[blacksheep]

 i asked a client to day what kind of budget were we looking at , and after the words came out i cringed. i dont think i should have asked anyway they gave a figure per month, should i take this as gospel or work to fit it. i did a quick quote and was over by a little

[Tim Downer]

Hi Blacksheep
I always try to be cheeky and ask what their budget it.....normally they will say, and sometimes they don't.
However, you have a rough idea of a price and if their comments are that their budget comes out far less than you are expecting......well you  can either leave or put you higher price in anyway.
There is no real advantage of trying to make your costs fit their budget if it is lower than what you would do it for......let someone else deal with it.
Later, when the client eventually realises that a cheaper budget gets him nowhere, he will come back to you for a more realistic price.

Was askes to clean the communals of a block of flats by a property management company. Thought i would be cheaky and ask what their budget was......thinking i would be cheaky and try for £20.00 per visit.....and their budget was £27.00 per visit. "Do you think you can match this?" was their comment........I will try i replied       

Kind Regards

Tim

[shelton]

As ever, the key message is "Don't undervalue yourself".

Set the price which you are happy with.  There's little to gain in reducing your quotation, if you are not making a worthwhile profit.  You may demotivate yourself or your staff on that particular contract, as you know you aren't making as much out of it as another one.  Not professional, but natural.

We recently won a decent sized contract and were told we were not the cheapest. The difference in the end was that they had more confidence in us delivering the goods than the others.

It's not always about money . ..  just most of the time . ..