I want to tell you about a business owner that my husband
and I have worked with since we moved here seven years ago. His name is Rabih
and he owns a construction company.
Since the first time we met, he sits down with us to discuss a project
until we (usually me) feels comfortable with the price and the job.
We started
out with a screened in porch and deck on our house. The first three contractors we met were not
very helpful with the vision we had of the porch and the deck. Neither were they willing to discuss how to
make the project fit into our budget. They basically walked off the area, wrote
up a sheet and gave us a price. When I tried to have discussions, they said the
price was the price.
When Rabih got there I was not in a good mood, feeling like
we were wasting time with yet another contractor who would not listen. I was
pleasantly surprised when I told Rabih the price was too high and he responded
with “Let’s go look at it again and make this work.” What?
Make it work? By the time we were
done, we’d redesigned the project to fit our budget and we loved the whole
thing. In addition, every work crew
shows up on time, works the whole day and finishes the project when Rabih told
us they would.
Unfortunately there are some things his company doesn’t do,
so I have to use someone else for those projects. But for anything he will do we call him. He has replaced windows, siding, a fence and
is getting ready to do a roof for us.
When our roof started leaking our first thought was to call Rabih. We didn’t get a second quote because we knew
it would be done right. But the great
part about Rabih is that he is used to me now. He knows he has to come in and
listen to me complain about spending more money on our house. Then we have to
negotiate the price. He allows time for me to have what my sister calls a
“financial breakdown” (we don’t have emotional breakdowns just financial ones),
then he knows we will be ready to sign a contract. We actually laughed about the process the
last time he was in because I told him I would not let anyone else work on our house now.
So I guess the main message for business owners is when you
have to give a quote, make sure you are listening to your potential client and
you work with them to make the project fit for both of you.
Suzanne Cormier
Executive Director
BizWorks (Small Business Incubator)
Follow Suzanne Cormier on Facebook and
Twitter @BizWorksCenter
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