To price or not to price, that is the ?

[treeman82]

I have a question for you guys. What do you do if you get asked to look at a job and the customer requests a written estimate. HOWEVER while looking at the job you get the feeling that you won't get the job even if you do give the price. Do you waste your time writing it up, or just pass and say to yourself "thank you for wasting my time?"
Tonight I went and looked at a pruning / removal job (SUPPOSED TO) go back tomorow to take a better look. Told the guy it would be at least $2500 (figuring now on $4,000.) He asked me if I could do it for $2,000, but that if I weed one garden for him he will agree to $2,500. He is now going to be shopping around for other prices. I had another guy this spring waste my time in an even worse way, had me travel 45 minutes out of my way to look at a job he had no authority to have done.
Do you guys bother to give a price if it's pretty much pointless?

 

[Tim Gardner]

You are the owner of your company so do as you please. We always took the time to bid jobs you knew you were not go to get. It is the professional thing to do.

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

I would bid jobs I did not want to take, bid sky high.

I get the feeling that someone is shopping for price I will give a high price too, just to make some of the othere guys look better.

If I think i have a chance, I will anotate the bid with "Low impact, clean job. Price reductions available with reductions of work."

He wants to dicker, I say what shoudl we take out? Can I just crach limbes onto the lawn without having to fix divots? Can i drive on the law? Will you do fine raking, will you take the logs where they fall........

HAd a job where a guy told me another company bid 500 for what I was pricing 1800, 1200 in winter. I called them up to see if the guy bidding was moonlighting and turned out I was pricng clean&low and he was quoting a "get it on the ground and leave" bid.

Gotta call to see if that job was done...I had better followup practices when I was getting a commission...

 

[Toddppm]

I've gone ahead and done some I thought I had no chance at and still got em.
And then stuff like this ...
Did a bid for a guy at a HOA earlier this year, guy was talking like he knew it all , had a tree biz before......blah, blah, blah I was there to look at the maint. on the whole place and told him I did tree work too, bid on a removal too. Had to go back later to look at the other stuff , turned out he had no authority to accept bids, just thought he would take it upon himself to do it cause he knows it all , you know? He called me back a few months later and wanted a rush bid on some trees, I never even went to look.

HOA= my pet peeves now

I've got 2 estimates to do for HOA's right now I'm debating on wether to waste my time bidding or not, I'm about 99% sure I won't get the jobs.

 

[Nickrosis]

I assume that Crawford Tree was the low bidder on that one.

I asked about that tree, and it doesn't seem we did it - got underbid by U.B. Hadd & Co. or something like that. They were going to just pull it over with a truck and a meaty hinge.

Nickrosis

 

[Stumper]

I leave a bid-sometimes there are pleasant surprises. I don't waste time on a typed proposal though-just write a description of the work , price and sign it. I tell them if they need something fancier to go ahead with the work I can provide it.

 

[TheTreeSpyder]

What is really bad, is when they glean your ideas and instruct the lawn crew through 'em.

That, and bidding a thourough job against a marginal one.

i'm not a good salesman; just realize i never mention not spiking and how that should be a premium item!

 

[Tim Gardner]

Ken, you are offering not spiking as an option for your clients? I thought all trims were no spike climbs. hmmmmmm.

 

[Stumper]

Tim, I think Spydy is referring to being the ONLY pro in his area who doesn't spike. (it's come up in other threads)

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

Ahh, Nickoli you took my bait
Now where i that phone number....

 

[mikey]

I think you should always give a price even when you get that feeling that it is pointless.Sometime a customer may think your price is outragious,until he checks around.The job might look simple to the customer from the ground.Anyway, several times after I given a price ,the guy calls later and wants to know when I can do the job.

 

[TheTreeSpyder]

Actually, i find myself not taking full advantage of spikes on the falling percentage of removals that i do with them! A lot of removals that aren't large, steep or topping i tend to leave'em on the ground!

Just commenting that it is so ordinary to me, that i don't 'sell' it.....

i have seen 1 other person climbing professionally without spikes around me ( a city worker at that!), most act like they never heard of; or would do such a thing. i don't know/see everyone, but talk to anyone i can that climbs, or is otherwise serious (owner, etc.). i ask guys i buy saws from and have talked into carrying some gear. i kinda have the feeling like the change hasn't come here fellas! Especially for the floating climbers trying to make good money with diffrent companies on call; looking for high production for the high price. And the people are training people to wear 'em, because they are more productive quicker, and they never heard of such a thing.........

 

[TREETX]

It depends.

If I can tell they are shopping for tree work as a commodity based service where price rules, often I ask them if that is the case. It gives me a chance to tell them that I am not the cheapest but I do offer a great, dependable service.

Some people have a real attitude from the get go and I try to weed them out on the phone. If some one calls and wants you to bid a removal, ask who else they have called. If they list 3 people then just say, "Those are all real nice companies and it sounds like you have it taken care of." It really freaks some people out when you are not interested. I just explain that I will not be the cheapest and I would rather save gas money and make more posts on arboristsite.

Others I just give them a sky high bid to hush them up.

It all comes down to properly qualifying customers on the phone or asap.