[housedocs]

Do any of you guys work with a bank of loan company to offer financing of major projects for your clients? My banker is pitching me on a deal where they will give "special consideration" to my clients for home improvement loans if I will include their loan app along with my presentation package?

How many of you guys accept plastic, Visa, MC, and the like? I realize it's a given if you have a retail operation with a showroom, but other than that I'm talking about. In 5 yrs I've had two clients ask about it, I don't offer it and it didn't cost me a job what are your thought folks?

 

[Grumpy]

My customers can usually pay for their work and I've had less than a handfull of customers request financing. HOWEVER people love using their plastic for many many reasons. I know for a fact in the past I lost jobs for the ONLY fact that I did not accept credit cards.

I do now accept credit cards on any payment less than $10,000.

 

[marc]

We take Visa, M/C, Discover and AMEX.
Last year we sold over $450K worth of work to customers that paid with plastic. Another $300K that we got finacing for. I'm not saying that we would have lost all of this business if we didn't take plastic or set up financing but I would hate to have lost any of it. I believe that you need to make it eazy to do business with you. People love the points or miles.

My 2 cents
Marc

 

[Grumpy]

Do you guys add a "convenience fee" or "surcharge" for credit card purchases?

I've heard this is illegal, but I know quite a few guys who do it. Me personally I just mark it up to my bottom line and spread out the fees evenly to all customers.

 

[trekr]

I don't know about illegal, but any surcharge/convenience fee violates Visa/Mastercard rules and is grounds for cancelling a merchant account. Some people inflate all their prices and offer a cash discount, which is ok.

 

[housedocs]

I had a job for a retired plumber last yr, yanked the cheap wood paneling out of his house, hung new board, & textured finished. (yeah he was a plumber, so that explains why he nailed the paneling right to the studs 25 yrs ago )

Anyway was a typical retirement job, he was standing over us every minute of the job, except for the texture and paint (funny how they scatter when you fire up the sprayer ), he paid cash for his deposit and when it came time to make the final payment he wanted a 10% discount for paying in all cash!! Had to tell him sorry, he should have brought that up before he signed on the dotted line. Anybody else run into clients like that?

 

[Grumpy]

After the contract is signed the price does not change without a change order. Period.

When a customer asks for a discount for any reason after the job is done I take it as a personal insult. I get very agitated very quickly, I can literally feel my blood pressure rise. I have a blanket answer which I have begun using so I don't tear a customer apart... "I'm sorry. The time for negotiation is before the contract is signed."

 

[housedocs]

"I'm sorry. The time for negotiation is before the contract is signed."

Good line Grumpy, I'm going to remember that one! :Thumbs:

 

[Humble Abode]

Speaking of accepting credit cards have any of you seen this seamingly handy gadget?

http://www.merchantseek.com/wireless-credit-card-processing.htm

I've heard that there is even a cell phone out there with a magnetic strip reader.

 

[Grumpy]

I've seen similiar type gadgets. I've thought about getting one but haven't yet. As my company grows each salesman would need his own? Hmmm perhaps I'll stick with my current system of the customer filling out a simple form then me keying in the info.

 

[Humble Abode]

yea I don't know how practical it is, but who needs practical when you've got flashy

 

[trekr]

Nextel has a reader that attaches to their phone that looks pretty slick. If you do enough credit card volume, they could pay their own way--swiped rates are cheaper than keyed or call ins.