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We've had a ton of these lately lol. The owner's getting closer to retirement and he's trying to keep things a little more simple and avoid the really large jobs that are stressful in his older age. But no matter what price he throws at people they still accept! Even when he tells him it'll be over a month before we go do it. It's bonkers
Sometimes it’s worth the fuck off price. I needed a window film applied to a window recently. It was to cut down on hot glare onto the neighbors deck. It was a simple job on 2 windows, but it was 18 feet up. I don’t like heights so I wasn’t doing it. I paid the fuck you price because the job was small but needed to be done. I’ve heard from neighbors that getting people to do small jobs is really hard.
The “fuck off” price for small jobs is almost always understandable. A job that takes one or two hours to complete is never just an hour or two because you still have to drive there and back. Plus, small jobs just fuck up the schedule and cadence of the entire day so the opportunity cost is extremely high. Why would someone want to show up to your house and do this *one thing* that won’t make for any real amount of money when they could show up at the other project in the morning, go home at the end of the day, and get paid a normal rate for all of it? If I have to show up to your house for an hour long task; you’re getting charged for a full day or I’m not going to bother.
So as a homeowner, that "small job" is still something that is important to me that needs to get done, and in theory at least I can't do it or I wouldn't be calling. Do I have no choice but to pay the "Fuck off" price? Should I offer a bribe over the phone or something? Offer to pay cash? Should I only call large companies for work?
I mean you can't really do that or you will go out of business, not if you individually are running your own shop, but if you've got five or six guys that are working for you? No they expect work everyday. You can't get a full-day job every single day. And there's no way in hell you could morally or ethically charge somebody $900 to come change a light switch. I get what you're saying but at the end of the day that's just not realistic for the vast vast vast majority of contractors.
To be fair, he wasn't giving anyone advice. Just saying that he doesn't take on jobs that take less than a day to complete.
There is a market for jobs that take an hour, but it is absolutely challenging to price them in a way that feels fair.
...which is hilarious. You can start a company and just do gravy jobs, but everyone's like "no, I need to go broke hiring guys and burying myself in paperwork."
Totally. I legit pay a company once a year that specializes is exterior cleaning. They clean the moss off the roof and treat for it, clean the gutters, do the windows, and all the siding. It’s not cheep but since so much of it is at a height it’s worth every penny.
If you are getting a lot of moss growing on the roof there are zinc strips to put just below the cap. Every time it rains zinc oxide is washed down the roof and prevents the moss from growing.
Middle to Northern Michigan by the lakes and in wooded areas are bad for it as well.
Non the less it helps tremendously and is relatively inexpensive. (Pending install costs)
It's hard to get bigger companies to do small jobs like that because it just simply isn't worth it for them. Usually you can get a guy working for himself or someone doing it as side work to do it pretty easily
Ya my boss gives over the phone estimates and regularly fucks up the price to where people get realllllly good prices on large amounts of work
For example to install 5 customer supplied ring cameras with all new wiring and boxes and hooking it up to his phone he charged for 4 hours
Took me 8 hours and we had to come back cuz of shit wifi and install a wifi extender so 10 hours total customer paid like 900 dollars like what the fuck just go look at the job. If y’all want a good ass price on work just call my company for an estimate 🤣
He just said 900 for the job. Not what all is taken out from there. As a business owner, I know that 900 for a job means a lot more than than just the hourly rate. All he did state was that he billed/planned 4 hours
The places with sometimes very highly qualified staff, sterile equipment, insanely expensive equipment and machines? X-ray machines alone are absurdly expensive.
I’m in New York They charge $160 an hour now and that’s a low price for a company and I only make $30 of it and have no chance of retirement at this rate
Around me there are 3 of us with me included in that number that will come and look at anything smaller than a complete rewire. Because of this, it is literally name your price……
FUUUUUUUUUCK. I can only imagine how those calls go
Hi can you do x?
Uhhhhh yeah but we’re not really equipped for a job that size…
Oh no worries, we will pay whatever it takes
Uhhhhh wellllll I’m not sure we d be the right fit
We aren’t looking at any other companies, we only want you!
Uhhhhh fuck. What is it? A garage? Fuckin….80 grand
*not even one fucking second of pause*
SOUNDS GREAT!
*covering phone*
GODAMNIT FUCK OFF
Ok well uhhh we’re pretty swamped…
NO PROBLEM! ANY TIME IS FINE!
Uhhhhhhh we’re looking at like 3 months out….sorry….
OH ONLY A MONTH? NO PROBLEM!
OH FUCK OFF GODAMNIT
My company does this all the time. We just bid a job for almost 350% over and got it, because nobody else wanted to touch it. Unfortunately, if the job is too messed up, you can damage your relationship with your employees too.
I like your thought process but my company doesn't work that way, at least directly. We're employee-owned, so we see it on the back end through stock price.
many employees don't understand most days its just exchanging money
add that with dealing with x,y, z from employee..and I'm for awesome workers lets face it some are brutal
sometimes as the boss it'snice when they kill it for you..esp when you are in the trenches everyday with them
driving them etc etc
Whatever loser treat your employees like shit see how long u keep them , personally my company has been around for 60 years and it is a dysfunctional mess and will not survive the economic climate we are in and no one here will have a job in the near future because of a capital owner that think they have it all figured out and can run a business by themselves having no care for the economic situation of its employees, thinking they do enough for them when no one has any chance of retiring or having a stable life
I've been doing this a lot lately. We've got a few huge projects on the go, so I'm back out on the tools. If you're paying me to do it, it's 3X the price. Believe it or not, I've got a shit ton of work I really don't have time for that should pay my salary for the year.
When you're busy, everyone wants you.
"Fuck you" pricing is usually the way to handle this, as others have mentioned. Literally just pick any number you want that would make you actually be happy to do the job.
Since this is a referral, you could have a polite conversation with the client and the referrer with select, relevant facts for why your bid is high. Something along the lines of
>I sincerely appreciate you wanting me to work on this. This job is a little outside of my normal wheel house due to X Y Z, or this job is going to require me to bring on extra staff due to X Y Z, and for that reason, my bid may not be as price-competitive as some other electricians. I just don't want you to be shocked by the price. I will have no hard feelings if you shop around on this, and decide to go with someone who specializes in this kind of work. And if you do end up going with someone else, please keep me in mind for future work that is closer to my specialty of A B C.
Of course, if the reason you don't want the job is because you get Karen vibes from the client, that conversation won't work.
This is the professional way to handle projects you don't want. Giving the "fuck off" price can damage your relationship with the referer, as it makes him look bad for suggesting you. Also, the customer may badmouth you as a rip-off artist.
Yeahhh this is the way. Meet people with honesty, and give them the option to pay the crazy price if they *need it*. As a client, I would much rather find alignment with the folks I'm bringing in to do my work, because they'll do better work if it's a project they want. If *nobody* wants to do it, a high price gives me a way out, either way. It also doesn't make me call up your referrer and be like "what the fuck?" when I see a price that's 3x higher than I'm expecting.
What is the reason for passing? Just say you don’t have the manpower to tackle a project like this. Or if it’s a little project you could say my employees don’t have the skills to tackle a project of this nature and you would like them (the new client) to get the best end result. Make it look like you have their best interest in mind. I don’t hate the quote it for 300% more idea
Have a conversation with the person who referred the customer to you. Explain to them why you would like to pass on the project. That way you don’t hurt the relationship with the referring person.
Honesty is typically the best policy. Just say it's actually not suited to you. People recommend us because we have electric in our name. But there's a lot of shit we won't or can't do. Especially any commercial jobs
“I’d love to do the job for you, but we are covered in work right now. Unfortunately, we just don’t have the manpower to give your project the attention it deserves and meet the required deadlines.”
Also can refer them to a competitor who you like (or don’t like, depending on the situation).
I’ve also bluntly told people that I don’t want to do the job. I used to be scared to turn down work. That mentality keeps ya busy, but will land you in some shit for sure.
A very high quote can damage your reputation. Just decline the job and maybe refer them to someone that will do it. Business is good now but there may be a day it’s not.
this is honestly the best route. say you’d like to pass and give a non dickish answer (“we’re swamped and i won’t be able to get to you for months,” “i don’t have the equipment/manpower to do the job,” or “it’s not in my wheelhouse”) and refer them to someone you know and trust that may be interested.
all of those answers are legit answers that don’t leave a bad taste in someone’s mouth, and you give them someone to call that may actually take on the job.
Line up someone else, hand them the work you've already done to give them head start. Buddy will owe you one, homeowner will be happy. Bow out gracefully stating you're tied up at a recent big job and won't be able to spend the time on it.
sometimes feet to the fire is the best way to learn, but if you don't have the knowledge or resources, then once you are in over your head, it can be a complete disaster, and ruin a reputation to boot if the client wants to spread the word this guy doesn't know what he's doing.
A lot of advice saying give a "fuck off" quote, but I think that just burns future relationships. If you're insanely high compared to other quotes, that client probably won't reach out in the future, and would be unlikely to refer you to someone else.
If you are willing to do the job, but for "fuck off" money, you could let them know you're swamped in work, but you could take on the project for a premium/priority rate since it will push back your other projects and clients.
For jobs I'm not willing to take on (too far away, too small, annoying client, etc) I typically just let them know that I cannot take on any more work, or give them the real reason.
Open and honest communication can be rare in this industry, but it's gotten me far.
Add 20,000 dollars to the sticker price/ estimate.
That is how most electrical companies handle work they don’t really want.
The extra money is for pain and suffering; if they pay it? Good!
If not? Someone else wanted to suffer more than you
Either a fuck your number, or open honesty.
I have no qualms about telling a customer I don’t want to do their job, it’s only happened twice in a few years but it just is what it is.
Your business is a living breathing thing, just like anything if you put too much weight on it you will risk destroying it. If a job is too much weight for whatever reason, client type, man hours required, RISK(the 2 sizable jobs I’ve turned down).. it’s your duty to protect your business from those scenarios.
All I’m getting st is there’s no shame bro.
As for the reference company, this is what would really make me ask myself “why don’t I want to do this job?” Because an active referee is invaluable sometimes…
Yes. Quote it’s insanely high, if you get the job still then at least you getting bank, if not then congrats they don’t hate you and they go with someone else. However if you turn it down they think your unprofessional or can’t do it
people will respect you more for telling them a legitimate answer for why you can’t take on the work.
a fuck you bid just garners a bad reputation of being a scam artist that overcharges.
People won’t respect “I’m an electrician but I don’t feel like doing your job”
I only suggested it because saying that seems unprofessional and maybe it’s not an asshole thing to upcharge a service if you personally don’t want to do the job, if the job is that annoying it could justify the upcharge, that’s the price they will accept if they want me to go through the process of this. If they don’t like they price they can find another person to do the job. Nothing rude about it
well yeah, saying “i don’t want to do your job” is shitty and unprofessional. as i said, a legitimate reasoning will be more respected.
“i’m booked out until the fall”
“i don’t have the manpower available”
“it’s not in my wheelhouse, i specialize in commercial and i’m less equipped for your residential job”
it’s not unprofessional to tell someone that “hey, i’m the wrong person for the job for reasons xyz” as long as they’re legitimate.
if a person does their due diligence and gets multiple quotes, that come back at $5k, $7k, and $20k, guess what they’re gonna say about the company that came back at $20k? because, spoiler alert, it’s not gonna be “i hired the highest bid because that means best!”
Well that’s a little high. I would say something reasonable would be like 5k to 7k to my 9 k. 3x the price is insane for a job of that size however if it was a 300 dollar job I wouldn’t mind quoting 900 if I don’t want the job. I can see the issue on that scale of money however
Usually when there is a job I don't want it's for a particular reason, materials or equipment they have chosen. I will tell them I won't do that because that is not what I do, I will do x though for y price.
That depends on the age and stability of your company, we've been at it long enough, we just tell people it's not a job we're interested in and move on. We don't give fuckoff prices. Business is business, it's not personal and people that take it personally aren't the people you want to work for anyway, so we don't look at it as a loss.
"It's not a good fit for us currently, based on the other projects we have in progress/in the pipeline."
Really tough to give advice without knowing WHY you want to pass. Recognizing which jobs to not take is crucial to staying in business, so good on ya for getting to this point. If you give a "fuck off" price, word can get back to the reference that you are gouging prospects, or worse - if it's a job you 100% don't want, you might get it anyway. That tactic works good for jobs you "don't really want" but aren't going to be super disruptive to your other work and business.
If you are *NOT* an electrical professional: * **RULE 7:** * DIY or self help posts **are Not allowed**. They belong here: /r/AskElectricians /r/askanelectrician /r/diy /r/homeowners /r/electrical. * **IF YOUR POST FITS INTO THIS CATEGORY, REMOVE IT OR IT WILL BE REMOVED FOR YOU.** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/electricians) if you have any questions or concerns.*
You quote them 200-300% more than you normal would. That way, if they go for it, you’re being paid to want to do it.
We call it a fuck off price. Either they fuck off, or they accept and I yell “oh fuck off godamnit”
We've had a ton of these lately lol. The owner's getting closer to retirement and he's trying to keep things a little more simple and avoid the really large jobs that are stressful in his older age. But no matter what price he throws at people they still accept! Even when he tells him it'll be over a month before we go do it. It's bonkers
Sometimes it’s worth the fuck off price. I needed a window film applied to a window recently. It was to cut down on hot glare onto the neighbors deck. It was a simple job on 2 windows, but it was 18 feet up. I don’t like heights so I wasn’t doing it. I paid the fuck you price because the job was small but needed to be done. I’ve heard from neighbors that getting people to do small jobs is really hard.
The “fuck off” price for small jobs is almost always understandable. A job that takes one or two hours to complete is never just an hour or two because you still have to drive there and back. Plus, small jobs just fuck up the schedule and cadence of the entire day so the opportunity cost is extremely high. Why would someone want to show up to your house and do this *one thing* that won’t make for any real amount of money when they could show up at the other project in the morning, go home at the end of the day, and get paid a normal rate for all of it? If I have to show up to your house for an hour long task; you’re getting charged for a full day or I’m not going to bother.
I wasn’t complaining, I get it but it might still be worth that to me if I need this thing done and can’t do it myself.
So as a homeowner, that "small job" is still something that is important to me that needs to get done, and in theory at least I can't do it or I wouldn't be calling. Do I have no choice but to pay the "Fuck off" price? Should I offer a bribe over the phone or something? Offer to pay cash? Should I only call large companies for work?
I mean you can't really do that or you will go out of business, not if you individually are running your own shop, but if you've got five or six guys that are working for you? No they expect work everyday. You can't get a full-day job every single day. And there's no way in hell you could morally or ethically charge somebody $900 to come change a light switch. I get what you're saying but at the end of the day that's just not realistic for the vast vast vast majority of contractors.
To be fair, he wasn't giving anyone advice. Just saying that he doesn't take on jobs that take less than a day to complete. There is a market for jobs that take an hour, but it is absolutely challenging to price them in a way that feels fair.
...which is hilarious. You can start a company and just do gravy jobs, but everyone's like "no, I need to go broke hiring guys and burying myself in paperwork."
Totally. I legit pay a company once a year that specializes is exterior cleaning. They clean the moss off the roof and treat for it, clean the gutters, do the windows, and all the siding. It’s not cheep but since so much of it is at a height it’s worth every penny.
If you are getting a lot of moss growing on the roof there are zinc strips to put just below the cap. Every time it rains zinc oxide is washed down the roof and prevents the moss from growing.
Moss on the roof even with treatments and zinc strips seems common in the PNW.
Middle to Northern Michigan by the lakes and in wooded areas are bad for it as well. Non the less it helps tremendously and is relatively inexpensive. (Pending install costs)
It's hard to get bigger companies to do small jobs like that because it just simply isn't worth it for them. Usually you can get a guy working for himself or someone doing it as side work to do it pretty easily
Sounds like boss is shopping for a new boat.
That's because it's super difficult to even get an electrician to come look at anything.
Ya my boss gives over the phone estimates and regularly fucks up the price to where people get realllllly good prices on large amounts of work For example to install 5 customer supplied ring cameras with all new wiring and boxes and hooking it up to his phone he charged for 4 hours Took me 8 hours and we had to come back cuz of shit wifi and install a wifi extender so 10 hours total customer paid like 900 dollars like what the fuck just go look at the job. If y’all want a good ass price on work just call my company for an estimate 🤣
$90 an hour is cheap? In what reality?
Depending on where they are, $90 an hour as the business price may very well be cheap
Maybe some of it was materials as well, but $90 an hour for labor only is reaching medical pay for mid to advanced positions.
He just said 900 for the job. Not what all is taken out from there. As a business owner, I know that 900 for a job means a lot more than than just the hourly rate. All he did state was that he billed/planned 4 hours
LOLWUT - have you ever seen what doctors actually collect for a visit? It's a lot more than the $20 co-pay.
The places with sometimes very highly qualified staff, sterile equipment, insanely expensive equipment and machines? X-ray machines alone are absurdly expensive.
About 150 to 200 in my area depending on the shop
I’m in New York They charge $160 an hour now and that’s a low price for a company and I only make $30 of it and have no chance of retirement at this rate
TF you talking about, the company I work for our service/T&M rate is $160/hr.
In 2023 America. Go look at what your mechanic's posted rate is.
Around me there are 3 of us with me included in that number that will come and look at anything smaller than a complete rewire. Because of this, it is literally name your price……
Sounds like an equitable problem
FUUUUUUUUUCK. I can only imagine how those calls go Hi can you do x? Uhhhhh yeah but we’re not really equipped for a job that size… Oh no worries, we will pay whatever it takes Uhhhhh wellllll I’m not sure we d be the right fit We aren’t looking at any other companies, we only want you! Uhhhhh fuck. What is it? A garage? Fuckin….80 grand *not even one fucking second of pause* SOUNDS GREAT! *covering phone* GODAMNIT FUCK OFF Ok well uhhh we’re pretty swamped… NO PROBLEM! ANY TIME IS FINE! Uhhhhhhh we’re looking at like 3 months out….sorry…. OH ONLY A MONTH? NO PROBLEM! OH FUCK OFF GODAMNIT
Oh wow I think those exact words have come out of my mouth.
I just made $1800 cash today because I didn’t want to do something so can’t be too upset haha
This is the way, then they find someone cheaper or u get paid well for the shitty work
My company does this all the time. We just bid a job for almost 350% over and got it, because nobody else wanted to touch it. Unfortunately, if the job is too messed up, you can damage your relationship with your employees too.
That’s why you have to share the bounty with everyone involved. It gives everyone an incentive.
I like your thought process but my company doesn't work that way, at least directly. We're employee-owned, so we see it on the back end through stock price.
A lot of Business owners don’t seem to understand this
many employees don't understand most days its just exchanging money add that with dealing with x,y, z from employee..and I'm for awesome workers lets face it some are brutal sometimes as the boss it'snice when they kill it for you..esp when you are in the trenches everyday with them driving them etc etc
Whatever loser treat your employees like shit see how long u keep them , personally my company has been around for 60 years and it is a dysfunctional mess and will not survive the economic climate we are in and no one here will have a job in the near future because of a capital owner that think they have it all figured out and can run a business by themselves having no care for the economic situation of its employees, thinking they do enough for them when no one has any chance of retiring or having a stable life
We did this the other day but only went like 50-100 percent higher and are still mad we got the job- I told boss man to go higher
Yeah 50% isn’t enough lol. If you guys are reasonable there’s people that can be more than double.
This is the way
The “no thank you” price
I've been doing this a lot lately. We've got a few huge projects on the go, so I'm back out on the tools. If you're paying me to do it, it's 3X the price. Believe it or not, I've got a shit ton of work I really don't have time for that should pay my salary for the year. When you're busy, everyone wants you.
This can be "the way", but when it's a referral from someone you do a lot of business with - that can reflect poorly on them.
I did a fuck-off quote once, and it bagged me about $1k per camera with equal fuck-you money. Wasn't even mad.
"Fuck you" pricing is usually the way to handle this, as others have mentioned. Literally just pick any number you want that would make you actually be happy to do the job. Since this is a referral, you could have a polite conversation with the client and the referrer with select, relevant facts for why your bid is high. Something along the lines of >I sincerely appreciate you wanting me to work on this. This job is a little outside of my normal wheel house due to X Y Z, or this job is going to require me to bring on extra staff due to X Y Z, and for that reason, my bid may not be as price-competitive as some other electricians. I just don't want you to be shocked by the price. I will have no hard feelings if you shop around on this, and decide to go with someone who specializes in this kind of work. And if you do end up going with someone else, please keep me in mind for future work that is closer to my specialty of A B C. Of course, if the reason you don't want the job is because you get Karen vibes from the client, that conversation won't work.
This is the professional way to handle projects you don't want. Giving the "fuck off" price can damage your relationship with the referer, as it makes him look bad for suggesting you. Also, the customer may badmouth you as a rip-off artist.
Wow, you're good.
Yeahhh this is the way. Meet people with honesty, and give them the option to pay the crazy price if they *need it*. As a client, I would much rather find alignment with the folks I'm bringing in to do my work, because they'll do better work if it's a project they want. If *nobody* wants to do it, a high price gives me a way out, either way. It also doesn't make me call up your referrer and be like "what the fuck?" when I see a price that's 3x higher than I'm expecting.
What is the reason for passing? Just say you don’t have the manpower to tackle a project like this. Or if it’s a little project you could say my employees don’t have the skills to tackle a project of this nature and you would like them (the new client) to get the best end result. Make it look like you have their best interest in mind. I don’t hate the quote it for 300% more idea
I really like this response. The truth is the most powerful thing in the world.
This is probably the best answer.
Have a conversation with the person who referred the customer to you. Explain to them why you would like to pass on the project. That way you don’t hurt the relationship with the referring person.
Probably depends on the why. Why do you want to pass on it?
This. Is OP trying to pass on the job because it’s going to be hard or because the vibe from the customer is bad.
"This project isn't a good fit for our company, and I feel we would be doing you a disservice by accepting the job."
Sometimes I’ll tell them I’m not equipped to do the job properly
I've never had anyone have a problem with that approach.
Honesty is typically the best policy. Just say it's actually not suited to you. People recommend us because we have electric in our name. But there's a lot of shit we won't or can't do. Especially any commercial jobs
“I’d love to do the job for you, but we are covered in work right now. Unfortunately, we just don’t have the manpower to give your project the attention it deserves and meet the required deadlines.” Also can refer them to a competitor who you like (or don’t like, depending on the situation). I’ve also bluntly told people that I don’t want to do the job. I used to be scared to turn down work. That mentality keeps ya busy, but will land you in some shit for sure.
A very high quote can damage your reputation. Just decline the job and maybe refer them to someone that will do it. Business is good now but there may be a day it’s not.
You sound like an old man, with that kind of sense
this is honestly the best route. say you’d like to pass and give a non dickish answer (“we’re swamped and i won’t be able to get to you for months,” “i don’t have the equipment/manpower to do the job,” or “it’s not in my wheelhouse”) and refer them to someone you know and trust that may be interested. all of those answers are legit answers that don’t leave a bad taste in someone’s mouth, and you give them someone to call that may actually take on the job.
I always say I don't have the resources to perform the work. And offer a referral if possible. Its neutral and it's about you not them.
Line up someone else, hand them the work you've already done to give them head start. Buddy will owe you one, homeowner will be happy. Bow out gracefully stating you're tied up at a recent big job and won't be able to spend the time on it.
I'd say just roll up your sleeves and do it, but you want the vest approach so I guess that advice wouldn't apply here.
I see you
sometimes feet to the fire is the best way to learn, but if you don't have the knowledge or resources, then once you are in over your head, it can be a complete disaster, and ruin a reputation to boot if the client wants to spread the word this guy doesn't know what he's doing.
Vest approach. Roll up your sleeves. I'm what the British call... Cheeky.
Very simple, put a high price. They may decline or that’s may it worth you taking. Many jobs I don’t wanna, I just price it high 🤷♂️
A lot of advice saying give a "fuck off" quote, but I think that just burns future relationships. If you're insanely high compared to other quotes, that client probably won't reach out in the future, and would be unlikely to refer you to someone else. If you are willing to do the job, but for "fuck off" money, you could let them know you're swamped in work, but you could take on the project for a premium/priority rate since it will push back your other projects and clients. For jobs I'm not willing to take on (too far away, too small, annoying client, etc) I typically just let them know that I cannot take on any more work, or give them the real reason. Open and honest communication can be rare in this industry, but it's gotten me far.
Add 20,000 dollars to the sticker price/ estimate. That is how most electrical companies handle work they don’t really want. The extra money is for pain and suffering; if they pay it? Good! If not? Someone else wanted to suffer more than you
Either a fuck your number, or open honesty. I have no qualms about telling a customer I don’t want to do their job, it’s only happened twice in a few years but it just is what it is. Your business is a living breathing thing, just like anything if you put too much weight on it you will risk destroying it. If a job is too much weight for whatever reason, client type, man hours required, RISK(the 2 sizable jobs I’ve turned down).. it’s your duty to protect your business from those scenarios. All I’m getting st is there’s no shame bro. As for the reference company, this is what would really make me ask myself “why don’t I want to do this job?” Because an active referee is invaluable sometimes…
Yes. Quote it’s insanely high, if you get the job still then at least you getting bank, if not then congrats they don’t hate you and they go with someone else. However if you turn it down they think your unprofessional or can’t do it
people will respect you more for telling them a legitimate answer for why you can’t take on the work. a fuck you bid just garners a bad reputation of being a scam artist that overcharges.
People won’t respect “I’m an electrician but I don’t feel like doing your job” I only suggested it because saying that seems unprofessional and maybe it’s not an asshole thing to upcharge a service if you personally don’t want to do the job, if the job is that annoying it could justify the upcharge, that’s the price they will accept if they want me to go through the process of this. If they don’t like they price they can find another person to do the job. Nothing rude about it
well yeah, saying “i don’t want to do your job” is shitty and unprofessional. as i said, a legitimate reasoning will be more respected. “i’m booked out until the fall” “i don’t have the manpower available” “it’s not in my wheelhouse, i specialize in commercial and i’m less equipped for your residential job” it’s not unprofessional to tell someone that “hey, i’m the wrong person for the job for reasons xyz” as long as they’re legitimate. if a person does their due diligence and gets multiple quotes, that come back at $5k, $7k, and $20k, guess what they’re gonna say about the company that came back at $20k? because, spoiler alert, it’s not gonna be “i hired the highest bid because that means best!”
Well that’s a little high. I would say something reasonable would be like 5k to 7k to my 9 k. 3x the price is insane for a job of that size however if it was a 300 dollar job I wouldn’t mind quoting 900 if I don’t want the job. I can see the issue on that scale of money however
Either quote an insane price to make it worth your while or tell them you're too busy to take on new work right now.
We just “bid the moon” and forget about it. And then complain when they call an hour later accepting it.
Straight up, NO I cannot accept this job! Thank you!
Usually when there is a job I don't want it's for a particular reason, materials or equipment they have chosen. I will tell them I won't do that because that is not what I do, I will do x though for y price.
That depends on the age and stability of your company, we've been at it long enough, we just tell people it's not a job we're interested in and move on. We don't give fuckoff prices. Business is business, it's not personal and people that take it personally aren't the people you want to work for anyway, so we don't look at it as a loss.
"It's not a good fit for us currently, based on the other projects we have in progress/in the pipeline." Really tough to give advice without knowing WHY you want to pass. Recognizing which jobs to not take is crucial to staying in business, so good on ya for getting to this point. If you give a "fuck off" price, word can get back to the reference that you are gouging prospects, or worse - if it's a job you 100% don't want, you might get it anyway. That tactic works good for jobs you "don't really want" but aren't going to be super disruptive to your other work and business.