Re: Can't figure some people out

Posted by NCWayne on August 01, 2013 at 08:30:01 from (98.21.228.82):

In Reply to: Re: Can't figure some people out posted by Mike M on August 01, 2013 at 05:02:04:

I've noticed the same thing myself over the years, and your right, it doesn't make sense, at least on the surface. I say that for a couple of reasons. One is that being busy and working doesn't mean the guys are actually getting paid for the work they are doing. It's one thing to bill the work out, and another entirely to get paid for it. In other words they can send Joe Blow a bill for $5000 (for a $1000 job), and Jim Bob one for $10,000 (for a $5000 job) but that doesn't mean either of these guys are paying their bill. That's one of the reasons they have to charge so much is to make up for all of the money they aren't getting paid.

I know, many say simply go to court to get it, but it ain't that easy, especially with equipment. Dad went through this years ago with a customer. By the time he took the days off necessary to go to court, etc, etc and get a judgment, it had already cost him nearly as much as what was owed. To have taken even more time off to go back and ask the judge to excecute the order (ie-force the man to do as he was ordered or be locked up)simply wasn't feasible as we had real, paying work to do also. With the executed order Dad would have basically owned the machine. Then it would have cost to get it moved to actually take it into his possession. By the time all was said and done the cost to "get paid" was way more than what was owed, and the machine really wasn't worth the cost either. In the end it's often easier to simply write off the bill and keep moving forward. The same holds true going through a collection agency, BTDT. By the time everyone got their fees, etc, etc the cost and time involved to get the money owed simply wasn't worth the effort.

Unfortunately too many people know this and are unethical enough to take advantage of it by running up bills and not paying them. This practice forces many companies to charge way more than necessary to do what they do simply so they can make a profit. Thing is it also runs up their charges to the point that some who could/would pay a $5000 bill can't pay the $10,000 bill so they simply don't because they know the dealership/mechanic/etc can't really afford to take the time to come after them. On top of that said company already has two dozen other customers, that couldn't afford to pay their over inflated prices, on their list, so paying a lawyer to go after them all simply isn't feasible. In the end the ones who simply pay without question wind up paying for everyone. While this may sound great, all it actually does is to give the dealership/etc permission to keep overcharging because too many simply pay and never say a word.....nor do the recommend anyone else going there because of the high prices...

In my case nearly all of my customers come to me by word of mouth. Actually the one that came to me by some advertising I did several years back still owes me over $2000 for work I've done for him on two different machines over the past 2 1/2 years. Thing is I've got one machine here, but it would cost me around $1500 to get the part needed to repair it to make it operable/saleable. Takethat money on top of the time, etc necessary to get a judgment and take possession, and it would total up to way more than the $2000 he owes me.

Ultimately, what it all comes down to is that yes, many appear on the surface to be busy as heck and making tons of money, but scratch below the surface a bit and you'll see another side to the story. The real reason they have so many customers is that it's usually a revolving door of different customers instead of simply having a core of long time, good paying customers that keep coming back because they appreciate being treated fairly....Before anyone says anything yes, most BIG companies also have a core of long time customers that pay dearly for the service they are getting from said dealership, independent shop, etc, too. In those cases they usually get that extra service because they buy new machines with warranties, and for those out of warranty pay the inflated repair prices over and over without asking questions. Even then, there are still costomers, like one I picked up recently, that get tired of being taken advantage of (((ie over $800 to change a $15 thermostat))) and look for someone that will do the same or a better quality and variety of work for a much better price. In my case I now do much of their work on the weekend and am able to, and in fact was incouraged to by the manager, charge a little more than my standard rate for the work done because it helps them out being able to do the repairs during the weekend downtime instead of them having to stop production like the dealership always wanted to do.

So,when it comes to the equipment repair business you can find a few honest, good paying customers and try to keep them happy, or you can have hundreds that may or may not pay....I know which business model I like best.....

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