Ask Amy: How to best give free estimates to friends
DEAR AMY: My husband is a home builder and can fix just about anything. What do I do with female friends who call and ask for free advice - then, when, they have a big project, hire a complete stranger who gives them a "better" price until the project starts (when they add hidden fees)? This has happened twice with "good" friends who love to call until it is time to hire someone. It is very hurtful to my husband and me, although I try not to mix friendship and business. We also have neighbors who call, ask for an estimate and then do the repair themselves, thus making the problem worse. The most recent one called in the middle of the night, panicked because her basement was flooding. Then she tried to do the work herself. When it came time to get a professional, she let the insurance people send someone. I will be happy when the housing market picks up so we won't have time for these calls. This free advice is starving us. It is becoming difficult to maintain friendships when this is how we get treated. -- Not Recession-Proof
DEAR NOT: In the course of doing business, your husband will not get many of the jobs he provides estimates for - whether or not these estimates are for friends.
People who get an estimate and then make the problem worse by trying to fix it themselves are, like you, affected by the recession - and their amateur jobs may create work for your husband down the road.
Your husband can change the dynamic by behaving more professionally. If someone calls for "free advice," your husband should make an appointment with them during business hours and prepare an estimate. Once he provides an estimate, he can let people know that if they receive a lower estimate, he might be able to cut his price.
If five friends call and your husband can net two paying jobs from these calls, that's a pretty good batting - or business - average.
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