Pricing for moles

[dytkos 17,538]

Sorry to be a bit of a misery here, but seems to me we are on this forum setting rank beginers and dreamers into over night pesties by giving away every detail of the job drip by drip, i learnt the job the hard way over years and years, trial and error etc, but you could sift through previous posts on here and be armed with enough info to start tomorrow.

Now dont get me wrong, i have helped a lot of people setting up, who are genuine lads, BUT, there are a lot of numpties on here who arent ever going to make it, but will end up on rogue traders, and to be honest it will be some of our faults.

 

OK, i am ready for the flack, give it your best,

 

Regards MT.

Know where your coming from mate, "after I watched you and you caught those moles for me, I bought a few traps but i never caught any moles" Wonder why?

[micky 3,325]

£90 MIN FOR DOESTIC USUALY NO MORE THAN 3 VISITS, BIG GARDEN ORCHARD, PADOCK AT THE SIDE OF A HOUSE , MORE MONEY

 

Can you see that key between shift and tab on your keyboard? Give it a press before you start to type and you might be able to cast a haze over your idiocy.

It looks a straight forward reply to me mate,have you eaten a bad mole? or are you just being an arsehole?

[RatSnatcher 0]

£90 MIN FOR DOESTIC USUALY NO MORE THAN 3 VISITS, BIG GARDEN ORCHARD, PADOCK AT THE SIDE OF A HOUSE , MORE MONEY

 

Can you see that key between shift and tab on your keyboard? Give it a press before you start to type and you might be able to cast a haze over your idiocy.

It looks a straight forward reply to me mate,have you eaten a bad mole? or are you just being an arsehole?

 

 

Pam ayres lives

[TOMO 24,957]

£90 MIN FOR DOESTIC USUALY NO MORE THAN 3 VISITS, BIG GARDEN ORCHARD, PADOCK AT THE SIDE OF A HOUSE , MORE MONEY

 

Can you see that key between shift and tab on your keyboard? Give it a press before you start to type and you might be able to cast a haze over your idiocy.

 

 

there are no keys on my key board that have that written on. and please feel free to point out my idiocy.

[moxy 617]

£90 MIN FOR DOESTIC USUALY NO MORE THAN 3 VISITS, BIG GARDEN ORCHARD, PADOCK AT THE SIDE OF A HOUSE , MORE MONEY

 

Can you see that key between shift and tab on your keyboard? Give it a press before you start to type and you might be able to cast a haze over your idiocy.

 

 

£90 MIN FOR DOESTIC USUALY NO MORE THAN 3 VISITS, BIG GARDEN ORCHARD, PADOCK AT THE SIDE OF A HOUSE , MORE MONEY

 

Can you see that key between shift and tab on your keyboard? Give it a press before you start to type and you might be able to cast a haze over your idiocy.

It looks a straight forward reply to me mate,have you eaten a bad mole? or are you just being an arsehole?

I think its a combination of mole and dodgy fish narcotics, That will do it everytime, LOL

[snareman 3]

Sorry to be a bit of a misery here, but seems to me we are on this forum setting rank beginers and dreamers into over night pesties by giving away every detail of the job drip by drip, i learnt the job the hard way over years and years, trial and error etc, but you could sift through previous posts on here and be armed with enough info to start tomorrow.

Now dont get me wrong, i have helped a lot of people setting up, who are genuine lads, BUT, there are a lot of numpties on here who arent ever going to make it, but will end up on rogue traders, and to be honest it will be some of our faults.

 

OK, i am ready for the flack, give it your best,

 

Regards MT.

its the same with the snaring M.T. the info up on this site can bring them up to frying speed very quickly, but they don,t have the years of real grounding behind them, the miles, the trial and error , thunder and lightning, rain running out your ass, sleet, frost , freezing hands , etc. we have had them on here before , a days course and they are instant experts , but for all the numpties there are , the genuine ones keep at as they are keen to learn. and the more people who learn to do it properly and more humanely the better.

[mole trapper 1,646]

its the same with the snaring M.T. the info up on this site can bring them up to frying speed very quickly, but they don,t have the years of real grounding behind them, the miles, the trial and error , thunder and lightning, rain running out your ass, sleet, frost , freezing hands , etc. we have had them on here before , a days course and they are instant experts , but for all the numpties there are , the genuine ones keep at as they are keen to learn. and the more people who learn to do it properly and more humanely the better.

Know what you are saying , i dont have a problem helping people out with the physical side of the job,but when you start getting threads asking you to break down your pricing structure, where to buy specialist pest control products etc, these people are just chancers feeding off our backs.

I would be the first person to admit that the sort of fantastic advice you so freely give has helped many people myself included, Hopefully the sort of help you give will keep a much underated and often knocked method of control alive and with luck growth of use, albeit responsably. This is what worries me, there are some real pratts on here, i make no apoligies for using that word, they are on here everytime something new is discussed wanting to get the necessary apparatus to go out and "have a go at it", no consideration for the suffering to their intended target or harm /miscredit it will do to those of us that use these methods of control for a living.

People will argue that is the way we learn, well this was not the case a few years ago before this form of media was available, no i am not being a dinasour, i just worry that no good will come of it.

Ba humbug, Regards to all the pro,s MT.

[trader 0]

£90 MIN FOR DOESTIC USUALY NO MORE THAN 3 VISITS, BIG GARDEN ORCHARD, PADOCK AT THE SIDE OF A HOUSE , MORE MONEY

 

Can you see that key between shift and tab on your keyboard? Give it a press before you start to type and you might be able to cast a haze over your idiocy.

for someone whom has put up a post trying to find out who to build a ferrets sleeping compartment you seem to be above your station, read learn and you may rise to the level of just above numpty. this was a straight forward reply and helpful to a lot of people apart from you or so it seems

[kestrel 0]

I catch a few moles to help some farmers out, but to be honest I wish I never offered , its more of a chore.... theres a lot easier ways to make money but if you like moleing go for it.....

 

I do remember, up until a few years ago if you were a mole catcher the only work you would be offered was where the Strycnine lads didn't want to go or had failed to clear. Now all of a sudden they're knocking the door down to get you to help. So i'm afraid when it comes to pricing agricultural jobs i dont treat them any different than any domestic job now.

[ChrisJones 7,973]

I can see both sides to this argument.

 

I can understand totally why people wouldn't want to give away the secrets of their trade and I can also see why a common sense price structure allows people to give a reasonable account of their time.

 

Like most people here I started off as a sportsmen. As my experience grew I began to learn new methods. Many learned, for free, by those keen to pass on their knowledge. Many paid for out of my own pocket. Enough time has passed for me to make a living out of it.

 

Do I worry about people trying to come in and undercut me? No. I charge a fair price for a fair job. If people don't want to pay that price then I don't do the job. I'm not here to haggle, I'm here to make a living. Do I lose work? Sure I do but I also get work from referrals and from people who aren't happy with the free services of the local authority and of the hobbyist. Some referrals come from people who've paid for cheaper professionals and aren't happy with the level of service. I charge a fair price. I don't undercut, just to get work, and I don't over inflate because I'm on sales targets.

 

Hobbyists are in it for permission and sport. It's in their interests to honour breeding seasons so they can visit year after year and control numbers. This is popular with farmers as they usually have people falling over to work for free and providing they can keep crop/livestock damage to an acceptable loss it works very well.

 

Professionals make their living out of it. They're unwilling to divulge their secrets as it's this edge that provides their income and they're selling their expertise in their chosen field. Be it moles, rabbits, rats, cockroaches , etc...

 

Free service providers tend to drive the prices down. The local authorities provide free rodent control in most cases. This makes tendering for such work unprofitable and most firms and traders avoid it because it's not worth the hassle and no money is to be made. This also applies to alot of rural work. This doesn't mean I'm any better or worse, because I charge for my time, but I must be doing something right to get the referrals and the repeat business.

 

So what do we lose by divulging what we charge? Not alot. We're selling our expertise. We know what we're worth and charge accordingly, if someone wants to undercut that then let them. If you can't make money on the job then let someone else make the loss for you. As has been pointed out costs of fuel, and such, are rising all the time. If you make your living at this game then the second you're not making money, the job isn't worth doing. Many national pest control firms are running at a substantial loss in their endless search for business and turnover.

 

My point?

 

Someone once said "You Get What You Pay For" and as long as there are numpties and idiots, and the system allows the numpties and idiots to trade, then I'll never be out of work.

 

It doesn't matter whether you charge £1 a mole or £90 a mole, if you're shit you won't be at it for long.

 

Will I tell you how much I charge?

 

No. If someone is prepared to take the time to track me down and ask me in person I'll give you a full run down of my price list. I'm not doing it on an open forum, simply because it's full of the terminally lazy who want to get rich overnight by reading a message board.

 

Besides... Matt knows how much I charge!

[aktonvermincontrol 0]

I can see both sides to this argument.

 

I can understand totally why people wouldn't want to give away the secrets of their trade and I can also see why a common sense price structure allows people to give a reasonable account of their time.

 

Like most people here I started off as a sportsmen. As my experience grew I began to learn new methods. Many learned, for free, by those keen to pass on their knowledge. Many paid for out of my own pocket. Enough time has passed for me to make a living out of it.

 

Do I worry about people trying to come in and undercut me? No. I charge a fair price for a fair job. If people don't want to pay that price then I don't do the job. I'm not here to haggle, I'm here to make a living. Do I lose work? Sure I do but I also get work from referrals and from people who aren't happy with the free services of the local authority and of the hobbyist. Some referrals come from people who've paid for cheaper professionals and aren't happy with the level of service. I charge a fair price. I don't undercut, just to get work, and I don't over inflate because I'm on sales targets.

 

Hobbyists are in it for permission and sport. It's in their interests to honour breeding seasons so they can visit year after year and control numbers. This is popular with farmers as they usually have people falling over to work for free and providing they can keep crop/livestock damage to an acceptable loss it works very well.

 

Professionals make their living out of it. They're unwilling to divulge their secrets as it's this edge that provides their income and they're selling their expertise in their chosen field. Be it moles, rabbits, rats, cockroaches , etc...

 

Free service providers tend to drive the prices down. The local authorities provide free rodent control in most cases. This makes tendering for such work unprofitable and most firms and traders avoid it because it's not worth the hassle and no money is to be made. This also applies to alot of rural work. This doesn't mean I'm any better or worse, because I charge for my time, but I must be doing something right to get the referrals and the repeat business.

 

So what do we lose by divulging what we charge? Not alot. We're selling our expertise. We know what we're worth and charge accordingly, if someone wants to undercut that then let them. If you can't make money on the job then let someone else make the loss for you. As has been pointed out costs of fuel, and such, are rising all the time. If you make your living at this game then the second you're not making money, the job isn't worth doing. Many national pest control firms are running at a substantial loss in their endless search for business and turnover.

 

My point?

 

Someone once said "You Get What You Pay For" and as long as there are numpties and idiots, and the system allows the numpties and idiots to trade, then I'll never be out of work.

 

It doesn't matter whether you charge £1 a mole or £90 a mole, if you're shit you won't be at it for long.

 

Will I tell you how much I charge?

 

No. If someone is prepared to take the time to track me down and ask me in person I'll give you a full run down of my price list. I'm not doing it on an open forum, simply because it's full of the terminally lazy who want to get rich overnight by reading a message board.

 

Besides... Matt knows how much I charge!

 

 

Quite right I agree in principle with what you are saying,BUT we all had to start somewhere,so let me just state,that most of the hunting lads come from Council housing estates in big cities,NOT country folk or gamekeepers sons,

so who is going to teach our future generation the traditional skills and How do they know: these simple bits of info

1. what equipment to use,

2. were to use it

3.how to set it properly

3.type of trap to use

 

WE ALL HAVE TO START SOMEWHERE

 

If someone shows a keen interest in hunting trapping,snaring shooting ferreting netting etc...it is down to us all to show each other our trade and keep this tradition going.

I was shown trapping netting and netmaking by an old gypsey friend he was a pro poacher,plus he had the time to show me a council estate lad the traditional ways of catching game and not being caught.

 

so lads please keep the tradition going its in our BLOOD.

[ChrisJones 7,973]

Totally agree with the above. But like I said "If someone is prepared to take the time to track me down and ask me in person I'll give you a full run down of my price list. I'm not doing it on an open forum, simply because it's full of the terminally lazy who want to get rich overnight by reading a message board."

 

I won't ever post details of my trade here. Ever. Tips yes. Spill my guts never.

 

If someone was keen enough to track me down, youngsters, new starters, etc then they're welcome to spend as much time as they want with me. Without trying to sound arrogant, last November I was able to work with a guy from the Seychelles. He'd flown over to England to get his biology degree and works for their Environmental ministry. They're having a big problem with Rattus norvegicus, and are trying to control it as it's causing massive agricultural damage. Very long story short he spent nearly 4 months with me and taught him as much as I could. He taught me alot too.

 

I agree. The flow of information must be kept up. But I'll be f****d if I'm going to seek out people to tell it to. They have to come to me. That's how it is. I'll teach my kids but anyone else will have to do a bit of work. I certainly won't divulge years of experience to someone, on a forum. I had to graft to build up my business. Even my teachers and mentors made me work for it. I know I'm not alone either.

[Rolfe 2]

I agree with all Chris has said........and he is quite right about giving away too many trade secrets.......!

I will advise anyone on certain aspects of mole trapping........(if i can see what they are doing wrong) and will advise on the grounds of being more humane in their method of trap setting...... if it is resulting in foul catches. What i will never devulge are some of the tricks of the trade that i use ...... that makes me more successful than my competitors. I have just been and cleared 4 football pitches of moles........after a so called "Moleman" had plied his trade. I removed a further 14 moles after this individual had said he had cleared them all...........and charged the client a hefty fee for doing so. Like Chris........I learned my trade the hard way.......and i'll be dammned if i am going to impart my hard won knowledge and expertise on someone who is trying to shortcut the learning process..........and out to make a quick buck at my expense.

 

Rolfe.

[ChrisJones 7,973]

 

Moral of this story is that if you want to be good at the job get off your arse, turn the computer off, and go out and learn!

[dytkos 17,538]

 

Moral of this story is that if you want to be good at the job get off your arse, turn the computer off, and go out and learn!

Again, start amateur, if your any good go pro.

But it's an art not just a job. That's why there are so many few good pros. See the posts on this site for confirmation.