David, Extremely well stated. Kudos! Setting a dollar value on our work, in my opinion, humbles most of us. It's a difficult chore for most to set a value on what they feel their hourly rate's worth, let alone, not knowing their total operating costs, which many times, leads to unrealistic financial expectations. Examples across these fruited plains exist where small businesses survive on shoe strings. The problem is...they don't know it! My conscience struggles each time I raise my price. On one hand, I know I have to increase my income for the obvious reasons. But on the other hand I know the raised-eyebrow I'll get from clients who think I'm being a bit too greedy. The thing that always sets me back on the right track is remembering why many clients still choose to call me back after 20 yrs. . It's quality and worth of the service. They appreciate the work and service I provide. They also understand I have 2 kids in college and 2 more in private school. They also understand the vast community outreach we do as a business. They also know that I'm constantly attending seminars and extending my education. It all adds up. The best advise I have ever receive with regards to worth was from the good people from SCORE. They were very helpful in illustrating what drives a business to success vs. mere existence. The corporate world is a lot more cold-blooded about the bottom line than most of us are. If the financial equation doesn't add up, address the problem and fix it. Ignoring the problem only adds fuel to the fire. Look at Baldwin. Part of SCORE's equation is determining the current worth of the business than make a wish list as to what you want the worth of the business to be. Do you want to stay as a sole proprietor, add employees, incorporate subcontractors, re-tool the shop,have enough left over to take nice vacations, etc. ? The equation will determine what you have and what you can afford. If the numbers don't add up, change something. The first thing to change is usually increasing the hourly charged rate. Ignoring the signs for a price increase begins the vicious cycle of failure. The sad part is many technicians out there are operation failing businesses and don't even know it. SCORE's recommendation was to establish the infamous business plan, then follow it. Periodically review it. If something isn't working, change it. If new expenditures are on the horizon, plan for it. I agree with most on this list that the hourly rate should be substantially higher. The trick is to convince your public on what your worth and importance is to them. The rest is academic. Tom Servinsky,RPT ----- Original Message ----- From: "David Love" <davidlovepianos@earthlink.net> To: <pianotech@ptg.org> Sent: Monday, August 02, 2094 2:40 AM Subject: Pricing: was Reshaping VS new hammers > Ron: > > Am I wrong or is this getting under your skin just a bit. Clearly, this is > complicated discussion to do it real justice. The subject is replete with > clichés that attempt to describe how prices are set and what the code of > conduct is with respect to what constitutes a fair price both in terms of > the value of my time for me and the value of the service I provide for the > customer. Most of them are worthless. > > But to digress for a moment, I was probably premature in my comment. The > genesis was whether or not $2000.00 dollars for a hammer filing and > regulation was a fair price. Granted, we don't know the real details of the > service that was to be provided and it is often the case that services as > represented by the customer are different than those delivered or intended > by the technician. That being said, however, if the service was accurately > represented, then $2000.00 for a filing and regulation is on the high side. > Even at $100.00 per hour, 20 hours to accomplish that task would have to > include at least an extra inning game at Royal's Stadium. But since we > don't know the extent of the service that was to be provided, to jump up and > say it is an outrageous price is not fair to the technician who proposed the > work. It would be a mistake to send this inquirer back to the tech > screaming foul when we don't really know the details. He/she should at > least be given the benefit of the doubt. At the same time, the pianist who > went to the trouble to post the question to the list deserves as honest an > appraisal as can be delivered. > > Back to the main point, I was sincere in my post that I think most techs > undercharge. I think Ed Foote's comments on the fear factor were very > apropos. I think we generally represent a group of highly skilled > craftsman who, in order to do a job well, require substantial training > and/or experience. In addition, we have to be diligent in keeping up with > changing technologies and ideas and be able to implement those new ideas > efficiently and effectively. We play psychologist to insecure performers. > Concerts and recordings live or die by our skill or lack of. We are noticed > mostly when things go wrong. We spend too much time in our cars and too > much of the air we breath contains toxic materials. For that we should be > highly rewarded. Then, we also tune Lester spinets for those who don't > know regulation from constipation. The same ones that say, after you've > raised pitch a minor third, "Was it much out of tune". We should be highly > rewarded for that too, but that person doesn't understand the justification. > > So, somewhere in there we set our sights on a price that seems fair and > reasonable, that makes it worthwhile. We use the industry as a guide. We > do it based on what "feels" right, and like Ed said, we usually set our > sights too low. We could try and compare ourselves to other industries, but > it's difficult. Architects? Engineers? Doctors? Who knows. > > If you want to analyze the issue financially, then you have to consider all > the factors of self-employment: tax penalties, retirement, health care, > vacations, sickness, and the opportunity cost of what you might otherwise be > doing. Then you have to look at your real earning potential in terms of all > sources: tuning, rebuilding, sales, commissions. You have to then determine > what kind of income you need to allow for living and investment and price > yourself accordingly. If that price puts you way outside of what the market > currently will bear, then maybe you should consider some other line of work > or find a way to broaden your income potential by expanding the scope of > what you do, specializing to the trade, etc.. I also think that frequent > market research (how much are others charging) and regular and periodic > price adjustments are necessary in order to be sure that you stay at the > edge of the envelope. There is a line that can be crossed, I believe, > though I can't say I know how to quantify it. There is no guarantee that > charging top prices won't alienate some customers (the Lesters of the > world). At the same time, customers expect to pay for quality and the > reverse is also true: they don't respect what they don't pay for. Nothing > tends to compromise one's work more than the nagging feeling that you're not > getting paid enough for what you are doing. But if you deliver consistent > quality and always give a little more than is expected, then I think you can > charge top dollar, feel good about it, customers will appreciate what they > are getting, and best of all, they will refer you. > > David Love > > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Ron Nossaman" <RNossaman@KSCABLE.com> > To: <pianotech@ptg.org> > Sent: August 01, 2001 8:43 PM > Subject: Re: Reshaping VS new hammers - Condition etc > > > > >All due respect, charging what you're worth is not synonymous with > > >overcharging. > > > > > >David Love > > > > > > Fair enough, David, and I agree in principal. So who or what determines > the > > difference? Is it what the market will bear, cumulative public outrage > > (even though within what the market will bear), specific private outrage > of > > self appointed watchdogs, an industry wide conspiracy of price fixing > > policies, or a random judgement call? Doesn't the free enterprise system > > imply a self balancing dynamic where the over pricers are weeded out by > non > > participation of the victims, and the under pricers starve as they work > > themselves to death? Isn't the whole point of being in business to squeeze > > the maximum buck out of every minute of our professional existence so we > > can quit doing it as early as possible with as comfortable a retirement > > income as we can manage within all the limitations? > > > > Ok, maybe that's a tad on the extreme side, but my point in making that > > post is that no one seems to be proposing a definitive standard as to what > > constitutes undercharging, overcharging, or charging just right. Everyone > > has an opinion, but no criteria. In any given region, for any given > > clientele, as it relates to the technical and political skill level of any > > given tech, and the type of work that tech is actually doing, it is nearly > > utterly pointless to argue what does or doesn't constitute an ethical > > price/performance ratio. Pricing according to who's taller or wears the > > ugliest socks is, in the long run, a saner and more easily determinable > > criteria - and doesn't in itself make any more (or less) sense than what I > > read here daily. This stuff can, and apparently will be debated to the > last > > dying breath of the species, but is never going to be quantified to the > > point where any of us folks discussing it can give any acceptable > > indication that we know what the heck we're talking about - so why is so > > much time and energy expended in this unproductive direction? Is it logic > > or glands talking? Being a closet hopeful in spite of overwhelming > evidence > > to the contrary, I'm looking for evidence of logic, but the doubts are > > mounting. > > > > Incidentally, while I really do appreciate the "all due respect", I don't > > consider it a factor in points of logic and technicality. For what it's > worth. > > > > > > Ron N >
This PTG archive page provided courtesy of Moy Piano Service, LLC