Why is good customer service so hard to find?

[disneysteve]

Didn't figure I'd change your mind. It's obvious there is a general distrust of contractors due to a few personal experiences.

It's not just a trust issue, though. I've called in people who I was fully prepared to hire if I was happy with what they told me. There have been plenty of times when I didn't get multiple quotes for something because after meeting with the first person, I saw no need, especially when it was someone who had been recommended to me.

But if you walk into my house with a cocky attitude, try to pressure me into signing something on the spot, or otherwise act like you couldn't care less about the job I need done, I'm not going to hire you. I don't care if your price is the highest or the lowest. If you aren't going to treat potential customers with respect, I'm not going to give you my business.

It sounds like you are fair, trustworthy, and dependable. I think that's great. We need more people out there like that. Sadly, I can tell you from personal experience that there are plenty of people out there who just aren't like that.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

Where we used to live I had a lot of problems getting contractors to come out and I lived in a condo. I ended up having a lot of trouble with bids so often even if the contractor wasn't the lowest I usually went with someone who would come out and had a personal referral. I don't think I got the best price but at least it was someone who would do the work and had done work before for someone I knew. The hassle of a condo is much like a church board.

[Deepali Mohite]

customer service

Make sure before paying to any company you check their reviews 3 - 4 different sites and then make payment. The quality of service is also linked with the wages that the person is getting.

[disneysteve]

if someone told me to just trust him and not get any other bids, I would tell him that he wasn't getting my job.

Absolutely! You'd have to be really gullible to fall for that. Unfortunately, a lot of people fall for it or feel pressured by the sales pitch. "I can start tomorrow if you sign the contract right now." Or "I can only offer this price if you commit today." Or some other nonsense.

A trustworthy business won't pressure you into signing anything on the spot. Their offer will be good for a reasonable period of time. And they won't be afraid of their competitors. When they tell you not to get any other quotes, that's a sure sign that they know those quotes will be better than theirs and you won't hire them. Just stay away from folks like that and avoid the headaches.

[Fishindude77]

I think you guys would be surprised about how much work is done with little or no competition.

The average age of skilled tradespeople in the US, in almost every hands on trade, is really getting up there. Average electrician or plumber for example is probably 55 years old or so, and not enough kids have entered the trades to fill the need. Good tradespeople and companies that control a group of good tradespeople have all the work they need. If you have the people, you will get the work.

In most areas, it's not necessary to put yourself in these potential time wasting competitive situations anymore. This is why you may see lack of interest or responsiveness. Grant it, there are plenty of jokers that are just poor business people too, but that's the minority, and they usually don't last long.

Until the public education system get serious about directing a bunch of kids towards trades instead of the "everyone needs to go to college" mentality, things aren't going to change. 5-10 Years from now when the remaining trades people retire, things could get ugly when your toilet won't flush.

Another thing .... My company turns down competitive bidding opportunities pretty regularly due to the competition they want to put against us, considering them an "or equal". We charge a premium price because we have the best people, we use top end products and materials, and we stand behind what we sell. Buyers always tell us they want to get "apples to apples" bids, but truth is they don't know how to evaluate bids, all most really understand is price. We see it every day when we drive by a project lost to a competitor. Some buyers will also pump you for lots of information, then share your good ideas with competitors, then when they hire the other guy, they disappear, won't take calls, etc.

Also, putting out bids higher than competitors will get you a reputation of being high priced, because buyers talk to each other. There's just no point in spending the time and money quoting low odds projects. Good buyers negotiate with us. If the price is high or more than they can afford, we can generally adjust the scope of work to hit a budget.

[disneysteve]

Good buyers negotiate with us.

If I only talk to one company about a potential job, what info do I have to use to negotiate the price? I have no basis for comparison to know if the price you are offering is fair, suspiciously low, or ridiculously high.

After I've gotten a couple of quotes, if the person I like best is the one who cost more, at least I've got some info to go back to them and say, "I'd really like to use you. Could you do any better on the price?"

[ua_guy]

The contractor thing is interesting. A lot of the smaller jobs we've had done were under-the-table by bigger contractors willing to do work on the side, all by word of mouth. That comes at a premium sometimes, but when you have a personal recommendation both ways (the customers are reasonable/easy to work with, and the contractor does what he says he will, and is GOOD) that's worth something to me as a customer. A lot of people try to work those relationships for screaming deals on their jobs they need done, but I think that's the wrong approach.

[disneysteve]

A lot of people try to work those relationships for screaming deals on their jobs they need done, but I think that's the wrong approach.

I agree. I am more than willing to pay a fair price for quality work. The problem, as I've said here, is getting folks to show up and do that work. When I call a contractor, schedule an appointment to have the work done (not just for a quote but to actually come and do the job) and they don't bother to show up or even call, I have a problem with that. And I've had that happen numerous times over the years. Hence me starting this thread about why good service is so hard to find.

[Fishindude77]

Agreed, not returning calls promptly is bad business.

People deserve the courtesy of a return call. You should thank them for calling, and if you don't want the work just tell them "No thanks, that's not really our line of work -or- We are booked and can't get to you for a while", etc. I will usually refer them to someone else more suited to what they are looking for, if I can.

If I only talk to one company about a potential job, what info do I have to use to negotiate the price? I have no basis for comparison to know if the price you are offering is fair, suspiciously low, or ridiculously high.

Fair question.
First of all, I find who I want to work with based on reputation, referrals, track record, etc., then I kind of operate like this:

a. Hey Mr. Contractor, I am looking to get this done, is this something your company does, and is it something you might be interested in?
b. If they seem interested ... OK, but without wasting a bunch of your time could you take a quick look at what I have and give me a ballpark idea of what I need and a price range, so I will know if this is something I can afford to do or not?
c. If their response and budget seems reasonable, go to the next step ..... OK, that sounds reasonable we just need to work out the details. Can you put me a firm price and proposal together? And feel free to suggest any alternate ideas or prices that you think might reduce cost or add value. Approx. how long will it take you to turn this quote around, and let me know what your schedule is soon as you can also.
d. If they come back with a job that meets my budget and needs, I hire them. If the price is more than I want to pay or can afford, I share my target number with them and ask if they have any ideas on how to get down to that number.
e. If you still feel uncomfortable by not getting multiple bids, most guys will work "open book" where they just bill you by the hour for labor, and put a set mark up on materials and subs. Then all you need to be comfortable with is their rate per hour, and their mark up percentage.

[disneysteve]

Agreed, not returning calls promptly is bad business.

So is not showing up for a scheduled job.

Using our garage example again, I actually didn't call the garage company first. My first call was to our handyman who happens to live down the street. This was before I had really spent any time examining everything to see if I could tell what was wrong.

He came a short time later and we went out to look at it together. When we did that, I located the problem. When I pointed it out, he said that was really out of his department and suggested calling the garage folks.

I called them, scheduled them to come out and do the work (not give a quote). I didn't even ask how much it would be. I didn't really care, and we've used them before. Then they just didn't show for the scheduled appointment. That's what we were upset about and what prompted this thread.

Fishindude77, I don't totally agree with everything you've posted but I don't think our opinions are as far off as it might have seemed at first. I appreciate hearing your side of this as a contractor.

[Fishindude77]

Yep, good to hear several sides of things.

Not showing up, not returning calls, etc. is just basic decency and showing respect for others time.

We get calls all the time from people wanting us to do something at their home. We just tell them thanks, we are commercial industrial contractors and don't work on homes. If we can, we refer them to somebody that we know does a good job. Also tell them that if they ever need anything at their place of business, to give us a call. Have had a few of these random calls turn into jobs.

[disneysteve]

we are commercial industrial contractors and don't work on homes.

I don't know what your background is but I wonder if this fact doesn't color the comments you've made to those of us talking about small, home-based jobs. The market out there for homeowners trying to get things done at their houses is pretty awful. Stories of people not showing up, not doing a good job, overcharging, fixing one thing and breaking another, leaving a mess, starting a job and never coming back to finish, or just plain not showing up are commonplace. It's unfortunate but it forces us to be highly skeptical any time we are hiring someone to do anything. I'd like to trust people who are supposed to be professionals and very good at what they do, but the reality just doesn't support that.

[Fishindude77]

Well, the cost of entry into a small contracting company is pretty low. You need a truck and your tools, then hang out your shingle. Most states and communities don't require business licensing and the only trades requiring licensing are electricians and plumbers.

Seems like a lot of guys start out in the trades, see their boss doing pretty well, so decide they can easily run their own business, make more money, have more free time, etc. .... Grass is always greener. Many are pretty good with their hands and tools but pi$$ poor businessmen. Most fail within a few years.

Contractors and restaurants have just about the highest business failure rates out there. Find someone that's been around for 20-30 years, and they probably know what they are doing.

[disneysteve]

Well, the cost of entry into a small contracting company is pretty low. You need a truck and your tools, then hang out your shingle. Most states and communities don't require business licensing and the only trades requiring licensing are electricians and plumbers.

Seems like a lot of guys start out in the trades, see their boss doing pretty well, so decide they can easily run their own business, make more money, have more free time, etc. .... Grass is always greener. Many are pretty good with their hands and tools but pi$$ poor businessmen. Most fail within a few years.

Contractors and restaurants have just about the highest business failure rates out there. Find someone that's been around for 20-30 years, and they probably know what they are doing.

That all makes sense.

Ironically, the "contractors" we have had the most success and best results from have been non-professionals, the neighborhood handyman for example. Just somebody who is passionate about these things and knows how to fix or build pretty much anything even though that has never been what he did for a living. I have a cousin who was a banker his whole career but he is one of those guys who can fix pretty much anything. He always did work for my parents and for me until he went and moved to Florida a few years ago. He had some nerve. Fortunately, we have a really good handyman now (who just wasn't able to fix our garage door but has done a bunch of other jobs for us).

[bjl584]

Our garage door broke on Monday. First thing yesterday morning I called the company that has done our work before. I was on hold for 5 minutes before a human picked up the phone. They were nice enough and said they'd have someone out between 11am and 1pm. Great. Can't ask for more than that. So my wife and daughter sat home and waited, and waited. At 1pm, when nobody had shown up or called, she called them. Oh, the guy was delayed. It would have been nice if he had called to tell her that.

They rescheduled for today between 11 and 1 and said we were the 2nd job on the schedule. Again, they sat home and waited. Again, nobody came. She called them a little before 1 and said the guy was pretty rude so she told him to forget it.

I called another company I found online at 12:30. A human answered the phone right away and was sweet as can be. She said they actually had a guy working in our town today and he would come by 4pm. He called 15 minutes later that he was on his way. The job was completed and he was gone by 1:30, less than an hour after I called.

Talk about a difference in customer service. You can guess which company I'll be singing the praises of and which one I'll be trashing to everyone and anyone.

Why are there so many customer service based businesses that can't seem to grasp that they need to actually provide service to their customers?

This is an issue that plagues the independent contractor business. A lot of guys are great at their trade whether it be auto repair, HVAC, plumbing, carpentry, or general repairs. But, they are horrible at customer service and at financial management. There is a lot more to running a business than simply knowing a trade.