Hello all. I am a long time lurker, haven't posted in quite a while. I recently launched my business as a freelance Home Theater installer/consultant and I need some help.

There have been some changes of plan caused by an unforseen issue with my first client. First a little background on what I had in mind for my pricing. I was charging $50 for the house call/trip-fee. Then $35 an hour thereafter. +$10 additional if I had to get in the crawlspace or cramped attic.

The issue came with the fact that I completely underestimated ad under-bid the job. It was a rookie mistake I expected to happen (Not to the extent it did, but ok.) I realized that to make scheduling possible at all with the time involved in a sizeable wiring job, it would need to be broken up into smaller appointments.

I don't feel right charging a trip fee for every appt for the same project. I could eliminate it and use a higher hourly to compinsate for the difference. That seems like it would be too high of an hourly for longer appointments. A separate "multiple appointment" charge on the bid would seem like nickel and diming the customer with fees. I'm stuck! Any help would be great. Thanks as always in advance!

shawn

Hi, Shawn ~

Have you considered charging by the project rather than by the hour? Base your project estimate on the cost of supplies and how many hours you think it is going to take as well as the number of trips (i.e. appointments) you think you need then add a couple of hours (just in case). Include caveats on your estimate for things such as crawl spaces and other oddities. I recommend getting half of your estimate in advance. Then you can bill the final project cost at the end.

You may find that clients are more willing to hire you when they know that the project will cost no more than xxxx amount of dollars rather than being open ended.

Suzette
*******
FlemmingBusinessServices.com

I like the idea, that is pretty much what I was trying to do. But in putting together an estimate, I need to have things i can list by line item, so I can show where their money is going. I can put "labor: $0.00" but then the question still goes back to the original "how do I arrive at that number" question, both for myself and the client. I was thinking I might just bump my regular hourly by $5 and get rid of the trip charge, and just say labor minimum of at least 1 hour applies. Problem is covering a 350 sq/mi area, if business is slow and I get a bunch of small jobs the gas will kill me. Thanks for the advice!

shawn

the question still goes back to the original "how do I arrive
>at that number" question, both for myself and the client.> shawn

Hi, Shawn! That's the best way to approach your pricing method, in my opinion. It's much easier for people to justify a cost when they know exactly what is entailed. You also establish more trust when you're clear on exactly how a cost was derived. That alone will help you in terms of referrals.

People do feel more confortable with the assurance that a job won't cost more than a given amount. (I do!) Just allow a margin of error to protect yourself.

Then, if you finish the job in less time than anticipated, you've basically saved the customer money. They're thrilled, and you get a lot of free word-of-mouth marketing to build your clientele.

>I was thinking I might just bump my regular hourly by $5 and get rid of the trip charge, and just say labor minimum of at least 1 hour applies. Problem is covering a 350 sq/mi area, if business is slow and I get a bunch of small jobs the gas will kill me.>

Within a certain radius, you could omit any charge for the trip. Beyond that, you could charge a small fee to cover your expenses.

For a large job, you could absorb your time in terms of the cost of the trip, especially if you're working for several hours each time.

Hope this helps.

Nancy
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