Newbie repair story

[Anonymous]

This is the repair saga of a client who couldn't get the "Free" part as in Free windshield repair. I explained to the gentleman that his insurance company would waive his deductable and he wouldn't be charged more on his premium but he just wouldn't go for it.

Help me understand this delema: The guy's a millionaire and when he won't go for the free insurance repair he says the guy who did his wife's mercedes charged $20.00 and that's what he wants to pay me. (from my research that's the going rate around here)I asked $40.00

I'm new in this business and I want the job and can use the money so I say okay $20.00 bucks it is. I look at the job on his wife Merecedes and it's bad. You can feel it isn't sealed by running your finger over it and you can still see the fingers of a break. I try explaining to the gentleman that's what you get for $20 bucks but he stands firm.

I do the job,a small bulls eye on a brank new Chevy Avalanche and it comes out so damn good he can't find the repair from the outside. I also put some curing resin on the wifes car and cured it with the uv light. Wow he says, that's better.

So I have one very happy satisfied customer who tips me $5 and thanks me a least a half a dozen times.

Any ideas here r just go with it like I did?

I did give him a bunch of business cards to give his friends.

I'm guilty of breaking all sorts of GlasDoc's rules, especially about going cheap but dog gone it, i's better than just practicing on a piece of glass out in the barn. At least I have the experience of dealing with this particular type of customer and hey, $25 bucks is...well you know.

Roger

[Anonymous]

$25 bucks!

sometimes you just have to eat and pay the rent and 25.00 later your happy, maybe his friends will call you who knows?

that 25 paid for your travel and your time.

[Anonymous]

Roger, one of the things you will learn, as the rest of us have, is not to undersell yourself. Right now you are learning the in's and out's of wsr. As you become more experienced and confident you will also becaome more able to state your price with a 'take it or leave it' attitude, especially with clients that have the insurance but for whatever reason are unwilling to initiate a claim. You did a wonderful job for that man, and I am happy for you that he recognized the quality of your work and tipped you. Even so, he got a $45 repair for $25 + the tip. It is very important that you not let the clients set your prices for you. For one thing, it confuses people. Your price is what you tell them it is. If you settle for less one time, you will find yourself dickering with everyone that is referred to you from that client. "Why are you charging me $45, when you charged him $20 less?". You dont negotiate pricing with the dentist, do you? Can you bargain with the Post Office when you want to mail a parcel? No, and neither does any of your clients. You will learn this as you go along. When a person has insurance, but is reluctant to use it, they disqualify themselves for any kind of break (in my opinion). But because you are new, you havent racked up a bunch of testimonials from satisfied clients, so you are hard pressed to justify charging the 'going rate'. As soon as you are confident that you are doing consistantly excellent repairs, name your price and hold to it, especially if you have mobiled out to the job, and then they want to haggle over the price once you get there, they still owe you the trip fee. I dont know about the other techs in these forums, but I settle the price issue before the appointment is even made. I am in a rural area. I dont go anyplace for free any more. When someone one calls and wants to know what I charge, I tell them. We talk about insurance, and if they have it, that is the way we usually go. If they dont have insurance to cover, I tell them what my price is if I go to them and what it will be if they come to me. They almost always will come to me if they dont have insurance to cover. But I have controlled the situation from start to finish, and that is very important. Keep up the good work. Grace

[Anonymous]

Roger, I'm glad you did a terriffic repair. It shows you have the skills it takes. As for you breaking the rule of giving things away (your expertise). Granted, $25.00 in hand beats nothing. But, you stated the man you did the work for is a millionaire. A point to ponder here is; how do you suppose he made his money? I can tell you for a fact, and I have never met the man. He is business/money minded. He gets what he wants at his price because he is ruthless. Had he paid asking price for everythig his entire life, he probably would not be a millionaire. The fact that he is, gives him the upper hand in most biz transactions. The person that he is dealing with doesn't stand a chance with the "I spent more money in 10 minutes, than you will earn in a lifetime" attitude. Having a winning attitude is great, but having a "already won" attitude is even better. You did what you thought best. I would have handed him my card, told him if he changes his mind call me,and proceeded to leave. He would have respected my decision as a business person, and would have used my services. And if he did not,well my respect for his ability to be a millionaire would have switched to "he made his money using everybody", and I did not get used. Grace is correct, as you do this, you will learn. You are the professional, its your skill, your knowledge, your traning, your money put out for the kit, your business insurance, your car for transportation, and your gas. It is not for free, and prices are not open for negotiation UNLESS, the customer has a second vehicle at the same location, while you are there.. Then a $10 discount may apply. Unlike, locksmiths, plumbers, electricians we do not charge a service call charge. And whether a plumber, electrician, or a locksmith gets the job, they still get their service charge just for coming out. So, your excellant repair as good as it looks, in the eyes of the millionaire, is still a $20.00 repair and that is all it ever will be.. Sorry, but thats reality.. Your repair will not be remembered by him 3 years from now.. But the $20. he paid will be. And if he calls you again in 3 years, he won't remember you. But, he will remember, you only charged him $20. Try going to McDonalds, and tell them hey you sold my Grandfather hamburgers for a dime, thats all I am paying. See if you get fed..

[Anonymous]

for someone to either mention the "millionaire" aspect or at least bring up the point that if the customer remembered that his wife's Mercedes was fixed for $20 bucks, why he didn't just call the guy that repaired his wife's car to take care if his.

That aside, there can actually be another issue that hasn't been mentioned .... this being discrimination (or a perception of discrimination). There are people of means that may or may not be business savvy, may be ruthless or philanthropic, but, they may feel as if certain service providers boost their rates to take advantage of their affluence. Heck, I've even heard tell of women being overcharged for automotive repairs due to their generally perceived lack of knowledge of automotive mechanics

While I am new to the WSR game, I have owned/operated a fine dining establishment, a nightclub and am a contract database developer and have found that by publishing my rates (be it an entree on a menu or my hourly programming rate), prospective customers know exactly what they will be charged and that I do not arbitrarily price my products and services.

Could having a simple rate sheet for repair services help alleviate a potential problem like this?

As an aside, if/when I do find myself in a situation where a discount must be made/offered, my invoice always reflects the full price, the discount amount and the total discounted price so that I can at least write-off the discount as a promotional expense and the client is fully aware of what he/she would have normally been billed for my service/product.

[Anonymous]

I don't believe that the man claiming to be a millionaire felt as though he was being taken advantage of. And the point you brought up as to why did he not call the person that originally did a $20 repair, goes right along with what I stated. The $20 spent will be long remembered the person who did the great job, won't be. Its unfortunate, but its reality.
Another point made was a price menu. Its all well and good. I have a set price that I give for retail jobs, that is a set (starting) price. The reason or a starting price is to most uneducated customers, they have a small "ding" in their windshield. That "ding" is a star that is the size of 50 cent piece. The "ding" they are refferring too is the actual impact point. Duhh... Like I am a mind reader. So I quote a starting price, giving myself room to "up" the price in case that 3" crack is actualy 12 inches, or that "ding" is a double star combo.. My pricing isn't etched in stone, but I refuse to give away my services at my customers dictated price. For all we know, the millionaire had the original repair done, 4 years ago.. Ad 4 years ago $25 was still too cheap, but was closer inline to cost than a $25 repair is today.