does and don'ts

[Home Tiler]

Thought this would be a good information thread ...

ie:
DO
get your van sign written makes you look more professional

DON'T
advertise in yellow pages waste of money

these are not that good but i'm sure other tilers will know some good ones...lol

steve
p.s
(Keep it serious GAZ and DH...lol) :thumbs_up:

 

[Fekin]

I advertise in the yellow pages "free listing" only a couple of weeks ago and I've already had some calls, out to quote 3 times and a shop refit tile job out of it.

Don't know about the paying adverts, but who knows.

DO

Get out there and advertise yourself.


Don't

Sit on your arse waiting for the phone to ring.

 

[DHTiling]

do.
keep your vehicle clean...clean motor promotes a clean job...

dont.
forget to use dust sheets on worktops and carpets etc......

 

[Dave-T]

do
Take the bal products course, contrary to what we all think... we can all learn a thing or 2 now and then, and adhesives is probably the most important area to learn. It makes a lot of difference with customers if you really sound knowledgeable in that area. Bal will do this course free and pay hotel costs for staff of big retailer, so just get matey with the guvna of a tile centre and get him to add you on next time they take theyre staff for training. 😉 otherwise its about 300 quid.

dont
turn up to measure a job in your work gear and talk like an east london 'geezer'.
Go with a shirt and trousers if possible, and talk as politely as possible. Smile lots, and engage the customer in idle chatter.

 

[GazTech]

"dont
turn up to measure a job in your work gear"..
Sorry that must be a definate do....for me.When you turn up after 7pm when you said you would,and say pheew what a day....they will respect that you are comitted to the job..and above all else turned up when you said you would.FFS When does that ever happen to you..book a BT( so called engineer) he sais" Monday".....you say all polite like,"what..er...time Monday?"(he notices your nervous disposition) and says "Monday"...We take a day off for them..Let's keep it real and provide a reliable service......research it...take your time doing it(regardless of money) but listen to the customer,and try to befriend them.They trust you with a key,you may well, like I did, tile for 25 other people associated with them.

 

[IvegotsTILE]

DO: Be courteous,polite and friendly at all times.

DONT:Leave someones house like a building site.

 

[Dave-T]

obviously we differ in opinions. We have 5 tilers on our books, so that means a LOT of estimates so i find i can notice the differences in how many jobs i get quite easily. I generally find when i dress smartly its pretty rare that i dont get the job, but when im in my work gear i get less of the jobs.
Maybe its due to me being a retailer, and customers expect things done a different way through a retailer. We have the customer choose the tiles in our shop, then someone goes to theyre house to measure up, discuss design options, and establish what we can do. Then around 8 weeks later we send one of our tilers to go and do the job.
I even notice the difference though, it when im doing sales in the shop, i can almost guarantee i'll take more money when i wear a shirt and tie, than if im in work gear. Dont get to wear my work gear much anymore though 🙁 think my tools are probably buried under a big pile of paperwork somewhere. lol

 

[penno]

Im only a one man band but strange this topic should come up because i spoke with the Mrs about the what to wear when quoting a while ago. I always go around in my work gear, even if i am on a day off i will put work gear on to do it. Say i was doing a quote at night i tell the customer the odd porky pie. Something like "oh not managed to get home and changed just yet, just finished tiling a kitchen for an elderly woman and she had new blinds to go up on the windows so stayed to fit them for her". 🙂

 

[enduro]

Learn to play golf, a builder mate of mine says he gets most of his work from posh people at the golf course..

 

[CJ]

Do.......as mentioned be courteous,polite and friendly at all times

Do........ eat the cake and drink the coffee they give you.........or at least don't get caught flushing it away

Do........Leave clean and tidy as you would like it left.

Do........take ya manky work shoes off if out quoting.......or at laest get some shoe cover things

 

[GazTech]

Be yourself..If they dont like you. then you wouldn't have been there if they havn't asked you..

 

[brian c]

do.....a very good job
dont...do a shoddy job

 

[Dave-T]

the golf thing is a very good suggestion. We've just taken out a 2 minute tv ad to go on the plasma scoreboards at a golf club for that reason. At a swanky golf club, its packed full of minted people who will pay out of theyre arse if they think theyre going to get a good job that they can boast about to theyre mates. Allways nice to get supply on golf club customers as well, as they often like the 100 quid a metre stuff.

 

[Home Tiler]

DO
Ask customers where they would like there expensive od picture tiles placed
DON'T
place them in a corner where the micro-wave oven will be ...lol

:wink_smile:

 

[GazTech]

DO
Ask customers where they would like there expensive od picture tiles placed
DON'T
place them in a corner where the micro-wave oven will be ...lol

:wink_smile:

I wonder where you learned that one:wink_smile:

 

[scrubmuncher]

Do; turn up to quotes in work gear but not covered in crap, looking too clean for a quote makes you look like you've been sitting on your arse waiting for a call. Always look run off your feet and punters will read good things into that.

Do; Take a clipboard and measure up properly, look precise, I went through a stage where I could walk into a job eyeball the meterage almost spot on, I thought it looked cool and professional, it doesnt, it looks lazy and guesswork.

Don't; tell a client you'll sort something out for them when finished, for nout. Although it seems good client relations I've given away a fortune in time, 30mins here, an hour there, or worst of all, you promise to help move the washing machine back in and scratch the tiles. (happened)

Don't; offer to help out a plumber by letting him in to quickly finish something, chances are, you'll be sat in the van for hours, make him come back, he would you.

Don't; share your tricks of the trade with local tilers, they are you competition, showing off by telling him about a new trick you picked up will only improve his service.

 

[GazTech]

Do; turn up to quotes in work gear but not covered in crap, looking too clean for a quote makes you look like you've been sitting on your arse waiting for a call. Always look run off your feet and punters will read good things into that.

Do; Take a clipboard and measure up properly, look precise, I went through a stage where I could walk into a job eyeball the meterage almost spot on, I thought it looked cool and professional, it doesnt, it looks lazy and guesswork.

Don't; tell a client you'll sort something out for them when finished, for nout. Although it seems good client relations I've given away a fortune in time, 30mins here, an hour there, or worst of all, you promise to help move the washing machine back in and scratch the tiles. (happened)

Don't; offer to help out a plumber by letting him in to quickly finish something, chances are, you'll be sat in the van for hours, make him come back, he would you.

Don't; share your tricks of the trade with local tilers, they are you competition, showing off by telling him about a new trick you picked up will only improve his service.

Thanks Scrubby...very good post mate

 

[Home Tiler]

DO
Make sure all your expansion cuts in corners etc are at 3mm

DON'T
Persume that any uneven cuts will be hidden with Silicon!:thumbs_down:

 

[Pauly]

Learn to play golf, a builder mate of mine says he gets most of his work from posh people at the golf course..

...trouble is golf can take over your life and you'll be playing more than working - take it from me - I've been there!

Do. . . Take your time and get the job right
Don't. . .Be obsessed with speed and balls it up!

 

[Ric]

Do.... mimic the customers personality. Get on their level!
Don't.... eye up the customers 21 year old daughter and stand there drooling like a big plum!!!!

 

[penno]

Dont: Leave a bag of adhesive under a garden table when it is raining to keep it dry and then pick it up from the top an hour later.

Do: have a little giggle to yourself when a customer tells you that the tiler picked up the bag which split at the bottom because it was so damp. Equalling 20kg of adhesive spread all over brand new laid garden flags.

Customer told the tiler to get his arse out of his house within 5 minutes before he killed him 🙂
Worked for me though cause now i have a nice big kitchen floor to lay because he sacked the tiler 🙂

 

[calculator]

Is it logical that two people can disagree and that both can be right? (work gear or smartly dressed). It's not logical it's psychological. And its very real.

Do go the extra mile - so whats the pay-off. When you give more than is expected, you get more, be it more customers or loyalty.

don't give up the secret of success is to bite off more than you can chew and then chew as fgast as you can

 

[wivers]

Do: Always phone Gazz up when stuck with anything

Don't: Listen to a word TJ says coz its all rubish and normally involves sex, violence or animals.