A masterful estimate involves establishing trust, providing effective solutions and setting the stage for your crew to exceed expectations. This article addresses some of the nuances of performing an outstanding in-person estimate. It highlights the significance of using thoughtful questions, demonstrating understanding through reflective listening and identifying specific issues that may not be immediately apparent to the client. It also delves into the ethical considerations of upselling based on genuine observations.

All images courtesy of the author

The sample conversation that follows illustrates how effective communication can uncover the true motivations behind a client’s request, enabling the salesperson to offer valuable and trustworthy solutions. This article also provides some guidance on appropriate pricing and the value of a detailed, written description for setting client expectations. Follow these principles to greater success with all your future sales consultations.

Client motivations

The first objective of the salesperson should be to get a very clear idea of the client’s motivations. Go beyond asking what work they want to do by using thoughtful questions. Questions show interest and build trust, because they demonstrate a desire for understanding. Clients who believe you understand their motivations will be far more likely to trust your prescription. If they are not convinced that their desires are well understood, closing the sale will be much more difficult.

Helping the client to feel understood can be challenging. Anyone who has attempted to persuade a family member using the phrase, “I understand what you’re trying to say, but…” will recognize the futility of such a statement. Instead, demonstrate your understanding with a technique called reflective listening. When the client responds to a question with a statement, the salesperson should repeat back to the client a close paraphrasing of what the client said. The salesperson can then follow up with a clarifying question to get to the root of the problem and specify what work is necessary to resolve the issue.

This technique is a simple but profoundly effective way to make a client feel understood. Also, it should immediately build rapport, provide relief to the client and inspire confidence in your ability to correctly identify and resolve the problem the client is trying to solve.

Understanding client concerns

Often, a client will begin by describing what work they want done, but over the course of the estimate, it becomes clear that the problem that precipitated this visit is best solved differently than the way they have in mind. For example, if a client is primarily concerned with the health of their trees, they may start by asking you to aggressively prune their oaks. But the correct prescription may be to do nothing, or to wait until winter and prune out only the dead and crossed limbs.

If a client is most concerned about the safety of a child who sleeps in one corner of the house, they may ask you to remove several large limbs of a tree that overreach that room. The salesperson may be able to relieve their fear by stating with confidence that those branches wouldn’t have the energy to penetrate the roof even if they did fail, and, therefore, removal is unnecessary. Or, if perhaps a different tree farther away from the house has a significant lean toward that portion of the structure, it would be essential to point out the risks the other tree poses, even though the client didn’t specifically mention that tree.

These differences in opinion are an opportunity to establish yourself as an authority by pointing out and describing the specifics of an issue that may not be apparent to the client. Few things are more effective in building trust than reassuring the client that your services aren’t necessary. It may be difficult to pass over potential work by advising the client not to do the job they called you to do, but this is undoubtedly the best opportunity to create confidence in your honesty.

At the same time, pointing out any additional hazards you noticed during your inspection is usually worthwhile. It is best not to be pushy about that sort of observation, because it is easy for a client to be suspicious about any upselling. Still, it would do them a disservice to ignore a pressing safety hazard entirely.

Offer extra value with a valid upsell

A valid upsell based on your observation of something the client didn’t explicitly point out also is a way to offer extra value to the client. And it is a way to differentiate your company from others that may have come and bid the job solely based on the client’s requests.

I use this technique to improve the value of my services, because I necessarily have to charge more for small jobs. But by booking a whole day’s worth of work for my crew, I can often accomplish far more than the client initially anticipated while charging only slightly more than would have been necessary for the initial scope of work. It is another way to establish yourself as an authority by describing the specifics of an issue that may not be apparent to the client.

A conversation may look something like the following:

Salesperson: “So you mentioned in our phone conversation that you are looking to have some branches removed from a tree overhanging your house. Can you tell me more about why you want that done?”

Client: “Yes. Um, my neighbor told me that I can’t have any branches over my roof or my homeowner’s insurance would cancel my policy.”

Salesperson: “So you heard that your homeowner’s insurance may cancel you if you have branches overhanging your roof? Did your insurance company contact you about those branches, or are you personally concerned about those branches?”

Client: “No, my insurance company hasn’t said anything yet, but my neighbor told me that he just had his trees trimmed for that reason. They make me nervous because my bedroom is under them, and I lost some branches from another tree this winter.”

Salesperson: “So you haven’t been contacted by insurance yet, but those branches also worry you because you sleep under them and are afraid they may fail during a storm. Are you more concerned for your safety or the damage they may do to the roof and dealing with that?”

Client: “Oh, I’m not really worried about the roof, my husband can fix anything. But I would hate to be in the room when those break.”

Salesperson: “OK, you’ve got a handy husband, but you want to avoid getting squished! That makes sense. Well, I may be able to help you sleep easier for free. I have removed many trees from houses after they failed, and I can confidently say those branches are no threat to your safety. Even if they were to fail, they would do little more than break gutters and damage shingles, and you really don’t need to worry about insurance unless the insurance company has complained.

“However, if you would sleep easier and you’d like to preempt any potential issue with insurance, I would still be happy to give you a price for removing those branches. I want to point out that this other tree toward the rear of your property has a significant lean toward the house. Although it is in excellent health, it is often healthy trees with full canopies that fail in good weather from the weight of all that moisture in the canopy. That tree would certainly impact your house, causing significant damage. If your primary concern is safety, I would recommend prioritizing the removal of that tree before anything else.”
Client: “Wow, I hadn’t even noticed that one! That is scary! How much would it cost to remove that tree?”

Salesperson: “The price difference would be minimal compared to removing those other branches, because it still requires the same equipment and we are not working directly over the roof, so it is less risky. It would cost $$$, and I could schedule the work next week in place of another client whose need is less urgent. Would next Tuesday or Wednesday work to put you on the schedule?”

Provide a detailed written estimate

An excellent written estimate will address the client’s primary concerns and the issues that seem most pressing to you as the professional. It also will be detailed and specific. When your prescription differs from what the client initially described, describing the work you intend to perform, using language that ties your recommendation directly to their primary concerns, is critical.

Suppose the client is most concerned with the appearance of their yard, but you notice that there are heavy-leaning, co-dominant spars over their roofline. In that case, you might describe the recommended pruning as an “aesthetic prune focusing on removing potentially hazardous limbs and improving the appearance of…” A description like that shows you are putting their priorities first while leaving you room to deal with the hazard that is more critical to the health of the tree and the preservation of their property.

Carefully detailing the specifics of the scope of work serves other critical purposes. It clarifies the scope for the crew that will eventually execute the job and simplifies the explaining process for the crew leader. It provides a written list for the crew leader to use during the walk-through with the client after completion to ensure the client is happy with the work. It prevents the client from taking advantage of the crew by asking for many small add-ons. If the scope isn’t clear, it can be difficult for the crew leader to say no or ask for additional payment.

Most important, detailing the specifics of the scope of work creates the opportunity to exceed expectations.

Exceed expectations

Clearly established expectations enable the crew leader to perform a small add-on and exceed the client’s expectations in some small way. This step is critical to getting five-star reviews and eager referrals. A client who only got what they paid for generally will not give referrals or write exciting reviews, and may even consider another company for future work. However, if the client feels you exceeded what you promised, they will be thrilled with the work and far more likely to recommend your company. It is all but impossible to exceed an expectation that isn’t clearly defined. A detailed written estimate is the best way to establish a clear expectation and open the opportunity for your crew to shine.

One of my favorite ways to exceed expectations is by using a 20-foot pole saw to remove dead lower branches in a couple of extra trees. This takes very little time and effort and can create a disproportional improvement in the completed look of the property. Using large blowers to clean landscaping and making neat piles of logs out of view are other relatively easy ways to leave an orderly looking yard.

Depending on the cleanup level specified in the estimate, this also can be a great way to exceed expectations and create a positive, lasting impression. Because referral leads are the best, these small, extra efforts will pay dividends to a company’s reputation and create new opportunities.

Pricing strategies

Pricing is another challenge that varies wildly from one location and market to another. But there are a couple of guidelines worth remembering and applying to every estimate.

Don’t charge the client by the hour. It is a lose-lose scenario any time a crew is working hourly. Hourly labor incentivizes slow work, punishes efficiency and creates anxiety on behalf of the client. They will be concerned about the charges that may come from “extra” time if the project runs long. If you give a fixed price based on an expected hourly or “day rate,” and the crew finishes quickly, the client will feel over charged.

A fixed, all-inclusive price or a price based on line items allows the client to be confident they will not have to pay more than the written cost, and also will enable the salesperson to include some extra cushion in the price to make room for the crew to exceed expectations without hurting the bottom line.

Don’t be the “cheap guy.” It serves no one to aim to be the cheapest bid. Clients will appreciate a service more if they pay more for it. Conversely, no matter how good your work is, if the client believes you to be the cheapest service, they will assume the work you did is average at best. A reputation for being inexpensive creates expectations in future clients for inexpensive work, which can severely limit a company’s ability to charge appropriately without causing sticker shock.

The way to best elevate the quality of your service in the eyes of the client is to charge as if you’re in high demand and don’t need the work, then to exceed the expectations upon execution by giving them even more than they paid for.

The one exception to this rule is if you can genuinely offer a particular service at a lower price than the competition because you have specialty tools or knowledge to accomplish it well. As a contract climber, I often will give lower prices for “no-cleanup” pruning jobs, for example, as I have minimal overhead and climb efficiently, so I can offer a lower price and still make excellent margins compared to many other local crews.

Conclusion

Mastering the in-person estimate is a skill that takes time and practice to develop. Still, by following these principles, you can increase your closing percentages, waste less time, make more money and still land those five-star reviews that will keep the leads coming. Understand the client’s motivations, manage expectations, don’t bid cheaply and always do more and better than the client expects.

Josiah Georgeson is owner and an arborist with The Academy, a five-year TCIA corporate member company based in Walnut Creek, California.

This article is based on a session covering the same topic that he presented at TCI EXPO ’23 in St. Louis, Missouri. To watch a video recording created for that presentation, go to TCI Magazine online at tcimag.tcia.org and, under the Resources tab, click Video. Or, in the digital version online, go to this page and click here.