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This is an old subject for us on UKW.
However for the benefit of all our new readers, we have all been there and had the same thoughts….” how do I survive if I charge a call out fee”.
Years ago a chap called John Middleton(JTM Service of Leeds) called to see me with regards to vetting me to enter Dasa. John turned up in an Audi 80 (in those days a class car) and assured me that one day I would turn a corner where I would stop the free call outs and that my fears would evaporate away.
He was right.I, one day started to charge a fixed repair charge + parts. I’ve never looked back. Although the locals in my district were a little miffed, the rest of the 200,000 in my town weren’t. This moved my business into a different class of customer, overnight, people who expected to pay for a repair, rather than those looking for the cheapest possible price! It was quite astounding to me that this happened, but Johns words had never left me, he was 100{e5d1b7155a01ef1f3b9c9968eaba33524ee81600d00d4be2b4d93ac2e58cec2d} correct. I made loads of mistakes, ie over advertising in Yellow pages and Thompson local, but still survived. For years I undercharged my customers.
Why?
Easy I met a chap called Mark Scoggins, from “down south” who had these big ideas that unless you costed per job, you would never make money. These days Mark and I are good friends, in those days I thought he was talking out of his backside…….I was wrong.
Marks ideas are correct without being unique. Loads of you can access the formulas for success, within this site. Marks ideas are here to read.
It takes an enormous effort to move from the “free estimate” to the “Call out charge” or “fixed price repair”.
It is possible and loads of people(repairers just like you) will help you do it.
Always remember that our numbers reduce every month, we at UKW are constantley being told that “I’ve been repairing for 30 years, I’m retiring soon”, I don’t want training.
If you want to be a part of an unique community, draw on the experiences of generations of business repairing appliances, try getting involved with us. POST a question, get an answer.
John Middleton moved into Commercial stuff and Mark has been Dasa chairman for 4 years ( now retired 😆 ) but still runs a business with 11 engineers and 5 retail outlets(sorry Mark if its six), Don’t take my word for it, listen, I did.
Kevin
Re: A “Call out” charge
I agree with every word. I went from a free estimate to £15 eastimate and then to £20. Very few do not accept it. I also charged £28 + parts and soon found out it was costing me money to work so upped it to £37.50 and no problems. It will shortly be increased to £40 + parts. Genuine customers are happy as they get a good speedy service, a guarantee and they always come back so don’t undersell yourselves and charge what you are worth. You will get away from the bargain seekers and get a reliable source of work that puts money in the bank.
I don’t work in an affluent area but customers are prepared to pay for quality.
RobRe: A “Call out” charge
I find quite a few customers who are looking for a free estimate can be converted to the idea you don’t get something for nothing.
Invest just a couple of minutes explaining the difference on the phone and most can see the sense in it. You only have to explain whoever calls out has one intention, and that is to make a living ‘one way or another’!
It saves me disabling the machine before I leave, having told them how to repair it themselves, after they refuse to pay a call out charge because “you tell me that on the phone”!
Re: A “Call out” charge
I have this discussion almost every day with someone on the phone and my tactic is to explain that the no callout/ free estimate guy will quote for a cheap repair to get the work but wont point out all the faults whereas I will tell the full story but there will be a charge.
Some folks just say no thanks and hang up but I do convert a few and although I am not busy I am making money.Steve
Re: A “Call out” charge
where we are all offer free call out .so now we always get do we charge call out and when we say yes very few booked calls with us to the point that now we do very few call out . so what do we do now? offer free call out. or not
Re: A “Call out” charge
I found that by offering a fixed price repair + parts, I lost all the lower brands to repair, as the customer went elsewhere, driven by price.
For example, we hardly ever get a job to a Servis, Beko, Hoover, Hotpoint, Indesit, Ariston auto washer.
However we get chargeable calls to the upmarket stuff, especially the German and French appliances. Dishwasher repairs are a significant part of our chargeable calls. So the nature of the appliance range changed and we changed with it.
The point is I’m not sure you can compete with “no call out ” on the lower brands, we don’t, instead we concentrate on the type of customer who “buys” better and service their need instead. With a fixed price repair.
KevinRe: A “Call out” charge
I explain it very simply to customers, we come to you with the intention of repairing the appliance on the first visit and the calls we take we are stocked to repair. Hence I don’t take calls on things, generally, that we’re not agents for or have access to spares and tech info.
Indesits and all that rubbish at the bottom end of the market I have absolutely no interest in so I don’t have to compete with the “no-callout brigade”. To be fair quite a few customers I’ve spoken to, when they realise the prices that a decent independent will charge to repair and also the shocking Indesit (or similar) prices, they realise that the “cheap” machine wasn’t so cheap after all and simply inquire as to what to buy next. 😉
That’s one way to actually build your business over time and one of the foundations of Project X, it’s worth repairing and is cost effective to repair.
K.
Re: A “Call out” charge
hi
what we have around here is also company in yellow pages who has remote forwards no /ie they based inarea which take lot of work from us agian with free call out of course not member of ukw the job i get ukw they will pay call out but at present only had 2 calls hope things get better any way thanks lads you all diong great job
umed
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