Remodeling: How Competitive Are We?
Posted September 22nd, 2008 by Tina Gleisner
Joppa Park
An existing My Handyman customer called to ask if we could compete with contractors on Craig’s List. He was buying a condo in Newburyport, MA and had plans to update the bathrooms, add hardwood flooring and other home repairs. I explained we are competitive when you look at the total package, not just price. I outlined the value we could provide, benefits important for a business owner with limited time.
- Project and budget planning support
- Technicians fully insured and bonded
- Written project updates emailed weekly
- Coordination with other home contractors as needed
Market Square
Given the scope of the project, I also offered a discount for days worked that were 4/more hours. My customer appreciates the work we’ve done for him over the last 3 years and quickly said “… great, I’ve always been happy with your work so let’s go ahead.” We scheduled a walk through for Saturday morning following the closing.
Check back periodically to get the latest news about our condo renovations. We anticipate completing the project in 6 weeks, depending on how quickly we can finalize materials choices from paint colors to vanities, bathroom hardware, etc.
Tags: bathroom, bathroom remodel, condo, condo renovation, Contractors, Flooring, handyman, Home Repair, Remodeling
We have always been concerned about offering discounts. If the quality is there, there should be no reason to offer discounts, unless there is simply no work coming in. Even though the economy is very bad, we are still finding plenty of people who are employed and have money to spend. Be careful with this, it sets a bad presendent and will attract the kind of customers you don’t want.
Thanks for your feedback Atlanta Handyman (have to visit your site to search for a name). I am not wild about discounting but our business model is geared to smaller jobs that are hours to a few days. For a job that exceeds 10 days, I think it’s fair to offer some type of discount and especially to compete with small remodelers.