Builder93 said:

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I didn't say it as an excuse. It's just the way it is. If you think you can do better, then start a business and make it happen.

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So the consumer is not supposed to expect a certain level of competence from a service provider? Got it.

"It's just the way it is" is an excuse for not following through and taking care of your customers.

And your "if you think you can do better" comment is a sad commentary on the attitude of those in your business.

Builder93 said:

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Your attitudes are telling. Sure, good customer service is great and I strive for it in my own business and when I worked in residential.

Right now this is the market. You can moan about it all you want, but you aren't going to force anyone to bow at your feet if they don't want to. They might go out of business if they continue to operate this way, they might not. That's up to them. They are not a government agency with a civic duty to call you back. You all sound like these people owe you when you haven't spent a dime yet. It may be rude to ignore you but that is their choice. It's called the free market.


I see a great business opportunity for one of you. Run with it. Make a business plan, get financing, staff up, advertise and make it happen. Or you can get on Texags and moan about it.

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I agreed with some of your first post, but I don't think you've had to deal much with the frustration of finding contractors around here who are competent and will actually show up for work. Go back and read some of those posts. Very typical experiences.

Builder93 said:

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Your attitudes are telling. Sure, good customer service is great and I strive for it in my own business and when I worked in residential.

Right now this is the market. You can moan about it all you want, but you aren't going to force anyone to bow at your feet if they don't want to. They might go out of business if they continue to operate this way, they might not. That's up to them. They are not a government agency with a civic duty to call you back. You all sound like these people owe you when you haven't spent a dime yet. It may be rude to ignore you but that is their choice. It's called the free market.


I see a great business opportunity for one of you. Run with it. Make a business plan, get financing, staff up, advertise and make it happen. Or you can get on Texags and moan about it.

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What a poor attitude. Aren't you supposed to be the ones with the skills who have decided to go into business, made a business plan, gotten financing and staff, etc? Aren't you in business to provide a service and make a living?

Please tell me the name of your business, so I don't make the mistake of calling you when we build a new house next year. I sure don't want you to hear me whine and moan. If you don't want to deal with customers, GET OUT OF BUSINESS.

ETA: This is not necessarily directed solely at Builder93, but at any service provider he is defending with this viewpoint.

Builder93 said:

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You aren't understanding. I'm stating facts about the current business environment. You whine about some guy you've never met before, to whom you have never paid a dime, not calling you back. You sound entitled. It sucks, but you could just move on to the next guy and give him your business. I'm sorry if someone in my industry didn't call you back. Guess what? I have had a terrible experience with an insurance agent. Does that mean they are all hacks?

I am in commercial construction and I am very responsive to my customers. I tell people if we can't get to their work and try to never over-promise or waste anyone's time.

Again, change the industry. There is room for someone with your great attitude to do it. I have found my place and I'm happy doing it.

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Well sir.....if you must know YES I AM ENTITLED .... As long as someone goes to the expense of advertising and ASKING me to call his business ..YES..I AM entitled to a response. The business has " invited" me to try them and contact them. I'm not talking about an across the back fence " call my buddy Verne" type of contact , I'm talking about taking the time to go to the trouble of looking up a business, responding to a damn advert where I am told all manner of wondermous things about ABC Whatnots , canned testimonials about all the great services that ABC has all over the Brazos Valley..blah blah blah ..... Just call BR-549 or email and ......

NOTHING !!!!
If you are sooooo very busy and soooooo backed up and out of pocket....STOP ASKING ME TO CALL !!!!!
AND ..I'm not talking about damn building contractors !!!!! They actually are better than damn near everybody else in town!!!!

I always return calls whereas my direct competition does not. Clients really appreciate it.

Oh man Builder93 is absolutely destroying you MyBCS entitled homeowners its hilarious. Everything he has said is absolute truth; homeowners don't like to pay and even when they do many of them run to Yelp and MyBCS to tell everyone what a HORRIBLE experience they had and they will NEVER use that company again.

Hey guess what? I had a bad experience with a Realtor does that mean all Realtors are hacks? Hey guess what alot of A&M employees have stiffed me does that mean all of them are cheats?

But NO ONE returns calls "in this town". Hey here's an idea: move to a town with less development. Doesn't Yelp have city reviews?

Again I would like to reiterate: if a contractor talks to you on the phone and/or meets with you then never calls you back they figured out you're a freak and they don't have time for another freak.

What if you're a contractor and you're getting over 100 calls per day? You should call them all back? Even the ones who make crazy/rude comments on their message? Even the ones who have logged dozens of negative reviews on Yelp?

Hire a sales manager to take the calls?

I don't want to come off as angry because I'm really not. It is absolutely a blessing to be living in this community and to have more opportunities than I can handle. However, it's pretty obvious alot of consumers simply don't understand the market. I get advice from frustrated consumers all the time: "You can't get to my project for THREE MONTHS!!?? Well you need to hire some more PEOPLE!"

Obamacare has put a serious damper on the growth of businesses. No one wants to get to 50 employees and have to take on Obamacare and everyone is limiting their employees and the hours their employees work to stay beneath the minimums. It's just a fact. Secondly (yes I know this sounds arrogant - you PC people might want to look away but) a majority of Millennials just simply don't want to work. It's sad and people don't want to hear it but it's true. Who does want to work in construction and remodeling? The ones who do come from a different culture where excellent quality, customer service and workmanship are not as valued. Therefore they require more training, more organization and more supervision. Well who is going to do that, especially if I am constantly on the phone?

PLC guy said:

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I don't want to come off as angry because I'm really not. It is absolutely a blessing to be living in this community and to have more opportunities than I can handle. However, it's pretty obvious alot of consumers simply don't understand the market. I get advice from frustrated consumers all the time: "You can't get to my project for THREE MONTHS!!?? Well you need to hire some more PEOPLE!"

Obamacare has put a serious damper on the growth of businesses. No one wants to get to 50 employees and have to take on Obamacare and everyone is limiting their employees and the hours their employees work to stay beneath the minimums. It's just a fact. Secondly (yes I know this sounds arrogant - you PC people might want to look away but) a majority of Millennials just simply don't want to work. It's sad and people don't want to hear it but it's true. Who does want to work in construction and remodeling? The ones who do come from a different culture where excellent quality, customer service and workmanship are not as valued. Therefore they require more training, more organization and more supervision. Well who is going to do that, especially if I am constantly on the phone?

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Now, you are confusing the subject. If I were to call a contractor and they told me they could not start the job 43 or 6 or 8 months, whatever, then I would know I need to look elsewhere and thank them for their time.

What the complaint is, however, is that you have contractors or other service providers advertising, saying that they want your business, and then don't even have the courtesy to return the call. As someone who called Kama I wonder if they received the call, if I missed a call, or other possible scenarios. A simple return phone call saying we are not taking business at this time would be more than sufficient.

We are getting ready to build a house, working with a local architect. I know that, once we complete the plans, I'm going to expect at least a six-month delay before a contractor is even able to start on the project, and what used to probably take 12 months, will be an 18-month process, because of all the subcontractor issues in the community. Fact is, these expectations have been set out clearly early in the process, and I know what to expect. That's all anybody is asking, is communication.

Saying all of that, I have often thought that if somebody was a good business person and could run a general contractor's office comma with good customer service, they would make a killing in this community. However, I don't know anything about the contracting business, or know where to start to begin this process.
So, it's quite the conundrum.

Cool story time. Some while back I was trying to have a tree cut down, had called and nobody returned messages. I was over at my kids school and asked to borrow their phone (my batteries had gone out or something). Again got message machines so I just hung up in frustration. Fast forward a week and the receptionist told me that tree guys kept calling her asking if the school needed trees cut down. She didn't know who made the call, nobody did, and the tree guys were frustrated. But they never called my cell back.

So, not sure I buy the line about able to work you in. If the contractor thinks the job will be lucrative enough, they'll call back and work it in somehow.

PLC guy said:

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Cool story bro. Buy it or don't buy it. It's very difficult to make money working for homeowners hence your call back problem.

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You seem to be defensive.

He's agreeing with you. He's saying that the contractor was weeding out calls, only calling back where they thought they could make a lot of money. I understand that.

I also understand that many folks are cheap, inpatient, and demanding. But not all of us are. There are quite a few of us out here that are willing to pay well for good work. The problem I've seen is that oftentimes, these service folks cut corners to try to get to the next job, even though my job hasn't been completed, despite my waiting. We are fortunate that we have a group of people to help with our rent houses and stuff that we own that know us and will return our calls and try to keep us happy. But, we are understanding when they have to delay, and really don't "shop around". BUT, if I allow for a delay in starting my job, don't not complete it. Finish what you start, and do it well. If it takes a week longer, so be it, but don't cut corners or leave me hanging.

As for your position that Millennials don't work, you are SO RIGHT! I feel bad for my generation and those to come with the changes in medicine. There was a difference between my generation and my father-in-law's generation of physicians, but not nearly as big as the one now.

If a contractor has the time to answer the phone, he/she has the time to return a call in the next day or two.

Or don't answer the phone.

No excuses.