6 quotes in 48hrs and still no work

[david campbell]

was wandering if anybody else was having this problem,iv'e gave out 6 quotes within 48 hrs,a few days later and still the phone seems broken:yikes:,considering i have lowered my prices(slightly because 1.i need the work,2.i know people dont have much £ after xmas,3.i know there are other tilers doing the same),you would think that i'd get at least 1 job from 6?:incazzato:

 

[kilty55]

hi mate,may just be the fact some people take a while to get back to you or maybe they are still waiting on quotes from other tilers,i know a few guys that take up to a week to give the customer the quote(god knows why) heres hoping eh.good luck

 

[david campbell]

I know what you mean kilty,but out of 6 quotes you would at least expect to leave with 2 of those already in the diary,before xmas i would have got 4 of those jobs by now!:dizzy2:

 

[Deleted member 9966]

Hey DC,

How long ago did you give the quotes to the customers? If it was say, 3 days ago, why don't you call the customer up and very politely ask how soon they're likely to have made a decision about your quote?

It might seem a bit too up front, but why don't you say that you're trying to organise your diary as you have other work in the pipeline (whether it's true or not) and just let them know that you're still interested in doing their job for them, but obviously don't want them to miss out if your diary gets booked up whilst they're still making their decsion.

You never know, it might just be a) what the customer needs i.e. a reminder to ring the tilers back about the quotes or b) maybe the customer was seeing who was the most proactive and professional....

Worth a try?:smash:

 

[kilty55]

aye i know what your saying david,a plumber called me yesterday looking for an idea of what prices i would charge him per sq metre for ceramics,porc and stone.i wont say what i quoted him exactly but they were keen,i also saidd to him the more work you give me the better price il give you as an incentive also..ahh he says my current tilers much cheaper than that,,,end of. its fair enough if your work is recomended and you know youve got the job anyway you can charge your normal rates,,but im very aware of the fact in this current climate its gonna be a fight for the jobs i think especially with the sites emptying a lota site guys will surely be going the domestic route also,

 

[kilty55]

good idea girl racer,ive done that a few times when short,,followed customers up saying i need to organise my diary and sometimes it pays off:8:

 

[david campbell]

every one of the quotes where from referrals,so i know my work comes recommended and they have my number(GRR-i usually find that if i phone customers back i never get the jobs,used to try the old diary trick but never worked:dizzy2got work for the end of the month from 2 kitchen co's that use me but it seems really desperate the now:yikes:

 

[wetdec]

Hey DC,

How long ago did you give the quotes to the customers? If it was say, 3 days ago, why don't you call the customer up and very politely ask how soon they're likely to have made a decision about your quote?

It might seem a bit too up front, but why don't you say that you're trying to organise your diary as you have other work in the pipeline (whether it's true or not) and just let them know that you're still interested in doing their job for them, but obviously don't want them to miss out if your diary gets booked up whilst they're still making their decsion.

You never know, it might just be a) what the customer needs i.e. a reminder to ring the tilers back about the quotes or b) maybe the customer was seeing who was the most proactive and professional....

Worth a try?:smash:

Good call young lady


..

 

[Deleted member 9966]

every one of the quotes where from referrals,so i know my work comes recommended and they have my number(GRR-i usually find that if i phone customers back i never get the jobs,used to try the old diary trick but never worked:dizzy2got work for the end of the month from 2 kitchen co's that use me but it seems really desperate the now:yikes:

Not that I'm one to think too deeply about things, but maybe it might be worth a bit of a trip out round to the houses of the customers you quoted on rather than calling them. If there's other tilers vans on the drive/outside the house then at least you'll know where you stand..

But if you're concerned about getting more jobs in the pipeline DC, what other options have you thought about? I'm not sure if big DIY sheds or Topps allow this kind of thing, but could you get yourself "affiliated" with a store as a Trusted Tradesman?

Also, is it worth a shot to ask your local tile stockists whether they've seen a dip in business recently? Find out how many people are actually buying tiles and grout etc and you might be able to satisfy your curiosity about where all the work has gone - is it because of the economic downturn or have people turned to DIY in the short term....

 

[david campbell]

spent most of last week hanging about my local topps,during the week it was totally dead,was reasonably busy on saturday but was horrified to find the amount of people willing to spend £20-30 m2 on tiles and openly admit to giving it a try themselves,have a good raport with the staff in this shop and if i,m in and about or picking up materials they will happily offer the customer my services,they usually have a habit of doing this when iv'e got my diary full for weeks(just a pity its empty for the next 2 wks).I wish i was quiet through the lack of trying but it aint

 

[Deleted member 9966]

Have you thought about contacting local colleges and training providers who are running courses and qualifications with a view to maybe getting some casual work assisting in lessons etc? No point letting your skills go totally to waste over the next 2 weeks....

 

[LM Ceramics]

im the same mate ive done a few quotes but iv heard nothing iv only had one job since the start of the year you could try and ring the customer back politley just to ask if the quote is alright admittedly ive tried it b4 and haven t got the job but you have nothing to lose

 

[Deleted member 9966]

The more I think about it, the more I think that people are trying to cut costs as much as possible. For me personally, the materials are expensive enough without having to pay someone else to come and fix it all for me. And with money being tight for everybody, DIYer's are going to "have a go" (like I did in my kitchen) or people are going to hold off until they have got the money to pay for things like that. I could have laminate floor'd my kitchen for half what the tiles and adhesive cost me.

It's tough times for everyone for the foreseeable future.

 

[Deleted member 9966]

Guys I just found this post in another thread, thought I'd share...

http://www.tilersforums.com/tiling-forum/16666-topps-tiles-love-hate-5.html#post154953

 

[david campbell]

Have you thought about contacting local colleges and training providers who are running courses and qualifications with a view to maybe getting some casual work assisting in lessons etc? No point letting your skills go totally to waste over the next 2 weeks....

thats actually one of the best ideas ive heard in a long time,think it would be more suitable if i was going to be out of work for a while though:hurray: