How Do U Help General Public Know Who a TRUE arborist is?

[Gillean]

I'm very new to the industry and have heard a multitude of concerns regarding arborists not being appreciated, understood or even hired over someone with a truck and chain saw.

There is a great deal to understand with regards to biology and tree care. But how can one simply state some key points to know BEFORE a homeowner hires an arborist?

What is the biggest misperception about the arboriculture industry?

If encouraging recreational tree climbing would encourage tree education and appreciation by experiencing trees (as long as they used safe, rope-assisted methods with qualified facilitators who know which trees should be climbed and which trees should not) in the longterm, wouldn't this experience have a positive impact on appreciating what is all around us that we take for granted?

 

[lxt]

Good Luck, this approach might work in some areas & I wish it would were Im at........but the bottom line is most people consider trees a nuisance, pretty YES!! but to maintain & cleanup after is work wich most dont like.

The other big ticket item is pricing, with the economy the way it is everyone wants to save a buck.....SOooo the guy with truck & chainsaw with no overhead & operating under the radar usually wins this crowd!!

NOT one person since ive been in the tree care industry has ever asked me if I am a Cert. Arborist except for other tree guys/gals....Even the forester at the State Park that I was awarded the Bid for didnt ask for it...but was amazed when I said everything will be done to ANSI/ISA standards.


LXT................

 

[Gillean]

Now, THAT'S a story. Are you kidding me? You ended up getting a job at a state park? Which state park? I don't want names to get personal. How long have you been an arborist AND would you do me a favor and really think about how to help homeowners to get the importance of a true arborist, to appreciate what unending values trees have. Without a science lesson, there must be some way to give average folks some sort of reason to appreciate trees (recreational tree climbing, statistics on how much $ trees can save a homeowner or how much more value a home has with trees)


You mentioned that no one asks for your certification number. This isn't really a fair comparison BUT I purposely do not sign the back of my credit card so that folks will have to check ID. When folks don't, I remind them to please check to make sure the credit card is signed and the person using it is indeed the owner of the credit card. I'm not mean about it. A lot of times, these are hard-working folks getting paid little to nothing.

So, what if you got in the habit to share with your customers to always request an arborist's certification number and what affiliations the arborist has with ISA and what type of tree care training the arborist has?

For instance, what types of training would you expect an arborist to have to take care of your trees at your home?

 

[lxt]

That "Story" is true!! What you must understand is Ive been doing this for going on 21 years....have been trained & certified by ACRT & Dept of Labor, I continue to train & study!!!

the park contract by the way is a nice gig & out of all the companies that bid it I was told by the forester/DCNR(dept. of conservation & natural resources), that I seemed more knowledgeable & attention to detail oriented!!

I just sat the CA exam on the 3rd....HOWEVER there are CA`s in my area that are pitiful.....example; one of the companies that bid the contract sent out their CA, he couldnt identify the simplest of trees & the proposal was written so poorly "it looked like a 1st grader wrote it" Ill ask you this question...

If a tree trimmer has just as much knowledge as a CA, continues to read, study, train, etc...does all work to ANSI standards is called on by fellow CA`s for help, works in a "tree City USA" town, is recognized by a shade tree commission & refered for work, at every chance makes the home owner aware of proper tree care practices...ETC..ETC.. WHAT DIFFERENCE WILL A CERTIFICATION MAKE, WILL I BE A BETTER CLIMBER? MORE KNOWLEDGEABLE....ETC...

The answer is NO!! the cert. for me is of a personal thing, I present myself proffesionally & am constantly studying to know more, The sad thing is some Arborists might have passed the exam!!! But are failures in the other aspects of the tree care industry...I do my best to make Home owners aware, be a pro, be affordable, provide a good customer relation & follow through on what is agreed upon.........along with many other intangibles!!! just because one is a CA doesnt mean they do this!!! cause many dont!!!

Cert. is good if one cares, but many are getting it to just get it or it is required by employer.....


LXT..............

 

[fsfcks]

I hope this is not OT but it seems related. (Note: I am a homeowner, but understand trees and the value of arborists, and have used them in the past). Once you have the general public aware of the value of using arborists, how do I (and therefore the general public) find them? I know I can search on isa-arbor.com, but in my zip code many of the members are city employees, or one employee for a larger company. Therefore if I call that company, and I suspect unless I have unique issues, won't I just get their "standard" employees with chainsaws? Also round here many people have their lawn/yard care companies do tree maintenance, partly because it is "easier" - one company, one bill etc.

I think the problem is more than "message" but access. How can you make it easy for homeowners to hire an arborist? That probably implies targeted advertising etc.

 

[Gillean]

Well, it's interesting to hear how even an educated homeowner finds it challenging to hire someone he/she can trust is truly someone who will take care of the trees in one's front and back yard.

I believe there is no governing body that goes around and makes sure that arborists who take money for work are indeed following standards that are 100% tree care and not tree mutilation focused.

So, without a governing body or the 'arborist police' of sorts, here's my question:

As a homeowner, how would you best inform your friends and others about finding a qualified and honest tree care giver? I do agree that certification is not everything.


And from the arborist's perspective, if there is no governing body, what succinct information can assist homeowners in making the RIGHT choice instead of a choice that leads to catastrophe?

I keep hearing what certification numbers aren't enough. So, I need to know what true arborists would consider even beginning ways to help homeowners make sure people who understand how to take care of trees are hired to do just that. I need your advice, suggestions. Where can this start? We already know the problem. Economy issues or not, if I felt the value of my house would decrease significantly if I did not maintain my trees as I should, I would think twice before hiring just anyone. The answer lies in making it matter to the homeowner AND explaining ways to investigate and find qualified caring arborists. So, answers, please. Answers!!

Thanks in advance.

Gillean

 

[fsfcks]

I might have more thoughts later, but this just occurred to me. You need to work with Realtors! Probably the majority of people either buy or sell their homes via Realtors. They rely on Realtors to set the value of their home. So the Realtor could recommend an arborist for tree management (higher value than "just" tree maintenance) on the basis that tree management would maximize their future property value. The service could be similar to the annual furnace checkup, where a basic review and maybe minor cleanup is included, but additional significant work is additional cost. After all an unsafe tree can also cause issues just like an unsafe furnace.

 

[Gillean]

I think you are on to something! Smashing idea! Perfect. I will investigate this further. But you are absolutely right!

Thanks Marketing arborist specialist. Much appreciated!

 

[moss]

I think that you've got two topics here, one is about "What is a qualified arborist", a huge can of worms in itself. The other is "What is the role of rec climbing in advancing public awareness of the value of trees?". The rec question is a separate topic, might be well served by posting it in the rec climbing forum on this message board and also posting on the web sites that are focused on rec climbing like Tree Climber's Coalition, Tree Climbing USA and TCI.
-moss

PS, it was good to talk to you at the Tanglewood/Treestock rec climbing love fest in North Carolina last week. I enjoyed watching your eyebrows go up when I mentioned that tree climbing helps us connect with our 99% common primate gene pool a.k.a. inner ape Take care and good luck with your work.

 

[Gillean]

OK. The ape issue is just a bit far-fetched but always appreciate other opinions.

Back to topic:

You have the amazing fortune of being able to communicate to a room full of homeowners and people who are interested in how to identify a true tree care giver from the fakes.

First - Define who a true arborist is and what an arborist does.

Second - What are some 'go to' tips to help homeowners gain a bit of perspective on how to make a good hiring decision when it comes to caring for their trees and the value of their property?

Three - What are 3 to 5 key tree values that you find homeowners had absolutely no clue about that you now can share to a group of 20,000 homeowners?

You have the platform. Now help educate the average homeowner or just consumer about trees, arborists and the value of both!opcorn:

 

[moss]

OK. The ape issue is just a bit far-fetched but always appreciate other opinions.

Back to topic:

Not at all when you're talking about rec tree climbing (isn't that part of your original topic?). I know it doesn't make good copy for marketing purposes but it's actually really interesting to investigate all the reasons why people get so much benefit from climbing trees for fun. I'd be glad to continue the discussion in the rec forum on any aspects of rec climbing, I'm not limited to discussing our friends the great apes Although I do know several tree climbers who've been accused of being more ape than human by their friends and family. Nuff said.
-moss

 

[BlueRidgeMark]

When the tree industry decides to spend money to promote proper tree care generically, and not just by individual company ads, THEN you have a chance of starting to turn the tide. You'll never completely get away from the guy with a truck and a chainsaw, but you could at least make a dent in it with some broadcast advertising.

But that takes money.

 

[lxt]

OK. The ape issue is just a bit far-fetched but always appreciate other opinions.

Back to topic:

You have the amazing fortune of being able to communicate to a room full of homeowners and people who are interested in how to identify a true tree care giver from the fakes.

First - Define who a true arborist is and what an arborist does.

Second - What are some 'go to' tips to help homeowners gain a bit of perspective on how to make a good hiring decision when it comes to caring for their trees and the value of their property?

Three - What are 3 to 5 key tree values that you find homeowners had absolutely no clue about that you now can share to a group of 20,000 homeowners?

You have the platform. Now help educate the average homeowner or just consumer about trees, arborists and the value of both!opcorn:

Well first off: A "TRUE" Arborist would probably charge you for the information you are seeking in regards to question 3!!

What is a true Arborist? & what does he Do?....this definition can be found on the ISA website as well many other places......the real question is what do you need the Arborist to do for YOU? & is he skilled in these areas?

The best way to find out a tradesman`s worth is verifiable references, if he`s good word of mouth will be out there...just ask around!! UNDERSTAND that the Arborist that bids the work may/maynot be the one doing the work!! Does this make a difference to you & if so why?

Good luck on your quest as futile as it may be!!!


LXT..........

 

[M.D. Vaden]

Well first off: A "TRUE" Arborist would probably charge you for the information you are seeking in regards to question 3!!

What is a true Arborist? & what does he Do?....this definition can be found on the ISA website as well many other places......the real question is what do you need the Arborist to do for YOU? & is he skilled in these areas?

The best way to find out a tradesman`s worth is verifiable references, if he`s good word of mouth will be out there...just ask around!! UNDERSTAND that the Arborist that bids the work may/maynot be the one doing the work!! Does this make a difference to you & if so why?

Good luck on your quest as futile as it may be!!!


LXT..........

LTX ...

From reading your last post, I'd say you have made several good points here.

- the ISA website, requiring just a bit of reading

- verifiable references, requiring just a bit of time to verify

- the arborist bidding may or may not be the one doing the work

Several good suggestions.

 

[M.D. Vaden]

I think that you've got two topics here, one is about "What is a qualified arborist", a huge can of worms in itself. The other is "What is the role of rec climbing in advancing public awareness of the value of trees?". T...
-moss

Moss, that's good that you point that out.

It's not a simple task.

In Gillean's reply to that post of yours, was a comment about sitting with a group of people, having the floor to cover several needful topics. But that takes an hour - maybe hours.

On a another forum post, Gillean wrote that people don't "have hours".

How would you reply to Gillean, if the explanation requires time, but Gillean thinks that the time does not exist?

Can an hour of instruction be compressed into 10 minutes? Should it be done that way?

How much time would you like to spend to achieve this task if it was your seminar?

 

[Gillean]

Helping Educate the General Population

I did make a mistake. Re: seminar, I was trying to get readers, you folks to imagine standing in front of a group of homeowners. Imagine at the end of a 15 minute discussion, homeowners are asking you questions and they want short answers to help them.

QUESTION ONE: If we need to find qualified arborists, what advise would you give homeowners who want to contract a true arborist or tree care provider? (Your answer would be short and to the point and easy to understand. So, try this approach by answering as if the homeowners want a quick and accurate response/answer/solution and it's up to what you say that will determine if they hire a true tree care provider or just anyone.)

QUESTION TWO: How do you make trees matter to the general public?

QUESTIONS THREE: Hoe do you make trees matter to our future leaders, our kids in school?

There are indeed companies willing to spend money on connecting with national media to inform the general public about tree care, a true arborist and ways to get people to appreciate trees by placing folks of all ages close enough to one to see its value. Take the thought that 'your message' or 'the message that needs to be shared' CAN be delivered. It's up to you to tell me what that MESSAGE IS!

So, answer the above questions and imagine it is YOUR TURN to help the general public understand the value of trees, appreciate trees and finally realize that arborists are much more than folks who climb trees and use chain saws.

 

[lxt]

Well thanks M.D.Vaden!!! Nice we agree on something uhh?

I at this point will say this, the questions you are asking & the answers that you receive will vary from person to person!! All of us who care about the trade have done/tried what you are posting here in an Q&A format!!

your questions have been answered!! there is no short answer.....If the home owner wants a quality job they need to do their research & this takes time, patience & an in depth understanding of whats involved!!

Public awareness is better now than it has been in a long time.....look at just about every other ad out there "Go Green", many organizations through our dues, donations, etc.. are working on reaching out to our children & our leaders...read the TCIA magazine!!!! Cynthia Mills & many other field Reps have met with congress, senate & candidates for the presidency!!


LXT............