{"id":952,"date":"2014-08-04T14:05:01","date_gmt":"2014-08-04T20:05:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/night-scenes.com\/?p=952"},"modified":"2014-08-04T14:05:01","modified_gmt":"2014-08-04T20:05:01","slug":"landscape-lighting-bids","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/night-scenes.com\/2014\/08\/04\/landscape-lighting-bids\/","title":{"rendered":"Austin Area Landscape Lighting Professionals Do Not Want To Give Bids"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cI\u2019m looking for bids to get some landscape lighting at my house,\u201d is the last thing I want to hear on the phone or see in an email.\u00a0 I suppose, as a possible client, you are probably shocked by that a little, right?\u00a0 Please give me a moment of your time to explain what I\u2019m talking about.\"Kingsland<\/a><\/p>\n

People are used to being able to call an electrician to give a bid to wire a room or their home.\u00a0 The electrician looks at the plans and can see what he will need for the job and can give a bid which includes all of the labor and materials because he has a clear definition of the work to be performed and the materials needed; it\u2019s all right there in the plans that were drawn up by the architect.\u00a0 The same scenario works for plumbers, painters, framers, and many other contractors.\u00a0 The plans tell them all they need to know.\u00a0 Two or three of those particular tradespeople asked to bid can use that plan, choose the products they will use, and meet the applicable codes.\u00a0 They might even get their materials from the same supply house.\u00a0 Everyone is working from the same plan so you, as the person hiring them, can compare apples to apples.\u00a0 You can also look at their reputation, certifications, years in business and so on to decide which company to use for your project.\u00a0 This is the normal \u201cbid\u201d process. You might go for the low bid company, or you may decide to hire someone who has more experience, or has a better reputation.\u00a0 They may cost more but it\u2019s probably a wiser choice.<\/p>\n

So, why won\u2019t I give a bid?\u00a0 What is different about a profession like mine that I can\u2019t give a bid for a project?<\/p>\n

The difference is a little like comparing a house painter to an artist.<\/p>\n

First, let\u2019s start out with the fact that there is no plan or schematic drawn for the landscape lighting.\u00a0 There is no design to tell me what fixtures I\u2019m supposed to use and where to put them. \u00a0I also have nothing to help me to know how long it will take to do the job.\u00a0 A house painter can look at the scope of the project \u2013 the number of walls and measurements to know how much paint will be needed and how long it will take. \u00a0But the artist? He needs an idea \u2013 inspiration to create the design first. So a landscape lighting plan has to be created, just as the architect crafted the plans that other contractors followed. Now you might say something like \u201cOK, so create the plan and give me a price<\/a>.\u201d\u00a0 At which point I would respond, \u201cCreating a plan takes time, training and experience; there will be a design fee for that service.\u201d\u00a0 Remember, the architect charged a fee to create that set of plans (design) for the other contractors.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s also pretty easy to realize that no three designers or artists are going to create exactly the same work, right?\u00a0 Then you have three different people inspired to design three unique concepts for the same property.\u00a0 One person may be a trained lighting designer well-educated about lighting and how it works to fill a space, while another may have no formal training in lighting at all.\u00a0 It\u2019s safe to say that the designs will be nothing alike between these providers.\u00a0 If the trained designer is using 50 high quality fixtures, while another guy may be using 20 or 30 lesser quality products, it\u2019s a sure bet that design is not going to be anywhere near the price of the 50-fixture design. It\u2019s also likely the end results will not look anything alike because the more astute designer, for example, may use a wash fixture where the untaught person places a \u201cbullet\u201d fixture or nothing at all.\u00a0 These two fixtures don\u2019t cost the same either; so of course, there is a price difference in the project.\u00a0 The experienced designer will have a more extensive portfolio of fixtures and techniques available to use.<\/p>\n

Hopefully you see where I\u2019m going with this.\u00a0 When it comes to starting from scratch, it\u2019s impossible to create a \u201cbid\u201d for an outdoor lighting system.\u00a0 Unless everyone who is providing the bid is working from the same plans, and using the same products, it just won\u2019t work.\u00a0 There is no way to liken two or three different designs – works of art – from various providers using assorted product lines and different fixture types and styles. The disparities are potentially too great for fair comparison.<\/p>\n

Now you know why I cringe when someone asks me for a bid, and why I just can\u2019t give one.\u00a0 We are always very happy to design an incredible outdoor lighting system, and give a quote for the installation and maintenance of that system. Heck, that\u2019s exactly what we do!\u00a0 Please contact us here<\/span><\/a> so we can discuss your project and develop a great landscape lighting design for your home.\u00a0 And yes, there will be a design fee for that service.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cI\u2019m looking for bids to get some landscape lighting at my house,\u201d is the last thing I want to hear on the phone or see in an email.\u00a0 I suppose, as a possible client, you are probably shocked by that a little, right?\u00a0 Please give me a moment of your time to explain what I\u2019m … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1458,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,1],"tags":[8,302,303,50],"class_list":["post-952","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog-posts","category-uncategorized","tag-austin-landscape-lighting","tag-landscape-lighting-bid","tag-outdoor-lighting-bid","tag-texas-outdoor-lighting"],"yoast_head":"\nAustin Area Landscape Lighting Professionals Do Not Want To Give Bids - 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