Post Covid

[Mike Hill]

I have found people less willing to wait for a quote, before most accepted it would be later in the week or next week if further out of town. People seem to want the quote NOW! Perhaps because they are working from home and have more time to meet someone during the day?

 

I have also noticed more " could you just?" Requests when on a job,but I think that is directly attributed to the client being home when before they were at work.

 

 

[Stephen Blair]

Morning Excels1or, thank you for changing the thread title!   I’m now starting to think it was your bad customers that were in the wrong!  
 Sometimes a few bad ones slip through your defences, learn and tighten up the gaps! 
Have a good day! 👍

[Stephen Blair]

31 minutes ago, Mike Hill said:

I have found people less willing to wait for a quote, before most accepted it would be later in the week or next week if further out of town. People seem to want the quote NOW! Perhaps because they are working from home and have more time to meet someone during the day?

 

I have also noticed more " could you just?" Requests when on a job,but I think that is directly attributed to the client being home when before they were at work.

 

 

Does this mean the end of the Stunt Fell leave the rigging kit in the van and just fetch me the 500i!!!!

surely not!!!🤔😂

[Mark Bolam]

I’d definitely agree with Mike’s post, people do seem to have developed a bit of an ‘Amazon Prime’ mentality when it comes to both quoting and working timescales.

 

’Hi, I’d like you to look at some tree work, I’m free this Thursday at 11, is that good for you?’

 

Errrrrr, funnily enough I’ll probably be at work then….

[Excels1or]

1 hour ago, Stephen Blair said:

Morning Excels1or, thank you for changing the thread title!   I’m now starting to think it was your bad customers that were in the wrong!  
 Sometimes a few bad ones slip through your defences, learn and tighten up the gaps! 
Have a good day! 👍

You have a good day as well buddy 👍

[Mike Hill]

Had a bloke call yesterday.

 

" Hi I would like a quote to remove some branches from a couple of trees that are hanging over some power-lines,I want to fell the trees myself and I am afraid the branches will drag the lines over"

 

Sorry I am not interested in the job,I don't work around powerlines. 

 

" What!? I have tomorro off and need to get it done asap"

 

Real shame that mate,best of luck.

[Stephen Blair]

I stopped answering my phone about 17 years ago so I could remove that type of customer, the bolshy arrogant type.  Leave a long informative answer machine message stating how is the best way to get me to get in contact with them promptly.  The good people follow the instructions and send me a text or email and the more information they put on that text then that allows me to go on my phone and vet them and their location, so when I do get back to them I’m in a more knowledgeable position to give them answers.  If I see any red flags I’ll put more filters in place to see if I can draw out their true colours and the best way to do that is talk money straight off the bat, minimum price job, money up front and get them to send lots of pictures of the job, I usually never hear back from them and hopefully they go and annoy the opposition😂, but tbh I’d rather give a fellow tree guy a heads up of a bad customer and vice versa I’ll call them up asking about past experiences if I get told any tales of the other guy this or that.

  

[John Shutler]

1 hour ago, Stephen Blair said:

I stopped answering my phone about 17 years ago so I could remove that type of customer, the bolshy arrogant type.  Leave a long informative answer machine message stating how is the best way to get me to get in contact with them promptly.  The good people follow the instructions and send me a text or email and the more information they put on that text then that allows me to go on my phone and vet them and their location, so when I do get back to them I’m in a more knowledgeable position to give them answers.  If I see any red flags I’ll put more filters in place to see if I can draw out their true colours and the best way to do that is talk money straight off the bat, minimum price job, money up front and get them to send lots of pictures of the job, I usually never hear back from them and hopefully they go and annoy the opposition😂, but tbh I’d rather give a fellow tree guy a heads up of a bad customer and vice versa I’ll call them up asking about past experiences if I get told any tales of the other guy this or that.

  

This is one of the best bits of advice I ever took from you. My voicemail says for a prompt response please email or text, imo if people can't do that simple thing there we are not off to a great start. I generally listen to the voicemails then decide if il call them back and don't even get me started on the people that call from an unknown number 

[Mike Hill]

Buying a smart phone and not having a guy in the office has improved the quality of who I work for quite a lot.

 

Where as before I might be driving 30 mile to look at a plum tree old Bob used to snip for a tuppence  I can weed these people out early on. On average the best clients come in via email as they have better things to do than ask 20 questions about trees.

[Stephen Blair]

My best repeat customers I have never met, I get a WhatsApp, I go and look, take a few pictures, mark up a line of where it’s getting cut back to or mark the removals, show them on a pic where chip and logs will go, send the price, they give a time frame it suits because it’s usually an Air BNB , I do the job, send finished pics with an invoice, money gets sent straight away! Proper job done!