MasterBlaster
Administrator Emeritus
Sadly, that's not the norm.
Who Underbid Me? .... and by How Much? .... Do I have the Job?
- Thread starter rfwoody
- Start date
- Replies 175
- Views 17K
Mellow
BCMA
FTFY
No fun leaving money on the table, or realizing that you overlooked something major on the job.
dstimber
TreeHouser
I spoke with my potential pine log buyer. He said nooooo. No pine! Guess he got burnt and removed several for cheap and now still he a lot of pine he can't seem to get rid of.
Also spoke to the home owner today. There is nothing buried, water, gas, septic anywhere close to the work area.
The neighbors trees or the remainder that wasn't marked are not a concern if a few branches get damaged or knocked out.
He and his neighbors have around 150 pine trees they want down but can't afford it since there is no market in our area for pine to try and recover some of the cost of getting rid of them all.
There are 30 or so in between their homes only 15 marked to remove. I thought about offering a price to take them all out between the homes.
Told him I wouldn't be able to handle the stumps. He was fine with it, and said he had a friend that offered to take care of them for him as a favor. He hinted at just wanting to have a ballpark estimate for the stumps that way he could give the guy a little something for helping him out.
Was also in no hurry so my part timing it was fine and no problem with me being in and out. If I had to.
Plan on meeting with them tomorrow afternoon to try and come up with an agreement and settle on something.
Also spoke to the home owner today. There is nothing buried, water, gas, septic anywhere close to the work area.
The neighbors trees or the remainder that wasn't marked are not a concern if a few branches get damaged or knocked out.
He and his neighbors have around 150 pine trees they want down but can't afford it since there is no market in our area for pine to try and recover some of the cost of getting rid of them all.
There are 30 or so in between their homes only 15 marked to remove. I thought about offering a price to take them all out between the homes.
Told him I wouldn't be able to handle the stumps. He was fine with it, and said he had a friend that offered to take care of them for him as a favor. He hinted at just wanting to have a ballpark estimate for the stumps that way he could give the guy a little something for helping him out.
Was also in no hurry so my part timing it was fine and no problem with me being in and out. If I had to.
Plan on meeting with them tomorrow afternoon to try and come up with an agreement and settle on something.
SkwerI
Treehouser
Sounds like they are just waiting for a cheap enough deal to come along and no real rush, so the only way to get the work is if you are hungry enough to do it dirt cheap. I've done hundreds of jobs like that thinking I could do a good job and have it lead to a few more jobs. It never did, except more dirt cheap work where I busted my ass for nothing. Jobs like that are good if you need the exercise or the practice but are worthless as far as making a living. I don't need the practice any more.
dstimber
TreeHouser
That's very possible lol. At the moment I don't mind it. I'm working on the long term right now. Just trying to build a good reputation and gain on experience. Get some good pics for very minor future advertising. We only have 2.... well 3ish main outfits in the area. Seems people are starting to hunt down and welcome other options to them. Would love to take over in a year or two. I do recommend one of them on stuff that I have to turn down tho.
MasterBlaster
Administrator Emeritus
Once you get labeled as the low guy in town it's hard to shake that rep.
Joezilla11
TreeHouser
Sure and I always heard cheap work leads to more cheap referrals
dstimber
TreeHouser
I will definitely remember that and ingrain it in my mind.
dstimber
TreeHouser
I'd much rather someone say "he is good but he isn't cheap" than the other way around. "Good and reasonable" would be a happy median.
rfwoody
Treehouser
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #87
Something that has worked for me often, if they ask for a number on the spot. Give a fairly high ballpark figure but tell em you'll send a formal quote later, make it a good bit less than the verbal quote.
Sounds good. No immediate final bid without clear as possible understanding of what is involved in the job and then get back to them after you've had time to think about it, etc.
rfwoody
Treehouser
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #90
You must have built a good reputation, Bermy.
and obviously that builder doesn't have the reputation of being the lowest price.
sounds good... something to shoot for.
all things being equal, they say the clean-up is the thing that makes the best/lasting impression on a customer.
dstimber
TreeHouser
Spoke with the homeowner again on the 15 pine trees. Gave him my bid. Did say he had 2-3 more look at the job as well. He said he would let me know something one day early in the week. Was going to finalize everything With his wife and neighbors. We will see.
Part of the difficulty I have with pricing is living in the country where most people are practical and pretty self sufficient...they do a lot themselves and if you get called in to look at something (usually involving climbing) they can't quite make the switch from 'do it yourself' pricing to 'I have to hire a professional' pricing.
Also, people who move down here from the mainland for a lifestyle change, once they get to know a local 'do it all handyman' or the new friend's handy husband, also can start to balk at professional pricing when a more complicated job comes along.
But, then there are those who recognise what they can't do themselves or ask a handyman to do, and just want the job done for a fair price and pay up no worries.
Also, people who move down here from the mainland for a lifestyle change, once they get to know a local 'do it all handyman' or the new friend's handy husband, also can start to balk at professional pricing when a more complicated job comes along.
But, then there are those who recognise what they can't do themselves or ask a handyman to do, and just want the job done for a fair price and pay up no worries.
bstewert
TreeHouser
Sounds like that could be a description of pretty much anywhere.
dstimber
TreeHouser
It's that way here. Big equipment helps( I have none). Bucket, chipper, chip truck, and all that really helps. I guess people look at all that equipment and think that a place is legit and that's who they need to go with. Seems around here no one really asks questions. They just want the job done by the lowest bidder. I know I've never been asked to provide any references or contacts from past jobs. Which kinda makes it tough on the little guy. I guess it's that way in every industry.
I try to lay out a game plan with potential customs when I'm looking at a job. And do my best to sell what I'm planning on doing. Hopefully something I say will make them think this guy gives a crap about the job more than the others. And that they should go with me.
Then again I have seen a guy in a dogwood leglocked trimming branches with a 660 so I donno I could be wrong lol
I try to lay out a game plan with potential customs when I'm looking at a job. And do my best to sell what I'm planning on doing. Hopefully something I say will make them think this guy gives a crap about the job more than the others. And that they should go with me.
Then again I have seen a guy in a dogwood leglocked trimming branches with a 660 so I donno I could be wrong lol
SeanKroll
Treehouser
Part of your job as the sales person to show them value in properly done tree work, and the protection to them of you being LIB, legitimately.
What's LIB?
Ditto on the equipment, now I have a chipper we'll bring it along sometimes on a smaller job just for marketing, only have a few branches to clear and they could just go in the back of the ute, but it looks good. Charge an hourly rate, at least get coffee money, then people see it with my telephone number on it.
Also cones are good, an inexpensive way to say "I care and am thinking about more than just making a buck'.
We've also added a slew of traffic signs (had to for Council work, including traffic management plans) they look good too.
Uniforms of some description and a clipboard with a job sheet...plenty of strategies to separate you from the herd.
Ditto on the equipment, now I have a chipper we'll bring it along sometimes on a smaller job just for marketing, only have a few branches to clear and they could just go in the back of the ute, but it looks good. Charge an hourly rate, at least get coffee money, then people see it with my telephone number on it.
Also cones are good, an inexpensive way to say "I care and am thinking about more than just making a buck'.
We've also added a slew of traffic signs (had to for Council work, including traffic management plans) they look good too.
Uniforms of some description and a clipboard with a job sheet...plenty of strategies to separate you from the herd.
MasterBlaster
Administrator Emeritus
LIB?
Something to do with liability?
Something to do with liability?
SkwerI
Treehouser
I think LIB means licensed, insured, bonded. This always irks me as 99% of people have no clue what a bond is. As far as I know, a bond is a 'completion bond' purchased for a specific project. If you hire a general contractor to put an addition on your house and the job is scheduled for 6 months with a monthly draw for expenses then you need a completion bond. That way if he skips out after 3 months the bond will pay to have the job completed.
I'm sorry but tree work does not require a completion bond unless you're doing some major long term contract work for government or a huge corporation. Telling a homeowner he needs to hire a bonded tree man is insane and ridiculous. Nevertheless you hear the same tired cliches repeated every year by the talking heads on the local news, as well as people giving you advice that they think is worthwhile. Real tree guys are not bonded unless they land a big government contract like Deva.
About once every 2-3 years I get some brainiac who thinks he's going to put me on the spot by asking if I'm bonded. After asking him what it means to be bonded I usually explain it to him and then bid high enough on the job that I don't get it. I'm rather picky about who I work for and I'm not willing to work for people who think they need to get something over on me.
I'm sorry but tree work does not require a completion bond unless you're doing some major long term contract work for government or a huge corporation. Telling a homeowner he needs to hire a bonded tree man is insane and ridiculous. Nevertheless you hear the same tired cliches repeated every year by the talking heads on the local news, as well as people giving you advice that they think is worthwhile. Real tree guys are not bonded unless they land a big government contract like Deva.
About once every 2-3 years I get some brainiac who thinks he's going to put me on the spot by asking if I'm bonded. After asking him what it means to be bonded I usually explain it to him and then bid high enough on the job that I don't get it. I'm rather picky about who I work for and I'm not willing to work for people who think they need to get something over on me.
