It's a complicated question. I think there are two parts to it - the distance you're willing to drive, vs the quality of the lead. I'm going to attack them in reverse order.
The quality of the lead (size of job and likelihood of you winning it) really changes things. If someone called you up and said "I've got 200 large trees that need taking down, you've got the job, charge me anything you want" then you'd probably be willing to drive some distance for that. On the flip side, if someone called you up and said something to the equivalent of "hi, I've just called 10 random companies, I don't give a crap about the quality of your work, I just want the cheapest price. You have to beat every other guy. I live next door to you", you might not bother to quote.
The quality of the leads depends a lot on your marketing. If you have a good marketing campaign and people have called you specifically because they perceive you to have a high quality service, then they are likely to go with you even if your price is high. Referrals also rank up there pretty high for me, because they have such a high conversion rate. I won't drive far for cold calls, even less for people who I sense are just looking for cheap prices and 'instant service'. Jobs which I sense are going to be below $600 I also wont drive far for (trims, hedges, stumps).
So that sorts that out. Now I'll throw you something that works for me. I only quote on Saturdays. I'm not going to waste gas and time driving round after work, or on days when I've got nothing on. I wont drive out for one quote, even if it isn't that far. I average between 10~20 quotes on a saturday at the moment, and I cover a large area. I lose a few customers who don't want to wait until saturday, but I mostly think I don't want that sort of customer. Because I do them all in a day, I can setup an efficient loop, often driving only 5-10 minutes from one quote to the next. That means my reach is a lot further than most guys, and it also means I can often quote a job that I wouldn't have bothered driving out for otherwise, if it happens to be on my loop. I have a pretty good conversion rate, around 30% on the spot, and another 20% floating in over weeks/months.
You can't just be out there without a plan, trying to put out a forest fire with a screwdriver. You need to decide firstly what types of jobs you make money on, then target that, then take other stuff as cream if its handy. Market yourself to get the work you want, to get better quality leads. Otherwise, you're just on your knees with a blindfold on, crawling around looking for pennies while people are punching you.
Shaun
