[bobsupra]

I'm building a new house in Loudoun County, Northern Virginia and at the stage for serious discussions with Dish Installers. I've talked to three different ones and they never call back with a detailed offer. I'll be needing set-ups for four receivers (one HD) and a PVR. I also may want SAT internet as DSL not available. I will be a new subscriber.

Sounds like a dream for a local installer, but they never call back. Begining to think I need a bath or something.

Really want to deal with a local person and not some 800 number. Any suggestions?

bob

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

Try calling them early in the morning or just befor 5pm, thats when most installers are in their office.

 

[Nick]

Are you pre-wiring your house???

 

[bobsupra]

The house is pre-wired with RG6 (two each) to the four outlets and four RG6 cables in the attic for SAT connection to the switching box.

The installers take the phone call, and when I give them my needs, they say they'll call back. They don't.

bob

 

[Nick]

I worry about doing business with people that don't return calls. Try other sat companies and make sure you are speaking with the owner/manager.

My son had multi-cable pre-wired in his new home He was fortunate to get a sat guy who did a turnkey job, wiring the CAT5/RJ-45 runs as well.

Good Luck.

 

[gcutler]

It is shocking how often that happens. In a downturned economy like we have, you figure that service might get better, but I guess DBS install is still one of the profitable and non-stagnating areas.

As for non-returned calls. I will give them 2 chances. My 3rd call is to tell them that they will never get my business (or my friend's for anything ever again). They probably don't care, but It makes me feel good to tell them off.

 

[Richard King]

That problem is standard proceedure here in Florida. I just had to have a new well installed at my other (non satellite) business (a ministorage business) and called 7 different companies. Six of the seven said they would get back to me to set a time to meet at the site. One set an appointment on the spot. The six never got back to me, the 7th showed up on time ready to quote the job. Guess who got the work. The same thing happened when I was going to have the roofs (eight buildings about $60K worth of work) replaced. I sent out 30 + letters requesting proposals. Three got back to me and met me on the site. One of them, of course, got the job and he is now a customer storing goods at the facility.

 

[Guest]

A couple of questions:
1) Where did you get the names and numbers of the installers that you contacted? From the Yellow pages? I'm typically second or third largest Yellow Pages advertiser in your market (metro Washington), but I don't bother with residential installation any more because there isn't enough profit in those jobs to carry my advertising overhead, and I suspect that the other major satellite and antenna service advertisers in your market have more overhead than I do. If I wanted a residential Dish network system with installation, I'd call their 800 number and enter my zip code and they'd furnish me with some local phone numbers. At least, that's how it used to work.

2) Did you make it clear that you would be buying the receivers from them? If not, and with your house prewired, then there won't be enough profit in any installation to make it worth the responsibility of standing behind it if necessary. It sounds to me like you need a couple of hours work. Most local installers don't need to drive out to the boonies to pick up such a small job, and if you want someone to make two trips, one to bid it and one to do it, I could see why the job might not seem that appealing.

Independent and faceless installers don't have any tail service responsibility. Companies in the phonebook do, but they can't stand behind installations for the same prices that internet system sellers and local independent installers charge.

There are very few residential customers who are willing to pay appreciably more for an installation performed by a substantial company, and there is nothihg wrong with that. DBS satellite equipment really is "plug-and-play". I can't in good conscience tell a customer that he will be better off paying me two or three hundred dollars more that he would pay an independent contractor because nine times out of ten, the independent contractor's installation will work perfectly.


Every day, I refer a few residential installations out to local installers. If you find a good deal on the internet for the hardware, drop me an E-mail and I'll give you some phone numbers of local installers who should have no trouble installing your system promptly.

 

[bobsupra]

AntAltMike

As you seem not to be registered, I can't e-mail for additional information. However, to answer your questions:

Found one installer in the yellow pages, one via an ad in a local newspaper and one from Dish's data base of local installers.

As to making it "profitable", I told all three that I'd be buying or renting the equiptment from them...three standard receivers, one HDTV receiver and one PVR. I guess that's not enough profit for them.

Any help you can provide would be helpful. PM me if you can.

bob

 

[Guest]

What kind of internet prices can you find for the package of three receivers, HDTV and PVR as a self-install versus with an installation? If the difference is large, then it is worth contracting out the installation directly, but if the difference is small, then you'd be ahead of the game taking your chances with whomever shows up to install the equipment. Then, for an additional hundred bucks or so, you could have someone come out and undo a mess, if the arranged installation is in some way defective

If some internet retailer will sell them to you under those terms more favorably than if their sale included an installation, give me a call and I'll connect you with a local installer with a track record, so you can figure out if its cheaper to do it by paying an installer separately. I'm willing to bet, however, that it will be cheaper for you to take your chances with the subsidized installation by the theretofore unknown installer.

I don't have any local contacts for independent local Echostar dealers who could both sell you the equipment and install it. The only ones I used to give referrals to were not very reliable so all I do now is advise people to the hardware cheap on the internet, and then I direct them to a local installer if they are dissatisfied with the installation terms they have been offered. The markup and commissions on Dish network products is just too small for many of the more reputable installation companies to bother with, so most are indifferent to even returning calls, since the caller is a shopper who likely has already had a lower price offered to him elsewhere.

My phone number is in your Yellow Pages under Antenna Alternatives. Once you have gathered enough hardware price information, you can give me a call and I'll try to connect you with an installer.

 

[bobsupra]

AntAltMike

Thanks, and I will be calling for the referral.

bob

 

[Guest]

bobsupra Mike from Digital Revolution.

Sorry to here about your plight (but not surprised).

Email me at [email protected] and I'll see what I can do for you.