Biggest Mistake

Ed the Roofer

If I had to count on the best demographic category to receive quality, No Questions Asked, Referrals from, it would be the School Teachers, with my second category being either retired, or soon to be retiring people who have learned lifes lessons to value quality rather than a cheap price and a boat load of promises.

To this day, I have referrals from one particular School Teacher, who's roof I had done 10-11 years ago. 2 jobs this year alone were exclusive no competition requests for my estimate and no others.

As far as Military brass.....Well, if you can not do things the Military way and defer to their rigidness in things they know nothing about, but still want to run the show, then stay away from them. For me, I had previously learned how to say; "Yes Sir, when would you like that done Sir!", a long time ago.

Then you go to the desk clerk who handles the change orders and get everything approved.

I spent more than a few months at a Botanical Garden and Historical Military Museum along with an attached Country Club like public Golf Course, owned by the Robert F. McCormack Foundation, who previously owned the Chicago Tribune and did a substantial amount of no bid work at Cantigny Museum in Wheaton or Winfield, Illinois by having the right attitude about 20 years ago.

Ed

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orson

I don't know if it correlates to the construciton business but if you ask a server or bartender who the worst tippers are by profession, I feel safe saying the most common answer will be schoolteacher.

It's hard to imagine a lousy tipper doesn't shop contractors on price.

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Lancaster Remodeling Contractor - Lancaster Remodeling
Kitchen & Bath Remodeling PA- Bathroom Remodeling Lancaster PA
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deckman22

Taking on a partner. Have other people work for you, don't split it with someone else.

Also like snowman said, stay in front with money.

Don't do "extras" on verbal agreement, get everything on paper & signed.

On the military folks for customers I'd say they are some of the nicest folks to work for. Retired 2 star general is one of my best customers. The nicest were a military couple up by Ft. Hood, wife was a nurse (major) & the husband was a sargent major in a 1st Cav. unit. She left a lunch for me & the guys in a cooler along with a pitcher of ice tea every day on the back porch. When he got home his first words were "hey Al you ready for a fishbowl?" Those were the kind of glasses he served his ice cold draft beer in. Paid with C-notes. Needless to say, we busted a$$ to get their job done & did the best work we could for those folks.

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Deckman
www.alscustomdecks.com

BMAN

I have been in business for 7 years now, I still don't feel secure on any given day and that drives me. We had our busiest year ever and yet our profit margin is down drastically. I think the lesson there is that busy does not always mean good things. I stopped working in the field last year but never changed my formula for estimating to account for that. Later on after realizing the mistake I realized that we had $400 a day in expenses that I was not accounting for in my pricing. Every time you add an employee that formula changes.
The next biggest thing I will say is that family and friends pay full price! They will be your most difficult customers and every time they have a problem they will call you at home and feel entitled to talk to you about the project, even if you are in the NICU with your twins clinging to life,but I digress.....
My last advice is that you should stay home rather than work for no profit, bid to make money not to stay busy. You may feel its more important to stay busy but its not, its more important to have a little money in your pocket to take a contact out to lunch on that day that you would have been rushing to finish a job that is over budget and under bid.

Good luck.