Million pound Transit

[Shaunpaul]

6 minutes ago, markieg31 said:

By Eck! 18years! Was the bus in fair good nick when you became the captain? Trouble is when I get a new, to me, vehicle someone has had the best of it! 

I am just not convinced that new vehicles will fair as well as the older ones. 

Friend with a 3 year old iveco, had since new, and paint is peeling of in places, shocker. 

 

 

That’s not good, I’ve just got a brand new Iveco so will keep an eye on the paint. There is a sticker behind the cab that states the paintwork shouldn’t be pressure washed, which seemed a bit odd. I understand some have a very high psi but who washes a vehicle with a sponge?

[Mark Bolam]

11 hours ago, markieg31 said:

By Eck! 18years! Was the bus in fair good nick when you became the captain? Trouble is when I get a new, to me, vehicle someone has had the best of it! 

I am just not convinced that new vehicles will fair as well as the older ones. 

Friend with a 3 year old iveco, had since new, and paint is peeling of in places, shocker. 

 

 

It was pretty much mint mate, had been used as a demonstrater/fleet vehicle by the Ford garage.

[Mike Hill]

As unpopular as this might sound...

 

If we as Arborists all drove nicer wagons,I think the public would take us more seriously thus we could charge more.

 

 

[markieg31]

Yeah I have mixed opinions about this. I think you may be implying that the older wagon looks like it could be a caravan club member, although this may not be what your trying to insinuate but it is often said. But I never see anything but blinging new transits when they roll into town to do the rounds. Takes a bit of commitment to keep an older wagon running. Sometimes the customer prefers not to see an expensive top of the range pick up to come and do a quote, thinking that the bill is going to be paying for the extravagant motor. Obviously initial impression count but I think that as long as you your self turn up clean and tidy and are polite then that does the job. I don't advertise so it's majority word of mouth. Let the work and the ropey mk 7 do the talking. Hopefully the customer doesn't mind me asking for jump leads when the chipper won't start🤦 - I wouldn't actually do that.

[Dan Maynard]

One of my reasons/excuses for driving a Defender is that as it gets older it adds character rather than being more shabby.

[Mark Bolam]

12 hours ago, Mike Hill said:

As unpopular as this might sound...

 

If we as Arborists all drove nicer wagons,I think the public would take us more seriously thus we could charge more.

 

 

 

As Markie said Mike, all the lovely clean, bling wagons are driven by the pikeys who don’t know their oak from their elbow.

I said at the start of the thread mine is a work truck, not a w anker truck, and I’ll stand by that.

 

I do all my pricing in my shitty little Fiesta anyway, so it’s fairly immaterial.

 

If people want to engage my services based on my truck vs. shiny new truck I pretty much guarantee I wouldn’t work for them anyway.

 

Customers have free choice in who they use, but that definitely works both ways.

[Mike Hill]

It is a hard question to answer but here is what worked for me. The big trees and gardens where I work are in the posh areas,the rest of the work was all over the place. 

 

I would take the flash motor to the posh places and a little run about everywhere else.Most of the posh gaffs I would park right in front of the house,the everyday places on the road so they wouldn't see the quoting car anyhow.

 

[Mike Hill]

Pikeys drive nice wagons because it adds a air of credibility. 

 

If your chasing top dollar you have to look like you are making it too.

 

Peoples perception of value is weird. If I rolled up with four blokes,did a big section fell and biffed it all into a skip in a day for £5K+vat the likelihood of the customer moaning would be high.

 

If I drop the Valtra off the night before,turn up in the mog,use the crane driver to unhook and I snedd for 20 minutes before chipping it all into the skip,load the wood on top and call the skip company for an early Finnish I haven't had anyone moan when they see all that kit.

 

Even though it cost me less than hiring three subbies for the day.

[Mark Bolam]

I’m not overly bothered about people’s perception now Mike.

Nearly all my work is for repeat customers or recommendation.

 

They know that we’ll do a decent job for a fair price.

 

I’m not chasing FB 30 quote jobs or moved down hedge-funders who ‘have a LOT of work for me if the price is very cheap’.

 

I established a good reputation back when my truck was shiny….

[markieg31]

Established all the work while the truck was shiny, that's the part where I am missing out.