[Dale Wiley]

I see there was a similar thread, but I don't get asked the question.

I am really kicking around charging for that first site visit - pre estimate. My current sales close ratio is under 15%.

I am an experienced sales person, and knowledgeable in my craft. My area is experiencing a HUGE influx of wanna be's, that know just enough to take the market.

One actual contractor who has found that by lowballing, he gets a lot of work. He told me to my face, that he will beat any price myself or a couple of others put out there, and there's not a damn thing we can do about it.

He has done 40K of work that I quoted on.

The people buying new houses, upgrading etc, are so strapped for cash, that price gets anything now.

While I work on building my sports field business, I am taking our estimates down to 10% net profit. I still will be high, because I pay insurances, I pay more than minimum wage.

If I cannot pay myself better than the senior local parks workers get, and realize a profit on my investment, I am going to get out of everything except the public and muni work and sports work.

I would be interested in hearing what y'all have to say about this idea.

I am tired of not getting paid for my work and its going to stop.

[stoneridge]

I would charge a $50 consultation fee for a first time visit. That fee would then be subtracted from any signed contract/quote.

This would seperate the "shopper's", who are looking for the cheapest, from the serious clients, referals, and people who know what quality work costs.

[start2finish]

Dave I have toyed with this idea for some time. but how much, I considered a small amount such as $20.00, to weed out the tire kickers, but I haven't decided.

[ianc]

I charge $40.00 for the first half hour and then $40 per hour - 3hr min they get a bill reciept for 120+GST tax

no rebates -

[TrickyDick]

I don't yet have the balls to charge for the first visit but I hope to develope them before too long. People who are willing to pay for a consultation are looking for the best company to work with not the cheapest. I bet the number of visits would go way down and the close rate would go way up.

[Dale Wiley]

I don't yet have the balls to charge for the first visit but I hope to develope them before too long.

Can't be any worse than doing estimates, investing 2.5 to 30 hours in a minimal estimate and then get blown out by 30%, because they are looking for price. And then seeing what that does to the sales numbers. The numbers don't lie.

I am retooling the qualification procedure, and writing the verbiage for the sales script.

[uniscaper]

It's like this, people who want quality will pay for it. We charge $80 for a consultation and my designer has a full calendar. By charging a fee your saying that you are worth something and you are a professional. People who are serious about spending money on their landcape are willing to pay for it. Our close rate for all of last year was at about 60%. If you charge to little then people are going to think you just want to charge something for the sake of just that. Charge what your worth and if you do quality work your probably worth more than you believe. It has become a service plus quality world for alot of people, they are out there believe me. Weed out the tire kickers they are costing you time and high priced fuel.
Good Luck

[start2finish]

Dave let me know how you work it out.

[jwholden]

I started charging a $25 consult last fall, with no effect. So I bumped it up to $50 this spring. I refuse to do design work without getting compensated for my time (once I finish a few lingering designs from the winter. No design fee equals no motivation). Visits with previous customers are gratis.

Most of my calls are from referrals and past clients. It has lowered the number of people that leave a message, but the clients who do are more serious and 'discriminating'. It gives me the opportunity to approach them bright eyed and bushy tailed.

I screw up on occasion and forget to mention the consult fee, especially on small jobs or paver and retaining wall jobs. I must realize that my knowledge of this subject is worth paying for my time. It may take me a while to put them in, but they are done right!

It's not yet May and I'm fried from running around. Without the consult fee I would be extra crispy.

All consult and design fees go toward the job if hired.

[RHayden]

Originally posted by Dale Wiley
I am retooling the qualification procedure

Key point. Do you have a good idea on where these price shoppers are coming to you from?? I know it's sometimes hard to weed them out until its too late and your time has been wasted.

Up until this year we have never charged an initial consult fee. This year I have begun charging anywhere between $40 and $100 depending on how far I have to travel and where the lead came from . It has worked out well so far and with the rising fuel prices I had to do something for that reason alone.

Try it out on a few prospects and see how it goes.

[johnkeegan]

I've charged $50-$100 per initial consultation for awhile. Only exceptions are solid referrals from a "regular" customer. For me it's worked great. If someone refuses that, for what could be 1-2 hours of my time, I figure they're just shopping and probably have no real respect for what we do. So I wouldn't land the job anyhow.
Another benefit of charging the fee (which is refunded if we do the work) besides what is mentioned here, is that once they pay the fee they have an investment in your services. If they choose to not do the work or go with someone else, they lose that investment. And even though it's only $50-100, that's still hard for some to part with. Of course, we make our money off of the actual work and not consulting, but now you've created a scenario where they too have a stake in coming up with a successful design/estimate.

[mrusk]

I'm in my 2nd year of business and my closing rate sucks so bad it ain't even funny. I close less than 10 percent of my estimates. Luckily i work solo and pull in enough leads that i am staying booked out at 3 weeks.

I know my sales gig is pretty good. I do the same speech on every sales call. Several people commented on how i was more knowledgeable than people that been in business for 10+ years. So i know my closing rate not because i suck at selling. I have no doubt it is because my leads from my newspaper adds arn't the best.

[RootRot]

I charge $70 per hour ($70 min) for consultation. I have never mentioned taking the fee out of any hired work but I will do it if they bring it up and the job is significant. People love to get "something for nothing" and if this is all they get and it makes them happy, then fine.

[spiderlily]

I know I have posted this before, what I do is screen hard on the phone to try to weed out price shoppers, tire kickers, and dreamers before we waste time on a face to face, much less an estimate or proposal.

Any "Good Lead" gets a free estimate, which is still standard in these parts. Anybody questionable gets offered a "consultation" with a fee of $75.00. This works well. Most of them say they'll get back to me, and a few bite. Some are actually just looking for a consultation, which is fine. Our close rate is about 90% of our face-to-face contacts, but probably closer 35% of all calls. I may be leaving money, screening so hard that a few good ones get away, but I'm definitely losing money when I am spending Saturday with bad leads. As I have posted before, I am pretty assertive in asking those telling questions. People who are serious about the work and can afford it never seem offended. It probably helps that our advertising, and even our name, makes us look "high end", so we don't get bargain hunters, usually.

I have a screening outline that I have offered before. Send me your email and I'll share it.

[stonecrop111]

Finally I am learning not to get "attached" to a proposed project. Last week I was called back by a lead to do some design work on a retail store front sculpture/sign on a busy street. I orginally told the owner that he needed to do something with a big empty planter box in front of his store and I sketched out a simple drawing and proposed a basic cost of the project. A couple of weeks later he called and wanted to do the project with funding with one of his suppliers. They had more ideas but really no experience in signage and such. So I told him that since he agrees on the basic concept I gave him, to go forward now he would have to come up with some design $$ for me to continue. He was fine with that and now the papers rest in a folder. If he calls back, great! If not, I'm not attached with time, money, or even desire.