Buying a Steel Building is a Relationship of Trust

When buying a steel building, its more than buying a pair of shoes, and much more than picking out a favorite color. I learned through the process of purchasing a steel building that there was more to it than a quick purchase. It becomes a relationship of trust. Good, bad, or indifference, once you begin the process, there is no turning back, unless you lose a sizeable amount of money. It’s the trust of the people you’re dealing with, if not, every decision becomes tainted with questionable distrust. I know, I’ve had several of those transactions and I will never do business with those companies again.

Married to an insurance salesman since 1960, I saw many salesmen come and go through the companies my husband worked for. Some salesmen were high-pressure, non-caring, greedy, cocky and dishonest shysters. They had a rebuttal for every excuse. They knew when to close, and when to ask for the signature. They were hired and groomed to sale. They became the face of the company, and in a sense they became the company. There were also salesmen who were sincere, kind and respectful. Those were the ones who built the company’s trust. This is what Bob represented to me. He became the face of General Steel.

When I decided to have a garage built, I virtually knew nothing. I had several people around me who became my go-to advisers. My husband gave me carte blanche and also the responsibility in making the wisest decisions. I asked a lot of questions and felt very confident that a steel building was the best way to go versus a wooden structure. We live in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado 7,600 feet elevation with four feet of snow any given winter. I knew the snow load and ground load was an enormous factor. I also knew there would be many hoops to jump through with regulations from our county’s building department.

I spent many hours looking at websites for steel buildings. There were a lot of impressive websites. I am sure many webmasters were paid big bucks to make the company look really good, but it was an abstract look at what I needed to know in reality. I needed to know who I was dealing with. I looked for the ratings and the top ten steel building companies. I looked for endorsements, also for prices and locations that would be familiar to our severe winters. I sent inquires to several steel building companies and this is when I began formulating in my mind the best company to go with. It was Bob that made up my mind to go with General Steel.

The process actually began in July with a trusted relationship with Bob, a sales representative with General Steel. He called me from my inquiry about a steel building. He e-mailed immediately a price structure on my design. He was there for every question. I was amazed that he was in the office until ten at night when there was something important we had to deal with. When my day was full from morning until night, he gave me his private number to call him at six in the morning or whenever I needed to ask him something.

Contrary to another company that was high in internet ranking and very impressive, which I could comfortably had gone with, but the salesman dropped the ball. He did not follow through until a month later. By that time I had decided on General Steel. There was another company whose salesman knew too much and didn’t like dealing with a woman. He wanted to talk with my husband. That was a big turn off to me. By that time, I knew a lot more about steel buildings than my husband did. He would just hand the phone to me.

When I saw a site with bad press against General Steel from a competing company, I could have easily walked away. At that time I had not invested any money yet. I e-mailed Bob immediately with my concerns. He put my mind at ease and clarified any negative information that I had about General Steel. He sent e-mails to show me exactly where the bad press was coming from. Bob did not high-pressure me at all. He stated facts, and was concerned about steel prices going up and time issues going into winter, but he patiently waited until I felt very confident about every step I needed to go through.

There have been a few glitches, as would be in any project. I reported some errors on the plans to Ronald my Project Coordinator. He responded immediately, but I was impressed with Bob. Even after the project had been passed to the coordinator, Bob called to make sure that I knew those things would be taken care of and reassured me that he was still on board with this project.

As to date, this project is still in motion. I am waiting for the foundation drawings from an engineer, and another trip to the County Building Department before I sign off on the contract. This will take another six to seven weeks until completion. No one has dragged their feet, it has all moved along in due process. Yes, this has been a very good experience and it has been through the relationship with Bob ** that all the workings have been tight and satisfying.