When do you quote?

[Ian C]

Spot on Billy, that's what I need to head to.

 

Joe this is probably the first week you have properly worked all year so quit moaning you wus !

 

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[Joe Newton]

No it's groundhog day so it's Monday for the near future.

 

 

How many times did Murray top himself?

[Treeation]

Id say set day or two free a week for quoting...sounds like your busy enough so no real worry that you might lose the odd job for the customers who want it done yesterday but in the grand scheme of things better to have life!

[Jimbo 76]

Ian,

 

When we started out we used to quote for anyone who asked. But as others have alluded to (like Kevin) This can run you ragged.

 

We now 'pre qualify, everyone before quoting. This might sound a bit management bollocks. But it stops work time money etc been given to lost causes.

 

Some clients are more important than others.

 

Find out if they have the cash, why they want the job and more importantly are they the decision maker.

 

Hope this helps

James .

[Ian Leach]

How many times did Murray top himself?

 

Too many

[csservices]

Try and tie my quoting in on the way home on a night, trouble is looking at it and measuring up is the easy part actually finding time to sit down and work a price out is more difficult as I'm doing 7 days a week on my own at the minute.

[Ty Korrigan]

Packed Mrs Lee and our 2 bairns off to Morocco middle of July.

This mean't that my weekends suddenly became free.

Sundays are 100% family normally so I was able to go quoting instead.

I drove 372km one Sunday and saw 6 British clients.

Brits tend to be spread out and one client was 2 hours drive West but the job was a good size one so worth the travel.

I won all 6 jobs too boot.

Over 550 man hours of work.

This Sunday will be my last opportunity to go quoting before I fly out myself to Morocco to cycle down the coast then up into the Atlas mountains.

Though I'll still be connected and answering the smart phone when I've a signal.

We too are running 2 teams this Winter, one for jobs further afield (guys who are not bound by child care and snappy wives) and another for more local work.

4 full time on the books plus a scattering of subbies.

Ty

[Jonny69]

I certinly aren't complaining about being busy, and doing quote on a night is sometimes a must as quite a few domestics want to see you especially if it a job of a thousand bits, commercial clients are only through the day any way, I'm just trying to see how others manage there time, the office side of things isn't a problem I get in there when it's an easy day it's the actual traveling around that's the hard bit to sort.

 

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I found a good way to get around this it to give them a day or 1/2 rate instead of looking at the job. Some tree cutters obviously don't like this option.

 

But it means I get quite a lot of work without ever seeing the trees and that saves loads of time for me. I might be an hour long here and an hour short there but its pretty close and it has saved me no end of time driving around the countryside.

 

I would say it averages 2 days a week being filled and I haven't looked at the job.

 

Of course there are exceptions to this and anything tricky sounding gets looked at.

 

EDIT: Just realised most of my work is commercial or in villages so I rarely see a job less than £300. This may not be applicable depends on the type of work you do I suppose.

Edited August 24, 2016 by Jonny69

[Ian C]

"Day rates" are for building sites and it's not something I would do for normal tree work, what happens if you tell them a day and you have it finished by 1pm?

 

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[oldwoodcutter]

"Day rates" are for building sites and it's not something I would do for normal tree work, what happens if you tell them a day and you have it finished by 1pm?

 

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In our world of tree and hedge work, the words ' always' and 'never' are seldom used ,as nature can often jump up and bite you.

But never ever give your client a day rate , or you will rue the day you did.