Help A Reader: Pricing

Comments

1. CrochetBlogger says

   October 4, 2011 at 1:33 pm

   You’ll need to assess what you think is a fair rate for you to be paid hourly. This may vary depending on where you live and theoretically should increase over time as your skills expand. I try to give myself annual raises although it doesn’t always happen that way.

2. Zena Herbert says

   October 4, 2011 at 2:53 pm

   Think about what hourly rate is paid for ‘ordinary’ jobs that you might do. How much is a check-out clerk paid or an office worker? This might or might not be your starting figure but it gives you an idea of an average take-home pay.
   When you are learning your craft you pay yourself less per hour because it takes you longer to do something. It isn’t fair to expect your customer to pay you to learn. As your skill increases, you will work faster so then you charge more per hour. If you are expert and your work is in great demand, you pay yourself commensurately.
   Also consider your product: what is its perceived value by the potential buyer?
   Whatever you pay yourself, it has to be a figure you are comfortable with. Too little and you’ll come to resent it; too much and you’ll struggle to sell the item.
   Be reasonable and flexible – we all work for nothing sometimes. Just not too many times when it is our living, tho.

3. Dorcas says

   December 15, 2011 at 6:12 pm

   Over the years I’ve made and sold many things – from prints to Photo shoots (I have an old degree in photography) to craft items to catering. It was during my catering days that a dear friend who had been selling hand crafted items for years and had owned a store for a while, told me a great final step to pricing. Because some cakes I make can take a minimum of two days to complete, when I’d use my usual formula the final price would be astronomical. So, my friend told me to use what she called ‘perceived value’.
   For example – let’s go back to a 2 day cake. These are Death by Chocolate type cakes – they have many different types of layers. So I’d bake the base cake (an almost flourless cake) then the next stage I had to make home made chocolate pudding and while stirring constantly I’d move my cake to a springform pan and sprinkle the 2nd layer (mini chocolate chips, cut up coconut, mini marshmallows & whatever I wanted) on the cooled cake. Then pour the hot pudding on top and sit with a skewer to pop air bubbles from the spaces that had formed around the marshmallows etc. Then into the fridge overnight. The next day was similar, adding layers until finally moving it to a larger springform pan and either chilling until day 3 or beginning to add as much ganach to the outside as I could. Each layer had to be chilled between pourings. So there was a lot of down time. I felt I did deserve paid for some of it. Wouldn’t you want paid a bit more for a cake that takes several days of commitment? But no matter how I tried to use any formula, the expensive ingredients ( pounds of chocolate, heavy cream, pecans…) always put the cake over $100. But, how much did the cake and the description of all the layers under the 1/2″ og ganache seem worth to buyers?
   I can say I never sold one for $100. But with the help of friends and later at a silent auction at my daughters band concert, my perceived value of $75 was spot on. The auction winner got theirs for $65, but the cake wasn’t described well, they didn’t use my description and called it a chocolate cake with different kinds of layers. That one had chocolate candy music symbols on top too! Lol Oh well…
   So, my point is, for some items a formula will be fine. And may even net you a little more than you normally get paid. Say I provided only the food for your dinner party (no serving) – using a formula I’d get paid at the same rate for a bowl of mashed potatoes as I do for home made yeast rolls. I got off easy on the mashed potatoes but the rolls make up for it. But on single sale items, a table full of different cakes I made – I’d have to utilize the “perceived value” step in pricing. At the end of the day, I need to feel happy with myself, like I wasn’t ripping off my customer or myself and that I was paid what I deserved. Cheating yourself can put a bad taste in your mouth. I’ve done it and I’ve seen others do it. If your pricing is fair it will show itself to be the “perceived value” and you and your customer will be happy.
   Hope I’ve helped you! Happy Holidays!

4. Vicki says

   January 16, 2012 at 11:21 pm

   I always check out the competition. Use their price, my overhead and cost of goods in the formula. Then it is Price minus Cost of Goods divided by overhead =Labor. If this isn’t enough money for a decent hourly wage, I need to learn how to work faster or lower some other part of the equation. If what I am making is snapped up as soon as it hits the shelf I am probably charging too little and raise the price a little at a time. If it just sits there for weeks, my price is too high and I need to lower it. I know we want to be artists but if we are going to make money we need to learn a bit about marketing, business and micro economics.

5. Prince's Mommy says

   July 15, 2012 at 8:59 pm

   Ask twice the cost of materials and related expenses. That way you get some credit for time and talent. A 2nd. like project, or “mix-n-match”
   with current stash and your good to go.