When you reply to a customer online through your account, you are asked to answer 4 simple questions in order to give the customer some vital information.
When can you start?
You can answer this question in many ways, for example you can say, “Flexible” “ASAP” “Tuesday” and the customer will then know when you can start but please don’t ignore the question and enter “???” or “XXX” as this comes across as rude and will generally cause the customer to ignore your reply and choose to go with a tradesman that was more informative.
How long will it take?
This question is designed to show the customer that you understand what work needs to be done and you have an idea of how long the work will take to complete. Generally it is hard to give an exact time and if you cannot answer the question honestly simply explain to the customer that you need more information to give a time scale ie. “Need to view” or “Need more information”
How much will it cost?
Can you honestly price every job online? The answer is no, so if you cannot price the job online simply tell the customer ie. “Need to view to price honestly” or“Need more information to price honestly” or “Call to arrange FREE quotation”. The options are vast but again don’t come across rude by replying with“XXX” or “???” or “000” as the customer will immediately ignore your reply and go to the next reply.
Your comments for the job?
Very often this is an area that many of our members ignore and send a generic reply that is saved on the system when this is the worst thing you can do. Your comments are your introduction to the customer and it vitally important that you introduce yourself in a professional manner and tell the customer who you are and what you do. This is your chance to sell yourself and guide the customer to call you. See the example below.
· “Hi my name is Stephen of Molloy plumbing & heating. I have over 20 years experience in the Irish plumbing & heating industry, I‘m fully qualified, registered with RGII, fully insured and VAT register to insure all you work is completed to the highest standards guaranteed. I would be very interested in pricing this job for you but in order to give you an honest price I would need some more information so I either need to have a chat with you over the phone or I can come and view the job first and give you a detailed honest price after. All my work is guaranteed and I can provide references of previous work I have carried out. When would you be available to talk? You can call me on the number attached or email me back through my onlinetradesmen.ie profile to either talk about your work in more detail or arrange a time to price your job at a time convenient for you. All quotations are FREE.”
Filling in these boxes is your chance to show off! We realise that you will often need to see a job before you can price it, but leaving the spaces blank in your reply suggest to the customer that you simply don't know! Putting in a phrase such as 'Need to view' or similar is better than nothing at all.
Also, by filling in the 'Comments box' with your own personal message to the customer, you have a chance to impress further and show the customer you have actually looked at the job and are not just sending out the same message for every job.
The 'Comments box' is your opportunity to talk directly to the customer just like an email so Don't send the generic "Due to the nature of this job...." reply as this looks lazy and does not show that you have looked at the job or put any effort into replying to the specific job. Send something about the individual job and something about your company experience, location etc..
Always put your Name and Phone number here too and a phrase such as "Call for an Honest Free Quotation" as getting calls is easier than chasing jobs.
You also have the option to call a customer after submitting a reply to them. The customer will already have your online reply but a follow up phone call is proven to improve your chances in winning work - as only a maximum of 3 members can call a customer. However, we suggest that you only follow up with a phone call for jobs that are local to you, not for every job you see.