nice looking bid form

[a_lopa]

i steer clear of "written" qoutes for residentual stuff.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Why is that, J? :alien:

 

[a_lopa]

around here itll go against you more than not,alota price shoppers

 

[Stumper]

Aussie, It does cut both ways- The written bid may give the customer something to wave at the hacks to try to get them to beat the price but people notice the difference between the guy with rheumy eyes in a torn T-shirt who hands them a grubby business card and the neatly dressed tree guy who gives them a detailed form and an explanation. I can't get all the price shoppers and don't want them anyway but I can skim off for myself the best of the shoppers who were looking for a balance between price and quality.

 

[Tree Machine]

No One prettier.

 

[Koa Man]

500 of them would last me about a year or better.

500 bids in even 2 years is a lot for me. I just checked my past proposals and 500 ago was dated Aug. 24, 2000. Of course I do get almost all the ones I give out since my client base is 100% repeat and referrals. I also have all my coconut jobs and some tree jobs on a maintenance contract so no proposals are given each time we do it. Still, 500 bid forms would go a long way with me.

 

[vharrison2]

No One prettier.

Awesome Palm, be careful of the thorns

 

[NickfromWI]

I also have all my coconut jobs ...

That's no way to refer to your employees!

love
nick

 

[Tree Machine]

Now THIS cat knows what he's doing!

 

[MasterBlaster]

Why such a big saw?

 

[Menchhofer]

How long did it take for your form to evolve? I mean, you didn't sit down and create that work of art in a single evening, did you? I think your bid sheet has it's own story to tell.

$125 seems like a lotta dough, but these, as Ekka states, are your marketing and sales tools. 500 of them would last me about a year or better. A year's worth of marketing and sales for the cost of about two hours of labor, not even worth the time to price shop.

By the way, Mench, I dig your tag line in a big way....

True, I did not sit down in an evening to form my proposal. Since I wanted to give the customer the best impression possible, I thought about it for a long time and looked around at other companies and office supply store forms. I did really like anything I saw so I simply made my own. Each year it receives minor changes but I am satisfied with the general format. It is both a proposal and an invoice which makes it nice. The back is covered completely with conditions etc. It takes up EVERY line on the page.

Like you, 500 lasts about a year or so.

With reference to the the tag line...that took a while. I wanted something different but not corny. Not "Out on a limb" or "Branching out" or some other tired line.I saw a sign at a furnace supply store one day. It read "We don't just sell parts, we know parts." I liked it and just made a few changes. It been very helpful with my advertising also.

Do I get more work just because of the looks? I think so, but with so many hacks out there sometimes it does not make any difference.

 

[vharrison2]

Why such a big saw?

Master, you ever seen one of those palms? Compare his head to the size of the frond.

 

[a_lopa]

Why such a big saw?

thats derek with a jonsered i sold him after his gear got knocked,i think it was his only choise at the time.

 

[a_lopa]

Aussie, It does cut both ways- The written bid may give the customer something to wave at the hacks to try to get them to beat the price but people notice the difference between the guy with rheumy eyes in a torn T-shirt who hands them a grubby business card and the neatly dressed tree guy who gives them a detailed form and an explanation. I can't get all the price shoppers and don't want them anyway but I can skim off for myself the best of the shoppers who were looking for a balance between price and quality.

im the guy in neat uniform driving a nice car telling them my price if thats not good enough for them its no skin off my back.im turning over and keeping alot more profit than cos twice my size.anyway i undercut another guy today lady said to me ive been qouted $1,100 guess what my price was ha haaaa.sometimes its good to be first to qoute sometimes not

 

[MasterBlaster]

thats derek with a jonsered i sold him after his gear got knocked,i think it was his only choise at the time.

Bummer, I can dig it. At least you were there to fix him up!

 

[NickfromWI]

Apparently, this thing can handle .pdf, so here is the one I made while back. Ever use Win2pdf? Seems to work well!

If you like this invoice, let me know and I can email you the publisher document so you can spice it up to meet your needs.

And thank you for glens for explaining to me how the pdf converters work. I just got myself a new pdf printer for free!

love
nick

 

[Ekka]

My 0.02 worth

A good idea I have been using for years is having the quote double as an invoice. No re-writing and when you get those Body Corp jobs they have the bill to organise a cheque in advance.

Some other good points are ...

# A numbering system so when customer rings just ask for the number
# Job date
# Special requirements for you such as crane, EWP etc
# Book is in triplicate, cust gets middle, top one is job sheet for the day and book copy
# 30 day validity to urge action NOW

 

[Ekka]

Here's a quote sheet in MS Word.

You must work for free, no reference to money anywhere.

 

[Koa Man]

# 30 day validity to urge action NOW

30 days is rather generous. My bid form gives them 10 days.

 

[Redbull]

BUMP
I revised my bid sheet. What do ya'll think? I keep revising until I find something I'm willing to print on duplicate forms. Critique at will, please.
Brandon