Estimates - how do you handle them?

[Beth n Rod]

Jon,
AMEN!
Beth

[Work2Fish]

Squirtgun is right, we should factor in an increase in our rates to compensate for loss estimate time and expensive gas prices.

[James]

HOUSE WASHING PRICES. I haven't changed my prices in ten years and the last couple of quotes I was 100 bucks higher.I can't raise my prices for house washing. I did get the jobs though..

[plainpainter]

I think giving free estimates or not is not a choice you can make. It's a reflection of the market. If there are too many contractors in one area of business - then certain things are done to be more competitive, e.g. free estimates. Think of it as a buyers' market. Obviously we would all like to filter out all the ding-dongs - heck even my own neigbor had me over his house 11 times for estimates on house painting, deck restorations, pressure washing a house in another town that he was custodian for. After a while it occured to me that this guy ain't signing anything - so I walked away from him. Maybe something silly as just charging $5 will be enough to separate good clients from idiots. Certainly, if I was backlogged - I'd ask money for estimates - what do you have to lose? Think of it like testing the market, like when you ask for more money than you normally would to do a job.

-plainpainter

[Don L]

I would like some help defining terms."Free estimate".When I respond to a call for an estimate,if the owner is there,great!If they are not present,phone work is fine.Word's can be deceiving,but a great deal of character can be reveled through conversation.Phrases,pattern of speech..,but,this isn't Vegas.
The lack of customer contact(face to face) is simply a circumstance.
Yes it cost's a great deal more today than it did years ago.I view the free estimate as your opportunity to sell your company.It is an investment.
You lay your knowledge,and your repuation on the line,everytime.The reward is the contract,the job.The public perception of the company(i.e. the customer).What do you do?Advertise free estimates,but build them into your prices?This is a problem.Minimum charges are a must today.Fuel is the first thing that comes to mind,but how many times has the bid process turned into a job itself?You don't hand the a customer for a bill for the bid,so is it free.I tend to lean towards Rod and Beth's assessment concerning the life span of the free estimate.I also liked the concept of waiving the bid fee if job is sold,Fair,gives you a little cya,gives the potential customer(potential advertiser) a way out,and weeds out the folk's that just want to chat.Great thread.
I believe that every situation is unique.It rest's upon the decision of the estimator.
It is an art,as well as measurement.
I would be interested in hearing your views.What say you?

[mas3372]

I am very pleased with my estimating procedure I have developed in the last month. I owe much of the east to a website I found that will show me a picture of the home, foundation size, garage size and so on. As I am taking the call I can get the picture up on the house as I am describing my washing methods, ins, licensing and what my competition does that ruins their home. Once I have the pic up I have a real good idea of what I would charge. I then tell them the $50 window, ie. "You house including the outside of gutters and front steps will cost between $375 and $425 depending on..." I then go on to say "we can schedule the work and before I begin I will tell you the definite price but it will not be more than $425" unless there are some drastic changes. This has not failed me yet. They know the max they will pay, they understand my washing methods and the job is scheduled.

Decks and so forth I must see and measure.

All estimates are free.

[Mike Williamson]

I am very pleased with my estimating procedure I have developed in the last month. I owe much of the east to a website I found that will show me a picture of the home, foundation size, garage size and so on. As I am taking the call I can get the picture up on the house as I am describing my washing methods, ins, licensing and what my competition does that ruins their home. Once I have the pic up I have a real good idea of what I would charge. I then tell them the $50 window, ie. "You house including the outside of gutters and front steps will cost between $375 and $425 depending on..." I then go on to say "we can schedule the work and before I begin I will tell you the definite price but it will not be more than $425" unless there are some drastic changes. This has not failed me yet. They know the max they will pay, they understand my washing methods and the job is scheduled.

Decks and so forth I must see and measure.

All estimates are free.

I assume this is a website that is local to you?

That's one thing that is very lacking in our property appraiser's website. We have a diagram of the house layout, but no pictures. I can find the size of the house, and whether it is 1 or 2 stories, but not how steep the roof is, how large the driveway is, etc.

[mas3372]

Thats too bad mike, because it is a great tool. I can get the size and a pic. Also the sales price, the value and a few other demographics. Hopefully technology will catch up for you.

[Mike Williamson]

Thats too bad mike, because it is a great tool. I can get the size and a pic. Also the sales price, the value and a few other demographics. Hopefully technology will catch up for you.

Well, our county does have a pretty comprehensive website, and the way it is laid out, I can download certain neighborhoods, all the houses on a particular street, etc. I have access to all the sales info, house size and layout, etc. It only take about 15 minutes to download the neighborhood, convert it into Excel, clean up the data, and import into a Word file to print letters or mailing labels. It is MUCH better than most appraiser websites I've seen, but I do wish they'd have pictures! On the other hand, I've been to appraiser websites that have pictures and more info, but you can't search by area, only a specific address, owner name, or parcel number, meaning I couldn't do my mailers in the way I do that. That's much more important to me.

[mas3372]

Good point on the mailers mike. I just did 1000 post cards and they were delivered saturday and today and have recieved 13 calls so far and 5 jobs with the other 8 pending me getting in touch with them on a call back. I bought my mailing list for $75 and it was well worth it. Gave me 1700 people with some strict demographics. The appraisal sites for me save me so much on quotes and the homeowners love it once they know they don't have to wast time to meet me and perhaps another guy to get a quote and then call back. Saves so much time on both ends and today, time is money.

[Mike Williamson]

Good point on the mailers mike. I just did 1000 post cards and they were delivered saturday and today and have recieved 13 calls so far and 5 jobs with the other 8 pending me getting in touch with them on a call back. I bought my mailing list for $75 and it was well worth it. Gave me 1700 people with some strict demographics. The appraisal sites for me save me so much on quotes and the homeowners love it once they know they don't have to wast time to meet me and perhaps another guy to get a quote and then call back. Saves so much time on both ends and today, time is money.

Keep us updated on how they do in the next couple weeks. 13 calls on 1000 mailers is great for a 1 day response! If you get quite a few more calls in the next couple weeks, I may be bugging you for the name of the company where you got your list!

[Dan Stapleton]

Me too. Thats awesome.

[mas3372]

I will be sure to let everyone know. I am keeping count of how many calls and jobs I get. My first job today paid for the list, the post cards and the postage. the rest is gravy.

[mas3372]

Mike,

found a new site, check it out. It is not as great as the sites I have but this site can give some info for you. WWW.ZILLOW.COM

It will at least give you the assessed value, neighborhood and some demographics.

To give you an example of how lucky I am. Go to this site
http://www.riliving.com/OceanState/T...ds/Default.asp
click East Greenwich, click access data base and then choose East Greenwich again. Type in 2 clauson and select search top left. then click the address. I quoted this house recently. This site is average on what most towns offer, some give more info and more pics.

[Mike Williamson]

Mike,

found a new site, check it out. It is not as great as the sites I have but this site can give some info for you. WWW.ZILLOW.COM

It will at least give you the assessed value, neighborhood and some demographics.

To give you an example of how lucky I am. Go to this site
http://www.riliving.com/OceanState/T...ds/Default.asp
click East Greenwich, click access data base and then choose East Greenwich again. Type in 2 clauson and select search top left. then click the address. I quoted this house recently. This site is average on what most towns offer, some give more info and more pics.

Here's what I have to work with...very nice, but lacking pics!!

http://www.acpafl.org/search.asp