Low ballers making an impact.

[PLD 14]

The debate rages and rages, but one thing is certain; Low Ballers are making an impact here in Fayetteville. This guy is established and was running head-to-head with me price wise this time last year.

[AD IMAGE REMOVED TO PROTECT THE INNOCENT]

Trailer $49

1 Story $ 89

2 Story $119

[One Tough Pressure 580]

That may be his getting the phone to ring and then he does the upsell. Just like carpet cl;eaners that do any room for $4.95. That would be water only, and by the time they add shampoo, neutralizer, stain protector, treat spots etc, they get much, much more per room.

[Don Phelps 85]

The fact of the matter is his company name/number shouldn't be openly posted like this one way or the other. It should be considered 'unprofessional' around here to do so and lacks good judgement. It's always interesting how the ball bounces, isn't it?

[Craig 111]

Learn how to sell. There's nothing more I really can't stand than someone complaining about the competition. Competition is what fires my spirit. Without it I'd quit.

Just my 02.

[John Orr 206]

Frankly, I don't want to wash a house where the homeowner is considering using someone that advertises prices like this. There are too many people willing to pay a reasonable amount.

[Celeste 341]

Thank you John. There are plenty of lowball homeowners to keep the lowball contractors busy. I MUCH prefer to close the deals on the homeowners who want quality and have no problem paying for it.

Celeste

[PLD 14]

The fact of the matter is his company name/number shouldn't be openly posted like this one way or the other. It should be considered 'unprofessional' around here to do so and lacks good judgement. It's always interesting how the ball bounces, isn't it?

Well, it certainly wasn't my intent to bash openly. I just pulled his JPG file that sits alongside my own ad online. In fact, I did consider twice, but not for that reason. I thought again about posting it because of the attention this forum gets.

As far as 'unprofessional', 'lacks good judgement', etc. you are certainly welcome to your opinion. Personally, I would have done so in a PM

[PLD 14]

Learn how to sell. There's nothing more I really can't stand than someone complaining about the competition. Competition is what fires my spirit. Without it I'd quit.

I'm not complaining, just pointing out that it does have an impact. In this case, an established competitor has cut his prices nearly 50% in less than a year.

[PLD 14]

That may be his getting the phone to ring and then he does the upsell. Just like carpet cl;eaners that do any room for $4.95. That would be water only, and by the time they add shampoo, neutralizer, stain protector, treat spots etc, they get much, much more per room.

Sadly, no. It's just a blow and go. The lowball game is here is sell dirt cheap, use nothing but bleach or water, do as many as possible in a day.

[PLD 14]

Frankly, I don't want to wash a house where the homeowner is considering using someone that advertises prices like this. There are too many people willing to pay a reasonable amount.

At the risk of getting flamed again, I'll elaborate a bit. My concern about the low ballers here is not that they are taking my work. That I have. My concern is that they are lowering customers expectations on price, quality, etc. They are selling Yugo's.

Take the ad that was up for example, that's not a flyer being distributed by a fly-by-nighter. That is one of 5 established regular advertisers in the largest circ newspaper on the south side (4 county area). Of the 5, 2 advertise "one size fits all" prices that are well below par. And one of 2 (the other being me) that pays a premium to advertise 4 color in the Home and garden section.

Anyway, my point is that our customers are being bombarded by Wal-Mart and McDonalds advertising. The message is clear; Cheap, mediocre, disposable is better for your wallet than expensive, premium, top shelf, etc.

[squirtgun 122]

They are selling Yugo's

You're selling BMW's,explain the difference to customers and move on if they still want the Yugo.

[Jeff 232]

At the risk of getting flamed again, I'll elaborate a bit. My concern about the low ballers here is not that they are taking my work. That I have. My concern is that they are lowering customers expectations on price, quality, etc. They are selling Yugo's.

Take the ad that was up for example, that's not a flyer being distributed by a fly-by-nighter. That is one of 5 established regular advertisers in the largest circ newspaper on the south side (4 county area). Of the 5, 2 advertise "one size fits all" prices that are well below par. And one of 2 (the other being me) that pays a premium to advertise 4 color in the Home and garden section.

Anyway, my point is that our customers are being bombarded by Wal-Mart and McDonalds advertising. The message is clear; Cheap, mediocre, disposable is better for your wallet than expensive, premium, top shelf, etc.

I agree, Anyway you look at it, lots of lowballers are hurting the industry in many ways. If a guys new and doesnt know better thats one thing but like you say a seosoned competitor dropping his prices like he did is no good. I wonder why he did it?

JL

[PressurePros 249]

Phillip, I would not sweat it. There is no way one could compare a splash and dash, throw-some-bleach-on-it job to something one of us would perform. This guy is now in a conundrum. If he has lowered his prices by 50% he now has to do twice as many jobs as last year to make the same money. As anyone with half of a marketing brain realizes, doubling your volume, especially when established takes a good amount of advertising$$. Is he paying half as much you are for his ad? Doubling volume also takes increased man power$$..increased gas$$..increased wear and tear on equipment$$.

This rocket scientist decided that working twice as hard as he did last year to make LESS money was a good thing. You should thank God you have idiots like this competing against you.

[Craig 111]

Guys.... It's all about the upsell I'm sure. Why would a seasoned veteran be so stupid as to put an ad out like this and then honor it? Of course you'd have the very few that ONLY want what's on the flyer but most everyone in the United States population can be sold. Upsell is the name of the game. 25% of the coatings we put down are because we upsold a $125 driveway cleaning into a $2000 coating.

We on these boards are so easy to grumble but why don't we use our brains and make some money? Does any one know this guy with the ad? Do you know what his work is like? Do you know his intentions? Do you know his agenda or goals?

If someone shows us a piece of paper is that all we see?

Also, his name and phone number should have been deleted before the ad appeared on this board. I'm not defending this guy but that is just ridiculous to post. Common sense, guys.

[PLD 14]

Also, his name and phone number should have been deleted before the ad appeared on this board. I'm not defending this guy but that is just rediculous to post. Common sense, guys.

Ok, ok. I get the point. I am unprofessional, lack good judgement, am ridiculous (with an "i"), have no common sense, complain too much, don't work hard enough, etc. Since I'm such a complete waste of skin and bones, would you please do me a favor. The next time you, Don, and Jesus Christ are having a pleasant stroll across the water discussing the difficulties of being perfect would you please mention my name and let JC know that I could use a little polishing?

[wesley 15]

Now That Was Funny!

[CCPC 26]

Why is posting a image of another companies ad so unproffesional? Unless there's some sort of copywright infridgment that I'm not aware of, I see nothing wrong with it. The company is obviously ok with people seeing it, seeing as how they pay top dollar to have it printed, and distributed to thousands of residents. Maybe he's downright proud of his ad, and proud of his priceing and marketing approach. I say post the image, company name, and phone # all you want. Keep up the good work Phillip.

[James 625]

My price's have not change for house washing in ten years. Like john Orr said you get faster. But the price and competition have been lowered in my area. Many handyman services do Pressure washing at a cheap hourly rate. 48 to 55 an hour. There is no end insight to people entering this biz for food money.

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

I can appreciate both sides of the issue here. Personally, it is a matter of respect to leave others be and let them be at the helm of their fate. We concentrate on our business and leave others out of our conversations with clients. I think it shows focus and confidence.

Yes, sometimes we see things in our competitors that we don't like or agree with. Personally we leave it at that and avoid the temptation to voice our opinion in their business matters. We keep an eye on what others advertise in order to see what the prospects see. But we leave them to their own as we wish to be left to our business keeping in sync with the golden rule.

I also understand our perspective on this may not be in line with others where competition and the market share are quite smaller in comparison so others may feel the pressure exerted by other companies who undermine the status quo to benefit themselves without understanding the long range impact it can have upon themselves in the future. I can respect the position and the hardships it must create to keep up a supportive revenue under those conditions that low ballers create. Its a problem that this dog eat dog world of making money creates.

.02

Rod!~

[seymore 90]

I don't like talking about my competitors either but it's not like I know of very many companies i go against.Now if a customer brings up a bid and is trying to compare my work against another company.I will make my point of my experience and our company's reputation in the wood restoration buisness.My first question to that customer will be what kind of stain are they going to use on your deck,fence etc? Customers are getting smart to where they know "you get what you pay for" with really LOW prices.

That is also why i love that we SPECIALIZE in just wood restoration vs.P/washing.There are many more guys p/washing vs.only Wood restoration around here.I'm not in a price war to offer a SPECIALIZED service that is not as common P/washing etc.

I WILL not lower my prices to compete against a guy who will not be found again in this biz 2 yrs from now using the cheapest stain he can find! :cool:

[squirtgun 122]

Ok, ok. I get the point. I am unprofessional, lack good judgement, am ridiculous (with an "i"), have no common sense, complain too much, don't work hard enough, etc. Since I'm such a complete waste of skin and bones, would you please do me a favor. The next time you, Don, and Jesus Christ are having a pleasant stroll across the water discussing the difficulties of being perfect would you please mention my name and let JC know that I could use a little polishing?

Someone didn't agree with the way you did something and now you are correcting their spelling and likening them to Christ?I mean come on,I'm can pick a fight with just about anyone and even I try not to go there.

~AND~

I don't care of you post an ad of someones prices but,you could have blurred the guys name and number.If the shoe were on the other foot would you think it was ok?

~ALSO~

If the guys prices bother you that much call him and ask him why he did it.Maybe the guy doesn't have the customer base you do and has a family to feed so he thinks this will remedy the situation.

[Craig 111]

Doolittle,

I'm part of your solution here, not your problem. Please don't take my post so personally. It's not meant as an attack on you, but a constructive criticism on what you did. To me, to post his info is just as creative as his ability to charge what he does.

I like you and I like your posts in the past. Let's all be mature here.

Your situation with guys like this is very common. It's how you handle them and your customers that will set you apart.

[Ron Musgraves 240]

Learn how to sell. There's nothing more I really can't stand than someone complaining about the competition. Competition is what fires my spirit. Without it I'd quit.

I love that sentence.....

[Adrian 155]

I am almost afraid to jump in here. Please don't beat me anyone ( my kidney is killing me). I think it just works both ways. If a customer only wants to drive a Yugo then that is their choice. I prefer a Jag myself (kidding). Then there are the customers that prefer caddy's. In Atlanta there are some 450 listed PW firms. I am one of them. I simply prefer the customers that want Caddy's but, when I started, I would take any job I could get just to stay afloat. My rates have fluctuated a bit because of fuel and chem increases. I have one account that I just raised their rate for that very reason. I explained to them that it has to be that way because of the economy. They didn't squirm a bit because they know I provide good service. On time everytime. BUT, they are not a resi customer. I like commercial work but wind up with alot of resi's. I do my best to educate the resi customer and let them know what they are paying for. Ironically when I ran flyers for 100.00 house wash I got only 1 response out of 300 flyers. Now,... I don't offer pricing when I advertise. But I do offer bundle packages for resi's. Sort of a pick and choose what you want. Included in the pricing I explain that they are also paying for insurance, license, and professionalism ( even with my little bitty rig setup) which is serving me quit well after doing 20,000 sq ft of mall in 2 days. But the point I am trying to make is that there is room for all types of operations. Example.... that spray on with water hose fence and deck stain...

I bet that company is making a killing due to customers that don't want to spend alot on stain services. The product may stink, as the customer may soon find out the hard way, but as always ... you get what you pay for....

I know that Phillip does quality work..... I have seen it..... I have even worked with him. He just likes to service upper established clientel (Caddy people). The Yugo 's will weed themselves out, but still be available to the Yugo customers. I have learned so far that if a customer (resi that is) does not like my rates, then that just puts me one step closer to the customer that cannot live without my service. I think there is room for both types of operations, the Caddy's ( = Phillip) and the yugo's. The more people that choose the yugo's just saves the Caddy's time and money on wasted bids.

I believe now that alot of your clientel is based upon how you target and reach reach them. In defense of no one, I myself am far above the 100.00 house wash in quality and service and call backs. I am proud of that. But don't think for a moment that I won't give a senior a break in price, or disabled, or fixed income types. But the yugo's looking for a Caddy just isn't going to happen in my company. I hope I got my point across 'cause it's been a long day. So, anyone who wants a quality house wash in Fayettville for an average price, call Phillip. Anyone who wants a yugo wash in Fayettville, call yugo man washing service. You get what you pay for.

Peace Through Sonic Distortion.

[Jarrod 22]

Phillip, I feel your pain. I don't think this clown deserves to be in business. Now you have a mission. Put him out of business this year. Pound him into the ground by OUTSELLING him. Offer a good, better, best house wash. That way you got a better shot at the job. Usually if the customer is home & watching you doing the "good" job, you can show them an example of the "better" or "best" job & upsell them to one of those options. If they wanna stay with the "good" job at the "good" price, then well, better in your pocket than in the clown's. Right? Yes people get what they pay for, they might as well be paying YOU!

[Ron Musgraves 240]

Adrian B. Carrier

If a customer only wants to drive a Yugo then that is their choice.

I read your post and don’t think you’re a low baler, however if your taking the stand someone has the choice to buy a yugo and that’s there decision that fine. How ever most of these low ballers yugos don’t have breaks or seat belts.

My point is that I agree with you if the customer knows they are buying a car without the safety equipment.

Your post made some good points but I remain that it’s all about the education of the customer. I won’t accept contractors that sell the customers sort on service without telling them. They never do, and that up to us to prove that they will not get what they are paying for.

I don’t really care about low baler from the stand that they cannot affect me because my sales people are trained and we have a cost analysis for the customer showing them what we do and what’s required and standard in our service. The scope of work is clear when we are done talking to our future customer and everyone knows what questions to ask the next contractor. We provide a questions to our customer as to what should be standard and if it’s not how much is it going to cost extra.

Just and example that happened to a 15 year old customer. Acme pW gave them a price half what we were charging. The 15 year old customer was furious; he claimed we had been robbing him for 15 years. We had not developed this program to handle these 15 years back. We went out re-explained what we provided gave him the questions to ask Acme. After acme found out what our customer expected his price was double.

Customers just think we are all the same, that we are all uniformed and service standard are going to be the same. Once they ask simple questions like how much time are you going to take? This is one of the simplest things you can do to check the service person.

All new companies have cameras; we are one camera most of the night. The customer can compare the time we spend over the other contractor. I realize that some will claim they are more efficient and have better equipment. We prepare them for that also. If we spend 3 hours and they spend 30 minutes. (Slam dunk) WHO’s robbing WHO?