We Don’t Charge By The SqFt: 12 Considerations When Comparing Quotes
As a specialized contractor, there are unique considerations when quoting. However, this list below is general enough that the principles can be applied to contractors in almost any niche.
A common question we get is: ‘How much does it cost to sand and stain a deck?’ or ‘How much do you charge per square foot?’
Yes, square footage is definitely a factor in quoting a deck, however, our business is not a commodity that should be compared strictly on a square foot basis when there are other important considerations to give a fair quote.
To help answering similar questions for future clients, here are 12 things to consider when comparing quotes from contractors, and more specifically what we assess prior to sending official quotes.
General Assessment
The age of the wood, level of difficulty, ladders & specific equipment, unique requirements of the job, and client special requests are all part of our general assessment. Our sales process is very specific, systematized into steps to ensure we don’t miss anything.
I don’t like it when contractors I hire tell me one price to get the job, only to raise it later. This is one way to ensure our company won’t do that. Bait-and-Switch is not our business model and never will be.
Proven System
Every business decision we make is to keep our #1 promise to you: a deck that never peels—guaranteed. We want to make sure we maintain that promise as well as our 5 star reputation.
Systematized quoting is an important element to delivering a great quote every time. It helps avoid making mistakes or missing information.
We don’t have any secret dragons in our closet either. Our entire Sand & Stain System is written out in detail for contractors and do-it-yourselfer’s to use.
Expertise & Professionalism
This is a job for true exterior wood experts with repeatable and consistent results. This means knowing what products to use (and not use) and following our detailed system.
Big box stores are designed to sell you products, and thus recommendations should be weighted appropriately given its source.
Painters are not wood staining experts, just like wood restoration is not painting. There are similarities (both involve coating applications), but the details are very opposite: paint protects via layers on top of the surface, whereas staining should be done with true penetrating oil stains and protect from the inside.
Note: I’m passionate about this point because I was a College Pro Painters franchise manager in 2009, and although their painting systems were very well done, they taught us so little about deck staining and wood restoration.
Our Team
Wood finishing and re-coats can be a relaxing task, but let’s be honest about the sanding restoration: it’s dusty, tedious, and just a ton of work. The most successful are the ones who treat the entire process like an art.
This means someone who is doing it for the first time (or for the money…) is less likely to do as good a job for you as someone who truly loves their job and what they do. We handpick our staff and provide full training for our team and pay them well so they stay with us.
I assure you, it doesn’t take long to realize the job is not a good fit—for either party… Great people combined with a great system makes us a great success.
Lastly, it’s difficult to find help for a seasonal job. The demand for our services is way beyond what we’re capable of in relation to finding enough talented individuals.
Seasonal Business
It’s a short season to get work done (at least here in Ottawa...) Much like landscapers and other seasonal businesses, we do not work in a 9-5 environment, and most businesses do not charge by the hour for large projects.
Small businesses need to generate a profit to survive the off-season and continue serving for decades to come. This creates a lasting, trusting relationship, employs more people, and solves a problem—like peeling decks!
Weather Dependent
A business like ours is not only seasonal, but weather dependent. Christmas is seasonal, but December 25th doesn’t get cancelled if the weather is undesirable. Our work does.
We battle unpredictable weather and poor forecasting every day. This makes it absolutely crucial for a business like ours to get as much done each work day as possible. Rain days are inevitable—we need to make sure we get enough work done on the days that allow us to do so, and that needs to get factored into our quoting.
Warranty
Warranty is in place as a benefit to the client as well as the contractor or business. Your job is likely to get done right the first time, as you have the right to get the work fixed at no cost, and the business responsible for the work is likely to perform in a way that they don’t have to return to fix problems.
Insurance works in a similar way: it’s there to protect you, but you hope you should never have to use it.
Insurance
Speaking of insurance, business insurance should be a requirement for anyone coming to work at your place. We hope to never have to use it, but one day, should it ever be needed, we’ll be glad we have it.
It’s nice to support the local kids down the street, or a weekend warrior who wants to help out, but should a mistake happen, this is a risk of not having a professional company with liability insurance to cover any damages or accidents.
Of course, the cost of insurance won’t double the quote, but it’s still a business cost that needs to be considered in the overall value a company provides.
Material Cost
Professionals pay good money for good products. Some specialty products are not available in big box stores. Some of the typical store bought products are not as effective.
These might be shipped from across the world, handmade locally, or a custom proprietary formula, etc. We made a decision to switch stain suppliers after a 10+ year relationship to ensure we continued to use the best materials available and keep our Never Peel Again promise.
Material cost shouldn’t be the biggest factor in quoting, but definitely makes up some fractional percentage of each job.
Job Size
As mentioned, square footage does have a factor, but that’s still just one part of the job size equation. Spindles, privacy panels, posts, pillars, skirting, as well as any vertical area cannot be counted the same as a horizontal deck floor in square feet.
Imagine Deck A, a 400sqft rectangular floor with no trim and Deck B; an identical 400sqft deck with railing, spindles, 3 foot tall skirting all around the perimeter, plus a pergola with 4 pillars and 13 rafters across the top.
Clearly Deck A and Deck B cannot be quoted the same, even though they have the same square foot on the deck floor portion. Most trim pieces can’t even be calculated in square feet, but in linear feet at best.
Transportation
Is your deck at a cottage in the middle of a corn field 4 hours away from the nearest city? Sarcasm aside, our staff are highly skilled and need to be compensated for their time, including traveling time. Of course, basic transportation costs are rolled into overhead on every job, but it should be expected that additional charges will be incurred for projects 30min and beyond the our main working area.
Distance isn’t the only transportation to consider. Any production manager does not need to be reminded how much driving can be done in a day from site to site, even if they are all close together.
Pride In Our Work
Perhaps the most important point is the pride we take in our work. We’re proud to serve clients on their journeys towards a deck that never peels.
Yes, a business needs to make a profit, but not every business truly cares about your specific needs. We treat you like a unique individual with a special project, and charging by the square foot would not reflect that.
We’re pleased to help local Ottawa residents with their deck finishing, and these articles are in hopes of helping do-it-yourselfer’s all over Canada make the best decisions to get the same results.
Email Examples
Here are a few emails from individuals asking about a quote or how much we charge by the square foot that inspired this post.
Notes:
Names and personal information have been blocked out for privacy.
Screenshots are followed by copied & pasted text—also edited to protect privacy.
Example A: Screenshots
Example A: Written Text
Inbound Email Re: Pricing
Prior to any deposit, while I was cooking out back tonite, asked myself, if this is a one day job, and a limited surface overall of deck space, how do you break down your quotation? Even if it was at $100.00/hour for Labour - times 7 hours - which seems high, add stain, how do we get to $1250?
Looking forward to your feedback
My Response
It's a fair question. Here are a few reasons behind our pricing:
First and foremost, this is seasonal work. On average, we get mid-May to September, with roughly 4 days per week that are dry enough to work which does not leave many working days. Each day is critical and must be charged at a rate that provides a valuable service while turning a profit to sustain the business.
We are a service business and don't charge by the hour. An orthodontist can spend 10 minutes operating and charge thousands of dollars. I'm not in any way comparing our services to a highly skilled dentistry specialty where years of schooling is a prerequisite, but we are providing a valuable service that few can do well, and even fewer want to.
Our process is guaranteed to never peel. The true value lies in our initial prep sanding and restoration, hence our maintenance recoat applications costing a fraction of the initial restoration fee. The recoats can be easily performed by you using the exact products we use ourselves for consistency and saving more money (to mention time researching products, etc.) I can't speak for my competition, but I know many have similar charge rates for this work. Even if they didn't, I have a system that works with plenty of happy, returning clients to not only stay busy each year, but have an overflow that continues into the next year.
Lastly, as a small business owner, I want to provide work I'm proud of. I personally train my staff to do a job as good as I did when I was working all by myself so that my brand can continue its fantastic reputation and 5 star rating on Google, Facebook, etc. My brand, systems, and guarantee that your deck will never peel is absolutely worth the piece of mind, in my humble opinion.
I'm more than happy to answer any new questions as I want you to be confident in your decision when you commit with us.
Stay Healthy!
Example B: Screenshots
Example B: Written Text
Inbound Email Re: Pricing Per Square Foot
Thanks for getting back to us.
We're in [deleted for privacy]. We're always home these days so you could come anytime but there's too much snow to see anything; You'll definitely need to wait for a visit.
Can you please let us know which product you will use?
What is your price per sqft?
Thanks,
My Response
Great, [deleted for privacy] is a great area. I can come when there is less snow if you like.
The product we will use is called Ready Seal. Here is the Ready Seal website and here it is at our store.
We don't have a specific per square foot price. There are many considerations in addition to size when we quote.
For example:
If I was to quote 2 decks that were exactly the same size and design with one being 3 years old and one being 18 years old, you can imagine the older one would likely have deeper grooves, dryer wood, and take more time to prep in general. That's how sqft can't be the only consideration and makes specific quoting fair for each client project. Also, it prevents any chance of a "bait-and-switch" on the price. I don't like it when I get a contractor quote for a certain price and they tell me it'll be higher once they start the job, and this is one way of preventing that and keeping a positive client experience.
NOTE: This is literally the exact topic of this week's blog post scheduled for release this Wednesday.
Let me know when you're ready for me to come take a look or have any questions about the product and why we use it.
Have a great week,
In Conclusion
Hopefully this addresses most of the questions people would have about our pricing. Use this as a tool when comparing quotes from contractors and businesses, as well as when deciding if you’d rather take on the project yourself.
In case you missed it earlier, you can use our flagship Sand & Stain System.
And if you’re missing supplies or equipment, you can shop for the exact products we use in our own business to save you hours of research with the convenience of getting everything you need in one spot.
