ECN Forum Forums General Topics of the Trade Business Related Discussion How do these guy's do it ?

www.nexstarnetwork.com www.youresi.com

they are just 2 of the ways to get the information.

trevman, it is strange how a job that takes an owner/operator 3-4 hrs, takes an employee 4-6. But it is what it is. Much of the time, I think it's due to an owner counting all the time he is paying the employee, vs. just counting job time when he's on his own.

Good luck.

HCE, use that to your advantage.

Advertise you can beat them by 30-40%.

From an add:

"Upfront pricing saves you money"


Sure it does....

yep, no reason to learn how to improve your life and that of your employees. no need to improve yourself. much easier to drag everyone down.

HCE, i'm really not telling you anything other than how they do it. And many do it successfully. We are at about $200/billable hour and there are 3 companies locally who are more expensive. Do I want them to drop their price? Heck no, I want to improve our systems to justify a higher price.

I'm not in this industry to cut my customers a deal or give them a break. I'm not in this industry to work all week and have a couple of dollars to go fishing on sunday with.

I'm in this industry to build a company and a life that allows me and my family to do as we please. A company that offers my employees higher than average pay, benefits, etc.

This can not be accomplished by ripping off customers or by undercharging.

it's all about how you run your business. if you are going to charge $300/hr you had better do a better job than the guy charging $65/hr. Whether it be a more professional CSR, neater technicians, better scheduling, better trained technicians, etc. maybe it's simply the fact that the customer knows the cost before you start and has 0 anxiety of what your bill will be.

That's just my opinion. But I don't want to barely scrape by. My old man taught me years ago 'if i can't make more money, with less work, working for myself, I might as well go work for someone else'

I think most of us went into business because we wanted a better life. More money, more free time, more vacations, more whatever. The only way we can give that to ourselves and our family is by earning our customers money. Simple as that.

The question was "How do these guy's do it ?"


Yes i wonder how they do it too, how do they work for less then what a master electrician wages should be, put in untold hours of work, and generate little or no profit, how do they pay for needed benifits, truck repairs, and replacement, vacation time, pay employees a good wage, build a retirement nest egg, yup, how do they do it?

LK, my attitude and goals really changed a few years ago when I overheard two PLUMBERS bragging about how much vacation time they took each year. They each took a month at a time to go worldwide. In the meantime, their company stayed up and running. It was making them money while they were on vacation. Both of these guys were claiming to take about 4-6 months/yr vacation with their families.

that was a breath of fresh air. Usually, you simply hear guys brag about how many hours they work.

HCE, how you run your business is purely up to you. But whatever you decide, run it as a business. Don't price on anything other than what you need to get what you want. Run your business to create the life you want. Don't live the life your business lets you.

Good luck.

Super, you know who I am talking about. I understand it, but I don't understand it. I gave an estimate for the same job and I am adding a meter socket and a siding block. My price is $960.00. I am by no means a low-baller and I thought that that was a little high, but looks like I will be doing the job. I guess I should thank them, they opened the door for me.

HCE,

it really boils down to a numbers game. get the phone to ring enough to be able to walk away from 6-8 out of 10 calls and make your money on the remaining 2-4 calls. Work less, make more.

Kind of a buy low, sell high idea.

if you only generate 10 calls/week, you can't really afford to walk away from 8 of them. Generate 100 calls/week. And you can make a great living on the 20 you get. Generate 1000 calls/week and you can get rich on the 200 you do. So long as your pricing in profitable.

But look at what they are doing to warrant those rates. People are paying them. Who? Why? How can you get your rates more in line with theirs?

Good luck.

You got my point HCE...let his cost of overhead, advertising, ect, open doors for you.

Use it to your advantage.....

At your price, your paying your costs, and making a profit. There is nothing wrong with that at all. It's why your in business. Your not lowballing, hurting the industry, or dragging anyone down. Your making money, good for you...

We all know about him, it isn't about his costs. It's about what he can get away with.
Go for it, take business away from him. More for you and your family..

Electricians seem to take great pride in being able to sell a job for less than the competition.

It should be the oppsite.



[This message has been edited by A-Line (edited 07-11-2006).]

HCE and everyone else,

Please be aware of a couple of truisms.

The easiest way to generate business is to sell on low price.

The hardest way to succeed in business is to sell on low price.

No matter how cheap you are, there will always be someone cheaper.

If your customer uses you simply because of a cheap price, why won't he use the next guy with a cheaper price?

Good luck. How many months vacation will you be taking this year?