[Stonehenge]

You get back to the office - there's a voicemail/email from a potential client. They want to get together to talk about some work.

You return the email/voicemail. And you do it again. And again. You might even schedule an appointment, but they cancel on you last minute.

When do you give up and move on? The first cancelled appointment? The 3rd return call?

[BJR]

Depends on how badly you want the job and what mood you are in.

If a client Is not there when I go to quote a job I will not go back unless they pay $100 for the wasted time.

If I return a call and they do not get back to me I forget about them. I won't waste my time trying to track them down. The more you call the more desperate you seem.

[Rex Mann]

I try to read between the lines. If they cxl the appointment, that is allot different than saying they want to reschedule. I'll call a couple times within one week. If nothing I move on.

Peace,

Rex

[Best Dirt Farms]

BJR Right On!!!

I say, if they're serious about their project...They'll do the follow up! If you feel like you're spinnin' yer' wheels...It's time to change gears.

Keep On Digging,
Phil In Nashville

[jwholden]

Hey, here's another one.

Why don't you call my friend, they need some work done.

I have never made the first move and had success. People just think you are too desperate.

BTW, I will call up to 3 times then give up. Too often I hear about landscapers not returning calls. However, as I'm getting busier and my head is getting bigger I will start doing some more intense screening. Calling me back will be part of the test!

[Tim]

I have had a similar thing perplex me in concrete. We receive invitations to bid from several bigger general contractors by fax quite frequently. They always send prints for these bids as well. The problem is that we see the generals being awarded the bids from using our numbers, but we have never been given the work. It is like they are using us to out source their estimating, and not paying a dime for it. We finally sent letters stating this to some of them. That might not have been PC. but hey! Enough is Enough! Tim

[scl]

Tim,
Had the same thing happen twice this year. Confronted both head on. No one is under any dilusions here anymore. Jeff, I give it a couple shots but BJR is pretty much in my court.

[Tim]

Thanks Scl, it makes me feel better knowing that some one else has reacted in the same way. Sometimes business etiquette can be very hard to decipher and then administer properly. Tim

[Nebraska]

One to two return calls and that's it. If they cancel the appointment the next one will fit PERFECTLY into MY Schedule.

[Nebraska]

That's for most cases...

On the other hand..
One of my largest maintenance and snow accounts took upwards of 10-12 calls back and forth to get even the initial meeting set up. This only happened because I knew that this developer was honestly a very, very busy slightly disorganized person that pays their invoices within two days of receiving them. Go figure... But this one also is worth more than $50k in revenue per year.

[Stonehenge]

Tim - that stinks to be doing the estimating work for the builders. SCL - when you called them on it, did things change?

As for the residential stuff, if the appointment is a no show (which always surprises me, since they live there), I sometimes leave a business card with the appt time and date on it. But I never call them back or return any subsequent calls. Most times, if they are not there by 5 minutes after the scheduled start time, I drive away and never look back.

I used to give them a second chance, but I never seemed to land the work. There seemed to be a connection between the missed appointment and having a lack of budget - my theory is, they did not have much respect for me or my field, so the appointment was not that important to them. The people that felt that typically did not have a sense of what our work costs, so when I gave them a second chance and gave them a bid, they always balked at the price.

So now I don't bother.

I actually had one cancel an appointment by email 4 hours before the scheduled appointment. Thankfully I got the email before I left for the appointment. Sending an email like that seems akin to sending a letter telling someone their house is on fire.

But I'm really liking BJR's approach - you wasted my time?!? Show me you mean business...Send me some money first. Then we'll talk.

[BJR]

It's amasing, the few people that have actually sent the money, I have ended up getting the job.

[scl]

Nebraska, just goes to show its acase by case basis. Good call!

Jeff, one closed up shop (not because of me) and the other apologised and gave me a good story. Remains to be seen.

[Tim]

We still do get invitations to bid from time to time from the previously mentioned. But we conveniently have a shredder that is located right next to the fax machine! For spite, I once submitted a bid back to them which tripled my normal prices.

The proverbial stand up really stinks! Our time is our money. I try to make sure the potential client understands this up front before meeting with them. I usually could'nt make appointments to see them for several days anyway. If I ever did get a no-show, their reason must be a very good one if I will even consider going back again. I also agree with what S.H stated about the no shows commonly do not have the funds to even have the work done. I however, still think it is important to be some what more forgiving, when catering to larger prospectives. But I still refuse to run chasing after their work. My time, and my company's reputation for excellent work do not allow it. Tim

[kevintree]

Eight months ago we started asking for cell#'s along w/ home #

Cut down return calls big time

Kevin

PS Updated web site if you want to check it out. Plese feel free to comment on new site TIA