By Brett Hawkins [email protected]
Brett Hawkins is the Managing Director of GMT 24:7, the first Home Emergency Response Service in the Algarve, delivering a rapid response to any household emergency, 24:7.
Experience is invaluable in all walks of life, especially those areas where we ourselves lack experience.
However, when we lack experience in a certain area, all too often the primary focus reverts back to basics, to something that we can all measure with ease – price.
When reaching a purchasing decision based on price, sometimes it doesn’t present any problems, for example, a tin of Heinz Baked Beans. The product and quality are the same the world over, extremely consistent.
However, the price can often be different from one shop to another, with no justification; product, quality and quantity are identical.
Whereas, if we draw a parallel with airline flights, for example, Ryanair versus Monarch; flying with Ryanair will generally cost a lot less than flying with Monarch.
But, unlike a tin of beans, the product, quality and service are distinctly different. It could be argued that Monarch’s higher prices are justified by factors such as having a seat allocation, more leg room, more comfortable seats, better service, less rigorous, etc.
These two examples are fairly simplistic, everyday scenarios, whereby consumers are able to educate themselves and make reasonably informed decisions with a high level of success.
But, what happens as the complexity of the product or service increases?
When dealing with something more complex or specialised, it is always sound advice to consult an expert who is experienced in their field of work.
For example, when planning for future retirement, unless extremely knowledgeable in the area of financial instruments and tax planning, one would seek advice from a financial adviser, someone who has been in operation for many years, demonstrating knowledge and experience.
The price (or hourly rate) difference between a new financial adviser and one who has been around many years can be significant.
However, similarly to the Monarch example, this price differential is justified, supported by years of experience and resulting in a better quality of service and product, ultimately meeting the demands of the client in a more dynamic way.
You might pay more per hour, but you will pay for fewer hours!
Similar comparisons can be drawn across many of the goods and services which consumers purchase every day.
Indeed, in the area of general building and property maintenance there is a vast array of tradesmen out there, each with a varying level of knowledge and experience, which will ultimately be reflected in their pricing/hourly rate.
Due to the lack of general knowledge in the building trades, many people revert back to basics, to something that we can all measure with ease – price.
This is an easy trap to fall in to, but can often end up costing more money than if the more experienced/more expensive tradesman had been employed.
It can be argued that experience is always worth paying for. An experienced tradesman will not only diagnose a fault correctly and provide the solution more efficiently, but they will also be more innovative and creative when tending to general building projects, carrying them out in a speedy, dynamic manner, dipping into their depth of knowledge and applying it to each situation.
An inexperienced tradesman might charge a much lower hourly rate, but they might also take twice as long to find the fault, or even misdiagnose the fault all together, providing a temporary fix to a problem that will reoccur in the future, costing yet more money.
With over 15 years experience operating in the Algarve, GMT 24:7 have their own team of experienced tradesmen, providing a comprehensive range of general building services, specialising in all areas of the home including bathrooms, kitchens, property extensions, full restorations and all exterior works from pool construction to terracing. All workmanship is guaranteed.
3″>features
