Communication Breakdown

2279 Views 13 Replies 12 Participants Last post by mjay, Oct 19, 2007

daArch

Discussion Starter · Oct 17, 2007

This is kind of an open-subject question, feel free to take it where ever you wish.

Lately I've noticed how important communication is in the trades. Communication is critical to reach our end goal of making the homeowner happy.. Often there is more than one degree of separation between us and the HO. Designers, decorinas, GC's, architects, spouses, and even the maid. And so often it gets screwed up.

Too many times we wallcovering installers are called upon to install materials that are not wallpaper but speciality goods that triple and quadruple the time of installation. Given that and that they cost $150 a yard, the HO goes into sticker shock when they get an estimate of $5300 for a 4x5 powder room. The decorator has not COMMUNICATED to the HO the high cost.

Or one of my favorites, I show up at the job in the AM (this was when I was still painting), the HO, on his hurried way to work, took a can of stain "This is for my office floor" and another can and said, "this is for the guest room floor" . Yup you guessed it, next morning he informed me I F-ed up by switching them. (I still say I did it the way he said)

Another of my favorites, I was emailed by the GC to show up at 290 Chestnut St, Jamaica Plain. I got there and looked and looked and looked. Finally called their office and asked WTF was the house. "290 Chestnut AVE, Jamaica Plain." Which is about twenty minutes away.

So, you got any good MIS-communication stories? Or helpful hints on how to avoid mis-communications? or how about just venting about IDIOTS who can't use the language properly.

Yah, I'm a communications junkie, love all forms of it and since you are on this forum, you must be a com-junkie also. Maybe we can all improve by hearing other horror stories.

-Bill

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GPI

· #2 · Oct 17, 2007

Nailing someone down the day before and puting things in writing will cut out most of the BS. Without confirmation of anything the day before, I figure things are a no go and do not plan any further. All the things done on the fly without agreements, yes' and nos and the people involved are asking for trouble.
Planning a job takes time. If they have no respect for what information you need to complete the project based on their specs,you dont need them ,but theyll sure know how much they need you when you back off until you get things in writing.

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Steve Richards

· #3 · Oct 17, 2007

My vent:

Yesterday I was talking to a building owner about the color for his hallway ceilings. He tells me his decorator wants to "spec" the paint. I tell him to make sure it's not coming from HD...so we do a 3way call to talk about it.
I say up front I wanna use BM, (lady) decorator says ok, but I'd have to match it to the Behr sample she had

, then she tells us this should be an eggshell finish "because eggshell hides imperfections better than flat". She sounded so sure of herself... that I decided not to get into an argument on the phone about it.

After she hung up I told the building owner she had it backwards. I don't know if he believed me or not.

[email protected]#$% know-it-all interior decorators

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daArch

Discussion Starter · #4 · Oct 17, 2007

Steve Richards said:
My vent:

<snip> then she tells us this should be an eggshell finish "because eggshell hides imperfections better than flat". She sounded so sure of herself... that I decided not to get into an argument on the phone about it.

After she hung up I told the building owner she had it backwards. I don't know if he believed me or not.

[email protected]#$% know-it-all interior decorators

Those are what we call "decorinas"

The ones who we figure are doing it as a hobby, - no training, no education, and above all NO SENSE. But they act like they know it all.

I'm dealing with one now.

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neolitic

· #5 · Oct 17, 2007

I like decorina! I've been calling them "deco-divas"--usually lady HO's BF, or sis.

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ProWallGuy

· #6 · Oct 17, 2007

daArch said:
no training, no education, and above all NO SENSE.

Who cares, just as long as they have deep pockets.

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thom

· #7 · Oct 17, 2007

Owner's supplying paint, different colors for each room. I tell him how many gallons of each, he's taking notes

For the LARGE master suite, I tell him 5 gal, no wait, 6 gal (I forgot about the third walk -in closet 12'X14'), next morning I get there and find 56 gallons of blue tinted paint for the master suite.

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send_it_all

· #8 · Oct 17, 2007

thom said:
Owner's supplying paint, different colors for each room. I tell him how many gallons of each, he's taking notes

For the LARGE master suite, I tell him 5 gal, no wait, 6 gal (I forgot about the third walk -in closet 12'X14'), next morning I get there and find 56 gallons of blue tinted paint for the master suite.

Well, at least he'll have plenty left over for touch-ups later on...

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Grumpyplumber

· #9 · Oct 17, 2007

On a walk through for estimate for a new GC, I mention to him on my cell phone that the 4" CI main running directly over his planned bathroom in a basement will only give him about 6' from slab, he'll either need to relocate it or the bathroom.
He tells me "It's fine, I already went over that with the homeowner, I don't need you telling me the obvious. Just give me a price for the bathroom"
A month later he calls me and says "Why didn't you relocate that soil pipe in the ceiling??....There's NO possible way I can put a ceiling in that low, you need to get out there NOW and do it...this is part of the job I paid you to do."
It took about 30 seconds for him to recall our first conversation, then he spent ten minutes trying to convince me to do it for free with lines like "I'll make it worth your while on the next job".
Ironically he went with a cheaper plumber on the next job.
When I get a sense that communicating with a GC or homeowner is going to be difficult, the price goes up.
If the lack of communication seems extreme, I don't bid.

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Joasis

· #10 · Oct 17, 2007

After several mis-communications, I have learned to not offer advice...if they have something in their head you know isn't right, it is easier to just say you are too booked, or give a start date they cannot wait on, rather then get in a bind.

BTW, it helps to always keep a notebook in your truck...after any conversation, I write down the notes..time, date, who, and where.....and have used this to get out of sticky spots before. The guy who said I went over budget....I showed him in my log where he called and said he wanted a 6 inch floor, and said he didn't mind the extra cost...well...that extra is the amount he claimed we were over budget.

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Tmrrptr

· #11 · Oct 18, 2007

Mis-communication stories?

I thought this was going to be a Led Zeppelin thread.
r

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shed-n-deck

· #12 · Oct 18, 2007

I've never had the kind of trouble that you all have had...That's entertaining...

I started writing down check numbers though, a HO would pay me $400 and swear that it was $4000...When I'd ask for a check, she'd say "I already paid you for that". Actually, with that particular HO, I'd write down what she was wearing just to be sure, because she would conveniently forget everything we ever discussed. Also, her dogs would escape on a daily basis, and she would blame me, even though I was working on her kitchen, and had nothing to do with her dogs, other than removing their hair from the paint.

About 6 years ago, I was building a fence for an assistant DA. He would throw around lines like "Do you know who I am?"....Anyhow, he threatened to sue me because I installed rough cut cedar pickets, and his wife wanted me to sand their fence down so that it was smooth. I left the job and an $800 final payment for the dogs...I considered retaliation, but that's just not in my nature. Although, it was pretty frustrating thinking that this bastard thought that he won just because he ripped $800 away from a working man...I'd like to.....Well, better not think about what I would like to do.....I know better now than to let $800 on a $2000 job sit until final payment.

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daArch

Discussion Starter · #13 · Oct 18, 2007

Tmrrptr said:
Mis-communication stories?

I thought this was going to be a Led Zeppelin thread.
r

Got YOUR attention, eh :laughing:
It chose the subject to get people to read the thread.

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mjay

· #14 · Oct 19, 2007

Miss - Communcation

Luckily, there have only been small mis-communications between customers and myself and each one is a learning experience. The most frustrating ones [mea culpa] is between my helpers and myself, I always assume they have common sense: Which turns out isn't so common!
When I started working as a teenager for someone else, I was asked to prime the door.... the door was already primed in a nice dark gray [I didn't know primer came in different colours] so I diligently wet sanded the door to a baby's bum smooth and primed it in the only primer I knew [at that point] WHITE....My poor boss shows up later in the day to apply the first of his 4 black high gloss finish. OOPS!
This is a little [a lot] of topic but much later in life I'm working in Groningen, Netherlands, and I'm painting the front door of a house. In order to give the paint the maximum drying time I have arranged to show up at 7am Saturday morning, and the homeowners leave the door unlocked for me. As I'm setting up, I see the man of the house coming down the street. Me thinks to me self "Kudos to him, getting up early on a Saturday for a stroll" As he gets closer and we exchange greetings, his breathe nearly strips the paint of the door. Not getting up early, staying out late!!!!!! Good grief Charlie Brown

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