# Two Contractors show up at the same



## roofguy1000s (Jan 18, 2012)

I went to go look at a roofing job the other day. I showed 15 min late the other guy 15 early and bam they we both are. Kind of alright i guess. it has happened but he gets out of truck and tries to take over the whole estimate. I amTalking to the lady while i am doing my pitch. I started to get  then i was like ready to say f this and job u want it that bad go ahead. then i wanted to see his sales approach. pretty good and learned a couple things not major but the way he created a good rapport with the customer and took me out of my element. neeedless to say i in my mid 30s he was in mid 50s. he has been doing more than me i guess. a couple things he did not go on the roof. or even have ladder to reach it. he did his estimate from the gound. :blink: It was funny but i gave her my price and left.:clap:
never heard back. what would u have done


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## rselectric1 (Sep 20, 2009)

I never have a problem competing with a legitimate contractor. If they show up and talk in foreign tongues, I capitalize on that.

It's happened to me a couple times.

However, you are at an extreme disadvantage by showing up late and the other contractor showing up early. Which one would YOU pick. 

First impressions are VERY important.


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## dave_dj1 (Mar 16, 2010)

For one thing I would have been on time! 
I can't stand tardiness.
As a homeowner I would be curious as to how a contractor could give me a price without actually getting up on my roof and measuring it.
As HO I would be calling company "C" for their price thinking that co. "A" and co. "B" have already done their thing and not impressed me in the least.
But I could be biased looking at it from an ho point of view being a professional.


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## roofguy1000s (Jan 18, 2012)

very true. well i did call ahead to let her know was going to be late. i was doing a previous estimate and the guy was asking 1000s questions. but i am wrong for scheduling them too close together. he probably scored that job.


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## roofny (Mar 18, 2010)

This happened today. The other guy had no teeth, I'll update you all on the outcome later. 

I couldn't stop laughing.


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## Joasis (Mar 28, 2006)

Being late and then having an attitude pretty much sums up where you will be going with your contracting business. So it is "f" the customer and the competition because you were late and the other guy was hustling to win her job? 

Hate to tell you this pal, but you really need to step back and think your sales approach over, and if you really feel like you need to use the f-bomb to convey blame that you own, you need to find another career.


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## BamBamm5144 (Jul 12, 2008)

I have a strong feeling you won't get that job.


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## JesseCocozza (Aug 20, 2011)

roofny said:


> This happened today. The other guy had no teeth, I'll update you all on the outcome later.
> 
> I couldn't stop laughing.


How many teeth does it take to do a re-roof?


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## BrandConst (May 9, 2011)

Happened to me the other day, still got the job. I have no problem with waiting line if I was the other guy. Encourages me to step up my game.


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## roofguy1000s (Jan 18, 2012)

i know i did not have my best foot going forward here. but homeowner was very nice and cool with evereything. no else has ever had there competion show up at the job. 



> This happened today. The other guy had no teeth, I'll update you all on the outcome later.
> 
> I couldn't stop laughing


why were you wearing those short shorts lol


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## J L (Nov 16, 2009)

If you're late and the other guy is early - it is what it is. You've gotta up your game to get the job. 

What I won't tolerate is showing up and having 4 other contractors there at the same time. Only happened once, and then I learned a few more questions to ask on the phone to weed out those type of people.


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## rjconstructs (Apr 26, 2009)

This happened to me a while back. I went long on my meeting...trying to cover any future questions and save a trip back. I was walking out as a group of 4 guys came walking up. I would have said more to them but we probably had a language barrier. It happens, all you can do is try to be adult about it.


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## BamBamm5144 (Jul 12, 2008)

I normally just park right outside and wait. I try to make myself noticeable so that the other guy can see me. My goal is for them to see that I'm there so they know to wrap it up especially since I'm there, they're just wasting their time.


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## ohiohomedoctor (Dec 26, 2010)

Happened to me once. Didnt let it bother me. I was there first on time and the other guy showed up who knows how early. I knew the other guy from seeing him at the supply houses and around town. By the time I seen his truck roll up I had already determined that the customers and our company were not a great fit for each other so when Chris (the other contractor) showed up I told the customer a bunch of good things about the other guy and told him Id send him an estimate. I passed Chris in the driveway and said, "good luck".


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## roofguy1000s (Jan 18, 2012)

I was thrown back when he got out of the truck. That is what made upset at first. You could definatly see my van and i was in the front yard talking to Home owner. He does not know if i am late or if she double book us. When i see another contractor i just wait until he is done then do my thing.


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## LCG (May 30, 2011)

God forbid you ever bid a government contract. It is nothing to see 25 contractors show up from 3 different states.


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## seeyou (Dec 12, 2008)

Had a similar situation a few years ago, except I was the early one and the homeowner left to deal with an emergency as soon as the other guy got there. The other guy didn't bring a ladder and asked if he could climb up mine. I said sure and as soon as he went over to the back side, I took my ladder down and loaded it on the truck. He started cursing at me and I laughed and told him I said he could climb "up" my ladder, but I never gave permission to climb "down". Saddled up the palomino and drove off.
Didn't get the job (neither did he), but I was pretty pleased with myself all the same. 

Saw him in the shingle store a few months later and when he gave me the stink eye, I asked him if he wanted to buy a ladder. You can guess the response that got..


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## Tom Struble (Mar 2, 2007)

:laughing:what a d*ck:thumbup:


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## seeyou (Dec 12, 2008)

Tom Struble said:


> :laughing:what a d*ck:thumbup:


that's what she said......................:whistling


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## dougger222 (Jan 29, 2004)

Been on site with another contractor twice but it was while doing a ladder assist with an adjuster. I just sort of stood back and watched! One was a 2 story 12/12 on the wrong side of the tracks. The adjuster, homeowner, and stomer were all a different color than me, sort of felt out of place!!! The other was with one of the most aggressive storm chasers out there. He tried to get the adjuster to buy every copper fence topper so in his argument he walked along the top of the fence looking at each one for damage. The adjuster just looked at me and rolled his eyes. After the stormer left he said he was wearing $200 shoes, $200 pants, and $100 shirt. His truck was about $75K retail!


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## Jaws (Dec 20, 2010)

seeyou said:


> Had a similar situation a few years ago, except I was the early one and the homeowner left to deal with an emergency as soon as the other guy got there. The other guy didn't bring a ladder and asked if he could climb up mine. I said sure and as soon as he went over to the back side, I took my ladder down and loaded it on the truck. He started cursing at me and I laughed and told him I said he could climb "up" my ladder, but I never gave permission to climb "down". Saddled up the palomino and drove off.
> Didn't get the job (neither did he), but I was pretty pleased with myself all the same.
> 
> Saw him in the shingle store a few months later and when he gave me the stink eye, I asked him if he wanted to buy a ladder. You can guess the response that got..


:laughing::laughing:
That's awesome


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## dontgetinmyway (Apr 23, 2012)

seeyou said:


> Had a similar situation a few years ago, except I was the early one and the homeowner left to deal with an emergency as soon as the other guy got there. The other guy didn't bring a ladder and asked if he could climb up mine. I said sure and as soon as he went over to the back side, I took my ladder down and loaded it on the truck. He started cursing at me and I laughed and told him I said he could climb "up" my ladder, but I never gave permission to climb "down". Saddled up the palomino and drove off.
> Didn't get the job (neither did he), but I was pretty pleased with myself all the same.
> 
> Saw him in the shingle store a few months later and when he gave me the stink eye, I asked him if he wanted to buy a ladder. You can guess the response that got..



That's thinking on your feet!:thumbup:
That's what he gets for being unprepared and borrowing tools from the competition. What a weasel.


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## bookerc (Nov 27, 2011)

Since you were late to the appointment, you could have gracefully stepped aside for the other person to do the talking. Either you could stay and listen to his sales pitch and later cover the points he has left out with the client or if you are confident enough about your work and sales pitch, just wait outside till the other man finished and then gone ahead with your talk with full confidence. Oh, and I would be well-prepared with all the tools needed for measurements and be professional about the whole thing. 

Being cool, confident and knowing one's job is the best way to impress clients. 

One positive thing you did in the whole incident is calling ahead and informing the client about the delay. 

Don't worry too much, in a long career you will see a lot of these things. The trick is to learn from the mistakes and go ahead and try and not make them again.

And as somebody else pointed out here - don't shift the blame on to others for a mistake you made.


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## old roofer (May 10, 2011)

I was estimating this roof was on the back side of this house i just poke my head up and seen this contractor(my biggest competitor) he was bad to get the price from the customer and cut it by a couple hundred dollars to get the job,so i knew what was coming so i went down and give a price at labor and material and cut that by $200 dollars and sure enough he cut it by $200,after that he never cut my price again


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## TNTRenovate (Aug 19, 2010)

roofguy1000s said:


> I was thrown back when he got out of the truck. That is what made upset at first. You could definatly see my van and i was in the front yard talking to Home owner. He does not know if i am late or if she double book us. When i see another contractor i just wait until he is done then do my thing.


You made a few mistakes, most of which you identified.

1) You were late (regardless if you called or not).

2) You allowed someone else to dominate you. If you roll over and let him pet your belly, he owns you.

3) You allowed his age and experience to intimidate you. Never let them see you sweat. If you are as good as you think you are, it doesn't matter how old the guy is or how long he has been doing it.

4) You didn't educate the customer that there is no way a roofing contractor can give an accurate estimate without stepping on the roof.

I would have said to the guy, you can wait in your truck until I am through. If he pushed any further it would have gotten nasty. If I am going to lose the job, I am going down fighting. I am going to show the home owner how pushy the other guy is, and not allow them to see at as a strong approach but a over baring one.

Live and learn!


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## KAP (Feb 19, 2011)

If you just started your pitch, use judo against him and turn his domineering into a weakness and knock the legs right out from under him... 

I would have simply said to the customer - *"Ms. Customer, this is not something that normally happens, and since I don't want there to be any confusion between listening to two different companies talk about their services to you at the same time, nor do I want you to be uncomfortable in any way, let me offer this.... Even though I called to let you know ahead of time, because i value your time, being that I was coming from another appointment, I will step aside and let Mr. X here finish up with what he can offer you, and I will wait until you are done so we can have time to talk and you won't feel pressured or rushed. Sound fair?"
*
And then, I would have waited and listened to his pitch, observed his sales approach and tore him a new one... *"He gave you a price without even inspecting it? Where was his ladder? etc... That's like bringing your car to the mechanic and without even looking at it, him telling you he already knows the problem... unfortunately, that's pretty common in our industry for salesman to charge you for things a customer may not necessarily need without even taking a closer look. There's a big difference between someone filling out some paperwork and someone who actually does the work for a living."*

You already had the upper hand by cutting his knees out from under him by guaranteeing through your magnanimous gesture that he would not close that deal right then and there... 

I am sure he would have played up the fact that you were late. Simply explain the reason that you were late was your last customer had alot more questions than you usually get, and you wanted to make sure you addressed them all just like you are getting ready to with her, but that you hope that she felt you were fair to everyone...

Turn them lemons into lemonade... :thumbsup:


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## Chris G (May 17, 2006)

The story doesn't make complete sense. It sounds like this guy interrupted your meeting with the customer. What kind of customer would let that happen? 99.9% of the people I deal with would have told him to wait his turn. And then they would have given me a WTF look as he walked back to his truck, and we would have a laugh.


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## jimAKAblue (Aug 15, 2010)

I'm with Kap on this one. 

I would much prefer to be the last contractor "bidding" as long as I know that the customer is going to actually sit with all the "bidders". By accepting the latter appointment, you run the risk of not having a chance if the other guy is a hard closer and the buyer is susceptible to the hard close. You never really know; it's a game of chance. 

The bigger question is: why are you standing out on the driveway doing a presentation? Furthermore, why would you continue trying to do a presentation with another contractor in the mix? Even if you were forced to do a presentation out on the driveway, if another person walks up, why wouldn't you stop the presentation and ask for some privacy? Do you not respect your customers privacy or do you blab their contract details all over the place to anyone that has ears? 

I can't envision a situation that would have me doing a sales presentation with another contractor present. On the other hand, if the other contractor was dumb enough to do a presentation with me sitting there, I'd let it happen. I'd sit silent until he was done, and when he was gone, I'd zero in on any missteps that he made. Of course, since I'd know his price and terms, I'd have a significant advantage in my negotiations. 

Lastly, I think this points out the need for explaining the sales process much better to your prospects during the qualifying conversation. They should know how much time they will need to dedicate to the process; i.e. "Mrs Jones, I'll need about 15 minutes to inspect your roof. After that, I'd like to sit down with you and your spouse to go over the conditions. If there is some work that needs to be done, I'll carefully explain everything that I will be doing and present it to you in written form. Typically, this takes about 30 minutes unless there are a lot of questions or an unusual situation. Added all up, you'll probably need to dedicate about an hour for this appointment. Will that be okay for you and your spouse?" By asking that question, you kill a few birds with one stone.


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## dougger222 (Jan 29, 2004)

Had this happen to me two days ago.

I told the homeowner I would be by in the next couple days to measure and email estimate, which she was fine with.

About an hour or so prior to stopping by left a message with the homeowner. It just so happened the roof that I measured before was 1 mile away, giving the homeowner more of a heads up on my arival.

When I got to the door the partner (other woman) answered the door and asked if I was Brad. Told her no and I spoke to her partner about measuring.

Anyways, get about done and low and behold there's a guy setting up his ladder getting on the roof! We didn't really make eye contact or say anything but felt sort of odd. Measured the garage from the ground and told the homeowner I'd contact her partner with my findings. She quickly appoligized for the overlap and told her it was totaly my fault as we never set up an appointment. Also said I better leave so the other guy can do his thing. The next day sent the estimate and within 10 minutes got a return email stating she wants to move foward.

The other guy was 20+ years older and drove a brand new pick up. Looked like the guy never put a shingle on in his life...


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## summithomeinc (Jan 3, 2011)

I really don't understand why so many people don't like other contractors there when they are measuring for bids. Big deal. Take your measurements and either schedule a time to talk to the HO about your bid or wait and talk to them after the other guy is gone. For me anyway, I like to take my measurements and notes, go home, work out my bid, then call and make an appointment to speak with the HO abbout price. It never bothers me if a HO wants to save time by having one or two other contractors there to save time. It also guarantees we all hear the same things from the HO. Easier to compare apples to apples later.


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## BamBamm5144 (Jul 12, 2008)

summithomeinc said:


> I really don't understand why so many people don't like other contractors there when they are measuring for bids. Big deal. Take your measurements and either schedule a time to talk to the HO about your bid or wait and talk to them after the other guy is gone. For me anyway, I like to take my measurements and notes, go home, work out my bid, then call and make an appointment to speak with the HO abbout price. It never bothers me if a HO wants to save time by having one or two other contractors there to save time. It also guarantees we all hear the same things from the HO. Easier to compare apples to apples later.


I don't like it because it's not professional and shows no respect by the homeowner. Another reason is that I don't really care what the other guy has to say and its awkward.

Besides that, my proposal form and other items are mine and are very unique. I don't need anyone getting ideas and I've even ran into others using my proposal and forms.


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## summithomeinc (Jan 3, 2011)

BamBamm5144 said:


> I don't like it because it's not professional and shows no respect by the homeowner. Another reason is that I don't really care what the other guy has to say and its awkward.
> 
> Besides that, my proposal form and other items are mine and are very unique. I don't need anyone getting ideas and I've even ran into others using my proposal and forms.


Why is it not professional? On alot of commercial jobs they will have bid meetings with 20- 30 or more contractors. Why is it awkward? 

why would you try close in front of another contractor? Why not work your numbers and either wait for the other guy to leave, ask for privacy to present your "secret formula" or just schedule another appointment?


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## BamBamm5144 (Jul 12, 2008)

summithomeinc said:


> Why is it not professional? On alot of commercial jobs they will have bid meetings with 20- 30 or more contractors. Why is it awkward?
> 
> why would you try close in front of another contractor? Why not work your numbers and either wait for the other guy to leave, ask for privacy to present your "secret formula" or just schedule another appointment?


I thought we were talking residential?

I wouldn't try to close. I don't have time to wait for someone else to be done with their presentation. I have other appointments and other things to get to.

Why would I set another appointment for someone who already didn't value my time once?


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## summithomeinc (Jan 3, 2011)

BamBamm5144 said:


> I thought we were talking residential?
> 
> I wouldn't try to close. I don't have time to wait for someone else to be done with their presentation. I have other appointments and other things to get to.
> 
> Why would I set another appointment for someone who already didn't value my time once?


We are talking residential. But really why does there need to be a different standard?

That could be looked at two ways. Why would the HO want to deal with you when you don't value their time? Maybe they have other things to do?


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## BamBamm5144 (Jul 12, 2008)

Um, they called me...

I don't get where you're trying to go with this?


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## summithomeinc (Jan 3, 2011)

BamBamm5144 said:


> Um, they called me...
> 
> I don't get where you're trying to go with this?


I just really don't see the big deal. My customers time is important too. I understand that. If they want to have another contractor there to measure to save them time, I'm fine with it. 

I don't see how you see it as disrespectful of your time.

If they scheduled two contractors at the same time to review the estimate then I would say it was disrespectful of my time.


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## BamBamm5144 (Jul 12, 2008)

summithomeinc said:


> I just really don't see the big deal. My customers time is important too. I understand that. If they want to have another contractor there to measure to save them time, I'm fine with it.
> 
> I don't see how you see it as disrespectful of your time.
> 
> If they scheduled two contractors at the same time to review the estimate then I would say it was disrespectful of my time.


I don't do estimates. I do proposals. I knock on the door, hand them my pitch book and tell them I'll be getting measurements and putting together their numbers and I'll come knock on the door in 20 minutes.

I don't make two trips just to measure then meet. Makes no sense to me.


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## summithomeinc (Jan 3, 2011)

BamBamm5144 said:


> I don't do estimates. I do proposals. I knock on the door, hand them my pitch book and tell them I'll be getting measurements and putting together their numbers and I'll come knock on the door in 20 minutes.
> 
> I don't make two trips just to measure then meet. Makes no sense to me.


Just shows there is more than one way to do business. To each their own.:thumbsup:


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## rselectric1 (Sep 20, 2009)

I respect the whole "get three quotes" thing that the media has shoved down the throats of homeowners when they've got nothing valuable to write about. I guess writers need jobs too.

However I *WILL NOT* wait for the other guy to be done more than a couple minutes from the appointment time.

I've run into this many times and I usually BS with the other contractor in the driveway when they walk out. (if they speak English that is)

We're all pretty much cut out of the same mold and are sometimes as surprised to see another contractor pull up when they are working on their estimate notes as when the second guy pulls up and sees another contractor.

It's all part of the game I guess.


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## jimAKAblue (Aug 15, 2010)

summithomeinc said:


> Just shows there is more than one way to do business. To each their own.:thumbsup:


You guys are talking about two entirely different types of home improvements. Roofing is typically a one stop "measure and propose" appointment. In many cases, I can measure the roof off the internet and know the price before I walk the roof. It wouldn't make any sense at all to drive an hour, measure a roof, leave, and then come back the next day. 

Even if I don't come with the measurements in hand, it usually takes only five minutes to plug them into a program to spit out the number. Again, it wouldn't make any sense to set two appointments for that. 

The real problem is not explaining the process when the first meeting is set. That's the contractor's fault. He should have explained that he needs an hour of exclusive time with the owners of the house. He would have found out that there were going to be other contractor's there if he had carefully explained the typical appointment.


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