Use local tradesmen when possible - but be prepared to wait

I am a firm believer in supporting the community, be it the village, town or general area.
Which is why we use local tradespeople whenever possible. Hedge cutting – local. Plumber – local. Electrician – local. Painter and decorator – local.
The standard of work has, so far, been good but their customer relations leave a lot to be desired.
Example one. Send a text in the autumn to the man who has cut our hedges for many years saying we’d like him in soon. No response to the text until a few months later when said man appears by the kitchen window one evening. Quite a shock to have someone banging on your window when it’s dark outside while you are concentrating on your Sudoku.
He still can’t give us a date for the work
but he “will get round to us” some time. Another month or two passes without any communication until 7.30 one February morning we are woken by the gentle sound of – a petrol hedge cutter.
Example two. We call the plumber we have used for getting on for 20 years to fix a tap for us. No response so leave a message. He turns up, unannounced and with no previous communication, a few weeks later to fix the tap. SWMBO asks if he could also sort an issue in the utility room. He nods sagely but says he can’t do it now.
As I show him out he says he’ll be back “Friday evening” to do the job – this was on a Wednesday. Friday comes – no plumber. Whole of the following week. No plumber. Then almost two weeks after he said he would be round he appears. No apologies. No nothing.
Is it just me do some of these tradespeople just take us for granted? Answers on a postcard please.