surcharge

[Roy Ulrich]

I think a lot of people are falling into the trap of thinking 20 cents a
gallon increase equates with large increases in prices for everything. As a
tuner who buys a tank of gas about twice a week, I look at the _real_
numbers:  15 gallons @ 1.36 is $20.40; 15 gallons @ 1.56 is $23.40. Do I
need to gouge all my customers with an increase of $5 or $10?

If you average a dozen tunings a week and charge an additional $10 each,
that's $120 a week increase to cover less than seven bucks worth of gas. Who
becomes the bad guy now, Standard Oil or you?

Roy Ulrich

-----Original Message-----
From: Wimblees@AOL.COM <Wimblees@AOL.COM>
To: Pianotech@ptg.org <Pianotech@ptg.org>
Date: Wednesday, March 08, 2000 9:02 AM
Subject: surcharge


>With the increased cost of gasoline, and higher prices to follow, I am
>contemplating doing one of two things: raise my tuning fee $5 or $10, or
add
>that much as gasoline surcharge to every appointment.
>
>The increase in fee would appear like a permanent solution, but might be
>looked on as charging too much to soon. (I increased my price by $5 in
>September.) The surcharge, I think, might be understood by my customers.
>(They all know we are paying much more for gas.) And if prices come down,
as
>they are predicting they will in the fall, I can remove it.
>
>What are some thoughts on the matter.
>
>Willem
>