[gary evans]

LWC

I think you have had some good points from a few members & i personally would decide do you realy want to keep it.

I am not going to give figures out but i lost one recently valued at many thousands of ponds per annum, it is not necessarily the person you deal with that holds the purse strings its somebody somewhere in an office who doesnt care about you & your business only black & white what they save.

Acouple of examples:

1: This was a large bi-yearly contract & they wanted it reduced to one clean per annum, i told them no, it had to be two, they wanted me to carry on, so i just doubled the price & lost it.

2: Large monthly priced less gone. No say done by invisible people, not even aware of that one.

3:Lots of smaller jobs, lost or change of frequency.

Theres people out there everyday undercutting, so you need to work with the client closely, look at reducing your price slightly somewhere half way to where they want, but also change the frequency & do an annual figure.

i.e. Said Building

Currently; £100 per month int/ext = £1200 per annum.

Change to Option 1:  £90 per six weeks = £810 per annum (Saving £390.00)
                Option 2:  £45 ext monthly & £45 int quarterly = £720 per annum (Saving £480)

Theres many other combinations but, if you want to keep it you only need to find the difference between todays price & the revised price not the full £1200

I am down 10s of k at the minute but still operating & will come out the other side with a business but slightly reduced.

Hope this helps

Gary

[Moderator David@stives]

I'm Afraid "can you drop the price" is the new buzz word.

There was a successful businesswoman on working lunch who said the key to survival in this reccession is to phone your suppliers and ask them for a lower price.

I also heard it at a seminar i went to recently.

Dont be suprised if more customers dont phone you asking for the same, I suppose its all down to how bad and how long the downturn is.

[Pj]

If they've genuinely got cheaper quotes, yet they've come back to you to ask you to reconsider, it's you they want.
If you genuinely still value the work, ask them to be straight with you, you've worked for them for years, what would be acceptable to them?  Go back rework your price and let them know what a special favour you've done.  You'll soon find ways to speed up and get back near the right hourly rate

[williamx]

When I am looking for commercial work, I state on my letter that I will beat any realistic price that they already have.

This does not mean that I will do the job at a lose, if I feel that there is enough profit for me then I will go with that figure.

I would ask them what they would consider is a fair price in the current climate, don't give them a quote untill they give you this figure, if they won't give you a figure just walk away from the job.

[AuRavelling79]

What gary evans has said is exactly what I've done with one of my commercials at their request - the Jury's out at the moment on their decision. Go and see them face to face if you can - get the body language - do they want to keep you?

I have given options showing the savings they can have by reducing frequency from 4 weekly to monthly (12 per year instead of 13) and reducing their internal cleans from "everything" to high traffic areas. (Doorways and entrances)

I have done this contract for ten years and last year they let me raise my prices for those massive fuel increases by 5%. (First rise ever - but originally priced for ladders and now done wfp so reasonable hourly rate.)

But it is also useful in that I can start early, do the insides when it rains etc and is a prestige name in the area.

So sweating on this one. It is about 6% of my annual turnover. So not a deal breaker, but a morale hit if I were to lose it.

[trevor perry]

When I am looking for commercial work, I state on my letter that I will beat any realistic price that they already have.

This does not mean that I will do the job at a lose, if I feel that there is enough profit for me then I will go with that figure.

I would ask them what they would consider is a fair price in the current climate, don't give them a quote untill they give you this figure, if they won't give you a figure just walk away from the job.

i dont know how you can state you will beat any realistic price as every business is different and just because someone is willing to work for less than you doesnt make their price unrealistic.
  im not having a go at you but me personally think it might come accross unprofessional  to ask them what they think is a fair price as they dont know what your overheads are etc and just looks like yor fishing for a price to give them to get the job.
on large contractcs all tenders are placed in sealed envelopes i think if you wher to ask them for price they think is fair your quote would be thrown straight in the bin.

[williamx]

When I am looking for commercial work, I state on my letter that I will beat any realistic price that they already have.

This does not mean that I will do the job at a lose, if I feel that there is enough profit for me then I will go with that figure.

I would ask them what they would consider is a fair price in the current climate, don't give them a quote untill they give you this figure, if they won't give you a figure just walk away from the job.

i dont know how you can state you will beat any realistic price as every business is different and just because someone is willing to work for less than you doesnt make their price unrealistic.
  im not having a go at you but me personally think it might come accross unprofessional  to ask them what they think is a fair price as they dont know what your overheads are etc and just looks like yor fishing for a price to give them to get the job.
on large contractcs all tenders are placed in sealed envelopes i think if you wher to ask them for price they think is fair your quote would be thrown straight in the bin.

When I am summiting tenders I do not put that paragraph in my tender, but on my 1st contact letter it is on it.

The customers don't tell me what they are already paying first, I always give my price and service package first, if they like me and what I am willing to do, but I have priced the job at a higher rate than they are already paying, that the time when they tell me how much they are paying.

These are some examples

I quoted 1 shop £12 every week (inside &out), the customers wanted the windows cleaned on a Monday (their cleaners won't do it that day instead he cleans them on a friday) he also only charges £8, which I think is unrealistic to beat.

Another one is a care home for 12 people with a consertory, I quoted £25 per month he charges £10.  Unrealisic to beat.

Finally I quoted £175 for a 6 weekly clean on a nursing home, they where already paying £150, I dropped my price to £145 and got the job.

It is realistic for me to lower my 1st price by £30 because the job only takes 2 1/2 hours to do, and I have a hourly target of £30 to meet.

[R W C]

When I am looking for commercial work, I state on my letter that I will beat any realistic price that they already have.

This does not mean that I will do the job at a lose, if I feel that there is enough profit for me then I will go with that figure.

I would ask them what they would consider is a fair price in the current climate, don't give them a quote untill they give you this figure, if they won't give you a figure just walk away from the job.

i dont know how you can state you will beat any realistic price as every business is different and just because someone is willing to work for less than you doesnt make their price unrealistic.
  im not having a go at you but me personally think it might come accross unprofessional  to ask them what they think is a fair price as they dont know what your overheads are etc and just looks like yor fishing for a price to give them to get the job.
on large contractcs all tenders are placed in sealed envelopes i think if you wher to ask them for price they think is fair your quote would be thrown straight in the bin.

When I am summiting tenders I do not put that paragraph in my tender, but on my 1st contact letter it is on it.

The customers don't tell me what they are already paying first, I always give my price and service package first, if they like me and what I am willing to do, but I have priced the job at a higher rate than they are already paying, that the time when they tell me how much they are paying.

These are some examples

I quoted 1 shop £12 every week (inside &out), the customers wanted the windows cleaned on a Monday (their cleaners won't do it that day instead he cleans them on a friday) he also only charges £8, which I think is unrealistic to beat.

Another one is a care home for 12 people with a consertory, I quoted £25 per month he charges £10.  Unrealisic to beat.

Finally I quoted £175 for a 6 weekly clean on a nursing home, they where already paying £150, I dropped my price to £145 and got the job.

It is realistic for me to lower my 1st price by £30 because the job only takes 2 1/2 hours to do, and I have a hourly target of £30 to meet.

So you undercut the person who was already cleaning the property.

Chris

[williamx]

When I am looking for commercial work, I state on my letter that I will beat any realistic price that they already have.

This does not mean that I will do the job at a lose, if I feel that there is enough profit for me then I will go with that figure.

I would ask them what they would consider is a fair price in the current climate, don't give them a quote untill they give you this figure, if they won't give you a figure just walk away from the job.

i dont know how you can state you will beat any realistic price as every business is different and just because someone is willing to work for less than you doesnt make their price unrealistic.
  im not having a go at you but me personally think it might come accross unprofessional  to ask them what they think is a fair price as they dont know what your overheads are etc and just looks like yor fishing for a price to give them to get the job.
on large contractcs all tenders are placed in sealed envelopes i think if you wher to ask them for price they think is fair your quote would be thrown straight in the bin.

When I am summiting tenders I do not put that paragraph in my tender, but on my 1st contact letter it is on it.

The customers don't tell me what they are already paying first, I always give my price and service package first, if they like me and what I am willing to do, but I have priced the job at a higher rate than they are already paying, that the time when they tell me how much they are paying.

These are some examples

I quoted 1 shop £12 every week (inside &out), the customers wanted the windows cleaned on a Monday (their cleaners won't do it that day instead he cleans them on a friday) he also only charges £8, which I think is unrealistic to beat.

Another one is a care home for 12 people with a consertory, I quoted £25 per month he charges £10.  Unrealisic to beat.

Finally I quoted £175 for a 6 weekly clean on a nursing home, they where already paying £150, I dropped my price to £145 and got the job.

It is realistic for me to lower my 1st price by £30 because the job only takes 2 1/2 hours to do, and I have a hourly target of £30 to meet.

So you undercut the person who was already cleaning the property.

Chris

Yes why not, it called business.

[TLC]

if i were you i'd try n have a chat with em, try n get a better insight and hopefully get someone there on your side, improve customer relations n all that. Bring up the fact that they have always been happy with the work etc and that they could end up with a complete gypo (obviously better phrased ofcourse)
i think suggesting lengthening the time is a good idea, i had to do that with one of my big jobs. Maybe even try and find out what the best quote they got is and see if you can match it, depends how well it pays. I know when i had to do that i wud have rathered drop the price by a few hundred and do it every month than do it every 2 months. Every job is different i spose

Hope this helps

Tim

[LWC]

Well one of the sites i used to have to go up a 3 stage ladder to do the inside ones and it was pretty hairy to do, but now ive started using supalite with mop and blade on which makes the job quicker and ALOT safer

So im offering them a discount. Hope its enough!