Money is always a sore subject, but one I believe more of us in this industry who are in our own business could use a better education in.

My 2 cents [Linked Image]

Free estimates:
They can use up to 2 weeks of your billable time per year,in some cases even more (that happens when you do not charge enough, so you keep going on estimates for more work).
I stopped doing free estimates when I got busier, I charged on average for a house estimate $500 and right away knew who the serious players were, not wasting any time with the people who were fishing for the lowest price.
Remember, that a lot of jobs come without the proper prints, so then you become the 'engineer'. Hmmm - do engineers work for free?

My prices went up, thereby immediately eliminating the poor paying customers who wasted too much of my time early on in business. A huge benifit is when you service these type of clientele, they always tell their 'rich' friends about your work. These people will rarely ask for a price, but demand service and do not want to hear any storie of why the job is not finished.


Working less hours for more money affords you the time and money to properly train your men, and offer better pay to keep the good men.

ITS A WIN WIN SITUATION!!!

The only problem is not enough of our industry has grasped this principle yet.

Oh one more benifit of making more money... when the job for an elderly couple comes along, you have the benefit of charging them less if charging them at all [Linked Image]!!

Pierre

Pierre Belarge