Complaints against contractors…Dishonest contractors

Okay, so I cannot tell you how many times I come across articles that say how the customers are so mad and want to sew some contractor over something they had done to their house, etc.  I totally understand this point of view from being a customer when you hire others to come to your house for a remodel or whatever the case may be.  You just want things done right and to what you want it to look like.

Homeowner complaints against contractors have been on the rise for quite some time but alot of this has to do with the simple fact that with our economy the way it has been going and alot of people that are out of work are doing things on the side….not licensed.  Yes people or some ‘Contractors’ are scamming you and doing a poor job of the work you want done because they either have no experience or do not have a license.  This is partly your fault as a customer as well.  You want to make sure that when you have a contractor come to your house that the person or company has a license, don’t just assume… we all know where assuming gets us. 

Just because these things happen and contractor fools you don’t let it make you think that all contractors are bad.  It’s just like politicians, there are some terrible ones out there and we think oh they’re all terrible but just remember there are some out there that are great despite the bad apples.

If you want to do a search for contractors you can trust ask your friends and neighbors, do a search on Angie’s list for reviews or you can even revert to the Better Business Bureau if you want.  Just remember that there can always be one bad/crazy person that can make the others in the group have a bad name, so don’t jump to conclusions!

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Contractors becoming Lowe’s Installers

If you have not thought about it just yet, and you are out of work as a contractor you should check out becoming a Lowe’s Installer.  They have a process that you have to go through to become one of their contractors but if you have a great system and great background you should take a chance at it because who knows. 

They have the following installation needs:
Doors, Windows & Openers
Doors, Exterior Doors, Patio Doors, Storm Doors, Interior Doors, Garage Doors, Garage Door Openers, Replacement Windows, Window Treatments
Flooring
Carpet, Vinyl, Ceramic, Wood, Laminate
Plumbing
Garbage Disposers, Water Heaters, Water Softeners, Faucets, Sinks, Toilets, Vanities & Tops, Shower Doors, Tub Doors
Kitchen Cabinets, Countertops & Appliances Cabinets, Countertops, Cooktops, Built-In Ranges, Over-the-Range Microwaves, Air Conditioners, Dishwashers, Compactors, Range Hoods
Lumber and Building Materials
Roofing, Siding, Fencing, Storage Buildings, Decks, Playsets
Electrical
Interior Lighting, Exterior Lighting, Ceiling Fans

Give it a try because you never know until you try!  Here is the link for contractors on Lowe’ s home site if you are interested…. http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=pg&p=InstServ/fineprint.html&ln=inst

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Bad economy causing large contractors to go small

You know normally large contractors are the ones on the big projects but with the economy being the way it is and things taking more of a hault than a slow down, it has become a ripple effect for all contractors. 

The smaller companies and contractors that go after the smaller jobs and bids that pop up are now having to fight with the larger ones as well and outbid them too.  Larger contractor companies are having to go after the small ones to so they can stay alive. 

It was already a tough market with the smaller companies battling out bids for jobs but now it makes it even a tougher market, especially for the smaller contractors across America. 

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Tough times for Contractors…Start Networking

Okay it is no surprise that our economy is down in the dumps right now.  Personally I think alot of that has to do with the media overexaggerating it all.  It’s like they take the bad news and focus on that leaving us with no hope, except for the segment they showed about a squirrel that has a new trick… (no lie)

Business is tough for all contractors right now because things are in a stand still and building has come to somehwat of a hault with things.  If you are sitting there scratching your head about what to do and where to start, start with NETWORKING.  This is so important whether you do it day to day or just as you casually are out and about.  Think about all those you come in contact with day in and day out or those you have met along the way.  Everyone that you have met in the past has a network as well where one links to another or two more.  Always carry business cards with you so wherever you go you can exchange them with someone or leave them for others to see.  A great place is at restaraunts on bulletin boards, etc.  You don’t know if they will use your service but at least you are getting your name and business into other hands and you just never know what could turn up. 

Don’t think about what they can do for you but what you might be able to do for them!  So many times we get caught up in the fact of what can others do for me and where can they get me??  Yes it is true many times that it is all in who you know with things, but you also just can’t sit on your butt waiting for something to come around.   So get out there and make some contacts and make things happen, and NEVER GIVE UP!!

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Blogorama!

This a great site to submit your blog to!

Props!

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Contractor permit costs too high?

How many of  you think that the permits you have to getting way out of hand?  Yeah I can see you nodding your head right now…. I don’t know how it is in every state BUT here in Florida, we have so many things we have to go through just to get a simple permit.

The other day I had to go get a permit for a fence that was being done around a dumpster in the county, and let me say it was a small job.  When I went into the building, first I had to sign in then I sat for almost an hour while the people (county workers/government) just took their precious time and talked amongst themselves.  When I finally got to the counter, I had my recorded notice of commencement and everything seemed to go smooth until they decided to tell me that they did not have our license and work comp on file.  I had it with me and it showed it was sent over to them however many months ago.   They told me I had to get it sent over again and they could not issue to permit to me at that time.  So I was not able to walk out of there with it.  I spent half my day there and called the financial service to fax over the work comp to the county office.  They sent it over that same afternoon and I tried calling the county office to let them know it was there, I called three times and nobody answered.  I went back the next day and still had to wait for a while just to talk to somone, when I said it was faxed over they said they never received it.  It was faxed three times, I had the copies of it saying it was sent.  I called our office and asked if they could email it over, done deal and they finally got it.  After all that, I finally got the permit for the small dumpster enclosure that was a total of $300.  Now tell me, how crazy is it for a $150 plan review fee???? 

I just think that it is pretty ridiculous how the permit fees are for contractors and the crazy process they have to go through just to get one and waste however many days it takes to do it.  Out of all the permits I have had to get there have been only a few times that I have actually had some decent people to deal with in the county offices, most are rude. 

Hope you don’t have to go through this all the time!  If you do I feel for you!

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Check us out on Home Talk USA!

Home Talk USA is in support of Business Beware!  Check out their site at www.hometalkusa.com

We also will have a live interview in February, as soon as we know the date I will post it!

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How to treat Customers: Customer Service

I have come across many articles about how to treat customers and here is what it breaks down to:

Make it easy for customers. Everyone likes easy and simple… make sure that your business makes it easy for the cusotmer to speak with the section or person they need to, in other words, don’t give them the run around.

Communicate with your customers.  When you are doing a job for a customer, let’s take a fence job for example…When you order the supplies and get the locates, permit, etc. done you should contact the customer when you know the materials are coming in and when a possible time is they can be put on the schedule.  This is courteous and they will appreciate it.  Don’t you like it when someone calls you when they are doing service for you??  Just remember that…

Own up to your mistakes. Nobody likes making mistakes and then getting caught or owning up to that mistake they made.  This is human nature, but in a business if you can’t own up to it then you will lose many customers and sometimes good ones.  The right thing to do if something is done wrong is to give them a coupon on the next job, service, etc.  Or if there is addtional work done, take half off.  You get the idea though, DO THE RIGHT THING. 

Treat others how you would want to be treated.  Let’s face it others have bad days too, everyone does.  If you talk to a customer who is just flat out rude and you have done nothing to them, stop and think that maybe, just maybe something has happened in their life and you never know what is going on with them.  So just think about that next time, just a thought.

That is just a few things to throw out there about customer service in my point of view….Treat others how you want to be treated BUT if a customer does not pay for the work you did and you went above and beyond then there is nothing wrong with taking action on that. 

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Contractors, Businesses….a New Year…

First of all Happy New Year to everyone!  I personally cannot believe it is 2009 and fast 08 went but time to start fresh! 

I was reading the other day an article that had statistics about contractors for the year of 08.  To give you an idea it was saying that contractors now have the worst rating of all businesses because of so many bad ones.  This is why contractors get such a bad name because of the certain ones that do screw over customers that are not licensed. 

There are so many websites out there that rate contractors for consumers because of these certain contractors.  This is not fair to the ones who do a great job with their work and stay true to the customers. 

We have some contractors/businesses that have come together in their area to report these certain unlicensed contractors so they cannot scam anyone else.  If you are a contractor or business who are tired of certain unlicensed contractors in your area, we encourage you to get others you know and fight back against these contractors giving you a bad name. 

If you want to start it yourself, just write a letter asking others to join you and fight back, it is simple as that.  If you need some help and want some advice on this, please contact us.   You can contact us at contactus@businessbeware.biz if you have any questions. 

Let’s start the year off right, and good luck to every business and contractor out there!

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