I go out of my way to get the jobs done, but I will not place safety ahead of anything...No steep roofs, no precarious hanging off the end of a soffit no stupid stuff like that..A no line of Sight means just that..If someone else wants to be a hero, let them..I hate walking away from a job that looks like it can be done. But I won't compromise my well being..One false move and what the hell is the money worth then?...Oh brother! So your the dude putting the dishes on the peaks of a roof, that a sane person wouldn't step on?
detroit dish installers
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I have been considering why alot of customers are unwilling to pay for custom work. I think it's because they are used to being screwed by cable and satellite companies. In my area, locals area a big issue. They just are not available with satellite. But these aggressive sales partners that call people hocking this great deal with DVR and locals and the whole bit for an impossibly low price are killing me. I know who can get locals and who can't without even looking at the work order, I let them know right up front, and they always argue with me. I guess they think that I actually have something to do with the programming.
These people are so used to getting screwed they are defensive right off the bat. This job seemed like a pretty cool idea back when I started, but I'm not making any money. I can bring in 1k to 1500 a week, but the extra work required just costs me more money. I can't seem to break even, I can try and charge for a pole mount, and risk the job not getting done, because I know there are still some die hard techs who will do it for free.
Probably 90% of my posts on here consist of me defending installers or complaining about the industry. I suppose most people wonder why I'm still doing it. It's simple, I'm pretty good at it, I actually like the work, I'm just not facing facts. It's a sham. The only money is in retail, I'm a contractor that gets treated like an employee. Should I not be able to refuse jobs? or routes that are just too much? Nooo, thats not the can-do attitude this industry is looking for buddy! You turn down a route, you might as well get ready to starve.
I wonder what a pizza delivery guy makes these days?
These people are so used to getting screwed they are defensive right off the bat. This job seemed like a pretty cool idea back when I started, but I'm not making any money. I can bring in 1k to 1500 a week, but the extra work required just costs me more money. I can't seem to break even, I can try and charge for a pole mount, and risk the job not getting done, because I know there are still some die hard techs who will do it for free.
Probably 90% of my posts on here consist of me defending installers or complaining about the industry. I suppose most people wonder why I'm still doing it. It's simple, I'm pretty good at it, I actually like the work, I'm just not facing facts. It's a sham. The only money is in retail, I'm a contractor that gets treated like an employee. Should I not be able to refuse jobs? or routes that are just too much? Nooo, thats not the can-do attitude this industry is looking for buddy! You turn down a route, you might as well get ready to starve.
I wonder what a pizza delivery guy makes these days?
You've hit the nail right on the head. There are too many guys who are willing to cut corners and do custom work for free. The potential problem a customer will face, with that sort of approach, is that the guy who is willing to do all these things for free is probably going to botch the job up. Tough as it may sound, I say this...stick to your guns. If it's custom work...ESPECIALLY installing phone lines or wallfishes...charge appropriately.
I think customers refuse to pay because the satcos have pushed "free" so hard..Plus ther are so many people out the who think pay tv is a birthright. another popular response.."Well can't your boss pay you for that?"..My response is, where do you think he is going to get the money?
We are a DNS contractor..And accoriding ot the rules set by DNS we may not charge for pole mounts or wall fishes..DNS does not consider these to be custom work..
We can charge for hardwire phone line installs, excess use of cable from dish to ground, excessively long(over 50ft,I fudge in my favor) burys..Also, we can charge for generally large jobs that are outside of the scope of a standard install. Mirror outlets and extra runs are also charged...I get 'em for $70 .The custom work dtermmination is a judgement call that we make......Many people just flat out refuse to pay ..I just flat out refuse the job...I call my sup and explain it to him..He is pretty up on things and knows a big pain in the ass job when he sees it..We just matter of factly tell the customer , look this is not standard work. You're going to have to pay extra if you want this done..If they bitch we tell them we will refer the job back to DNS and let their hourly guys handle it..The GM over there is very understanding..He knows when we senfd a job to them, that there is a very good reason....
It's not that anyone is "willing" as you say to do this above stuff for free. it's that DNS gives us no choice...
"It" doesn't say anywhere..We were told by DNS we were not to charge for wall fishes..If you're getting extra $$ ,God bless you...People here ar every price conscious..They know exactly what they are supposed to get price wise..There have been instances where I have wanted to charge extra and I get this "well they told me it's a free install"..At that point I don't have a leg to stand on...
I could be a stick in the mud and tell them wall fishes are not standard..But if they call Dish to complain ,I'm done..
I would like to take a consensus on how many of us out there are who do DNS contract work are getting extra $ for poles and walll fishes..I could present the findings to my employers and let them know...
I have managed to talk maybe 5 customers into paying extra for a wall drop or pole mount in the 2 1/2 years i've been doing this. I've tried more often but I end up getting burned when they call and raise a stink.
The funny thing about it is, the customers with the nice big houses and expensive cars are the ones who are unwilling to pay(or tip), even though they obviously can afford it.
My boss says we can charge for pole mounts if it's not a line of sight issue. If I can get a clean line of sight from the house, then thats where it goes, unless the customer prefers it on a pole. However, if they refuse and tell me to hit the road, the boss gets ticked because it hurts completion rate. He considers wall fishes to be part of a standard install.
I'm really not sure if this helps you or not. heh.
The funny thing about it is, the customers with the nice big houses and expensive cars are the ones who are unwilling to pay(or tip), even though they obviously can afford it.
My boss says we can charge for pole mounts if it's not a line of sight issue. If I can get a clean line of sight from the house, then thats where it goes, unless the customer prefers it on a pole. However, if they refuse and tell me to hit the road, the boss gets ticked because it hurts completion rate. He considers wall fishes to be part of a standard install.
I'm really not sure if this helps you or not. heh.
The RSP I work with has the same policy. If it can be done from the house, but the customer wants a pole-mount...we're allowed to charge. I very rarely do. Even I have my limits as to the amount of bitching and moaning I can hear from a particular customer.
As to wallfishes, said RSP has a $59/hour charge for them. It doesn't matter if it takes 30 minutes or 59 minutes...the rate is the same. I tend to bill differently. I go by the floor AND by the wall ($25 per floor, per wall). Similar pricing scheme that both TWC and Comcast in this area utilize.
I thjnk the whole thing stinks..As far as I am concerned any extra work should be chargeable..Look, if I call an electrician to install a ceiling fan , he quotes me a price fo rthe job.Pretty standard stuff..Now the elctrician gets to my house looks over the wring and tells me he has to run a new wire to the l;ocatiomn..He charges me the rate he choses...I pay him..Now , we get to a satellite install..The customer's house is pre -wired.. But they don't like the location of the outets...He wants new cable run and /or the exiting outlets moved.. I gotta do this for free...Bull crap!
I agree whole heartedly. But what can we do? I really don't think I'd want to join a union, and if I stand up for myself too much there is always another guy just waiting to step up be a hero. For now, I guess I'll just have to suck it up, do it, and bitch about it on here anonymously.
:Do?..I will tell you what I am going to do..I am leaving this business..I am starting another venture that will hopefully make much more money, allow me to work less hours AND give me the flexibility to do as I please, set my own appointments, my own rates....I agree whole heartedly. But what can we do? I really don't think I'd want to join a union, and if I stand up for myself too much there is always another guy just waiting to step up be a hero. For now, I guess I'll just have to suck it up, do it, and bitch about it on here anonymously.
The pay rates are stagnant but costs are going up..The system works against itself..DNS wants quality( no problem there) but in the same breath, they push numbers..If a job is done on a "no matter what " basis and looks like a POS, Dish is happy about the new customer. Fine. But don't force me to slam in a crappy job that normally would refuse to do because it only can be a crappy job ,then come down on me because it's substandard work..That is happening and I no longer want to be part of that..
The whole nearly everything for free deal goes back to 2001 when the big cable companies started running the commercials saying dish was charging for every part of the system and install, " the big dish companies charge for the dish, the cable if its more than 100ft, the connections, the drive time to your house even" anyone remember seeing the dish and cables being tossed onto a white floor? I saw these in the pittsburgh area back then on att cable.
I had rolled on my fair share of totally insane sub contractor installs during my time with dish, it was always easy to tell because they were rarely grounded and the fittings were hex as opposed to compression. Theres alot of crap work out there from subs and inhouse, its a given and will grow alot more now that Dish is pushing so much harder for bigger numbers and I think its a sign that Charlie is operating blind and dumb to try and narrow the gap in total subs. I really do think that there is some deal that Charlie has with one or more companies that if dish reaches a specific milestone(s) based on a time frame that he may sell off part or all of dish, he has had the company on these time frames for several goals over the last 4 years or so.
I had rolled on my fair share of totally insane sub contractor installs during my time with dish, it was always easy to tell because they were rarely grounded and the fittings were hex as opposed to compression. Theres alot of crap work out there from subs and inhouse, its a given and will grow alot more now that Dish is pushing so much harder for bigger numbers and I think its a sign that Charlie is operating blind and dumb to try and narrow the gap in total subs. I really do think that there is some deal that Charlie has with one or more companies that if dish reaches a specific milestone(s) based on a time frame that he may sell off part or all of dish, he has had the company on these time frames for several goals over the last 4 years or so.
im getting installed by claude on monday
and im getting the deal claude offers
) FREE VIP 622 Receiver ($199 Savings)
2) FREE Activation ($49.99 Savings)
A) Additional $49.99 Activation Fee Credit from DISH Network on First Bill. ($49.99 Credit)*
B) DISH Store Programming Voucher after 30 days of Service ($50 Credit)*
C) DISH HD Rebate $20/mo for 10 months ($200 Credit)
D) FREE Premimum Movie Channels for 3 months (Up to $38.97 Credit)
Total Savings Upfront.....................$249.99
Total Bill Credits..............................$338.96
and im getting the deal claude offers
) FREE VIP 622 Receiver ($199 Savings)
2) FREE Activation ($49.99 Savings)
A) Additional $49.99 Activation Fee Credit from DISH Network on First Bill. ($49.99 Credit)*
B) DISH Store Programming Voucher after 30 days of Service ($50 Credit)*
C) DISH HD Rebate $20/mo for 10 months ($200 Credit)
D) FREE Premimum Movie Channels for 3 months (Up to $38.97 Credit)
Total Savings Upfront.....................$249.99
Total Bill Credits..............................$338.96
van 2 years ago i had dish come out 2 times and they told me no los
but my neibours have it installed and they got trees 2, but claude has a way to get it done thats why im excited about getting dish installed on monday, im in oak park michigan
but my neibours have it installed and they got trees 2, but claude has a way to get it done thats why im excited about getting dish installed on monday, im in oak park michigan
Im one of those sh!tty techs from detroit you are talking about. Contractors don't get paid if the job don't go through, direct dish network employees get paid per hour, which is a pretty crappy wage at that. Risking our life by put a dish on some of those crack houses in detroit, where you are bought ready fall through. Any also we live in a northern state where the elevation on a dish is really low, plus we live in a damn forest. Anyways there is suppose to be a 5 to 10 year rule on installing a satellite dish. A contractor is not going to cancel a job, since they get paid per job. If a tech does cancel a job even if there is a line of sight, more is likely the customer was such a prick and wanted everything wall fished.
Well orbital I worked up there in Detroit as a dns installer for 6 years and though there are alot of tree's its no diferent than most cities. The elevation isnt all that low on the dish ( remember the signal doesnt come head on but from higher up at about 40 119 and 45 110 respectfully ) so if your having a problem picking up signal then maybe you should look at how your picking your mount location.
I served my time installing systems all over Detroit from the west side to the north to the south and the east, I have been in every neighborhood and have installed on every type of house including a crackhouse but a crackhouse is not common at all.
If your putting your life in jeaprody to do an install then your either an idiot or your bullshitting about what your doing, if you really are putting your life in danger then maybe its time you sat down with Rita and asked for a transfer out to the Ann Arbor office, atleast there you will only be installing on mostly country homes and are at mild risk of being pecked by chickens or licked by a cow.
Contractors do cancel jobs though not as much as they used to considering that the late GM and current IM cut down the amount of jobs they would farm out to them. Oh and the rule for an install is 15 years not 5 or 10, you can verify this by talking to Bj the trainer if he is still there and if not then your FSM or Troy the QA.
I served my time installing systems all over Detroit from the west side to the north to the south and the east, I have been in every neighborhood and have installed on every type of house including a crackhouse but a crackhouse is not common at all.
If your putting your life in jeaprody to do an install then your either an idiot or your bullshitting about what your doing, if you really are putting your life in danger then maybe its time you sat down with Rita and asked for a transfer out to the Ann Arbor office, atleast there you will only be installing on mostly country homes and are at mild risk of being pecked by chickens or licked by a cow.
Contractors do cancel jobs though not as much as they used to considering that the late GM and current IM cut down the amount of jobs they would farm out to them. Oh and the rule for an install is 15 years not 5 or 10, you can verify this by talking to Bj the trainer if he is still there and if not then your FSM or Troy the QA.
15 years. wow. I did not know that. The always told us we could get charged back up to a year for los issues.(I don't work for Dish, but I thought we were held to the same standards). So how can you really tell what those trees will do in 15 years? I know guys who were proud of how well they could 'thread the needle', as far as putting in dishes with a tight line of sight. (personally I don't do it, I hate the Spring because I know I'm going to spend the first month or so moving dishes that were installed in the winter). That's amazing. I'm betting they don't guarantee their equipment for that long. I'm surprised when a receiver lasts till the end of the commitment period. I know mine didnt.
I'm surprised when a receiver lasts till the end of the commitment period. I know mine didnt.
