Important skills for signwriters who want faster & more accurate estimates for their customers

3 minutes read

| 22 May 2022

Pricing in the sign and graphics industry can vary a lot, depending on the segment. However, there are some common pricing approaches that are used across many segments. This includes pricing based on quantity breaks, incorporating costs into a price list, and increasing prices for printing.

Review your current pricing to establish relative costs

This is especially true for first-time business owners. Who are learning not only what it takes to be a skilled signwriter but also what it takes to be a successful business owner.

How can the price list tool help you?

This means that it will make it easier for your customers to understand your pricing. It will cut any potential misunderstanding about who owns the screens after a job is done. We describe how to use it to update your pricing.

Price Consistency Based on the Quantity Breaks

This difference represents the drop in the price list when moving from a quantity of 12 to 18. There are large quantities of discounts between 12 and 18 items. Continue to decline between 18 and 24 items, and taper off for the larger quantities. Signwriters who offer quantity discounts because of setup fees. Can spread it across the number of signs produced.

Error Checking

It turns out that the actual error is that the price list charges the same amount, for production on 36 item jobs.

Incorporate the Costs Into Your Price List

Many price lists are based pricing for specified quantities and colours, with a separate setup price at the bottom of the page.

Increase Your Printing Prices

Develop your own price list tool to help customers get fast accurate estimates. Pricing and estimating for different segments of the sign and graphics industry can vary a lot.

Here are some lessons learned from pricing:

As you can see below, the common approach varies by segment, though almost every segment has many common approaches.

The difference in the method you use should depend on

Pricing system you have in place. The industry standards. It is better to approach items in a textbook style. What follows are the most common questions shop owners ask about pricing. One of the biggest problems we see is with companies that want to compete in every arena.

Automated processes can impose a regulated system. It is most effective when it is used in shops with pricing guidelines already in place. The owner has to work with the vendor to incorporate the pricing expertise into the system. Here are some common reasons to automate, but you must assess whether you are ready to automate. Improve the completeness and accuracy of the information that sales collect for production.

Here are some signs you are ready to automate:

You have a reliable manual system that is reaching or has reached its limit. You should design your pricing so that 60-70% of your orders have an acceptable accuracy level. At some point, the accuracy you have designed into the system needs to be checked. There is also a cost associated with pricing that you should keep in mind. This is because accuracy and precision in pricing are not free. Costs will vary based on the level of automation in your shop.

Conclusion

Creating a price list tool can help you update your pricing, and make it easier for your customers to understand your pricing. It can also help you to keep track of quantity discounts and to spread the cost of discounts across the number of signs produced.

What do you think? Will you add price lists to your estimating process? Which tools would you add to this list? Please share your thoughts in the comments below.