How to Deal with Low-Ballers in Your Area

Gage Jaeger
Aug 20
3 min read

It’s easy to roll your eyes at low-ballers. But your customer doesn’t know any better yet.

If you’ve been in this game more than five minutes, you’ve seen it: Some guy on Craigslist offering closed-cell for $0.30 a board foot. No license. No insurance. No clue.

They show up in a beat-up rig with mystery foam, spray as fast as they can, and vanish before the first callback rolls in. A few weeks later, you’re the one getting the calls: “Hey, your price is almost double this other guy’s. Can you match it?”

Sound familiar?

You’re not alone—and you’re not stuck. Here’s how to handle it without trashing your margins (or your sanity).

First: Know What You’re Dealing With

There’s a few types of these guys. Sometimes it’s:

A part-timer with a used rig trying to make quick cash
A former crew guy who thinks he can run a business
Or a roving “foam gypsy” who underbids a few jobs and ghosts

They usually don’t prep. Don’t pass code. Don’t carry insurance. And they definitely don’t spray to thickness or follow manufacturer specs.

The price looks great—until you realize it doesn’t include yield buffer, set waste, proper substrate bonding, or warranty support. And when it pulls away from the wall in six months? You know who doesn’t get called back to fix it: them.

Don’t Try to Beat Them at Their Own Game

You will never be cheaper than a guy who doesn’t care if he goes broke. So don’t play that game.

The minute you slash your price to match theirs, you’re not “being competitive”—you’re joining the race to zero. And they’ll always be willing to go lower, because they’re not building a real business.

If you’ve got insurance, training, real materials, and accountability—you need to price like it.

Show the Difference (Without Sounding Like a Jerk)

It’s easy to roll your eyes at low-ballers. But your customer doesn’t know any better yet.

So instead of trashing the other guy, explain why your number is what it is:

“We don’t just spray and go. We prep right. We spray to proper depth. We work clean. We follow code, and we’re insured if anything goes sideways. That’s baked into the price.”

Or:

“If the other guy quoted $4,200 and I’m at $7,800, the question isn’t just the price — it’s what’s actually included. One is a full, code-compliant install with proper prep, proper depth, and a warranty. The other might be a guy spraying mystery foam with no insurance and no cleanup. That’s not the same job.”

Say it straight. Be respectful. Let your work speak for itself and walk if they still don’t get it.

Break Down the Numbers

When someone hits you with “the other guy is cheaper,” don’t just defend your price—show your price.

Lay out:

Board footage
Thickness
Areas covered
Product being used
How many sets it’ll take
What kind of prep and masking are included
Whether the price includes labor, substrate adjustment, cleanup, etc.

The low-baller’s quote says “$.80/sqft for closed-cell". Yours says: “Here’s exactly what I’m giving you.”

That’s the difference. And plenty of people will pay for that difference—especially if they’ve been burned before.

Say No When You Need To

This is the part most guys struggle with—especially early on.

You want to land jobs. You hate watching them go to someone who clearly doesn’t know what they’re doing.

But sometimes, the best thing you can do is pass.

If a customer is laser-focused on price and ignoring everything else? That’s not your customer.

Let someone else deal with the callbacks and warranty fights. You’ve got better jobs ahead.

Build What They Can’t

Here’s the truth: those low-ballers don’t last.

They break down. They spray off-ratio. They disappear. And they don’t get called back.

You want to build the kind of business they can’t touch:

Solid systems
Repeat customers
Builders who trust you
Inspectors who pass you without a second glance
Clients who say “worth every penny” instead of “should’ve gone with someone cheaper”

They chase quick cash.You build something that lasts.

Final Word

Low-ballers are part of the game. You’re not going to get rid of them.

But you don’t have to match them.You have to outwork them. Out-communicate them. Outlast them.

Because when their foam starts curling, when their phones stop ringing, and when those homeowners realize what they actually paid for? You’re the one they’ll call.

And that’s why your number doesn’t need to be lower. It just needs to be right.