What we charge?

[Wimblees@AOL.COM]

In a message dated 1/26/00 10:24:09 PM !!!First Boot!!!, ulrich@rangenet.com 
writes:

<< I suggest that posting some average prices would really help those newbies
 who have no resource from which to establish some kind of basis on which to
 run a business. Yes, if you chose to get together and say something to the
 effect of "we all hereby agree that we will do no tunings for less than
 $80.00." That would clearly be price fixing as defined in the Sherman Act.
 But to simply compare notes? Nonsense. >>


On the one hand, Roy, I agree with you. We should be able to discuss what we 
charge. I guess the paranoid comes from the way everyone has a tendency to 
sue. If a sharp lawyer should get a hold of one of these posts, and discovers 
that 3 or 4 piano tuners in St. Louis happen to charge the same rate, he 
could have a case against us, especially if he found out we all belong tot he 
PTG. And then when finds out that piano tuners Minneapolis and Chicago also 
charge the same,   thing, he could go after the PTG. I know it sounds far 
fetched, but you never know. 

As far as helping newbies set a price, that I am against. In the class I 
teach, I make it a point that every one has to look at his or her own 
situation. There are a lot of variables involved when setting fees. For 
anyone to set his or her fee based on what the competition is charging is not 
the way to go. A very highly respected member of the PTG once said he charged 
a couple of dollars more for his services than the next highest competitor. 
And when he finds out someone else is charging the same as him, he raises 
his. That is not the right way to charge for your service.

Fees should be based on the amount of money you need to stay in business and 
make an honest profit for yourself. This figure can be based on a high 
profit. But there will come a point at which only so much profit will allow 
you to stay in business. In other words, if you charge too much for your 
service, not enough people will call you.