$0%+ · - Baltasar Gracian, The Art of Worldly Wisdom The above passage is from The Art of Worldly Wisdom. While it is colorfully and extravagantly word-ed, the message about setting

Setting Realistic Expectations

Rebecca Switzer(c) Copyright 2014 - Roof Sales Mastery, LLC - All Rights Reserved

1www.roofsalesmastery.com

Setting Realistic ExpectationsWhy communication is the key to your success and smooth-sailing.

“AROUSE NO EXAGGERATED EXPECTATIONS WHEN YOU START SOMETHING. ...The real can never equal

��ǡ��ϔ��Ǥ��Ǥ��ǡ��ϔ��ϔ��Ǥ��ϔ��ǡ��Ǥ��ϔ��Ǣ��Ǥ��ϔ��ϔ��Ǥ��Ǥ��ǡ��Ǣ��ϔ��comes to be thought of as quite bearable.”

- Baltasar Gracian, The Art of Worldly Wisdom

The above passage is from The Art of Worldly Wisdom. While it is colorfully and extravagantly word-ed, the message about setting proper expectations is a valuable one, especially in our line of work.

It is your job to prepare your homeowners by setting realistic expectations about the construc-tion process so they are prepared for it. Prepare for the worst and hope for the best! This philoso-phy applies to the entire construction process because it “softens the blow” on matters that would otherwise be big surprises to your customer if and when they occur, and by contrast, makes the disruptive process that interrupts their day-to-day life not seem so shocking. It may seem like a bi-zarre idea, but by painting a picture of the construction process as this big, ugly, terrible, almost apocalyptic hurricane of madness, chaos, and mess, when the homeowner experiences the con-struction day and it goes by without half of the surprises you tell them could potentially happen, they have this, “Well that wasn’t nearly as bad as I thought it would be!” reaction, which is positive.

Bring up things that may happen ahead of time so your customers know what to expect. Think about it like getting a vaccine. If the doctor sticks a needle in your arm and a) doesn’t even tell you he’s go-ing to do it, and b) it hurts like hell and you weren’t prepared, naturally you’re going to be unpleas-antly surprised and probably pissed. If the doctor says, “Okay, I’m going to give you a shot – it’s �� ǡ��ǡǳ�� ϐ��Ǥ��ǫ��Ǥ� �� Ǥ��ǯ�� ǫ�� to prepare you, so you didn’t feel surprised or blindsided. Do the same thing with your homeowners.

(c) Copyright 2014 - Roof Sales Mastery, LLC - All Rights Reserved


Keep in mind that many people have never seen a roof or siding job go on, therefore they have no idea what to expect. Without the expectations you prepare them with, they may imagine and form their own expectations of the process, and when those expectations are not met, they may be surprised or shocked. If you do not warn them of potential surprises or circumstances of the construction process, they may be really taken aback and consequently a little upset that they didn’t receive any fair warn-ing about things like the mess, noise, or start time. The key to ensuring construction goes smoothly to mitigate surprise, shock, or distress is to effectively prepare your customers by giving them realistic expectations of the process before it starts.

Shakespeare said that, “Expectation is the root of all heartache.” Underpromise and overdeliver. Never promise something to a homeowner that you cannot follow through with or that is not 100% true. Ex-ceeding your customers’ expectations is the best way to get referrals and have a happy customer, and ��ϐ��Ǥ

In this section we will teach you the most important things to communicate to your customers and ex-actly how to say them.



Addressing the potential for mistakes or bumps along the way.

“Now Mr. & Mrs. Jones, remember that this is construction. A lot goes into it, and it’s a complicated process. I can’t promise that everything will go perfectly, but what I can promise is that if a problem arises, all you have to do is call me and I will make it right as soon as possible. You don’t have to worry about me doing the job, collecting the money, and then never hearing from me again. Just let me know if you have any concerns, and we’ll get them sorted out right away.”

Material delivery.

“I’m going to give you a call and let you know when I have placed the order for your materials so you know to be expecting them. If I can, I’ll give you a call and let you know what day they are supposed to be deliv-��ǡ��ǯ��ϔ��Ǩǳ

Scheduling.

ǲ��ϔ��Ǥ�� ǡ�� ǯ�� Ǥ� �� ϔ�� completed such as the weather, or if the job we are doing prior to yours takes a day longer than expected, or if we are waiting on some materials. The easiest thing for me to do is give you a 1-3 day window. I’m going to do my absolute best to try to keep you in the loop, but just be prepared for me to call you and say your roof is supposed to go on on Monday, only for Monday to roll around and I call you and say I’m really sorry, but the job before yours had a few things pop up, so we can’t start today. We’re hoping to get to it ��Ǥ��Ǩ��ǡ��ǯ��Ǥ��ϔ��understand that this stuff just happens, I promise to keep you updated as best as I can. Once your materials arrive, usually you can expect that the crew could show up 1-3 days afterward, weather permitting, so just ��Ǩǳ

Start time.

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“The crew is planning on starting tomorrow, and they could show up as early as 7 a.m., so you might get

What items to addressExactly what to say to establish proper expectations



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Time frame.

It is better to set the expectation that the roof may take a day or two longer than you expect, because it is always more pleasant when it gets done sooner versus later than anticipated. People love when things get done early, and are irritated when things take longer than they were told to expect. You should be familiar with your crews and how many squares they can do per day, so if you know the crew working on a certain house is a little slower than some of your other crews, factor this into the time frame you give your cus-tomer.

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Satellite.

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Nails.

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Noise.

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Mess.

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-geddon during the process, but the crew will do a good job cleaning everything up when the roof is done, and they’ll blow out the gutters and sweep a magnet through the yard to pick up as many nails as humanly pos-��Ǥ��ǯ��ϔ��ϔ��ǡ��me a call and I’ll come by and pick up anything that was missed.”

Plants.

“As you can imagine, the demolition process of a roof is a pretty big mess. There’s really no way to direct debris to one side or to control things that slide off, especially on steeper slopes or higher stories. Our number one priority is keeping the roofers safe, so if something goes sliding off the roof, we’re not going to ask the crew to dive after it to save a shrub. We are going to do our best to protect plants and and trees right around the ��ǡ��ϔ��Ǥ��let that happen as much as we can, but unfortunately plants aren’t like lawn chairs – you can’t just move them out of the way.”

Trailer/dumpster.

“If the crew doesn’t get done until really late, they may have to leave the trailer or dumpster in front of the house and pick it up the following morning when the dump is open. Is that okay?”

Shingles sticking up.

“With the architectural shingles and ridge cap shingles, it may take around a week of good sun on it for every-��ϔ��ǡ��ǡ��Ȃ��than likely it’ll lay down, but let me know if it doesn’t and I’ll come check it out.”

Preventing incidences and inconveniences:

Siding.

“When the crew starts tearing off the siding and hammering in nails to hang the new siding, there’s going to be a lot of vibration on the outside walls, so I’d recommend taking down any picture frames or mirrors hang-ing on the outer walls of your house tonight before they arrive tomorrow so that nothing can fall off the wall and break!”

Moving cars.

“The crew may come bright and early in the morning, so if you could be sure to park your car on the street



tonight so that you don’t get trapped in your garage during the construction tomorrow, that would be great!”

Moving lawn or deck furniture.

“If you guys can move any lawn furniture or chairs and tables off the deck that are right next to the house just

until the construction is done, that would help ensure they don’t get damaged during the construction! Let me

know if you need help moving anything; I’d be glad to lend a hand.”

In case of a leak after the work is done.

“Looks great! How do you like the color? We love those architectural shingles. Let me know if you notice

anything I need to check out. I guess now we just wait for a good rain storm! Haha. Next time it rains if you

happen to see any water anywhere, just pick up the phone and let me know and we’ll check it out right away,

okay?”

Alternative contact.

“As you know, I’m busy from sun-up to sun-down this time of year helping other people just like you with their

insurance claims, so if something comes up or you have a concern or question, I’d like to give you my produc-

tion manager’s phone number and also one of my fellow project manager’s phone number just in case you try

me and don’t get ahold of me right away. Feel free to give them a call if you have a pressing matter and are

unable to reach me!”

Practice consistent communication and expectation-setting with your customers and you’ll see how much it reduces stress and concerns immediately. With less stress on your shoulders, you are able to be a more ��ϐ��ǡ��ǡ��ϐ��Ǥ


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$0%+ · - Baltasar Gracian, The Art of Worldly Wisdom The above passage is from The Art of Worldly Wisdom. While it is colorfully and extravagantly word-ed, the message about setting