Your prices have Skyrocketed!- Why?

[Papa John]

A long time customer posted this on her online work order.
She emailed to reduce the size of the order due to my "Astronomical prices increase"

Did she get upset by the fact that her property increased by 1 million dollars in the past 3 years!?-- I doubt that.

I haven't responded yet because this peeves me and I'm trying to figure the best what to respond.

The Job hurts my body and I deserve to be paid very well.
There is a 3-week waiting list.-- so my prices could probably be increased further.

 

[Mikey P]

What did she pay last time and how much for this astronomical cleaning?

 

[Mikey P]

Just to make you feel better price shop my daughter later today for your 3,500 square foot four-bedroom home with a staircase in Scotts Valley

 

[Cleanworks]

A long time customer posted this on her online work order.
She emailed to reduce the size of the order due to my "Astronomical prices increase"

Did she get upset by the fact that her property increased by 1 million dollars in the past 3 years!?-- I doubt that.

I haven't responded yet because this peeves me and I'm trying to figure the best what to respond.

The Job hurts my body and I deserve to be paid very well.
There is a 3-week waiting list.-- so my prices could probably be increased further.

Doesn't matter how much your property goes up in value, that's not spendable money until you sell. What's the percentage of increase from the last time she had you in?

 

[Ed Valentine]

I would suggest a: "If it were me", comment such as;

"I was sorry to see that you mentioned that our prices were out of site however, I don't know what you were comparing them to. We are different and we consider ourselves; "Professionals doing a professional job". You see, anyone can surface clean however, we are different because we thoroughly clean so that your carpets will not only look better but will also stay cleaner, longer. You see, these are our standards and I have too much experience to change them. And, that is the guarantee which I offer all of our valued customers such as yourself."

Before you contact her however, get it in your mine that this could be a great opportunity to solidify you as her go to guy. Again, do not view this as a negative rather than an opportunity. That is what great businesses do!

Hope this helps.
Ed Valentine
cross-american.com

 

[Papa John]

Doesn't matter how much your property goes up in value, that's not spendable money until you sell. What's the percentage of increase from the last time she had you in?

About 20%. But it might be 3 years since I increased them.

 

[1-Stop]

Could be skeptical that you're trying to squeeze in a covid up-charge. I'd try explaining it's been 3 years since the increase combined with Ed's suggestion above.

 

[Cleanworks]

About 20%. But it might be 3 years since I increased them.

Not bad for 3 years. Every thing has gone up since. I think she's having a bit of an over reaction.

 

[Papa John]

This is how I responded:

Looking over your past records, it seems we've only done either the top or bottom part of your house on each visit. This time you booked the entire house. This might explain some of the increase in your invoice.

Our prices are not high enough to attract and retain quality help and we can't even afford a full time person to answer the phones. As you know SF is an expensive place to live and all of my help have moved to cheaper states.

I did increase my prices as well as the quality of my work. I've developed a little OCD with my workmanship and I deserve to be paid well for my time and effort. This job is difficult and cause me bodily pain. Having to wear a mask while working also increases the difficulty and has slowed me down. Im also limiting the number of clients I see in a day to practice safe social distancing. We are booking 2-3 weeks out, so my prices are justified.

Looking forward to serving you and showing you the improvements.

Take care,
John Stewart

 

[Cleanworks]

This is how I responded:

Looking over your past records, it seems we've only done either the top or bottom part of your house on each visit. This time you booked the entire house. This might explain some of the increase in your invoice.

Our prices are not high enough to attract and retain quality help and we can't even afford a full time person to answer the phones. As you know SF is an expensive place to live and all of my help have moved to cheaper states.

I did increase my prices as well as the quality of my work. I've developed a little OCD with my workmanship and I deserve to be paid well for my time and effort. This job is difficult and cause me bodily pain. Having to wear a mask while working also increases the difficulty and has slowed me down. Im also limiting the number of clients I see in a day to practice safe social distancing. We are booking 2-3 weeks out, so my prices are justified.

Looking forward to serving you and showing you the improvements.

Take care,
John Stewart

I wouldn't say, "my prices are justified". Maybe "that's the reason my prices are slightly higher".

 

[Papa John]

Too late. Haha

 

[hogjowl]

I normally don’t discuss price in response to price complaints. I’ll usually ask if they want to reduce the job or go with another company. If they just won’t go away until I discuss my prices, I tell them quality isn’t cheap and my focus is on quality.

I don’t have any time for, or patience with, price sensitive people.

 

[FredC]

Hopefully she doesn't suffer from OCD.....some of those people get crazy over the casual use of the term

 

[Mikey P]

If she were a real multi-millionaire or a billionaire as you called her you wouldn't even be dealing with her..

She sounds like a new money sort who never worked for it and is now micromanaging what she is fearing she's going to lose in the upcoming POTUS game...

all you had to tell her was that she was doing the whole house this time instead of either floor and that would have sufficed

 

[Steve Lawrence]

I would say that my expenses have gone up considerably lately. We need to pass this on to the customer or we will be out of business.

 

[Old Coastie]

...and annudder ting...

 

[Jim Pemberton]

I don’t have any time for, or patience with, price sensitive people.

I understand this has already been handled, but just for the sake of the conversation, I'll add this:

Marty's approach makes a great deal of sense:

I went to all the "sales strategy classes" that could be found when I started my path in the distribution side of the industry over forty years ago.

All of the sales tricks, wordplay, and other ways of making price objections look ridiculous may seem to work well "on paper" (or "on a screen" in today's parlance) but will usually fall with a "thud" with a prospect who is an informed buyer, or, worse yet, think they are informed.

In the end, if you do manage to use any sales gimmicks to get someone to pay more than they thought they should, in most cases they will resent it later, and either find a way to get the price difference back in reservices, or will not call you back in the future. You could even become a "social media star" (and not in a good way...) to all of their contacts.

You can short cut all of that with a simple statement of why your service is worth the price (I liked your clarification regarding the scope of past jobs versus this one), and then a polite conclusion that leaves the decision in their hands.

 

[steve_64]

This is how I responded:

Looking over your past records, it seems we've only done either the top or bottom part of your house on each visit. This time you booked the entire house. This might explain some of the increase in your invoice.

Our prices are not high enough to attract and retain quality help and we can't even afford a full time person to answer the phones. As you know SF is an expensive place to live and all of my help have moved to cheaper states.

I did increase my prices as well as the quality of my work. I've developed a little OCD with my workmanship and I deserve to be paid well for my time and effort. This job is difficult and cause me bodily pain. Having to wear a mask while working also increases the difficulty and has slowed me down. Im also limiting the number of clients I see in a day to practice safe social distancing. We are booking 2-3 weeks out, so my prices are justified.

Looking forward to serving you and showing you the improvements.

Take care,
John Stewart

You said way too much.

 

[Lee Stockwell]

If you can't afford it, I understand.

 

[Steve Lawrence]

This is how I responded:

Looking over your past records, it seems we've only done either the top or bottom part of your house on each visit. This time you booked the entire house. This might explain some of the increase in your invoice.

Our prices are not high enough to attract and retain quality help and we can't even afford a full time person to answer the phones. As you know SF is an expensive place to live and all of my help have moved to cheaper states.

I did increase my prices as well as the quality of my work. I've developed a little OCD with my workmanship and I deserve to be paid well for my time and effort. This job is difficult and cause me bodily pain. Having to wear a mask while working also increases the difficulty and has slowed me down. Im also limiting the number of clients I see in a day to practice safe social distancing. We are booking 2-3 weeks out, so my prices are justified.

Looking forward to serving you and showing you the improvements.

Take care,
John Stewart

You don't need this "customer". Just move on.

 

[Papa John]

I normally don’t discuss price in response to price complaints. I’ll usually ask if they want to reduce the job or go with another company. If they just won’t go away until I discuss my prices, I tell them quality isn’t cheap and my focus is on quality.

I don’t have any time for, or patience with, price sensitive people.

You said way too much.

You don't need this "customer". Just move on.

If you can't afford it, I understand.

I wanted my response to Be:

"You asked Why our prices have skyrocketed"

We charge $100 to answer that question-- payable in advance.

If she were a real multi-millionaire or a billionaire as you called her you wouldn't even be dealing with her..

She sounds like a new money sort who never worked for it and is now micromanaging what she is fearing she's going to lose in the upcoming POTUS game...

all you had to tell her was that she was doing the whole house this time instead of either floor and that would have sufficed

I never stated that she was a Multi-millionaire or billionaire. Her response proves it. It's been my experience that truly wealthy people don't bat an eye at a $1000 invoice or lower.

She might be House rich/cash poor. It would be difficult to find a single-family house in SF for under $1 million.
My former SF home is valued at $1.5 million easily.

Now if you are saying I'm not capable of having high-end customers- HOW Dare You Insult Mikey's Board like That!
I'll have you know, as a member of MB, I have access to all the latest news, tools, and Ideas to help me excel in my business.
Furthermore, MB offers a Brain trust of knowledgeable and opinionated contributors to its members.

Insult MB again and I'll might ask @FredC to ban you for a short time.

You should have seen the property I was at today in Hillsborough.
I'm in Pacific Heights often. The high-end personal assistants speak highly of me; and I owe it to MB and Saiger videos.
Thank you.

Hopefully she doesn't suffer from OCD.....some of those people get crazy over the casual use of the term

Oh- Boy! I've had That Landmine blow up in my face before but it was concerning an employee who served her.
I have a couple of Psychiatrists/Clients who concur that I'm prone to being OCD.
I thought about using the OCD claim in advertising- but I fear the crazies might out crazy me.

 

[Sierra Clean Care]

In the digital era, ALL customers have to be handled with kid gloves...
Things can go sideways very quickly.
However, ALWAYS make sure you are honest, knowledgeable, sincere, and above all else,
PROFESSIONAL.... with your CLIENTS....
YMMV...
This is my approach...

 

[Cleanworks]

I wanted my response to Be:

"You asked Why our prices have skyrocketed"

We charge $100 to answer that question-- payable in advance.



I never stated that she was a Multi-millionaire or billionaire. Her response proves it. It's been my experience that truly wealthy people don't bat an eye at a $1000 invoice or lower.

She might be House rich/cash poor. It would be difficult to find a single-family house in SF for under $1 million.
My former SF home is valued at $1.5 million easily.

Now if you are saying I'm not capable of having high-end customers- HOW Dare You Insult Mikey's Broad like That!
I'll have you know, as a member of MB, I have access to all the latest news, tools, and Ideas to help me excel in my business.
Furthermore, MB offers a Brain trust of knowledgeable and opinionated contributors to its members.

Insult MB again and I'll might ask @FredC to ban you for a short time.

You should have seen the property I was at today in Hillsborough.
I'm in Pacific Heights often. The high-end personal assistants speak highly of me; and I owe it to MB and Saiger videos.
Thank you.



Oh- Boy! I've had That Landmine blow up in my face before but it was concerning a employee who served her.
I have a couple of Psychiatrists/Clients who concur that I'm prone to being OCD.
I thought about using the OCD claim in advertising- but I fear the crazies might out crazy me.

Mikey's broad?

 

[Papa John]

Mikey's broad?

thanks- I corrected it.

 

[KevinD]

Had that happen once from a long time customer. Must have worked for her a dozen times.
One time I cleaned the carpets and the next time it was the carpets.
Then she booked them all at once one time and JUST COULD NOT UNDERSTAND WHY THE BILL WAS DOUBLE.

 

[bob vawter]

I wanted my response to Be:

"You asked Why our prices have skyrocketed"

We charge $100 to answer that question-- payable in advance.



I never stated that she was a Multi-millionaire or billionaire. Her response proves it. It's been my experience that truly wealthy people don't bat an eye at a $1000 invoice or lower.

She might be House rich/cash poor. It would be difficult to find a single-family house in SF for under $1 million.
My former SF home is valued at $1.5 million easily.

Now if you are saying I'm not capable of having high-end customers- HOW Dare You Insult Mikey's Board like That!
I'll have you know, as a member of MB, I have access to all the latest news, tools, and Ideas to help me excel in my business.
Furthermore, MB offers a Brain trust of knowledgeable and opinionated contributors to its members.

Insult MB again and I'll might ask @FredC to ban you for a short time.

You should have seen the property I was at today in Hillsborough.
I'm in Pacific Heights often. The high-end personal assistants speak highly of me; and I owe it to MB and Saiger videos.
Thank you.



Oh- Boy! I've had That Landmine blow up in my face before but it was concerning an employee who served her.
I have a couple of Psychiatrists/Clients who concur that I'm prone to being OCD.
I thought about using the OCD claim in advertising- but I fear the crazies might out crazy me.

I'm fairly sure no one can out OCD you....'Cept me!