To D and S, the estimate is never free.

1. Returning your call and setting up an appointment. The easiest thing we do, but try it for 5 or 6 people in one day. It takes some time to actually get hold of customers. You've heard of phone tag? (5 minutes, low - 60 minutes, high)

2. Going to meet you. We spend our gas, time, and effort to come out to your house or business to look at your project. This takes anywhere from 15 minutes round trip, to 90 minutes. But it doesn't end there. (15 minutes, if you live a block away - 90 minutes high)

3. Talking about your project. Typically, I spend an hour of my time with a customer as they tell me about their project and I help them with a solution. Many times I'll give them a design idea that they end up using, even if they don't hire us. On complex projects I can spend 2 hours. (Time: 20 minutes, low - 120 minutes, high)

4. Discussing  your project. On the larger projects, Steve and I will discuss it over the phone and come up with the labor time it will take to do it. I will work on the design and and other aspects of logistics. This can take anywhere from 15 minutes to two hours, depending on the complexity of your project. (Time: 15 minutes each or 30 minutes both, low - 120 minutes each or 240 minutes both, high)

5. Material list and compiling the bid. Then I will spend time at my computer working on a material list and totaling up the bid price. On an addition project, this can be several hours. (Time: 15 minutes, you are replacing a door - 180 minutes, high)

6. Contacting the customer. Finally, I will call or email the customer with the estimate. That can take from ten minutes for a simple project, to an hour for a complex project. (Time: 10 minutes, low - 1 hour, high, some people like to talk about details)

7. Putting together a written proposal and references. If the customer requests a written proposal, I'll spend another half hour to three hours doing that and posting it on the web site on a private page and sending them an email with a link, or faxing it, or sending by mail. If they've requested references, I'll compile a list of three or four customers with related projects that we've done in the past. This can take 10 or 15 minutes. (Time: 20 minutes, low - 200 minutes, high)

Let's look at the total time and effort that is spent by D and S.

                       Small Job                        Large Job
Initial call:        5 min.                              60 min.
Travel:            15 min.                             90 min.
Talking:          20 min.                            120 min.
Discuss:         30 min.                             240 min.
Compile:         15 min.                            180 min.
Contact:         10 min.                              60 min.
Proposal:        20 min.                            200 min.       
Total time:  115 min.  to  950 min. or 15 hours and 50 minutes
Gas:       13 cents (6 blks.) to  $8 (30 miles one way)

 Total Dollar value:
$96 for a small job to $800 for a large job
That's some free estimate!

 
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