17 calls

[murphy4trees]

Got a call from a potential client a couple days ago to look at 4 stumps. Said he was most concerned about price. It was a long ride, so I asked a buddy of mine who was going to be in the area to stop by yesterday. I called the guy with a price today and got to talking... turns out he called 17 people for estimates on the job... I was tempted to hang up right there, but then told him, I'd post that fact here..... "these guys are gonna go off" I told him... He said he was glad to have provided some fodder for us.

 

[SteveBullman]

yeah right....he probably just though dilligaf

 

[SteveBullman]

thought

 

[darkstar]

oh geese id like to smack that guy one good time ...or better send on on a 24 hour estimate duty ........... unreal .... mental probs ....cheap @#$%

 

[NYCHA FORESTER]

He is confusing "Tree work" for "Free work".

 

[MasterBlaster]

I would give him 17 noogies.

 

[kf_tree]

i don't blame the guy.......the real question is? out of the 17 companies he called, howmany actually showed up for an estimate?


when renovating my house i called every plumber in the book....i think 2 showed up for an estimate. i ended up useing a guy who traveled 70 miles to get to me, from another state.

i called every drywaller in the book only one showed up for an estimate and gave a price.

 

[darkstar]

in chattanooga tennessee one call does it all call me ....roberts tree service i get alot of buisness from no shows but 17 calls thats a record ...... recently i was the 9th bidder and i got it but i was not the cheapest ........

 

[clearance]

What a mutt, cheapskate awardd of the year winner. Should have told him that if he used a pick and shovel he could really save some money. "Sir, stumpgrinders, well, I shouldn't really tell you this, they are a ripoff, all it takes is a little effort and you'll be done in no time" My mother in law wants me to dig out a little 8" stump or cut it lower with my axe, apparently it's no big deal! Thats what stumpgrinders are for, they cost like $10k at least, they don't run for peanuts.

 

[a_lopa]

i get a feel for price shoppers over the phone,its the norm here people getting multiple qoutes.i dont waste my time with them

 

[Stumper]

Amazing. My question for him is "Sir don't you value your own time at all?" Surely the savings between the "best" of three and the "best" of 17 wasn't worth hours of his time? Of course the idea that cheapest is best is fraught with error. I just returned a call where they already got someone else. People are weird. They call for multiple bids and don't even get them.

 

[NickfromWI]

I don't blame the guy. Obviously he DOESN'T have anything better to do. He surely got the best price in town. Got to talk to a few people, and probably learned a thing or two here and there in the process.

If he's got nothing better to do, then he did the BEST thing.

Cheers for bargain shoppers who do their homework!

love
nick

 

[Ax-man]

There was a thread on one of the other sites about a woman who got 50 estimates for one stump. The price of the stump was 50 bucks, I'd have to say when people go this extreme they are looking to have something to do to for the day, either that or they are lonely. I get this sometimes with the older people who can't drive and are for the most part are shut-ins, usually they just want to talk to someone and having contractors over fills that need, have no intention of having any work done.

Larry

 

[Dadatwins]

What a waste of time, anyone calling up more than 3 or 4 companies for an estimate has more time than sense. Ridiculus how people think business owners have nothing better to do than drive out and look at a job that the homeowner really has no intention of doing, they just want some ideas of cost. I usually do not even bother going to look at anyone calling who starts the conversation with the free estimate question.
Had a guy call me up looking for a certified arbo to look at his tree. First question from the guy was "Do I give free estimates?" After brief conversation with homeowner on the phone he tells me he had someone 'trim' his large oak in front of his house last year and now he has a lot of dead branches falling, black ants traveling up and down the trunk of the tree, and a sticky sap-like ooze coming down the trunk of tree. Was told the diameter of the tree was about 48" at the base and the tree was about 80' tall before the 'trim' and was now only about 40-50'. I told him on the phone it sounds like the tree had been topped, not trimmed and it was most likely dying as a result. I asked him if he was looking for an removal estimate. Homeowner says he wants to know how to save the tree. I explained that he no longer wanted an estimate, he now wants a diagnose and plan of action for what sounds like a hopeless cause, but I would be glad to drive over and take a look for a small fee to cover my time. He gets pissed off and tells me he has several others coming to look at the tree and they are not going to charge him. I asked him why didn't he call the company that did the 'trimming' and he says they are out of business. Trying not to laugh into the phone I wished him good luck with his tree problems and hope he finds a free estimate that he is comfortable with.
Can't help thinking sometimes that this biz would be so much better if there were no silly homeowners involved to screw it up.

 

[Stumper]

Axman, You may have the explanation for a caller I had many years ago.I got a call for an estimate-I went and gave it, explained all the procedures etc. No go ahead , I got a call the next year./-Went and looked , remembered the job gave a bid-"I'll call you". I got a call the next year. The name and address clicked. I told the lady, "Ma'am I gave you a price last year and the year before didn't I?. Add xx (I don't remember how much) to last year's bid. If you want the work done, feel free to call me, otherwise don't call me any more. I don't have time to keep looking at work that you aren't going to have done."
I've had a few widow ladies that I'd work for an hour on some shrubs and then visit an hour every year. That may not have been very profitable butit had elements of mutual respect. Calling and merely wasting my time irritated me.

 

[a_lopa]

lady last month come over from next house from where i was doing a qoute on somne t/ds asking me for a written qoute then in the same breath say shed rung another guy offering 15%off written qoutes, i had a quick look in her backyard come wrecking yard seen nails in the trees and listening to her rubbish and said"ill get back to you"i didnt, and when i went back to do the other trees she came out all angry "wheres my qoute"my main worker thought i was being a little rude and offered to have a look for her,i smiled and kept working.he came back 5 mins later with a big "no way are we working for her" one tree had wire thru the base of it she said"just cut it off"he said "i will for the cost of a new chain"she flat refused LOL

 

[Crazy Canuck]

I just returned a call where they already got someone else. People are weird. They call for multiple bids and don't even get them.

I don't think thats weird. I good salesman can close the deal before other guys get a chance to bid. I do it all the time. I went shopping for a new TV a few months back and I didn't go to every store I had planned on before I bought. I found one I liked and I was happy with the price so I took it.

People who call multiple tree companies aren't always just looking for the cheapest price. They are often shopping for the right tree company as much as the right price. When I go to bid on a job I don't sell my price, I sell myself, my company, and my service. You do a good job on that and the price can almost become a non issue (as long as its fair). The last time you bought a truck did you just go out looking for the cheapest truck in town or did you go out looking for one that would give you all the features and options you wanted at a fair price?

Just my .02

 

[Dadatwins]

I like how you think Dadatwins. Not to scare ya but I'm similar.

Dan

Not scared, took me a long time to realize I was not going to get every job and to try and screen out the pains from the clients, still get burned on occasion but not as often as the past.

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

People who call multiple tree companies aren't always just looking for the cheapest price. They are often shopping for the right tree company as much as the right price. When I go to bid on a job I don't sell my price, I sell myself, my company, and my service.

That's my point of view.

I will allways try to get on the property with the potential client because when face to face I can usually double by closing percentage over straight phone contacts (looking at the work first of course).

Granted stump grinds and TD's dont allways lend themselves to better vs cheaper but on trim work I can usually close and upsell, plus schedule potential work for later in the year.

Display your knowledge, write a detaile bid and you can beat the low ballers who write "Trim back tree $200" on a photocopy bid sheet.

 

[NeTree]

Lmao