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	Subject - Knowing When to Raise Prices John A. Peters Look at this - You can subscribe too - JP Knowing When to Raise Prices... Remodelers; Knowing When to Raise Prices... I live about 30 minutes down the highway from several major tourist attractions here is central Florida. Last summer my wife and I had the opportunity to visit the biggest and best known park for a day. I was shocked at the admission price! Even with the Florida resident's discount we forked out a fair chunk of change for admission. As luck would have it, I later had the opportunity to visit with a friend who had once worked for this park operator in their marketing department. This friend told me how this company determines the admission price at the park. I was astounded. You may be as well. My friend confided in me that the practice used to determine the admission price for several years at this particular park was to raise admission prices incrementally until attendance dropped by 10%. Then the park would wait until attendance recovered. At that point the park operator would wait another six months or so and repeat the process. Reacting just as a remodeler would, i asked my friend what possible relationship there could be between this method of pricing and the cost of running the amusement park. His simple response; "None." Days later, when the shock had worn off, it became apparent that the park was solving a number of problems with this clever method of pricing. Some of these problems are common to remodelers. For example; The park wants to control the flow of people attending the park every day, smoothing out the highs and lows, so to speak. Remodelers too would like to have a steady flow of people moving through their businesses every day. Controlling the flow of business helps stabilize the hiring, training and managing of employees and helps us escape from crisis management conditions which are created in part by large swings in volume. Raising our prices discourages some prospective clients from doing business with us, but enables us to earn higher prices during times of great demand, just like at the amusement park. If we raised or prices with no corresponding increase in costs, we could likely afford to lower our prices in response to seasonal swings in demand. We might have a sale during the slow months if we needed to inspire more people to buy at certain times. Here's how we test this pricing strategy. First we need to determine how long the line should be outside of our business. If we install products that are readily available and relatively simple to plan for, permit, and install, we might feel buried when we have a three week backlog of work. Think about roofing, windows and siding. If we build large design/build additions or whole house remodels, we might need a six month, twelve month, or more, backlog of work to feel comfortable. Once we have a feel for how long our backlog should be and once we get to that backlog in place, we raise our prices in 10% increments until we see our backlog start to shrink. If we raise our prices and our backlog doesn't shrink, we may have been underpriced to begin with. We might find that we can control our backlog during this economy by simply raising and lowering our prices. WHAT'S IN IT FOR ME? By now you have to be asking yourself: Why are you telling me this?" Let me explain; I write books. I also present serious, hands-on training guaranteed to accomplish what many of you may consider to be impossible, walking out of the house with a check on your first visit. You could order my book on sales; "If I SELL You I Have a Job, If I SERVE You I Create a Career!" You can order the book from my web site today. Also, you can plan to attend a seminar. My current schedule is posted on the net. For the near future, I have these seminars scheduled; Walnut Hills, CA on June 22 Vacaville, CA on October 11 Watch for my upcoming schedule of two-day seminars in Florida during July and August. Approved for CEU credits for State of Florida, Miami/Dade county, and State of Minnesota. See and hear me speak at; JLC in Providence, March 17,18,19 Affordable Comfort in Indianapolis, May 16-21 Georgia-West Tennessee Chapter of NKBA, May 26 Southern Building Show in Atlanta, June 9-11 North Jersey NARI, June 14 Tampa NARI dinner Meeting, June 16 BIA of Southeast MI, October 19 Check the web site for contact info regarding these events (see Calendar). I am willing to train you to organize your business into a cash machine. I have done it for myself and others. I will not just deliver information, I will provide you with tools, books, forms, programs, materials and information, and then assist you in implementing these systems in your business. This might include systems for your administration, sales and production departments. Maybe you just want some advice on a nagging problem. If so, just call me at 800-218-5149 and we'll talk. If i happen to be away from the phone, leave a message and I'll call you back on my nickel. In answer to the question: "HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THIS SEMINAR TO YOUR CLOSEST COMPETITOR?" Here's a compilation of responses from a recent seminar... "best time and money you could spend/ understand overhead/ there's no reason we should loose money on job--mark-up higher--take this seminar you'll gain so much confidence/ you don't have to get every job, somebody has to be the most expensive in town/ save time on estimates/ excellent/ easy, useable ideas which can make you more money/ the best/ money spent on the seminar will be quickly recovered/ I don't want my competiton to know what I learned today/ you need to go/ it's 'ok' to charge more/ money well spent, helps get perspective and focus/a system that works/ the most amazing course I have ever taken." Kevin Eads from Longwood, FL reported after a recent seminar; "Mike, trying to keep up with all the ideas you present at your seminar is like trying to drink from a fire hose." ONE DAY SEMINAR CONTENT... If you hate estimating and don't get proposals out on time, if you don't feel confident about your prices or your jobs aren't coming in on budget, if you want a fast accurate, simple and inexpensive estimating system you can use with or without a computer, you should attend this seminar. Discover how successful contractors determine a fair price for their work and how they get their clients to buy it. Understand how to organize your production, sales, marketing and management functions to operate more efficiently. There are no secrets remaining, all the information you need to push your business to the next level is presented here, whether you want to grow, or just gain control. I'll also give you a peek at the hottest new niche in remodeleing and custom building that will allow you to be the most expensive contractor in town while you create raving fan clients. MY BIO... I travel and speak throughout the U.S. and also in Canada. My background as an award-winning contractor provides the platform for my speaking. My "Fortune 500" and Government clients continuously hire me to create new seminar content, forcing me to be exposed to the latest trends and practices. Also, I share what I have learned from clients and thousands of seminar attendees in the United States and Canada over the last 15 years, as well as from my own experience as a "BIG 50/TOP 500" contractor. I am listed in: "Who's Who in America" "Who's Who of Emerging Business Leaders" "Who's Who in Finance and Industry" You can read my columns on the topics of; sales, marketing and estimating in "Remodeling News" and "Professional Remodeler" magazines. I am not a theorist; study real-life successes and failures. There are no secrets, all the information you need to push your business to the next level is presented here, whether you want to grow or just gain control. WHAT IS THE PRICE? You will invest $125.00 for one day. Those who are motivated to make a change in their business may bring partners, associates or co-workers who do not require continuing education credits and enjoy a $25.00 discount per companion per day. Change happens most rapidly when there is a team working together. A team is more than one person. Many past attendees report that they recovered their investment many times over the first time they were in front of a prospect armed with this information. Often I have contractors who travel across the U.S. and combine an educational experience with a 'get-away' from their business. Many bring their families who can entertain themselves at the many attractions available at many seminar locations. There is more information about varous locations and their specific attractions on the web site at www.techknowledgeonline.net. It might be possible to visit your group or association during my travels throughout the year. See my upcoming schedule that puts me in no fewer that 10 states in the next few months for public seminars as well as conventions, trade shows and private seminars. If you need a speaker for your group or association, let me know. I feel so certain about the value of this information that I offer this guarantee: If you are not convinced that I have equipped you with new ideas you can incorporate in your business immediately, I will refund your money in full--no questions asked... NOW THAT'S A GUARANTEE! Make a change in your life today. Call 1-800-218-5149 or simply reply to this message and let me know what I can do to help you. Or visit the web site www.techknowledgeonline.net and check out seminars and other products. My contact info by mail, fax or phone: NOTE MY NEW ADDRESS: TechKnowledge 1543 U.S. Highway 98 South Suite 209 Lakeland, FL 33801 1-800-218-5149 fax: 413-845-2069 To go directly to my web site, click here... By the way, after you attend a seminar I will make myself available for follow-up in person, by phone or email to make sure you implement what you have learned. After you have attended the seminar once, you may attend again at no charge on a space available basis for up to one full year afterward. (Reservations must be made in advance and no continuing education credits will be issued.) My passion is to get you as a contractor to raise your prices and start earning what you are worth. Best, msg ps: Are you planning to work as hard in five years as you do now? If not, what are you doing today to make a change? Perhaps you are just one skill away from wealth. This seminar could put you one step closer to the wealth you deserve. Please forward this message to your closest competitor if you would like them to raise their prices as well! Update Profile | Unsubscribe | Confirm | Unsolicited | Forward