Varying prices per metre - depending upon ..

[Leatherface]

not into ripping people off, but I do tend to vary my price per metre depending upon who customer is, whether recommend, area, etc

In process of doing a quote for a customer, on recommend, she previously used an Interior Design Company who I have worked for in the past, I know what they charge and it is extortionate, but some people are happy to pay it.She used them last year, part of the work she had done was fully tiling her upstairs loo, expensive looking porcelain. Anyway she has decided she does not like the tiles. Met her at tile shop this morning, she chose tiles ( 13 sq m ) Bill came to £1750, she did not even raise an eyebrow and handed over her bank card to pay.
My price to fix will be higher than standard rate, as I know she will happily pay.
I don't see this the same as a guy who comes to fix your boiler, stays 1 hr and charges you £500

What are your views ?

 

[david campbell]

i've got a set price i always stick to unless the job is complicated then i up it accordingly and vice versa if a large stright forward area i lower slightly! sometimes when i get referalls the customer agrees that was roughly the price they thought it would be(obviously the person who refered me said he charged us x amount for x m2)so you prob have the job prior to giving the quote!:yes:

 

[Leatherface]

Thanks, glad to hear your viewpoint. I see that as sometimes you need to drop your price a bit to get job, so opposite is ok as long as customer is happy to pay it. After all they can always say no - too dear. Their choice

 

[Colour Republic]

I vary my price not to how much money a client has got but by what i think their attention to detail is going to be like. I look at the standard of work that they've already had done (and they are happy with) and match it. I could paint a room in 2 days or I could take a week in the same room, depends on the client.

EDIT: I've just re-read my post and I don't think it came across right, what I mean is wealthy customers normally (not always) what an extra special finish and I price accordingly

 

[cornish_crofter]

I tend to be fairly fixed.

Although, I did do 2 quotes recently. I got one job but the other chap hasn't got back to me yet.

Both jobs involve replacing bathroom suite and tililng app 3 to 4m. Aside from the extra prep that one job needs they are roughly the same size.

I looked at the two figures and they were quite different. I tend not to compare jobs too much as I try to take each on their own merits. However with one job the client wanted to remove her old suite and tiles herself, and the other job needed a box built behind the new toilet, as the position of the soil connection prevents the toilet from being set too far back.

However, one factor I did price in for the fist job was no vehicular access. Having to park several hundred yards away is a pain in the rear. Fortunately I have a good rappor with the lady who lives around the corner, who has a parking space and doesn't drive . I may have to see if she needs any curtain rails putting up to repay the favour.

I tend not to lower my price if I think the individual can't afford it. So far as I see it that is their decision, I also don't deliberately lower my price if they tell me they're getting in other quotes as well. The way I see it is that I either get the job or I don't. There is one chap near to me who seems to be undercutting a load of us at the moment, so I let him take the cheaper jobs, which books him up for months ahead, then he's unavaliable to quote against me.

If they come back and ask if I'll do it cheaper, then I call each one based on its merits. Is there profit in it, can I use materials that I have, or have cost me nothing etc. For example I was given a load of timber a few years ago and quoted to do some boxing in and skimming. The customer phoned me up and negotiated the price down a bit. I wasn't bothered as even charging the materials at my full price I was quids in, so I turned a gift into hard cash, and got paid a very good rate for the labour.

If I get on with the customer and he/she is genuinely kind to me, then favours will be in abundance, anything from taking some rubbish away to finding/giving them materials/fittings that either I have taken out, no longer need or feel that their need is greater than mine.

One such lady spent £000s with me. She got me in to do loads of jobs from fit a shower cubicle to put a nameplate on her kids' rooms. Her husband (now ex) was quite handy but he had a high powered job and understandibly did not want to spend his precious free time with his family doing diy. So she got me to do it all. I used to spend weeks at a time doing stuff for her, just working through lists.

Unfortunately for her, divorce took its financial and emotional toll. It really couldn't have happened to a nicer person. I can genuinely say that if she had a minor emergancy and couldn't afford to pay me for a few hours work, she would get it free. none of my other customers come into that category.

 

[Leatherface]

I understand, the job will be first class anyway.
Just to add, this was touched upon when I did my tiling course, we were told that it was acceptable, many people charge different rates anyway.
Some people shop at M & S, some at Netto or Aldi.
To me a fair price is what someone is willing to pay for a good job.
Was not talking about extortionate rates here !!

"I look at the standard of work that they've already had done (and they are happy with) and match it. "


If I saw that they had poor tiling elsewhere and were happy with it, I would make damn sure that mine was better, not the same. Whatever price they are paying they still get a good job.

 

[Colour Republic]

If I saw that they had poor tiling elsewhere and were happy with it, I would make damn sure that mine was better, not the same. Whatever price they are paying they still get a good job.

:lol: I edited my post a few minutes ago after reading it again as I thought might come across like that!

 

[White Room]

Take every job as a one off, no two jobs on domestic are the same and are taken on there merits

 

[david campbell]

I vary my price not to how much money a client has got but by what i think their attention to detail is going to be like. I look at the standard of work that they've already had done (and they are happy with) and match it. I could paint a room in 2 days or I could take a week in the same room, depends on the client.

EDIT: I've just re-read my post and I don't think it came across right, what I mean is wealthy customers normally (not always) what an extra special finish and I price accordingly

i think no matter what i should always leave the same quality of work in anyones home,my best,i like to think when i leave any job i couldn't have done any better.

my golden rule"would i be happy with that in my home"!

 

[graham31]

I think the key thing here is getting a rate/pay you are happy to work for and sticking to it.Obviously their will be jobs that you can charge higher and have to charge lower if you want/need the work.

But theirs nothing worse going into a job knowning your not happy with the quote/pay your getting for it this is when mistake happen and you end up rushing the job to get it finished cause you know your under charged.

So get a rate your happy to work for and try sticking to it the best you can

 

[davy_G]

You guys are spot on,
I tand to vary my price on many things. First and foremost the area and type/size of tile...I am always comparing how long the job will take by the m2 to my dayrate and make sure it is worth doing. If not walk away.
However your right there other factors, distance is an important one, if i have to travel an hour to the job thats 2 hours fixing lost per day plus diesel...so i can do a job local for a bit cheeper than if i have to travel. Or rather i charge more for travelling!
Detail of borders, amount of extras required, if i like the people. It all make a difference!

Oh, and how much i need the work....i also tend to do as keen as is fair for recommendations as i know im usually the only one pricing.

 

[Colour Republic]

i think no matter what i should always leave the same quality of work in anyones home,my best,i like to think when i leave any job i couldn't have done any better.

my golden rule"would i be happy with that in my home"!

It's never as simple as that, I never do any work that I’m not happy with. Many years ago I did a lot of work for Landlords via managing agents (mostly decorating), I'd give them the price and some of them would ask if I could half it! "Yeah sure but for that you won't get xyz". I'd do the job and walk away thinking 'jeez I hope nobody knows I did that" It depressed the hell out of me, so in the end I refused to undertake such jobs.

But when it comes to doing your 'best work' as you put it, It's not always required, I have a very minimum standard that I work to, which is still a very good standard but I also have my best standard.

Decoration for example - I could take an old Victorian door - sand, fill, undercoat then topcoat (2.5 hours work not inc. drying time), Or I could Sand, fill, undercoat, sand, fill, sand, fill, undercoat, wet and dry then topcoat all in a complete dust free environment (1 days work). Both doors will look great but one of them will look like glass and cost 5 times as much. Some people wouldn't notice the difference as they just see a painted door but some would appreciate the detail and are willing to pay for it.

I think your motto is widely used by almost all tradesmen that enjoy their job and is a very good one as it shows you care. all my work I’d 'accept' in my own home, but personally I'd go for the very top finish but then that's easy for me as I don't have to pay for it!

 

[cornish_crofter]

I'm doing such a job at the moment. The client wanted me to keep the price as low as poss and didn't want the walls to be repaired at all. With loose plaster I didn't see that this was an option so we agreed I would charge an hourly rate to repair them, as I didn't know what was entailed.

This involved patching up what was already there, not the best way forward IMO and the wall isn't as straight as it could be. I wanted to take all the plaster/render out and dry line ot with tile board, but she seems to like it like that (old cornish cottage). It looks fine TBH.

As CR says, you can go mental trying to get it to your best standard, but I'm fast coming to the conclusion that that is not always required, especially when I have my customers telling me that they are more than happy with it.

The job I'm doing at the moment is the best standard the customer will allow within her budget.

 

[Leatherface]

Can also work the other way, have done a few jobs for customers who wanted it doing really cheap, but yet they were the most picky !!
Some want it "cheap" "perfect" and "done straight away"
Don't we all !!

Too cheap ? Or too dear ? That is a question we all ask, so many factors to take into account when pricing a job. Suppose what works for each individual is ok, as long as it keeps them busy with happy customers !

 

[mikethetile]

i priced a job last week

priced it then bumped it up a bit

got a call this morning ...........they were delighted with the price and could i price for further work at their property

my feelings..........damn i should have priced higher