PSA: I stopped chasing every single customer referral and started qualifying them instead

For years I took ANY job that came through word of mouth. A friend of a friend called me up and I'd just pencil them in without asking many questions. That led to some nightmare clients who wanted me to paint a whole 2,500 square foot house for a thousand bucks. Last summer I finally started asking three questions before I even go out to quote: what's your budget, what's your timeline, and who else are you talking to. It cut my quote requests in half but my closing rate went WAY up because I was only talking to serious people. Now I spend less time driving around Detroit giving free estimates to folks who were never gonna hire me anyway. Has anyone else flipped their lead process like that or am I the only one who was slow to figure this out?

3 comments

3 Comments

jasonallen11d ago

And that third question about who else they're talking to, how do you usually get an honest answer out of them without making it weird? I've found most people clam up when I ask that, like they think I'm trying to pressure them into a decision right then and there. Do you lead with your own pricing first so they feel comfortable sharing what other bids look like?

spencer98110d ago

Doesn't that remind you of how people act when you're buying a used car and they dodge the question about what they still owe on it? In my experience, folks tend to get cagey when they think you're trying to corner them into a deal instead of just having a normal chat. I've found that if you share your own ballpark figure first and make it clear you're not looking for a commitment right now, they're way more likely to open up about what else is on the table.

patricia_gonzalez10d ago

Flip it around and ask them what they already know about your prices before you even give a number. The people who give you a straight answer instead of dancing around it are the ones who've actually done their homework and are serious about hiring. The ones who get weird about it are usually still fishing for the cheapest bid and aren't worth your gas money anyway. Makes the whole awkward question feel more like a normal conversation about expectations.