Incommunicado

[MrFoolish]

What is it with builders and plumbers? I find their flashy websites on-line and send them an e-mail about some potential work. More than 50% of the time they don't bother to reply. If they are busy or it's not something they want to do, is it too much to expect they might send a brief reply to say so?

[pje16]

If you are too busy, a good technique is to quote with a much higher price than normal (like double the norm)
as you don't really want the job, BUT if it does get accepted, take the job and shuffle your other workload around

[sg31]

Builders quote for a lot of work and never get a reply saying sorry we are going with someone else. A lot of the quotes are people who are 'thinking about having work done', dreaming about it is a more accurate description. If the builder is busy his head is full of the current job, if he's got 6 months work already infront of him he may very well get lax in responding to quote requests. It's bad manners and bad business but builders are human and fallible.

How do you get round that? if you are a recommendation from a previous client you have much more chance of getting a response. If you explain you need the work doing and X recommended him then he knows he's in with a decent chance of getting the work, much more so than if someone has seen an advert or come across him on line.

If you already have an architect /planning permission/drawings, he will know you are serious.

Try to imagine yourself in his position and think of what might make him take your business more seriosly, or alternatively wait until the next recesssion when you will have builders beating your doors down at the slightest sniff of work.

If a builder is busy there's a half decent chance he's good.

[GrahamPlatt]

If a builder is busy there's a half decent chance he's good.

A saying I’ve heard which rings true is “never give a job to someone who’s got none”.