how do you get the jobs

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bkh

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hi all im finding it really hard at the min to get the jobs in as iv previosly been employed so its hard getting my name out there,
iv done jobs and had some referalls but not enough to keep me going.
iv had 1000 flyers made up and 1000 buisness cards and posted them through doors and in shops ect but havnt heard nothing back from them.
just asking how you guys get the work is it just word of mouth ect.
think my last option is agency work but i dont want to go down that road.
from bradford if tht makes any difference
 
the problem is mate.. theres loads of people all in a similar boat.. some people have been self employed for years and are still finding it very difficult.. myself included...
i personally think that the only way your gonna get lots of work is to offer the customer something they'll like... theres all these people coming of 2 week courses wanna be plasterers.. havent got a clue how to price a job and even if they dont get the jobs, these are the people your pricing against...
if youve got a good long standing local reputation you stand to get recomendations and repeat work but if not youre at a distinct disadvantage and you just have to join the rat race..
any way you can stand out from the crowd (and believe me its a big crowd) will be to your advantage..
if all it says on your flyers is 'plasterer' then join the club...
ive given up advertising in the local paper... just not generating enough genuine leads... i took more calls from other plasterers trying to price work or people saying theyve had a quote for 50 quid for a hall stairs and landing..
you could always try the old 'we wil beat any quote' but be prepared to work for nothing..
its not funny is it..
:'(
quality will always sell so you could try getting some testimonials on your flyers... 'e.g. fantastic finish, the house was cleaner than when he arrived! excellent value (mrs bloggs - bradford)'...
at the end of the day, plastering is part of the building trade and the building trade is on its arse which means that everyones trying whatever they can...
 
I know, it's not the best out there... the work is there though. I relocated about 2 years ago to Rugby and word of mouth is kicking to where I don't use the local rag for the entire summer but winter time I put 2 small adds a month. Sometimes I put adds in those little glossy A5 mags which I get very little work from, but those litte 'pain in the butt jobs' tend to pay for itself(sometimes) and maybe a few extra beers at the end of the week or a new tool. And if you are clean & tidy, your work is great and you are polite you'll be remembered. A lot of people say word of mouth is the best way to get work, very true and its for free but you still have to get your name out there in the first place(for as little as possible) and advertising is the way as well as talking to local tradesman, putting a signboard outside the place of work, making people aware of your product.

In the quietish months I put full colour fliers in 10 houses either side of the one I'm working in, get 200 printed, cost about £30 and that also helps a bit, not fantastic but my name is still getting around. It all tends to add up and the bills get paid on time and 5 weeks holiday a year.
I learned from very early that if you are hungry enough you'll go out and beg for the work if you have to cause the bank manager don't wanna hear no sob storries why I missed the mortgage payment.
Stick in there buddy, if it don't kill us it can only make us stronger
 
What is written above is sad and unfortunately 100 % true.
Ive been in property maintenance for 20 years and this is a bad recession.I know of so many people in the building game outa work and they cant get work.Site workers are the worst hit as many of the younger ones have no idea how to go about pricing work and have little capital to start advertising and purchasing tools they will need.
Work is out there mate but not that abundant!!!
As for advertising theres the local paper, yellow pages, thomson local, yell.com, flyers, get a website built, advertising on van, scoot and online plasterers directorys .
In reallity you gotta be spending 10-15% of your turnover a year on advertising to be quoting all the time.
This is what i spend and what i do but things are still slow.
if your starting out from scratch and have little funds for advertising you are knackered mate to be honest with ya.
Priority i would say is get online yell.com and other pay for directorys this makes you instantly visable to your chosen area.
Then get your own website made as it will take 6 months to be anywhere near 1st page google.
Get 10,000 leaflets printed snd deliver down all the old terrace streets for miles in every direction.

Word of mouth is ok mate but you wont feed ya family on it,not now days!!!!
 
For leaflets goto rcdleaflets.com they will print 10,000 A5 2 sides black and white and deliver them for £400.00. To set up a web site goto solidgoldwebsites.com he charges £20.00 a month with no set up fee for a 15 page top notch web site. Hope this helps
 
iv got web site flyer and other ads in local papers,sign writ van big ad boards works well for me busy most of the time
 
One other important thing that needs adding to this subject which i should of mentioned is REGIONS.
I no for a fact boarding and skimming is on its knees in the london area as i have family in the building down them sides.New build site workers doing domestic as incresed 500 % in the last year its cut throat down there,my cousin is a tacker and was on £3.20 a metre d&ding in november which is pretty poor anyhow..Hes had virtually no work since xmas and 3-4 weeks ago got offered £2.30 a m2.
So if your doing site work ur knackered becuase the builders will pay as least as possible (someone will work for that) in this climate.
All the guys that had jobs on site now working in domestic situation undercutting previous domestic workers.
3 week ago i bought all his tapiing and plastering kit mixers silts gennys screwguns tranies the lot off him as he needed the money for only £400.I told his missus not to tell him but well call it a loan and when hes on his feet and can have it all back as theres £4000 kit there at least.
I no were in recession and all feelin gthe pinch but i think london areas have got it real bad.
 
in my town the roads are heaving with the vans of new plasterering/roofing/plumbing/sparks and building companies. like you say more and more blokes are off the sites and having a go at the domestic market. only gonna get worse.
 
All my work is from recommendation. I would never advertise as i'm not having my time wasted by the public who want something for nothing, and as for spending hundreds on a website -I don't think so!
 
Tony .People move house ,they die,they find cheaper plasterers.Always a good idea to advertise somewhere for new blood mate,you dont have to spend a fortune if ur established.
A good freind of mine is a chippy he is like you in that he never advertised as hed been in the business for 30 +years got a reputation and had a few regulars on recommondtion he also done a lot of work for the CO-OPERATIVE group and had done so for many years working all over the midlands.But 3 month ago the co-op decided to get someone else in cheaper adn now hes in the process of losing his house due to repossesion.
becuse theres no work for him on site or domestic !!!!
 
if you are working you are lucky believe me.the problem is when you are one of the lucky ones who is working you car`nt understand the problem.(and dont kid your self its because you are the best) in my oppinion and i started thinking this before the recesion its not worth being a tradesman any more its a right load of boll*cks competing with bell ends who car`nt possibly know the trade otherwise they wouldnt of qouted the amount they do for jobs there are some very decent tradesmen me included not working
 
skimmin2day said:
Tony .People move house ,they die,they find cheaper plasterers.Always a good idea to advertise somewhere for new blood mate,you dont have to spend a fortune if ur established.
A good freind of mine is a chippy he is like you in that he never advertised as hed been in the business for 30 +years got a reputation and had a few regulars on recommondtion he also done a lot of work for the CO-OPERATIVE group and had done so for many years working all over the midlands.But 3 month ago the co-op decided to get someone else in cheaper adn now hes in the process of losing his house due to repossesion.
becuse theres no work for him on site or domestic !!!!
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I understand what you're saying. I'm working 6-7 days a week to keep on top of everything. If I start to run out of work, then I might consider an advert in the paper, but my local papers are crap in my opinion, and until that time comes, my money is staying in my pocket.
 
Tony spending hundreds on a website is worth every penny mate.Honest.If built correct with plenty of relevant 1way links within 6 months the phone will be ringing at least 2-3 times a week and once its built and running as long as you keep getting links every month or so it cost you £60 a year to run there in.
 
ive got the same problem mate..im from keighley so not far from u...ive got 3 extension to start in a week or so, but been quite quiet up until now...i havnt been self employed long either..ive taken some of my old bosses work..haha coz ill do it for cheaper...feel abit of a traitor but he was a d**k head anyway.lol...
i suppose ya ull just hav to keep plodding on pal...take it as it comes. it seems uve done all u can.ull just hav wait, or another option is driving up to sites n asking whos got the contract, seems abit desperate..but needs must pal :)
gud luck
 
Ive payed a guy from the client factory to optimixe my web site .They monitor what people in the local aera are serching for , plaster Farnborough , plastering Farnborough , and loads of other frases , the get you higher in the google pages in your local aera .Have scrapped the local rag , most comes through the website , or recomends, or from the van .
 
King_skim said:
ive got the same problem mate..im from keighley so not far from u...ive got 3 extension to start in a week or so, but been quite quiet up until now...i havnt been self employed long either..ive taken some of my old bosses work..haha coz ill do it for cheaper...feel abit of a traitor but he was a d**k head anyway.lol...
i suppose ya ull just hav to keep plodding on pal...take it as it comes. it seems uve done all u can.ull just hav wait, or another option is driving up to sites n asking whos got the contract, seems abit desperate..but needs must pal :)
gud luck
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been at it all week cold calling anywere with a skip or scaffolding up extensions sites ect but still no luck.
give us a shout if your ever in need mate dont mind traveling over even if you need a labourer.
bills/kids needs must.
 
ye mate ill bare tht i mind..not driving at the mo.so cud come in handy. :) im just relying on builders taking me to the jobs...pain in the bum cheeks but its all gd.
how long ya bin a spread...what ya capable of etc......so u got nothin on at all???
 
im over in bradford on friday matey
fukin probhation but me on this drink course haha....down a days wage already, bad times.haha
 
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