I want to talk to you for a minute about how to do the actual bid. First, I suggest calling the person the morning of the bid after 8 am and saying the following: "Good morning Mr. so in so, this is Dave or who ever the heck you may be. I wanted to confirm our appointment this afternoon. I'm sure looking forward to meeting with you. By the way would you like me to bring some free color charts to leave with you? Great, I will see you at 1: pm then." Tell him you like to arrive promptly or even a few minutes early for all your appointments. This in itself will blow them away. Most contractors are late or they pull a no show.

Now, arrive at least 5 minutes early for the first visit. If you are going to be late at all, call and explain the problem. Don't just show up 15 minutes late and say nothing.

Next try to bond with the client. Do they love dogs? Scratch Fido on the butt! Say hey, killer! Come here and let me give you a belly rub. Even if the dog does not roll over, they think hey this guy can't be all that bad he likes our pets! If they have kids ask the kids a question. Don't just pretend they don't exist. Show a little personal interest in them without getting real personal. The point is you want to bond with your potential client. Many sales men over look this part of the bid thinking it is not that important. Well, it is! It is huge! Put very simple, people buy from people they like. I dare you to prove me wrong! Can you name someone you disliked that you made a made a major purchase from?

Let's say you're doing an exterior bid. First walk the job and take notes of certain things you want to bring to their attention. When you finish your once over, ask them if they can come outside as you need to point out a few things. If the house has cracks, explain what you plan to do to fix them. If you see dry rot point it out and explain what it is and how to fix it. Use this time to explain things like the need to use an oil primer or to do additional preparation. Set yourself apart from the guy who would just paint over this kind of stuff. Tell them about why you use premium quality paint and how you won't skimp on the details that a lot of the other contractors would. The bottom line is you need to convince them that you have their best interest at heart. It is part of bonding with him and separating yourself from every other guy that might show up to toss a number at them. Let them know up front you may not be the cheapest but you will be the best and you again have their interest at heart.

Don't give them a number on the spot if you can avoid it. Later you can impress them with you bid and all that it covers. Our standard bid is five pages long. That's another tricks of the trade itself.

Do leave them a business card. And do get your bid out in a timely fashion. When doing the bid think more about building a relationship and less about selling. Trust me on this one. If you build the relationship first the sale will follow.

Submitted by Dave of Dave's Painting