What is your go to answer when you get shopped? At what point in that type of negotiation do you cut a customer loose?

Trying to shore up my way of dealing with customers....

Im one of the few that post every line item with manufacturer part numbers on my quotes. I encourage them to shop. Of course, most of the lines we carry are not that "shopable" online, so that helps a bit. I want the customer to see the deal as fair and balanced.

I explain and make VERY clear up front, I am NOT the cheapest in town as thats not my business model or goal. "We are not in a race to the bottom." The goal being to be the best and be there when needed. "If you are looking for the the cheapest, lets not waste each others time, if you looking for a provider that can do it, do it well, do it right and be there when issues arise, and they WILL, then lets continue". Its part of the qualifying process for us. If they are not in concurrence, well we know its not the type of client we are looking for. WAY to many other opportunities for the right "fit" out there. Its not all about profit, but partnerships we want.

We cut them lose early. Sometimes before even the first quote. After the quote, if there are indicators this will not fare well for ALL parties involved, we pass. We've even given them phone numbers of competitors. (which often leads to getting the customer in the future to fix what the wanks couldn't do right lol. They then realize what we were talking about and finally see the value). Good clients recognize value is not in the price of products, but in the relationship. We sell solutions that include relationships. We don't sell boxes. If they want boxes, go online or to Wal-mart. Selling boxes is not a variable in a successful CI business. Its a recipe for failure.

Bottom line, EVERY transaction needs to be a win/win. We have ZERO interest in any deal being one side - for them or for us. That does not bode well for future growth and referrals. We ALL win, or we walk away.

There is never a good feeling the next day after being a whore is there? The solution is simple: Don't be a whore and you wont feel like a whore. They either want us or they don't. If they don't, we certainly don't want them. Win/Win. PERIOD. Live with no shame. Believe in your pricing, stick to you pricing, earn the respect your pricing garners.

learn to say "no"

Everything you wrote there is so bang on. Our entire service is the product, and there for, when shopped on a specific part number, there's no comparison. Our "product" is so much more fully featured.

Craig

Thanks

Speaking of the race to the bottom. What happened to Chief Mfg? There stuff is whored out all over the internet now at just about cost.

What is the best way to learn this, in your opinion?

You can never 100% eliminate customers shopping or trying to renegotiate the deal. Some people just have to push all the time and try to change things to get as much as possible for as little as possible.
What I have found that works for me is not “bidding” jobs. You can only bid jobs that have a design so everyone is bidding on the same thing. Otherwise you will get three companies throwing out numbers and you will get three different numbers on three very different systems.
Work like a design/build architect. Show them what you can do for them and then offer to design a system for them at an agreed upon ballpark price. They pay upfront for the design. After you are done they get the design and your price for the build. If they want to have another company bid on the job that is fine, if they want you they pay your price. Explain that you are not selling parts you are selling a full system, if they want another companies parts price they can also have that company put the system in. Almost all small businesses work this way.
Doing business this way means you will not get every job from every client. You only really loose the time you spend on the initial meeting. You don’t lose the hours of work giving them a free shopping list or worse taking an unprofitable job. If someone is not willing to pay for your time to design a system they either don’t like your work or they are unwilling to pay for quality work. It is getting much harder to find people who want quality but I would rather have no work then have unprofitable work.

Community colleges offer Cisco CCNA and other IT / computer related courses at very affordable rates.

Most of the accelerated, privately-run continued-ed companies are much more expensive, and I'd be very careful vetting them to make sure there is value for your dollar and time.

Most of your manufacturers have online training of one sort or another. And I always ask tech-support engineers to explain and demonstrate what they're doing when I utilize them. Even if its something you think you're familiar with, you can learn tricks, shortcuts, and other helpful info from someone who lives in the IT field.

Nope, wasn't me :-). Really.

Totally forgot about this thread. Great reading.

Best advice I ever heard: Worst first.

Get the shitty stuff out of the way.

One thing I'll never understand is why dealers keep lining up to be early adopters, either with an unproven company or untested (or non existent) product. For products that matter -- things you have to wire for, things that are hard to install, things that cannot fail ... why wouldn't you take them into your office for a few months , burn them in, test them with (supposedly) compatible products, etc.

Dealers will prewire a client's home or cut spaces for products that aren't even shipping ... and complain to the supplier.

All the bozos who got burned by Nirv ... no sympathy.

If the vendor isn't willing to give you generous allowances for such things, don't do it!

I would never have specified Control4 in their first year or two of existence. Ditto for Savant or any other supplier of things that are hard or expensive to swap out.

The risks are diminishing somewhat because stuff is getting cheaper and somewhat more standardized/ interoperable, but still....

If you must take risks with new products or vendors, put a whole lot of stipulations down on paper.

All of you here will say you would never be so foolish as to ..... right.

Cause CEPro told us to

Oh then, that's OK. As long as they're advertisers.

Great thread, and now that it doesn't apply to me, I'll throw out what was successful for me.

!. For those that shop you? Let them, and then tell them you will not install anything purchased elsewhere due to the liability assumed. Yes, small flat panels have become something that doesn't work with this statement, so you must instead have the client sign a document absolving you and your company of any responsibility in the handling of such item/s.

2. Never give free estimates. Never. Bill for that time at your normal full rate.

3. Collect enough of a deposit that ALL materials are covered, and a percentage of your time is covered. Job goes south for any reason, you don't lose your ass.

4, Value your time. If you don't no one else will.

5. Treat people in the manner you want to be treated.

6. Do not over promise.


I could go on and on.....

This + value the time of your employees. I've burnt countless unbillable or discounted hours doing favors, 'demos', clean-ups, etc for employer's friends, favored clients and contractors. Its never worth it.

Builders love to have the new or prospective low-voltage guy come fix up their house or show-home, and its always a wreckage of spare parts and knotted wiring.

Over-promising and under-billing in this situation is going to set the wrong precedent for any future business.

Another good answer to being shopped...

"Do you want us to still be in business when your need a service call?".

If a company doesn't make a profit, it cannot stay in business. Look around at all the companies that went under in the last 10 years. This one fact IS a fact. So many shops weren't really making a profit, so when things slowed down, they went under, leaving clients stuck.