electricmanscott
Senior Member
- Location
- Boston, MA
- Occupation
- Massachusetts Master Electrician, one man show.
ultramegabob said:
Yep, and an "Ultramegabob" is wayyyy beter than a plain old "Bob" anyday!! :grin:
Reasons For Not Giving Free Estimates
- Thread starter Sparky555
- Start date
- Status
Yep, and an "Ultramegabob" is wayyyy beter than a plain old "Bob" anyday!! :grin:
- Location
- Massachusetts
electricmanscott said:
Of course, that is clear. Ultra-mega is hard to beat. :grin:
For what it's worth I really did not think the BBB was going to make anyone run for cover.
weressl
Esteemed Member
emahler said:
May I ask you who signs your 'paycheck'?
bradleyelectric
Senior Member
- Location
- forest hill, md
weressl said:
Not someone that does not actually give you a check or expects things done for free.
weressl
Esteemed Member
bradleyelectric said:
I'll remember to charge my prospective employer next time when I go for a job interview.:smile:
weressl
Esteemed Member
emahler said:
I think if you do not realize, or fail to acknowledge that your customer pays you, so you can write a check for yourself, this conversation is pretty much a fruitless excercise.
Of course it would only bear fruit for you not for me.
Charging for estimates on residental work might well be the way to go. In many cases the consumer knows that he/she may have to pay estimate charges to look at his/her car, estimate charges to look at his TV or stereo if he goes to a professional. Why not pay for an electrician? I know this might not work in areas that are very depressed or in areas where there are more electricians then the market can bear, but then it might also thin the area down a little.
The big problem will be Mr. Handyman with the "I'll do it for $X, no estimate charge, no permits and no proof I was ever there" How many cars are fixed by some guy out of his house as he will do it for actual time spent on doing the repair or the tv fixed by the neigbour down the street because he is handy that way?
The underground economy may get a boost if you not careful.
The big problem will be Mr. Handyman with the "I'll do it for $X, no estimate charge, no permits and no proof I was ever there" How many cars are fixed by some guy out of his house as he will do it for actual time spent on doing the repair or the tv fixed by the neigbour down the street because he is handy that way?
The underground economy may get a boost if you not careful.
weressl said:
about 10 yrs ago, i was at a conference...i remember meeting a plumber who specialized in residential service...at the time he had about 10 trucks and did about $2.5mil/yr...today he has about 50 trucks and does about $9mil/yr...
he told me, and i'll never forget this, that "the customer pays for everything"
now, your question and point really holds no merit. you are attempting to equate apples and oranges...my customers do not pay me any more than your companies customers pay you...
while it's true that our customers do pay for everything, since we would not be able to afford trucks, benefits, vacations, tools, supplies, etc without them...
it's my job, and your bosses job, to make sure that they get the best ROI they can...whether that investment be labor, tools, equipment, technology, etc...
my initial point, which apparently was missed, is that the investment and the investor do not think alike...
besides, what does your point have to do with whether or not to charge for an estimate?
tonyou812
Senior Member
- Location
- North New Jersey
Not to get in the middle of a "Juicy argument" but I wished charged the one guys house I went to look at today. I had set an appointment with this dude for renovation work on this house and when I get there there is another EC there to look at the house too. And if that wasn't awkward enough this guy(HO) is try to tell me how much things should charge. I don't even know why I stayed but I could have saved myself the hassle if I had charged this guy for his estimate. He definitely would have told me not to bother and would have done me a favor. He was the type with the crusty cigar in his mouth saying things like " I did construction 30 years ago and I know how much this cost, and blah blah blah....
I have realized that being alone, my time is valuable to me and I hate it when I waste it dealing with knuckle heads. I went on a service call Late saturday afternoon and charged the lady 150 $ emergency call fee ( on top of hourly,) wether I fix it or not and she had no problem with it. I should have charged her 150 an hour now that I think about it. I dont think it even would have phased her. She was so happy that her lights were on again I could have gotten a little more i think....Ive never done a emergency call for myself yet so I think a surcharge for the prompt service is nessacary.
I have realized that being alone, my time is valuable to me and I hate it when I waste it dealing with knuckle heads. I went on a service call Late saturday afternoon and charged the lady 150 $ emergency call fee ( on top of hourly,) wether I fix it or not and she had no problem with it. I should have charged her 150 an hour now that I think about it. I dont think it even would have phased her. She was so happy that her lights were on again I could have gotten a little more i think....Ive never done a emergency call for myself yet so I think a surcharge for the prompt service is nessacary.
Rewire
Senior Member
- Location
- Lake of the Ozarks
Look at Sams Club vs Wal-Mart,Sams Club you pay to get in Wal-Mart is free.Both do great sales but people going to Sams are more likely to purchase but Wal-Mart has more volume.So it is a choice between increasing your possibility of a sale and limiting your customer base or increasing your customer base buy not limiting your volume.
not quite....a better comparison would be if wal-mart actually paid customers to come to the store...by giving free estimates you are paying the customer to allow you to look at the job...maybe not directly, but that's a better equation...
but at the end of the day, what we do is different than the retail/product industry....
but at the end of the day, what we do is different than the retail/product industry....
The difference between Sams Club & Wal-Mart vs contracting is the customer drives to the store. They don't bring the store to you. With contracting we bring the store to the customer. It's the customers time and expense to go to Sams Club and Wal-Mart.Rewire said:
You don't call them up and say I'm thinking about buying some stuff from you guys. Can you bring it out and show it to me and tell me how much it will be. I'm not sure what I want so can you bring extra stuff so I can get several prices on different things I may want. If you're the lowest I may even buy something from you.
It would be different if the customers brought there homes to the contractor to get estimates.
If you're running a contracting business correctly the customer pays for everything including the so called free estimates. The question is which customers pay for the estimates. Just the ones that buy from you or all the customers you visit.
Charging for estimates means everyone pays for the estimates so you don't have to pass on the expense to the customers who hire you, saving them money.
It really comes down to one thing. There is no such thing as a free estimate. The customer always pays.
emahler said:
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