Since Ron won't answer my question.......

[Doug Cox]

About starting with a high price and lowering it til you close the deal, I'm gonna throw it out at everyone and see what the answers are.

Is it OK (ethically) to start with a high price with every intention of lowering it if the potential client balks at the price. I've always thought of this as a dishonest way of operating a business. If someone did this to me, I would show him the door. I quote one price and stick to it. What say you guys? This isn't to knock Ron, I'm curious to the way other business owners think. Maybe I'm just way off base.

 

[renegade_cowboy]

For me I offer the protector with the carpet cleaning and if they dont like the price I offer to do traffic areas or only do high traffic rooms. I dont like to lower my prices from what they are it devalues what I do for a living. I never *intend* to lower my prices but I will adjust the price and do less work.

If you start high and *intend* to lower your prices with the cleaning if the customer balks at the price, than I think its bad business tatics and that person is not a very good businessman. Protector there is room to play with the price. It depends how hungrey you are and how much you need money.

 

[Larry B]

Give them a price and stick to it. If they want a low ball price reach through the phone and smack them.

 

[XTREME1]

my pricing is on my pricesheet that customers get and I never ever deviate from my pricing

 

[rhino1]

I don't see how it could be unethical to use your premium service/price as a starting point and then negotiating to fulfill your customer's needs/budget. But I would not lower a price without getting something in return. Maybe the client could give you a dozen good referrals for you to contact in exchange for a discount.

 

[rotovacguy]

Give them a price and stick to it. If they want a low ball price reach through the phone and smack them.

I totally agree. I had a customer contact me yesterday, wanted me to clean 3 rooms, a sofa, and a loveseat. I gave him a quote of $225, assuming the rooms are less than 200 square feet each, the carpet and upholstery are NOT loaded with urine ( which, lately, seems to be the norm ) and it's on the first floor. He responds back saying how expensive I am, saying he will keep me in mind, but keep looking for someone cheaper. I feel that's a descent price even if he were right in town, this guy is 45 minutes away! Needless to say, I haven't heard back from him, and could really care less. It's been from my experience that if you give an inch, they take a mile, and they will pass the word. Before you know it, everyone wants that volume discount.

 

[Dolly Llama]

Is it OK (ethically) to start with a high price with every intention of lowering it if the potential client balks at the price.

never been a car salesman, eh?
or window, or siding, or gutter, or kiRbY salesman, huh?




..L.T.A.

 

[Doug Cox]

Answer the question Larry. Notice the word "ethically". That doesn't come into play with the job descriptions you offered.

 

[ronbeatty]

I learned this lesson early on. I bid a Red Lobster in town, the manager ask me if I could give him a better price. I adjusted my price to get the job. One year latter he came to me and ask me if I could match a bid that someone stopped in to give him. I told him to take his restaurant and stick it where the sun never shines. Never dropped a price again.

 

[Dolly Llama]

Answer the question Larry. Notice the word "ethically". That doesn't come into play with the job descriptions you offered.

do I think it's "ethical" as you described it?
Hell, i donno, Doug.
Ethics seem to be a sliding scale and subjective when you're talking the biz of sales.

do "I" do it as you described it?
That one's easy.... Nope, never have, never will

I have negotiated price many times though.
Or offered incentives to not loose the prospect.

But since you asked, I do feel compelled to give you a straight answer.
yea, it seems a tad sleazy to me "as described"


..L.T.A.

 

[Chris A]

I'd rather start with what I'd like to make, then drop to what I "need" to make, rather than stay high and lose it... however I am pretty firm on resi.

 

[RLitwin]

When I'm the customer, I find someone else to do business with when I can get the price to drop for a service. I no longer know what the service is worth. I will use someone who knows what their worth.

 

[Doug Cox]

I'd rather start with what I'd like to make, then drop to what I "need" to make, rather than stay high and lose it... however I am pretty firm on resi.

Chris- That's kinda what I'm talking about.

 

[Brian R]

I agree to stick to your price.

However,
There are normal prices and then you have discounts in some of your ads that you can bring up if they want to haggle.

If they haggle over the discounted price I tell them in a polite way to go f themself...I said in a polite way.
This way when they see that everyone else sucks, they will call me back.


This tends to be area specific....or more to the point Cultural specific.
Some people come from areas...or were brought up by people from areas that their whole culture is based on haggling.

I don't agree with it, did alot of it in San Jose when I owned a company there.
If you run into it alot, it might be time to relocate.

How many people do you see Haggling in a dept. store? Not that many and it's usually the person I was just talking about.

 

[XTREME1]

so and so will do it for this much.. Call so and so. They never do

 

[renegade_cowboy]

When ever I have someone say "oh that to much or whatever". I tell them that there is always going to be someone cheapier and that I know someone who can clean your carpet for $99 a house, but you gotta be careful when your dealing with low price companies, sometimes you get what you pay for. Some may charge extra for prespray, travel fuel charge or other hidden charges. I tell them I have a 100% satisfaction guarantee and the benefits of my awesome company. At that point its not an issue.

 

[renegade_cowboy]

Ever clean carpets at a Red Lion Brent?

No, have you?

 

[Warren Wallace]

Stick to your price if you lower it maybe your charging to much. However $225.00 for three rooms
couch and loveseat wow way to cheap

 

[Ron Lippold]

doug sorry I have been working all day I love this bad economy and my new yp ad. Doug keep in mind I dont price over the phone. I get to meet miss jones we spend some time talking and I find out what she wants. I then measure and approach her with the price and level of service she is expecting. Yes on occasion we settle for the lower price. but that does not include moving furniture.

 

[Dolly Llama]

Yes on occasion we settle for the lower price. but that does not include moving furniture.

that's different.
Your decreasing service.
That's why I was careful about my wording.

a guy starts out at top price that includes all the bells and whistles and if it's a no go, he'll offer a lesser package to fit the budget.
I don't consider anything sleazy or unethical about that.


..L.T.A.

 

[Doug Cox]

Ron- It was your wording that made me uncomfortable. I was just looking for some clarification and thought it was a good question for everyone to talk about. I appreciate your response.

 

[Chris A]

sorry Doug, the way I'm thinking isn't unethical, but I can't seem to type what I'm thinking. Like I said, I'm firm on resi, but I'll haggle a bit on commercial if it means I'm gonna lose the job otherwise.

 

[rotovacguy]

Stick to your price if you lower it maybe your charging to much. However $225.00 for three rooms
couch and loveseat wow way to cheap

I agree Warren,

Usually the price would be about 3 bills for a job like that, but I'm running a holiday special of 50% off upholstery cleaning. Besides, things are pretty slow for me right now and I'm just up the highway from you, how are things down in northern IL? You have a lot of high end communities down there ( or so I've heard ) up by me it's mostly farmland, there are much fewer people with the type of disposable income someone in Highland Park has.

 

[B&BGaryC]

There is only one family I do that to. They are gypsies. Not in the derogatory sort of way, they have gypsy heritage and they are proud of it, and they own a lot of car lots. I've started to get wise to them, because they never want to give their last name over the phone, and I haven't met the whole family yet. I usually just show up and think, "Crap, I wasted some gas." Depending on how they act, I will start at $1.25 a square foot, for basic cleaning and go no lower than $.75 a square foot with half up-front at the time of booking the appointment Non-refundable.

If they are being jerks and trying to play me from the moment I walk in the door I will quote somewhere in the neighborhood of $3.00-$5.00 a square foot and tell them I won't budge and wait to get escorted out.

They all have very nice houses financed by every service company in town. I know one restoration contractor that they took for $25,000.

If I can figure out it's a member of their family I just tell them I am booked 6 months out for estimates.

Hmm... The short answer is no. I don't offer a high price waiting to give them a break.

 

[Ron Werner]

If you tell your client it is "X" amount for "Y" service, and he questions it, and you say, Well, I can do it for "this" amount, what you've just told the guy is that you were trying to rip him off the first time. Your "Y" service was not really "$x". Great way to lose a good client. Set your price for whatever work/service you will provide and stick to it.

However, If you offer "Y" service for " $X", and it is too much, drop the service provided which will lower the price. ie, don't move furniture, or not clean one of the rooms, etc etc.