How is this even possible?

[dj_elite]

So I quote a frequent customer of mine on a design they send me and have me tweak. They get back to me stating they had a similar design just done at there other branch on the same model car (nissan leaf) for 1/6th of the price I quote them for. It comes out to roughly $320.00. They are asking me to come within this price or they will have to use the other shop. Now I letter almost all their vehicles and there all around a few hundred for simple lettering. Now they want a partial wrap for the same pricing? I just don't get it. I told him there's no way and am calling his bluff. Sorry I had to vent. Would you guys do this layout for $320.00 installed??? I don't even think that covers materials.

 

[Salmoneye]

I wouldn't install it for $320.

 

[Ken]

No Way...

Not possible at that price. If the other company is actually doing this as a loss-leader, where do they go from here? Continue to give away work and go broke, or quickly bump up pricing.
Good luck. Ken

 

[GWSigns]

Perhaps they have confused you with Walmart?

"We're so confident in our low prices, we guarantee them.*Walmart lowers thousands of prices every week, on average.
If you happen to find a lower price, we'll match it right at the register."

 

[dj_elite]

Thank you. I have been running these numbers in my head all day and there is just no way, well unless I wanted to lose money. I quoted them around $1900 using 3m materials, which I think is a little on the high side, but I knew they would try and talk me down. $320.00 though? Come on!

 

[dj_elite]

Perhaps they have confused you with Walmart?

"We're so confident in our low prices, we guarantee them.*Walmart lowers thousands of prices every week, on average.
If you happen to find a lower price, we'll match it right at the register."

I tell my wife this all the time. "We live in a Walmart society"

 

[laserman70]

Tell them you will do trade..
solar system to run your shop for the graphics and install.
EVEN UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Pixels Are Bad Mmmkay?]

It comes out to roughly $320.00. They are asking me to come within this price or they will have to use the other shop.

Let them. It has to come back to bite them in the rump eventually.

 

[JoeBoomer]

spot graphics maybe?

$320 for the design maybe? Hand-painting with watercolors?


The only way I could see that as possible is if they were just doing spot graphics. There is absolutely no way in the world they are getting even a partial wrap for $320. They aren't matching apples to apples with your quote.

Just wait until they come back from these $320 shenanigans so you can do it the right way. Plus, you'll be able to charge for removal too.

When I ran into these situations, I would tell the customer that I couldn't even cover my costs for that price and if they found someone willing to do it, good luck and think about us next time you have a project.

 

[dj_elite]

When I ran into these situations, I would tell the customer that I couldn't even cover my costs for that price and if they found someone willing to do it, good luck and think about us next time you have a project.

This is basically what I told him. He said "well, see if you can do it with less quality materials for a lower price". I straight up said "I don't feel comfortable doing it with a less quality vinyl for my sake in case something was to go wrong, and even if I did it would still not be close to $320".

 

[dj_elite]

So he just shared the invoice from the other installer. All he did was the two sides of the leaf design and charged $125.00 for "both" graphics and then $250.00 for installation for a total of $375.00!!! Thats $62.50 a side for materials...how? Oh and it states laminated.

 

[Gino]

It's quite obvious someone wants 90% of something rather than 100% of nothing.

It's low by anyone's standards, but you can still make money at this rate, just not what the market should be bringing in.

There's no sense in competing with this type of shop. They're not a good business model to copy, so don't follow suit. Don't put them down or say anything negative about them, other than you can't do it for that cost and walk away. He just might not be as frequent of a customer anymore sporting a bad attitude on top of being more expensive.

 

[dj_elite]

It's quite obvious someone wants 90% of something rather than 100% of nothing.

It's low by anyone's standards, but you can still make money at this rate, just not what the market should be bringing in.

There's no sense in competing with this type of shop. They're not a good business model to copy, so don't follow suit. Don't put them down or say anything negative about them, other than you can't do it for that cost and walk away. He just might not be as frequent of a customer anymore sporting a bad attitude on top of being more expensive.

No I told him nicely that I cannot do it for that price. I did not bad talk them either, if they want to do it for that price go right ahead. And I definitely will not copy that business model, I have mouths to feed.

 

[CanuckSigns]

It's quite obvious someone wants 90% of something rather than 100% of nothing.

It's low by anyone's standards, but you can still make money at this rate, just not what the market should be bringing in.
.

I disagree, I don't think you can make any money at that rate, in fact I'm pretty sure that unless they are operating out of their house in the evening after working a "real job" wih no employees, insurance, etc. you would stand to loose a few hundred dollars by doing this job.


we just had a similar issue today, customer asked us for a price on some etched aluminum plaques from Gemini, 6 pcs 24" x36". Gave them the price and they freaked out, asked for a cheaper option, we met with them and came up with cut vinyl on brushed aluminum dibond. Quoted that at what I thought was a reasonable price, they found someone to make them for 25% of our price! which is lower than the price of the dibond!

i told them we couldn't touch that price, and they should proceed with caution due to the extremely low cost they have to cut corners somewhere.

 

[MikePro]

i could see making that work: if I was operating out of my garage, using the cheapest calendared vinyl I could find on ebay, not laminating, and had the ability to disappear & change my business name every 6 months to dodge failed product.

 

[Locals Find!]

what your competing against is a guy who has the equipment, the material, and the knowledge to do the job.

He can make money on this job and you can't. Nothing to rant about. This guy may just be running a much more cost efficient operation than you. Maybe he owns his equipment out right and has hardly any expenses to cover.

The folks on here saying, this should cost X or Y really, don't understand how economics works. A product or service is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it. You can demand all you want but, if someone isn't willing to pay for it. It doesn't mean squat at the end of the day.

The trick to any business pricing is finding a happy medium that pleases both you and the customer.

You have to ask yourself if you can afford to let this client walk away. Like you said, you have mouths to feed.

 

[Jillbeans]

First off, I hope you had a deposit before you did the layout.
Secondly, welcome to what has happened to a once-proud trade.
Third, I wouldn't be nice to someone who was trying to cheap me out and potentially steal a design that they shopped around to some hack doing it for pennies.
Be sure you tell them that you are billing for your design.
I'd say that invoice should be about $350.

Love...Jill

 

[player]

I am sorry if you did the layout and are not being compensated for that.

I would get back to them with the lower price you would do it for, like $1750, $1500 or whatever your lowest price is, and tell them the issue with the low bid on this type of thing is the quality of materials and the competency of the installer. Explain the materials that are required for this job to last cost more than what they are charging so they must be using an inferior product that will cause premature failure.

Do not do anything that requires a layout up front for these guys anymore. Just give them the price and when you get the 50% deposit up front you can go ahead and show them artwork. I never do layouts up front. Too many times I have seen my graphics on signs I did not make.

 

[Bly]

Call their bluff.
If someone else really wants to do this stuff for minimum wage, let them and focus on work that really will feed your family.

I had a call yesterday from someone in a real bind apparently.
They are here from overseas for a promotion and their graphics didn't turn up.

So we are their last minute call. I gave them a price and they said it was too expensive.
Fine, I said. Thanks anyway.

Today they called back to see if we can still do the job.

People lie, and Addy has no clue.
Some things never change.

 

[ProWraps]

People lie, and Addy has no clue.
Some things never change.

^^this.