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If you're a contractor, and if you're not the low bidder on every job, you might want to use this letter as a part of your presentation. It will help you tell your story.
Dan Holohan Good morning! Here's my company's proposal. It covers everything we discussed as well as the alternates for the additional work you said you would consider. We're probably not the low bidders on your job, and I want to take a few minutes to explain why. Most heating contractors buy their materials from a plumbing and heating wholesaler right here in town. We all pay the same prices. Our wholesaler stocks material that falls into the "good," "better" and "best" categories. You'll recall we talked about this when we discussed your job. If one contractor's price is lower than another's, the difference is probably not coming from the cost of the material, unless, of course, the low bidder isn't dealing with a legitimate plumbing and heating wholesaler. Some low bidders buy their material from a home center. Home centers run sales on "loss leaders" every week. Low bidders see this as a way to shave a few bucks from the cost of the material. You could go to the home center and get the same price on that "loss leader" if you wanted. We don't buy from the home center. We prefer to get all our material at the plumbing & heating wholesaler because they carry a full line of top-quality, heating equipment, things you can't find at the home center. We support our local wholesaler because they're essential to our ability to give you great service. When we need something special, or an oddball part in a big hurry, these guys will drop what they're doing to service us. The home center won't do that for us, nor will they do it for the low bidder. We've found it pays to develop a good relationship with a full-line supplier.
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Thanks for all that you do for us.
A customer we'd quoted called us recently for help. He had hired the low bidder to do the original installation, but now they had a problem with the product. Rather than take care of their problem, the low bidder told the customer to call the home center. They tried that, but got a runaround. The contractor told the customer he didn't have time for problems, and besides, how could they expect good service when his price had been so low. We took care of that family, and we charged them a fair price. If you find our price is higher than the low bidder's, make sure they're offering you the same material we discussed. Make sure they're not cutting corners by eliminating items or substituting cheap material. Remember, a car may be a car, but a BMW is very different from a Yugo. Be a wise consumer, and keep in mind, if we're all getting our material from a legitimate source, we're all paying the same price. If there's a wild difference in our price, that difference has to be coming from someplace else.| Dan Holohan - [Intro] | [Email] | [Website] |
| The views expressed in this article are those of the individual author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the management or staff of MasterPlumbers.com |
