Hourly rates

[matdand]

[ QUOTE ]
You don't want to get all of your bids. It would mean you are charging too little. 40% closing rate sounds like its in the ballpark.

[/ QUOTE ]

Wow, that means that if you're doing 10-15 jobs per week, you need to bid 25-40???

 

[Mangoes]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
You don't want to get all of your bids. It would mean you are charging too little. 40% closing rate sounds like its in the ballpark.

[/ QUOTE ]

Wow, that means that if you're doing 10-15 jobs per week, you need to bid 25-40???

[/ QUOTE ]

To put this point to another perspective - annual - to land 500 jobs in a year you need to quote 2000.

Then - when you ponder this reality - the next challenge is allocating the marketing budget to make the 2000 opportunities possible.

 

[rfwoodvt]

[ QUOTE ]
To put this point to another perspective - annual - to land 500 jobs in a year you need to quote 2000.

Then - when you ponder this reality - the next challenge is allocating the marketing budget to make the 2000 opportunities possible.


[/ QUOTE ]

Or, refine your prospect qualification process such that when you actually put the proposal together it is pretty much pre-sold.

I'm closing on right around 80% of my proposals and I am definitely NOT the low price guy around.

There aren't too many site visits I make anymore that do not result in work on the schedule and those that I do not get, I pretty much already know that going in.

 

[Tree_Frog]

I am in the Bermuda Triangle for tree work. It is about 30-40 years behind in all regards including price. Currently to stop intellectual theft of my bids, I charge for all my estimates. $25 for 15 minutes or $85/hr for consult. This has stopped me from wasting time and my clients money. I am selling 98% of my work and I am booked a month out. Still keeping things small. My work is on average 2-3 times the cost of the other guy. In reality I am inexpensive compared to a normal market that has some semblance of what tree work is besides beer money.

It is good to hear of real markets with real pricing. You can get a 4 man crew, grapple truck, and bucket for about $20-50/mhr. No insurance, safety gear, no knowledge, etc.

 

[oldoakman]

You mean there is another place besides west central GA that has totally incompetent people doing dangerous work at heights that can kill and cause multiple thousands of dollars in property damage without having insurance or a clue as to what they are doing?? And here I thought I was alone. I just wish OSHA would wake up BEFORE someone gets dead.

 

[BBBTree]

I have to hand it to you guys that can get a real profit out of what you do for people. The *smallest* numbers I've seen posted in this thread are about 25% better than our average best around here. We are still 99% residential work though. We may improve if I can get my buddy to crack the code on commercial work and drop 80% of the residential work we are taking.

 

[southsoundtree]

bump

 

[Muggs]

The Educated Climber Podcast
Episode 6: The Perception of Value

www.educatedclimber.com/ecp-episode-6/

Today on the podcast we explore some fundamental aspects of how we price our services in this industry. This is a very complex topic, and there is a lot of disagreement out there, so I want to start off by saying that I am no expert. I haven’t “figured it all out”. But I do have some thoughts.

Pricing is serious business, seriously. To paraphrase Winston Churchill, “Pricing is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.” The truth is, the biggest companies in the world struggle with pricing. For real.

In this episode we explore time-based vs. value-based pricing. This single piece of content may be the most important thing that I have put out to-date. It’s only 20 minutes long, super digestible, and very applicable. Please, if you run a tree service, or tree care business, give this short little episode a chance. It just might change the way that you think about the work that we do.

– Patrick

#shamelessplug

 

[Serf Life]

@tomstrees here’s an older one with some good points on pricing. Many other ones too.

 

[tomstrees]

You mean there is another place besides west central GA that has totally incompetent people doing dangerous work at heights that can kill and cause multiple thousands of dollars in property damage without having insurance or a clue as to what they are doing?? And here I thought I was alone. I just wish OSHA would wake up BEFORE someone gets dead.

I would not want to refer anyone I don't really know, a lesson you learn the hard way by losing future work. I had a good customer in town I did a lot of work for, she wanted her apple trees pruned. I saw an ad at Muench's in Stamford spoke to the guy with an Indian accent, referred him to her stupidly, I should have done it myself but was busy. I get a call from her later saying that the guy had butchered the trees and at that point wanted to cut them down! And I find out later these people were really wealthy, in divorce proceedings later she wanted $50K a month from the ex-husband!!

Mike Johnson who worked for Round Hill tree, a company totally reliant on climbers, saw Joe Dumb@$$ one morning preparing to cut down a tree. End of day he passed the property again, saw the tree he had dropped on wires, with the cops putting the jerk in handcuffs!