Alot of Fishes Yet No Fish

[jemmy]

Just started posting to FB and Craigslist. I have had a lot of people that have seemed serious about purchasing deck boards and sawing up logs, and yet no sales. Is this normal? Any strategies? Just a young buck trying to make some form of a business. Trailer decking is awesome because its immediate pay out with out the massive investment into drying, planing, sanding etc. From my research I am right at the market norm for oak/locust decking 2-3$/bdft depending on the thickness and length. Any information/discussion would be useful, thank you! (btw if anyone is following my threads, I adjusted my rate for cutting the wood from 1$/bdft down to .40/bdft... still learning alot)

[Busysawyer]

We are a new business as well. One thing I've noticed is sometimes it takes a few weeks for someone to go through with a plan. I might quote something to someone and three weeks later they finally get around to stopping through.  Keep at it and business should come. It took a couple months for word to get around that there was a new mill in the area but now I cut a couple customers logs every week. I haven't made much on milling other peoples logs because it's all small jobs
 100 bucks here 200 there. I make a lot more selling green slabs but I enjoy cutting logs for people so I figure I'll keep doing it for now. If you are feeling ambitious go around the area and talk to companies that might need trailer decking. I tried that but everyone I talked to already had a guy that would do it cheaper than I would. 

[warren46]

You may want to verify your price point.  Are you finding that green white oak planks are getting $2.00 per board foot in your area?  Make sure you are not comparing to dried planks when setting your price.

[PAmizerman]

There are a lot of tire kickers out there.
I get over a dozen inquiries every week.
But only pick up one or two jobs a week.
Some days I won't have any customers and other days I have 5 or 6. It is especially bad with Facebook. People just love to hit the "is this available?" Button
But eventually there will be a sale and hey it's free advertising so....

I've learned to start setting times and not just tell people ya I'll be there. cause I've been having a lot of no shows. When the time comes the door gets locked and I leave.
I had two no shows on Saturday. But at 4:00 I was gone. I don't know if they ever came or not.

Like busysawyer said some people will come back around weeks later.

[charles mann]

Had a similar incident for tree removal. I posted my schedule of when im at work and when id be able to take down trees. 
I get a text at midnight their time, luckily i was still at work, finishing up paperwork for the nights maintenance. He asked how much i would charge and i said free (especially since i had to be in the area already to take out another pecan and do some side maint). I asked at the first reply back to him, and several times during the txt tag, when did the trees need to be taken down. 
After bout 20 min of txt tag, i asked again, but caps "when", then he tells me nlt 1 oct, which is 1 day prior to my flight back hm and asked him did he read my entire post or just the topic. I didnt hear back from him after that. 

[PAmizerman]

That's another thing. People don't read descriptions. I have bundles of firewood posted and in the title in all caps I have READ DESCRIPTION. 

I still get messages with questions that are clearly in the description.

I will not load bundles on short bed trucks. And I load them by machine.

I had a couple that was coming for firewood last week. They were scheduled to come at 2:00. At 2:00 a truck pulls into the yard and I thought well that's not them I wonder what this customer wants?
I walk over and he says I'm here for the firewood. I said um no. did you even  read my description? He had a short bed pickup with a cap on it. I told him I would sell him precuts. He wanted slabs to use for siding. He then wanted me to dig down bundles for him to pick through. I said sure if you pay me by the hour for the time it takes. He said no.
That was the first customer I sent back home empty. He was not happy cause he drove an hour to get to me but hay read the description people.

[SawyerTed]

It takes time and work to get the word out.  You've got to get out and make contacts, lots of them.  For every 25 contacts you might get one customer to begin with. 

I've visited lots of local businesses and shared what I'm doing and posted business cards on their bulletin boards.  I've gotten good results.  Anytime I have a chance I'm giving out business cards to friends, acquaintances and strangers who might have an interest.  Anytime I meet a contractor, handyman, plumber, electrician or other trades person, I give them a card.  I'm getting work through a couple of tree services and a couple of grading contractors who refer me to their customers.  Even the local lumber yard refers an occasional customer.

You can't stay at the job site sawing and expect people to show up wanting to buy or hire a sawyer.  It is a catch 22 - if you aren't sawing you aren't making money but if you don't have customers you aren't sawing.  

[YellowHammer]

Marketing is one of the things people like the least.  You have to turn the key on the mill to OFF and turn the key to your truck to ON and start meeting with people.  When I started, I drove to every single place that used wood in town, any kind of wood, asked what they needed, how much they were paying and what they would like to pay.  I would listen to them, hand them a card and drive some more.  Pretty much everybody who has a business needs some kind of wood.  Think out of the box.  One of the best contacts I made initially was a concrete guy who was tired of paying high dollar for wood he used for forms.  He pours a lot of concrete and uses up a lot of wood.  He liked it cut long and thin so it would bend.  

Around here, seems everybody sells tomato stakes, $1 apiece.  It's good business although seasonal.  I know one guy who mills wooden wheel chocks for the small planes at the local airport.    

Hook your mill up behind your truck and park at the local Home Depot or Walmart and hang out, passing out business cards.  I know one guy who rented a slip at Uncle Bob's Self Storage and parked his mill there when he wasn't using it.  He put a big sign with his phone number on the mill that could seen from the road.  Just so happens that Unckle Bob's is basically on the main drag and literally a couple hundred thousand vehicles pass by it every workday.  He got a lot of business, (he retired this year) and still today people call it Uncle Bob's Mill.  Anyways, don't get discouraged and don't worry, but get out and sell yourself in person.  

[jemmy]

These are some solid ideas, I have a list going off phone calls and stops that need to be made. I have a few cabinet makers I need to stop and talk with. I am also going to set up a big sign soon, I have a few designs in mind. Even though I am from a bigger city, people seem to notice and remember a fare bit. I am glad that I am not crazy, I had a lot of inquirers for decking that seemed serious, but no bites. From my research it does appear that my pricing is on point. I know this will take time, and I will make a lot of mistakes in the learning curve of running a mill as a business. Thanks for all the help. Yellow hammer that is a hilarious story, and yet a genius idea! haha 

[Smithkp]

Be careful what you wish for. When they come, they come with a lot of aggravation in tow.

All businesses start slow.
Do your part and get business cards out in the right hands/places.
Facebook and Craigslist is free advertising.
Make a Facebook page for your business and start sharing it.
Don't beat the first couple customers over the head and take care of the ones who can help you out. For example, guy shows up and says he built his own CNC router and looking for wood. You better cut him a break because those guys are all connected and know each other. Same with wood turners, it is like a cult. They will flat out get your name out if they are happy.
I also have a consignment/craft store that supports kids with autism come by wanting two red oak slabs, she got 3 for the price of 2 and introduced me to the wood turners club. I also can sell my tables in her store.

I also did something else this week that paid off. I cut a white oak log into every dimension I would need for a table, 4x4's and all. I stickered the material and put ratchet straps on the stack with the intent on moving it around back for myself to build this winter. I sold "kit" Saturday afternoon for 800.00.

[jemmy]

I am definitely up for cutting people a deal, especially if they are going to be constantly buying large amounts of material. I definitely need to cover my butt as well. I am never apposed to charity either, my life plan is to give back. I believe that having a successful business can be a big part of allowing me to give much more. Today I had a good "initial meeting" with a cabinet maker about supplying him with lumber. He is looking for slabbed as wide as possible 2" thick maple to get started. Thankfully I have a large maple ready to go. He doesn't need it processed or dried, he said lets start there. After further prodding and joking (he has known my family practically my whole life) I got him to open up about his dimensional lumber need for his cabinetry. He has problems sourcing quality boards for a decent price. I have around 3,000 bdft of solid red oak that I can get into production off of my circle mill, and needs cut up. I think he just needs it kilned dried, they have an edger and obviously a really good planer that I believe he wouldn't mind using. Just need to make it worth his time, by creating a solid product for an affordable rate. I think next time I go and talk with him I will work out a price list, and have some example slabs and maybe some green dimensional. Got a triple axle, might just haul over a couple of logs sliced up  Got a little bit of work left on my chainsaw mill, but it just needs a few good nights and it should be ready for its test flights, Its a 84" cannon 090 slabber, I will end up starting a thread on it, just want to have some solid content, same goes for my circle mill haha. Any other product ideas? I like cookies a lot! Just need to build a rig for my circle mill, if its even possible (gotta research threads). 

[SawyerTed]

Jemmy, you are on to a very important idea in working with your cabinet maker friend.  Building mutually beneficial relationships between businesses is important.  Just an example might be he needs maple that you can supply, you need to use his planer for some red oak for another customer.  You deliver the maple and get to use his planer.  

I've learned a little extra goes a very long way with guys like that.  Picking up an extra tape measure, pair of gloves or dropping by with some other gesture of kindness will cement the relationship.   Just make sure both of you benefit from the business transaction.

So when you go back with the price list, carry something extra.  Even a box of lumber crayons or pencils earn big points.  Sounds silly but I have a Ford 800 winch truck just because I carried a $15 Boston butt to a business affiliate.

[Bruno of NH]

Marketing is one of the things I enjoy about about the sawmill business .
I have friends tell me you will never sell that.I tell them watch me🙂
If you work at it there is a market to sell most every thing.