Folks, lets face it, to a true professional house painter, each home is a unique job – a canvas with different shapes, angles and corners, cracks and crevices. The work is tedious and most people don’t realize the extent to which we go to ensure no angle, corner, bend or curve is left untouched. The home owner typically sees the colors they chose and never quite notice all the finishing touches. Few if any get up on a ladder to inspect the fascia board or the soffit for paint. Even fewer remember the 18 foot crack that we patched properly and painted so well it disappeared. However, every once in a while you get someone that takes the time to notice, and they actually write a letter to tell you about it. Below is one of many notes I get from clients of ours periodically. I will begin to share these with you over time… To protect people’s identity, I will remove last names but the gist of the message remains the same:
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To: paintbydesign@embarqmail.com
Sent: Friday, April 24, 2009 4:20:57 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern
Subject: Peter and Shelly (last name removed)
Patrick,
It has been about 6 months since you painted my house and I noticed something today that is worthy of me taking the time to tell you and your prospective customers. Please feel free to pass this along to anyone considering using your services. I will tell you about what happened at the end of this letter. First I want to tell future customers why I chose Paint by Design in the first place.
When I knew it was time to get my home painted, I got 4 different bids. Of these 4 bids, one of them was about 30% lower than the next lowest (Paint By Design and another company were the highest). I immediately threw out the lowest because the painter himself looked like he would make me regret choosing him. Very unprofessional, no concern for the fact that this is a major home expenditure, no proof of insurance, and most of all no description of the materials (paint) he was to use. The second lowest bid was using “builders” grade paint that I found out was the cheapest stuff around. THAT’S WHY I’M HAVING MY HOUSE REPAINTED AFTER ONLY 3 1/2 YEARS. No thanks.
The other company has a good reputation but their bid was difficult to dissect. (They sent out a sales rep. not the actual owner/supervisor, which means some of my concerns may not get passed along to the actual crew doing the work) After choosing all the options (yes options) they called extras, such as painting the soffit/fascia, the front and back porch, extra caulking (define extra please), and the upgraded paint. Their bid was actually about 10% higher than Paint by Design. But that alone is not why I chose Paint by Design!
Patrick Rojas the owner, took the time to walk and explain the process, doing things that were expected and things that were not expected. No little extras everything’s included. The only “option” was very good paint or permashield (or something like that) I chose the better of the 2, and I’m glad I did. (note the only difference in the price was the cost, his cost, of the paint. Without an extra markup.) His bid was the only bid that included proof of insurance and a detailed description of the processes and materials. AND, he did not require a big payment before he started the work. (see below about my neighbor who went with econo paint guy).
The Job went like this….smooth. After choosing colors with Patrick’s help. Day 1. Pressure washing, caulking (everything..and I mean everything. Even along the back and front porch where the concrete meets the house. Taping and completely covering all windows. Day 2. Primer. Day 3, finish coat, clean up and gone – note there were no paint cans or ladders etc. left in sight, outside my house while the job was in progress. Quality of work was (is) top of the line.
My neighbor (same model house as mine) scheduled his house painting about 2 weeks later with someone else, saving him about $1000. For a good 3 weeks there was scaffolding in the front of his house, It took them over a month to get the job done! (chuckle chuckle!) Not only did they paint his house, but they included a shrub painting (splattering) at no extra charge. (Landscapers call it “latex leaf spot”) Did I mention the broken gutter and branches on the palm when they were moving the scaffold? And the quality of the work doesn’t come close to that of Paint by Design.
I just wanted to say thanks for a Job well done. Today I was rinsing off my back porch and noticed the seal around the bottom was even and tight and there were no weeds coming out of the corners (like I had before). The product you used is great! The deck cleaned up wonderfully. I then got a wonderful surprise. (Keep in mind, it’s late in the afternoon.) I placed my hand on one of the south walls to check to see how hot it was. In the past this wall was very hot (to the point you would have to remove your hand after 5 seconds or so). It was warm, but not uncomfortably hot! Great! this stuff actually will help my house stay a little cooler! Bonus!
Pete (lastname removed)
Regency Hills
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Folks, that email made my day. I painted their house 6 months ago! For most people, too much time would have elapsed to even bother sending me a note. To my potential customers – that email defines who we are and what we love to do. That wasn’t a mistake. That is EXACTLY how this Clermont Residential Painter does business. Whether we are painting a 1400 sq ft home in Mineola, a Windermere 6000 sq ft home or a 95,000 sq ft Lake County commercial building. We take pride in our work because it’s not only seen by the owner but also by their neighbors, family, friends and most importantly, by my future potential customers.
If you’re even thinking about painting your home or commercial property in Windermere, Isleworth, Clermont, Winter Garden, Longwood, Altamonte Springs, Four Corners or South Lake County, DON’T DO IT until you complete our contact form or call 407-415-4316 for a free – no obligation estimate. It won’t cost you a thing for me to come out and give you a detailed estimate – just like Pete and Shelly and many other customers, you’ll be glad you did.
