Really a leap to state that I talk to ANY clients about anything like that. I actually have my pricing structure set at some of the highest in the state, and I still get calls (which I am STILL turning down).
During the winter season, I have postcard sized advertising going out in the mail offering $100 ANY inspection, which puts me at a closer range to the rest of the inspectors.
Now, because I have priced myself so high, I have room to offer specials like that. It eliminates price shopping because of the psychological value of the client seeing that BIG RED $100, and they go straight to calling me over the other inspectors with cards on the table or in the resources booklet.
It also gathers in people who may not even be selling their home. I advertised on the card that a home inspection is an excellent way to maintain your homes systems and know where it stands. Then for people who are selling their home, I advertised that getting a home inspection before putting it on the market puts the bargaining power in their hands, not the buyer in this buyer’s market.
It seems to be working rather well so far. I’ve only tried it in a limited fashion but have received an excellent response. Nowhere on it do I have my prices listed, or on my website. ( still have to ad this to my website)
I’m not ready to hit inspections big until I get my SPI license. That will be in two weeks, and then I am going to be advertising like crazy. That should get my name out there in a major way by the time the next season starts.
wow… can you say cost of doing business??? my inspections average 300.00 and three hours… plus a couple hours doing the report… so five hours will equal 60.00/hour… sounds great doesnt it??? Not really… sit down and factor all the insurance, software, website, tools, advertising and other expenses to go along with it and those numbers get whittled down real fast… the average joe does not have these expenses when punching a time clock!!!
of course if someone is going to forgo all the insurances and expenses… do a walk through in 90 minutes or less… throw a cheap A$$ report out then they can charge 150.00… but not this kid… nope nadda…
yes I did… but it seemed you trivialized how much it effects the bottom dollar… I was not trying to attack what you said but sometimes the thoughts that many have is how much money we make…
I know my value when it comes to an inspection… and I am underpaid… I tell my clients i need to figure out a commision based on how much I save them bottom dollar!!!
have you put your numbers throught the Cost of doing business that is available through Inspection News… i am sure I saw a link here… gets you thinking… there are so many expenses and man hours that go into doing business that are unaccounted for when doing quick calcs… right now I hope to get 100.00 per hour per inspection (actual inspection hours) then that shoudl cover my expenses…
I have two years of architectural engineering schooling, four years apprenticeship (classes and hands on training) in another engineering program… so I believe my education is worth someting as well…
I understand that your education is worth alot. Perhaps trying to get equal value out of your education from the HI industry is the wrong way to go? You are competing with many people who don’t have the level of education you do, and they are getting the same amount of money as you. So maybe you won’t get paid what you are worth from this profession.
I don’t like lowballers either, and if you read my post above it shows my pricing runs from $399-$549 and up conceivably. Even with my $100 off coupon, that doesn’t put me in the lowballer bracket. It just means smart marketing. How many people who charge $289 will be comfortable enough to offer $100 off?
Good for you Jeffery you will be I expect one of those who lasts.
When you have time to spare go to the arkhives and see all the names who made lots of posts and they are no longer posting .
Most no longer have web sites.
I expect many are no longer doing home inspections .
Wendy if you give someone a price then suddenly reduce it by 25% most people are going to know that you added it on in the 1st place just so it can be reduced. I think a lot of people would be offended by that.
Then again it is your company and should run as you feel fit to do so.
That’s not what I’m doing. My price structure is set. I am offering a $100 off during the fall and winter, then when spring comes around that coupon will no longer be available and the prices will stand as they are.
I actually am working on this with a Master’s level business and marketing expert, so I think they know what they are talking about.:roll:
When I ran my auto glass business for five years, we did the $100 off coupon regularly. We put it in Val Pak ads, in the yellow pages, all sorts of places.
Even though our prices were consistently higher than our competitors, we were booked SOLID every day. People can’t resist that big red $100! It’s psychological. They don’t sit around price shopping to see if that is actually a good deal. They go straight to calling and making sure they don’t miss out on that $100 special price. We ran that for the entire five years and it never lost it’s appeal.
Looks like someone just trying to make money. There are free sources to help determine business and marketing expenses.
Since I can’t purchase that material, does he state in there that all of those things he is using to determine worth are also tax deductible so they are recoverable per hour value?
Just because nick says it, does not make it good business for the new inspector. I started in teh lower end of the price range becauseI had a feelin git would help me get a foothold - it did.
I have maintained a high volume by pricing myself intentionally in the lower end of the spectrum ever since. It has grown tremendously every year.
I will likely hire additonal inspectors as opposed to raising prices.
If some here can get more for inspections - good for them. If not, it is not my problem.
The SOPs are not really all that hard to attain. They are a bare minimum - not the be all and end all of a thorough and top rate inspection. Most rookie inspectors on their first inspection with the right software will do just fine by the SOPs
I began low, stayed low and actually lowered prices once at the begininng and I found out that my intuition about lower prices equalling incresaed volume was correct.
No corners are cut. All inspections exceed all SOP - something many higher priced inspectors will not do. All inspections are client-focused and revolve around their questons and education about the home. And no one has ever walked away feeling short changed or that corners were cut - I offer a satisfaction guarantee.
My exposure is not increased - just the number of inspections I do (and my bottom line:D) which leads to more client referrals, which leads to even more inspections, etc, etc.
Price shoppers are no more litigious than anyone else. They are consistently easy to identify and motivate, however, which translates to inspections for me.
If other inspectors in the area follow suit and lower prices to get in on the market share, so be it. I can always develop other marketing tools that will keep me competitively priced and busy.
