• As of January 1, 2018 The brand new logo that was created and released in 2017 will be the only official logo in affect and allowed to be used on any electronic media however, any such media like truck wraps, stationary, and postcards will be grandfathered in. Contributing Members will be allowed to use the UAMCC logo in any advertising. Permission to use the logo otherwise must be in writing. Logos used in electronic formats (ie: Websites, forums, etc.) must be linked back to the member’s profile in the UAMCC directory. Contributing Members are members that are paid and current with their dues. Please contact info@uamcc.org with any questions.

Networking With Other Washers In Your Service Area

Guy Blackmon

New member
Well do you???

While some look at their "Competition" as the enemy, working together can be a benefit to your business. Sharing or trading leads, helping one another out on large projects, need a part & need it now?

I work with 2 in my area. We have thrown each other leads, helped each other out with equipment problems, shortages or not having certain chems.

It's always a good idea to network together. We're in this together.
 

John Orr

UAMCC Treasurer
I have working relationships with several area pw'rs. Being a one-man-band, sometimes extra hands are needed.

One of my competitors concentrates on commercial - I don't - so I send him some commercial leads and he sends me residential leads. The other contractor does many of my roof washes and we collaborate on quite a few wood jobs.

For me, I need to know that they won't try to "steal" my customer and they need to know that I won't steal theirs. Symbiotic relationships can be very useful - as long as you can trust them.
 

Doug Rucker

UAMCC Board of Directors
Yes we have a great relationship with several here in the Houston Area and we all refer work to each other, help each other out on parts, chems, etc and even discuss pricing on some jobs we think we all may be bidding on. We also try to get together for Lunch every once in awhile.

Working on a small Houston RT for Houston in April right now with Ron too.
 

Randy Borio

New member
We have worked and played well with just about every body in the area. From trading jobs to actually taking over for the them when there are problems. Wouldn't have it any other way.
 

Chris Apple

New member
We've been sending the majority of our residential leads to other contractors. I'm just glad to help the customer out and I'm sure it'll come back out way some day.
 

Tony Shelton

Environmental Consultant / Past Director
We've always worked well with most of our local competition. Lots of jobs have been traded.

As a matter of fact we just helped create a competitor. My son, Chris and I just helped my nephew, Cameron, to get his license and sold him one of our trucks. He will be using our equipment till he buys his own.

He works for us now, but at the same time he will be soliciting residential work that he can call his own.

Cameron's new company is Native Power Wash.
 

Tony Evans

Board of Director
I wrote an article for a industry mag a while back on that very idea. In early childhood we are told to share our toys and then somewhere along the way we get told the exact opposite. We're indoctrinated into the concept that we have to destroy our competition or somehow we aren't good businessmen. Ridiculous idea. I have great working relationships with all but one local company and that is their choice. In fact they don't get along with any of the other cleaners in the area. Sad really.
 

Tony Shelton

Environmental Consultant / Past Director
Don't forget about the value of information you can share between each other.

For example, I just got screwed out of multiple thousands from a PM/Owner. The first call I made was to my competitor to let them know that they will probably be getting a call, but beware, they start paying well, then slow, then nothing. He said he will pass on the work. That leaves the one other large competitor who will probably get the work now. He's the one who is "better" than us, he's "elite", charges a little more, and we are scum to him. Well, he's going to "elite" his way right into an noncollectable $30-50k within a few months that could have been avoided if he had just worked with his competition instead of looking at them as if they are his enemy.

I've got a bunch of these types of stories.

Once, in my other business I got a fake call from a competitor trying to find out my pricing, etc. I caught him right away and he admitted to it. I took him to lunch and found out he was new. I gave him a lot of advice about what to look out for. I warned him that I didn't think he had enough working capital to make it. Two years later he called me to GIVE me over $60k in customers. He explained that he failed, just like I said, because of the working capital issue, and since he was a franchise he could not "sell" me the customers, but he could give them to me. He said he did it because he called three or four competitors trying to find out info, but not only was I the only one that talked to him, I took him out and paid for his lunch. Well, his customers paid for a lot of lunches for my family over the years!
 

Guy Blackmon

New member
That's a great testimonial Tony & the way a true Professional does business.

Here in NC we have a tight little group of Contractors that share leads and information back and forth all across the State. If one of us gets a lead on work that is not feasible for us to do because of distance, knowledge, or equipment we pass it to one of the others in our network that can do the job.

Working together benefits everyone.
 

Guy Blackmon

New member
A great example of this happened just a few minutes ago. I got a request for estimate from our website. The request came from another State hundreds of miles away. We certainly can't travel that far for a roof wash. So I passed it to another contractor in that area.....A UAMCC Member.

Membership & Networking.....It Works For All Of Us.
 

Josh Davis

New member
I wish we could work together more here in Florida, instead of being so cutthroat and trying to lowball each other. Everyone is so greedy (mostly in Lake County) and keep lowering their prices thinking they are going to get all the jobs in the county. If we could just stick together and ask higher prices, we would get them once customers realized they won't get a better rate if they shop around.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2
 

Gene Beck

New member
We have given and received work from our "competition". We have a business model we stick to pretty well so when work comes from outside that model we have a couple of companies we refer it to. In last 30 days my "competition" has closed a 300k sqft parking garage and a 150k sqft pking lot. Could we have done job? Probably but at this time it doesn't fit model. We also refer work outside are usual service area. In return we get referals but more important we generate goodwill in our local industry. We also promote unity in our area which helps keep prices stabilized, provides a local network for sharing informatin
 
Top