Six Common Tactics Contractors Use to Sell You Additional Services
Renovating or remodeling a home can be an expensive endeavor . Americans spend about $600 billion on renovations each year, and if you own a home, you know that even just maintaining it in good condition isn’t cheap. Any time you hire a contractor to repair, replace, or upgrade something in your home, you know your bank account is going to take a hit.
But for these contractors, your request for a renovation or remodel is also an opportunity to sell. That’s fair — they’re in business, after all, and “upselling” additional or improved materials or services is part of that business. But there’s a difference between a contractor who simply warns you of the benefits of a more expensive option, and a contractor who manipulates you into spending more on a more expensive option you don’t actually want or need. The next time a contractor comes to you for a renovation or remodel, look for these signs that they’re trying to sell you a higher price using questionable methods.
I ask for permission
When a contractor mentions an improvement or additional service he can provide that wasn’t in the original scope of work, he may stop and ask if he can explain the benefits. You may think this is just politeness, but it’s a way to manipulate you. When you let him continue, you’re less likely to interrupt or disagree because you’re ceding some of your authority.
Of course, you can still say no—that’s not mind control. But it gives the contractor a chance to finish his pitch and preemptively address common objections that you could use to end the pitch before it gets too far.
Focus on the benefits
Most additional suggestions from a contractor will provide you with a real benefit: For example, better materials will likely last longer, and newer appliances or an HVAC system will likely work more efficiently. There’s nothing wrong with a contractor suggesting something that will improve the comfort, safety, or enjoyment of your home.
But these upgrades usually cost more, and you probably started your renovation or remodel on a budget. To overcome any resistance to a higher price, contractors may focus on the benefits of an upsell, talking a lot about the improved experience, aesthetics, or utility of the upgrade while keeping quiet about the increased cost. They may even brush off your questions about the cost by implying that it’s not that much. By the time the cost increase shows up in a change order, addendum, or final labor bill, it’s too late to worry about it or complain. It’s critical to always accurately determine the cost of any change to your plans before agreeing to anything—and if your contractor isn’t specific about these costs or refuses to get a clear estimate up front, you know they’re pushing an unnecessary upsell.
Good/best/best
A common psychological trick used across a wide spectrum of sales is the “good-better-better” gambit. When presented with three options—a basic, no-frills option (“good”), an upgraded mid-priced option (“better”), and a more expensive, top-of-the-line option (“better”)—people often choose the middle, “best” option because it suddenly seems like a better deal. You feel like you’re saving money by not choosing “best,” but you’re still getting some extra value.
Contractors use this to present your current renovation or remodel plans as a “good” option — basic, basic. Then they offer a small upgrade and a “big” upgrade, convincing you that you chose the “best” option rather than splurging on the “best,” when in fact your original plan addressed your needs and both upgrades were probably overkill. For example, you might have been happy with new ceramic tile for the bathroom floor, but your contractor suggests natural stone (better) or even natural stone and underfloor heating (better). Suddenly your original choice seems cheap and the middle option seems like a reasonable upgrade.
Combinations
Another way to manipulate your perception in order to increase sales is to bundle multiple additional offers into a packaged offer. When you have too many options to choose from, you can become overwhelmed by indecision. As a result, presenting each potential additional offer separately can lead to increased resistance, and this feeling of being overwhelmed by choice often means that you will simply stick with the original plan. To avoid this, a contractor can bundle multiple additional offers into different combinations. This visually reduces the number of choices you have to make, and also hides the true cost of the additional offers as they are lumped together into the overall price.
FOMO
Fear of missing out (FOMO) is a classic manipulation tactic used by many people, including contractors. The upsell is presented to you as a rare opportunity that you would be foolish to pass up. One scenario might be leftover materials: they bought a lot of expensive materials for another project and didn’t use them all, so they’ll upgrade your project at a discount. Or they might point out that since you’ll have exposed walls and/or floors and ceilings, this is a rare opportunity to upgrade the wiring, plumbing, or install features like radiant flooring. The implication is that you’ll regret not doing it now while you had the chance. This may be true, but it’s also a way of presenting the upsell as a necessity.
Plain old fear
Be suspicious of a contractor who tries to push you into a complete replacement or upgrade after being called in for a simple repair. Sure, faulty appliances can be a sign of an imminent breakdown, but if you hire a contractor to do a repair and they come at you with harsh statements — like code violations , dangerous conditions, or emergencies that need to be addressed immediately (which they can certainly handle) — get a second opinion before making any decisions. If they refuse a second opinion, be extremely suspicious. If they have a fully developed proposal after only a short stay in your home, be extremely suspicious.