I am finding myself feeling for all you full time contractors out there. Everyone is creating websites and scrambling for traffic and there has never been so much competition. Everyone has tried the service magic and kijijiji stupidity along with the hundreds of other directories and lead generation services that don’t actually lead to jobs with profit.
When I tell them they could get 1 to 5 leads a day with us… they dismiss me as a nut. Someone posted a comment on my blog that I must be on crack. However, when talking to my Mississauga guy… he says through spring he gets an average of 12 a week. These are strange days and many people are frustrated.
In Toronto I will have my guys sold for the summer within a month from now, and the truth is I need two more in the area but just can’t find anyone not shell shocked. It just seems that many great builders are curled up in a ball. I guess I will get everyone else set up and then pick a couple of nice juicy jobs for me. I need the exercise anyhow.
If you live in BC, you have seen the Olympic Effect. (3-5 months without a lead in renovations and decks-fences). It sucked the life out of most of the deck companies so there is an opportunity to start one there this year. We set 2 guys up late last fall and they both closed up before spring.
We lost 2 in Texas, where apparently wood fences go for 12-15$ a foot installed. HOW can anyone survive on that kind of margin?
To be blatant, it pizzes me off!!! Good builders should never want for work!!!
I get 5 calls every week from directories wanting me to sign up to get deck leads, (and of course they have no traffic).
Yellow Pages doesn’t get any traffic and what they do get comes from Google, (they are advertising on our sites).
Lately I am getting calls from Real Estate Agents that are creating directories on their sites, (that don’t get any traffic).
TOO MANY SCOUNDRELS!!!
Are you fatigued from directory sales pitches and scams and quoting against 10 others for each job– or are things going ok?
L
Replies
Lawrence
Last summer was good. The winter great. The spring starts a bit uncertain, but also a good time to catch up on these small jobs. Hopeful for summer-meet a client Saturday that want it..........now we'll see if they can pay for it. Not overabundant in leads for sure and competition around here is way overloaded. Still putting my faith in referrals. Reputation might still mean something.
I like that-"hopeful, might". Pretty weak words in these times.
Lo and behold, we now know what you look like.
impatience
And you thought I was an old kermudgeon huh Calvin?
I am very glad you had a good year last year. I want to see all my breaktime buddies doing well.
L
Don't forget to check out the Fest this year. It's in Saratoga Springs, NY-can't be that far away from you.
Hi Lawrence,
Yeah, I have been bombarded with those kind of calls too. I ticked one lady off as she kept pestering me and I told her, run my name, get me ONE job and I would pay her double. She refused and I told her thats what I thought, that she just wanted my money and couldn't guarantee any work.
Its bad here as now even guys giving leads are selling them for whatever they can get.
I will be out of business by September when my insurance is due if I don't get a few decent jobs.
Mike
I closed up shop in
..........2002. I haven't owned anything like a construction company since 2002. I still have a few commercial accounts open at supply houses or lumber yards.
in the last few weeks I've gotten two calls from places selling leads.
The conversation usually ends shortly after i ask them what kind of leads they can provide for a Battalion Bradley Master Gunner. Not a whole lot of civilian work out there for my specialty.
You're not missing anything Robert
Tampa is probably less prodcutive than when you left here. Its bad all around. Went to a commerical build out for a fitness center and there were 23 contractors there! Ouch! Years ago you would have seen 5 or 6. Hard to get that job about as hard as it is to be a gunner looking for civilian work. A buddy in EOD years ago was the same way...hard to find work aside from the polic bombsquad.
Funny thing........
I was in Tampa last year around Easter. Had a long weekend from a school I was at in Georgia and decided to go to New Port Richey to see my Grandparents.
took a ride thru Oldsmar and Safety Harbor, saw the houses I lived in there, as well as the one in Northdale. So much has changed. Too much for me.
Funny, Only the white trash lived in Oldsmar or Safety Harbor when I was a kid. Where did the Yuppies come from?
I've had three civilian job offers in the last year. All three were for companies with defense contracts. All three well in excess of $125K a year and one well in excess of $150K.
Problem with each one was twofold:
a. If the contract dries up, so does the job, and I still need a few years to qualify for a pension.
b. all were in cities, like Tampa, that I wouldn;t want to live in if I had to go look for work.
BAE systems has some jobs less prone to turn over or contract cancellation in Tampa. My wife say's that when her father passes she might like that................but she has lived in the north her whole life and I'm pretty sure she'd sour to it quickly.