Spent 30 years in double glazing. Here's what really happens when a salesman visits your home

BurntOnce99

Wow! , a sales person saying that should be doing something else for a living.. The % drop in prices is staggering as the big companies incentivise their sales people financially to do it, that's the worst part, I could tell you hundreds of tales where someone in one street paid over £20k and a neighbour in the same week from the same company bought the exact same wins and doors for less than half that amount. How this kind of sliding scale discount to commission is legal who knows..

BurntOnce99

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81999743#Comment_81999743

That's a good tactic, particularly when telling them at the start that you only want one price and their best price, not to be followed by calls from a manager with a magical reduction etc. Hope you got a good job and price..

ohreallƳ

@BurntOnce99

The son of a neighbour worked for a local mob that have been in business for years, him and a couple of colleagues priced the job and were considerably less than I expected, they done the job over the weekend.

BurntOnce99

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82003650#Comment_82003650

Perfect result.😎

BurntOnce99

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82000603#Comment_82000603

Yep, unfortunately though it is these companies instigating and encouraging this as the commission paid sales person is actually financially incentivised and trained on how to sell at a higher price and with as little discount offered as they can get away with.

BurntOnce99

Honestly it is the direct–sales own rules and commission policies that drive all of the BS and yes, lies.. "The price is only valid today", "I will call my manager and see if he can do you a deal" etc etc all are completely classroom trained strategies as its not only salespeople who earn more through over charging customers, the profit margins on some deals are crazy.

Albermarle

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82004268#Comment_82004268

All sales people, even those not on commission, are trained to get the highest price possible whilst still getting the business, and that includes senior salespeople dealing with large sums of money/other businesses. It is part of their job description.

However as a previous poster said, sales people dealing with repeat business, will be more careful in what they say and avoid telling lies. The problem with DG salespeople ( and similar) for large national companies is not just the commission part, but the fact these are mainly one off sales.

BurntOnce99

No, not so much, these business do rely heavily on repeat customers. I can tell you from 30 years of personal experience in the home improvement industry and at all levels, most buyers initially actually "test the water" by buying some windows or a door, sometimes the front of their house etc, and then return for further work from the same company, and then buy in stages over years, (assuming they are happy with the work and products quality). The product lines of the regional to national glazing companies range from obviously Windows, Doors, Bi–folding doors through to Garage doors, Porch‘s, glass extensions which can be Orangeries, traditional Conservatories, replacement Fascias, Soffits & Guttering, the biggest and most well known brands have in the last 10–20 years also offered options on Solar panels, Driveways, even insulation products and security systems. The reason is this… The psychological sales tactics used to obtain a sale are often forgotten once the installation has taken place, hardly anybody remembers the "close" they were enticed with, after the work is completed if they are happy with the benefits they now get from their home–improvements. A surprising example of blind brand loyalty is the current resurgence in popularity of "Everest", this was always marketed as "Fit the best, Everest" for decades and there is still strong loyal customers out there who have them as their preferred supplier, bearing in mind Everest went bust 3 times in the last decade and so all guarantees were worthless, and yet it is now a rapidly growing business again under the umbrella of Ashi group, which has bought not only Everest but also Safestyle after they also went into liquidation, so now own 3 of the UK‘s top brands including Anglian.

BurntOnce99

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82000538#Comment_82000538

@silvercar — really good point, and I think I may not have explained the numbers clearly enough in my original post, so let me try again.The 50–60% I mentioned is not the mark-up on top of cost price. It's the maximum discount the salesperson is authorised to offer off the starting "book price."So in practice it works like this: a job is presented to you at £23,000. The salesperson has the authority to discount that by up to 60% — meaning they can, if pushed hard enough, sell you that exact same job for £9,200. That £9,200 is the floor. The company still makes money at that price. Everything between £9,200 and £23,000 is the sliding scale — and the closer to £23,000 you agree to, the higher the salesperson's commission percentage.So when you say the mark-up feels more like 200% — you may well be right, because you're measuring from the actual cost of materials and labour upward. I was describing the range of movement the salesperson has in the room. The total mark-up from true cost to book price is a different (and probably larger) number, and that's before the salesperson has even started negotiating.The short version: the first price you're given is not the real price. The floor price is real, it exists, and on a £23,000 quote it could be less than half that.Hope that's clearer to all.