Not sure why all the WOW's.
• Know your overhead and what you "NEED" to charge
• Know the value (quality) of your product
• Compare your prices to local competitors to see what prices customers will be getting quoted from your competitors.
I don't see why all the gasps.
These two points totally contradict what you say down here.
People lie if they say they don't know or don't care what their competitors charge if it's of any quality because such competition is defined as just that..."Competition".
YES I've come down on my price a little to beat a competitor so that I would get the large job that would lead to more jobs in the future. I was only able to do that because I knew what they were charging. They do the same quality work as we do...so YES they are a competitor and YES people call around to price high ticket items if they are intelligent. YES it is important to know what they are charging.
It's a common sense, elementary business practice.
Really, so if your competition is getting $2,000 more for the same jobs ...you don't care what they are charging? How is that smart business?
Of course if they were charging $500 it wouldn't influence you...because you would already have paid attention to the 1st 2 bullet points in my comment. But once I DO know their price and if I CAN come down a little to get a job that will pay, I have that option. NOT possible if you don't know what they are charging though is it?
I didn't say to price match what the others are doing or charge per sq.ft.
Read it again. Those objections are part of the 3 bullet points. My point was that it's foolish NOT knowing what your competition is doing around you. It can't hurt you, it can only help you.
I still haven't heard a good reason NOT to know how your competition prices.
Looks like you pretty much agree with me and just misunderstood what I said.
I never said to base pricing or business model on your competition. Re-read the first 2 points below.
• Know your overhead and what you "NEED" to charge
• Know the value (quality) of your product
• Compare your prices to local competitors to see what prices customers will be getting quoted from your competitors.
Sure, if someone comes in and says your price was $2,500 and so and so's is $250.00 less, I'll probably match it and maybe go 10% more, but only if I see some potential and a need to do it. [/QUOTE]
Exactly what my 3rd point above is regarding.[/QUOTE]
You're saying you need to know what they [
your competition] are charging in order to underbid them. You say one thing, but promote/bulletize something else. Perhaps in your mind it's the same, but out here, it sounds like you're dependent on knowing what
THEY are charging in order to be competitive. However, then you go on to say, if someone is way higher than you..... you need to raise your prices so you don't leave money on the table.... just so long as you don't go over their quote
So, what's the real need to know what they are charging ?? To raise or lower your prices ??
The way it sounds throughout your posts here.... you are basing everything on what the competition is getting, not what you need. Sorry if I don't grasp your three points, but you don't seem to be following them yourself. You appear to be anywhere you can be in order to get the job, regardless if it pays your bills or goes far beyond what you need or want.
Nothing wrong with making a killing here or there, but to depend on competition to get you there..... that's dangerous.
Here's another one for ya.
Years ago, we did almost all the signs in an Outlet Store Complex. We did literally 100's of signs a month. Suddenly, we noticed we weren't getting as many, but yet the signs were still going up. Hmmmm , what's different suddenly ?? Well, there's a new mall manager, who seems to have his fingers into lots of different things. Found out he told all the stores needing signs to give him their quotes and he'll see if he can get them a better price. Every bid he intercepted, we lost.
BUT, not by a lot.... maybe $50 or so. Okay, that could happen once, twice or whatever, but not on every single one. So, Sparky here was taking our quotes, giving them to my competition and getting a kickback for the leads. Yeah, my kinda guy. Next three quotes, I made them so ridiculously cheap, you couldn't even get the materials for the job and I didn't get the bids. I heard there was some real chit going on about this and I got blamed for quoting so low. How did I expect to do them for that. I said, I didn't..... the kick-back-boy was gonna get his friends to do it. Payback's a b*tch. The management did away with this fool, after he got the snot beat out of him for flirting with some girl who was someone's wife and we got most of our accounts back. All because of cheating and trying to muscle in.
Again, what I said is to know what your competition is doing work-wise and quality-wise, but to heck with what they charge. I don't need what they get or maybe I need more, but it's the end product what sells for us.
