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Neil

What is up with sales people not following through in this industry?

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I know. I'm new here and have no cred. Go ahead and think that if you want to.

And this is not some sort of venting thread. I really do wonder what is going on in this industry?

I have been shopping among the many sources of pressure washers and systems lately.

And I'd say only about half of the sales people I have contacted and talked on the phone with or exchanged emails with have ended up following through by getting back with quotes they promise. Or they seem to not give me shipping costs on those items as I request. Or they just plain don't respond to emails and phone messages.

One theory I have is that it's the time of year. I would imagine at this point in the year these pressure washer supply companies are swamped with orders to fill and requests of various kinds. I know it's like that for me as a window cleaner now. So, this must be a very seasonal thing since pressure washer companies are all buying stuff .

So, my guess is that if a guy like me is asking for a quote, and the sales staff has only so much time available , guess what gets the time? Sure, the guy that says, please ship me these things and here is my credit card #.

So. I'm just doing this in the wrong time of year and I should just either walk into my local store and buy what they have or I guess wait until November ? :)

I'm not going to name company names here. My point is not to drag company names into this.

But I wanted to get your impressions and experience on this. I've never really found it this hard to shop for something before.

thanks

Neil

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Where is Lake Stevens? Seattle area?

Remember this moment, as you become more successful, you will have less time to get new accounts and will be hard pressed to take care of the existing accounts.

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Wait a few months when all the summer warriors realize they don't want to put in the work to make any money in this business and then buy their equipment for a 1/3rd of the cost with only a few hours on it

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Neil,

In my experience it's not just this industry. I no not know why but I have had the problem for the last 6-12 months, it's never been so hard to spend money.

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Sounds like your working w the wrong distibutors. The ones I work with call me back immediately whether it's a 10$ order or over $1000.00. Call meif you want and I'll recommend some good ones.

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Wait a few months when all the summer warriors realize they don't want to put in the work to make any money in this business and then buy their equipment for a 1/3rd of the cost with only a few hours on it

That is so true. Every single year I see it happen.

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Sounds like your working w the wrong distibutors. The ones I work with call me back immediately whether it's a 10$ order or over $1000.00. Call meif you want and I'll recommend some good ones.

Have him talk to Bob over at Pressure Tek. The UPS guy will be in his driveway before he hangs up the phone.

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My purchases from Bob have been very small, but the service was great!

My PW came from Delco/Delux several years ago. The service,with one exception has been great. After 2 orders placed with Jerry, I no longer talked to him. If I am in a hurry, the orders are expedited, and shipping information has been accurate.

E-spec sucks. If the owner reads this, I will get flamed again and told I never oredered from them. His memory is not as long as mine, after 20+_ years, I still remember the crap was substandard, the warrenty was non-existant and the service was lacking.

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I've never dealt with Delco but have heard many good things about them. On the other hand I ordered 100 feet of hose Monday night from a well known hose distributer in the south. I hoped to have it here Friday so I could rig up another roof pump on the truck but I got an email from them on Friday saying my order has just been processed. What was happening all week to my order?

I guess it doesn't matter anyways. I've been hearing in the news that the world is going to explode Sunday. Figures! I finally get my home paid off in April and now in May the planet explodes... just my luck. How come I wasn't told about this whole "planet ending thing" 15 years ago when I took a loan to build this house? I think I'll start drinking again.

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Yes Atilla, I remember you mentioned Pressure Tek and I haven't ruled them out. I see another here mentioned them too.

Thanks guys for indulging my question on this. Sounds like I'm not alone in this experience of non responsive sales people.

By the way, another thing that is happening right now is that I had to email Pressure Pro directly to find out a local distributor of their product. I can understand them wanting to sell through distributors , but please put a list of said distributors on your web site so I can call the one in my area ?

That is starting to be the way I am leaning - the idea that I might be better off buying from a local company since I think I want to put together more than just the pressure washer ( water tank, plumbing, etc. ) I sort of need to put together a kit for my van with a cold water machine.

I love the road warrior thing btw. Intuitively, I would think that makes quite a bit of sense. And I probably can get by for now with my current gear. I definitely am not in the road warrior camp :) Pressure washing is easier work than window cleaning and better paying as well. I plan to be around with it for several years probably.

Oh, and I looked at Delcos and they look interesting but expensive, but to know the price I have to bug another salesman for the price. What kind of $ do those go for?

Bottom line, I'm looking for a quality machine @ 4K psi and 5.5 gpm for residential surface work ..

Thanks for the feed back guys!

Oh, and yes, Lake Stevens is about 30 miles North of Seattle. I live about four blocks from the lake.

Neil

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On Monday I'm going to contact Pressure Tek and see how that goes. I see they sell Pressure Pro products. I have tried and tried, but I can't find a local Pressure Pro dealer in the Northwest.

Neil

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Neil, I am in the same boat as you. I tried getting a quote from a local place here months ago and still have not heard anything. I called 6 times, nicely, and still no service. Your best bet in my opinion is Pressure Tek and then contact Russ on here about a pressure washer. That is what I am going to do. I get my chemicals and materials from Pressure Tek and will most likely be buying my washer unit from Russ.

Good luck with your purchase!

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Apparently this is the season these pressure washing supply companies can only hope to keep their head above water with the number of calls they get. I guess it's just the wrong time of year for a newby to get involved. I like the idea of contacting Pressure Tek and I was about to and then I found a complete trailer for sale in Vegas for 5 grand - a Hotsy. The seller is going to California to meet me. Now that's service. I know- it's a private sale and he's motivated to sell.

I found that the thing that worked was to just visit each and every craigslist for the distance I was willing to travel and do a search on pressure washers in both the tools and business sections. I found quite a few opportunities that way.

If you are on the East coast, there are lots of them back there I have noticed.

here is a photo of my trailer:

post-8195-137772383249_thumb.jpg

Neil, I am in the same boat as you. I tried getting a quote from a local place here months ago and still have not heard anything. I called 6 times, nicely, and still no service. Your best bet in my opinion is Pressure Tek and then contact Russ on here about a pressure washer. That is what I am going to do. I get my chemicals and materials from Pressure Tek and will most likely be buying my washer unit from Russ.

Good luck with your purchase!

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Oh well, my trailer deal fell through. But there will be others I'm sure

Neil

You should give Russ from Southside a Call, the products he sells are not far away and complete and ready to go. www.pressurewashky.com

Paul Kassander also deals with another brand.

Sunbritesupply.com carrys the pressure pro your looking for. They are in Atlanta and they do not offer a complete unit.

Jerry & Mark are very Close to your location. They also Carry this equipment.

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