well i did when I ran a crew.)

I had several where the persistance paid off with $1200- 1400 one day jobs. then of course there are the ones that get cranky when you finally do toalk to them.

The "trick" is to let the bad ones slide off and the good ones motivate you.

One crazy lady i passed on to a buddy of mine went into here rant and he told her she was crazy . She calmed down and he got the job, Still has the account 8 years latter Small but regular.