Mark-up (was Steinway parts)

[A440A at aol.com]

Greetings, 
I wrote: 
>  I don't use any mark-up.  I tell my 

>customers that the price they are charged for parts is my cost, and the 
reason 

>my prices are higher than my competitors is that I charge a lot more for my 

>labor.  They don't seem to mind, especially when they have been given a 
higher 

>price for parts by another tech!  >>

David asks: 
<< You figure the labor involved in ordering the parts etc. into your bill 
then?   To me it all seems about the same really...

    It may be the same, I don't know.  I currently charge $100 per hour, plus 
tax.  The parts are charged at cost. Customers seem to feel more comfortable 
knowing that they are paying for my labor and the cost of the parts, rather 
than getting hit with a mark-up.  I don't know if this obeys any kind of 
carved-in-stone business principle, but it works out to $9,500 for replacing a 
Steinway action, and usually $1,500 for a regulation.   
    If I have reservations about how much I am charging someone, (ie, feeling 
like I can charge them more than other because they are rich, or whatever), 
they will sense that and their trust in me will lessen accordingly. 
    Ultimately, our inner bearing carries the freight of supporting 
ourselves.  90% of communication is non-verbal, and If we knowingly shortchange 
someone, our voice will reflect that.  Whatever we do,  our careers will gradually 
find their proper level.  If we do our business with an honest heart, the 
returns will come accordingly.  At least, that is what I have observed over the last 
30 years of dealing with "my" public.  
    I am trusted, here. I have eaten a lot of unpaid work because I did poor 
job of estimating what a job should cost, and there at the bench, made the 
decision to go ahead and do what needed to be done without changing my original 
contract with them.  It pays off in the long run, and eventually I have gotten 
my prices "tuned" to what I know I will be doing,   I have had customers tell 
me that they have never spent as much on their instrument before, but knowing 
that I stand behind the work was well worth the difference.   
Regards, 

  
Ed Foote RPT 
http://www.uk-piano.org/edfoote/index.html
www.uk-piano.org/edfoote/well_tempered_piano.html
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