ECN Electrical Forum
Discussion Forums for Electricians, Inspectors and Related Professionals

Both you and Obsaleet made some good points. It can be challenging to communicate to the customer. I treat them as special in part, they are. Make you customer comfortable, the final bill is easier for them to swallow. The thing is, I have been doing this for years. A good solid reputation is by far the best advertising you can have.

My new landlord flipped her skirt when she realized who I was because of my reputation. She's letting me fix a couple of things at cost so we both win on many fronts. I give her a break on the cost and I can sleep at night, knowing that they are wired right. Pics are coming in a few days. That freebie will put me at the top of her list on who to call. She will confirm my rep to her friends and when they need someone, you know who the will call.

Sometimes selling obvious is a good tool. Creative salemanship is just part of the job. On larger construction jobs, every chance I had to do something noticbly at the construction entrances, I did, even if it was not critical. The customer walks in on the site, the see my progress, they are tickled pink.

Sell your skills, sell the product, make the customer feel special, empower them, make yourself stand out among the other wire heads and you will have more then you share of work, even with the economy the way it is.

Giving away work or charging material at costs can be a two edged sword it may get you a recommendation but it may be attached to the term "cheap". I did a "favor" for what I knew would be someone who could give me a foot in the door with others well sure as sunshine I got a call from a "friend" of EDs who needed a quote. Well I shot back a quote with my material markup and regular labor rates thinking I was due for some profit. Well the next day I get a call asking why I was charging so much because good ole Ed had told him how much I had charged him. So just a word of caution now I only cut breaks to 501 C 3s then I can say "it was for charity".

One thing that really annoys me about some customers though, is when they change thier mind half way through a job and expect you to take up the slack.
And then bag you for the increased price.

Not my fault when they want a socket on the other side of the room to where they originally wanted it.

The nature of the beast is that low-bidding to get work is totally self-defeating. Either give it away entirely or charge your regular rate.

WE ARE NOT MANUFACTURERS.

We have essentially no control over material costs. Like wheat farmers we must operate as price TAKERS -- not price SETTERS -- when it comes to our inputs: our cost of living, job risk and routine materials.

Unlike farmers we cannot borrow against the farm to tide us over while we cut our price to move out the grain. Every dollar of contract price reduction comes out of our income -- quite promptly -- and in this credit contraction no one can fudge cash flow

Our business is contracting massively. With the loss of contract volume profit margins must go UP -- not down!

Survival dictates that additional income must be generated in non-traditional areas. A shrinking pie plate means that you MUST find another pie.

Right now that might be solar arrays. It might be Title 24 upgrades. ( California ) It might mean foreclosure operations wherein you function as a GC.

What ever you do -- do NOT increase the supply of electricians. That means fire all of your apprentices ASAP. Any compassion that you may feel must be balanced with the reality that any attempt to 'carry' them will bankrupt you.

Trends in technology have crushed the need for wire jockeys. Alarm and security systems have gone wireless. WiFi has ruined the retro-fit cable-fishing craft. Wireless X-10 and its analogs (digilogs?) have eliminated our craft as well.

Hence we have three or four guys chasing each job opening.

Here abouts wages have collapsed 40% for j-men; i.e. non-union shops are paying $17/hr vs $27/hr. By comparison the local cost of living has not dropped at all.

All of the older troops have been kicked to the curb.

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I watch CraigsList every day to keep tabs on the latest players to liquidate their businesses. Prices keep dropping on all construction tools and assets.

Just as shocking is the rise in stolen professional tools on offer.

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In this kind of environment putting additional trades under your hat makes perfect sense.

It also makes sense to network with other tradesmen and form a 'reference co-op.' Every team member maintains a stack of b-cards for himself and his buddies. The co-op scratches each other's back on the cheap. Significant work discovered is rewarded with a spiff.

An example: you're swapping out a Hunter fan. You see lousy cabinet faces/ tired faucets/ handyman eyesore 'repairs'. Whip out the b-cards.

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Create a 'line card' with skills listed instead of products.

Stuff like landscaping electrical -- sticking solenoids at the irrigation valves -- compromised wet connections....

Pitch exterior receptacles -- garage circuit extensions -- more wrap fixtures over the tool bench.

Have such materials at the ready and bid them to reflect ONE service call efficiency.

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I shun painting because color match and pre-prep is such a challenge. But I don't mind closing up my penetrations on a rough/semi-rough basis. In this manner the customer can either perform the 'eye-wash' finishing or contract it out without huge time pressure.

Good post Tesla. Too bad the customer base reads our posts

I am focused on the money generating divisions of my business. Service is the only steady income so that is where we look to add value. our techs are trained to look for the upsell on every call.Techs need to be taught to be salesmen on the jobs.

Another thread (about estimating) has made me reflect on some of my past jobs.

You know, in EVERY job where I was given free reign, later feedback from the customer revealed that all of the 'unnecessary' stuff I put in quickly proved to be critical.

The opposite was also true: in EVERY job where I was strictly limited to the plans and the dictates of the accountant, the customer has quickly regretted his choices.

Now, the real challenge lies in getting that message across to the customers - especially when the 'customer' is not also the final user or occupant! You have to get the message through: hire me or you'll be sorry!

ref the low bid.
I was talking to my wife about this again tonight out on the boat. She is arguing with the greens keeper about why he should hire her electrician instead of some guy they don't know who just had the lowest bid.

#1 All electricians are not created equal. She has a business relationship with someone who has a proven record
#2 When this thing breaks (read:run over with a trencher) or you need to add on, you want to be able to get the guy who installed it and knows what is going on so you are not reinventing the wheel. The low cost stranger may not even be in business anymore.
#3 and maybe most important, if the bid is too good to be true, it probably isn't. This guy will usually be back, hat in hand asking for more money or he will be cutting corners trying to get out alive. That isn't good for anyone.


Just a little thinking from the customer side.

I have been staying very busy with up sales and finding problems that need to be addressed. For instance I have 2 jobs now on the schedule because there underground meter sockets are pulling from the house.