Just found out someone in my town is doing 3 of them in vinyl for $200.00 ea. could someone tell me how and make and money to live on ?
these signs are for
realestate one with logo/ ph.no./ and some other copy I gave the guy a bid of $320.00 0n the frist one and & 280.00 on the other 2 am I wrong?
Posted by pierre (Member # 1462) on :
Maybe,......if you cinch in your belt tight enough. MDO S/S 1/2"........$32.00 Prime & paint.......$50.00 3 year economy film copy................$118.00
You're not wrong, but if you want to simply get the job at $200, you can do it.
Kick him in the a$$.
I should add that the $50 for prime and paint is going to cost you $9 in paint and 20 minutes of your time.
Oh.....one more thing....."Hi, Sharon!" heh
[ November 01, 2001: Message edited by: pierre ]
Posted by Sharon Bigler (Member # 2203) on :
We just did three of them at $400 a piece, installed. I agree with Pierre..........give the guy a kick in his patootie.
Posted by Glenn Dewey (Member # 1804) on :
If I knew who he was I would do more than kick his A$$!!!! I would find out where he buys his board so I can do them that CHEEP..LOL
Posted by Preston McCall (Member # 351) on :
Everytime someone shows up in my market with stupid low prices on window splashes, I hear about it for a few months and then, mysteriously, they seem to vanish back into some dimly lit place where they go back to their regular job at $8 an hour and a paycheck at the end of the week. That is why I try to bid everything as a 'project total' and never by an hourly rate. People just do not realize how much other time is spent on getting to the site, getting materials, design time and other time spent marketing.What I offer is reliability, years of experience and a produce people come back to by from me time and again.
If you are going to stay in the business, bid work at what you feel makes you an honest living or else just do the kind of work that your competitor does in order to keep the prices so low. These people are the 'bottom feeders' we all confront. In time they will either be out of business or else see that to make an honest profit, you simply have to change enough to pay the bills. Keep your aim high and your design skills always focused on doing the kind of work you take pride in seeing later. There is no better joy than seeing your own work years later, surviving the test of not only time, but of competitor's low prices. I just drove by a sign I handpainted in 1979 on the south side of a building in the sun. One Shot on Creazon board. Still burning gas and looks pretty good. I charged the guy back then $325 for it. Did he get a bargain or what. That works out to be about a dollar twenty-three a month for a sign?
Posted by Jeffrey Vrstal (Member # 2271) on :
Here's how:
The client supplies the board, paint, prep time, pre-cut - pre spaced vinyl, posts & hardware, labor to apply, assemble and install and you charge him $200.00 each for expert supervision.
Feel free to job this out to me but I might have to add extra for picking up the phone to agree to steal work from you.
These people really hurt and will continue to do it... no matter how hard you try to educate the buyer on your quality, your expertise and the fact that you have overhead to take care of... well, they'll always go for CHEAP. Next time they will go with CHEAP again but not from that guy. Someone will do it.
Go to the competition of that real estate guy and sell him a kick a$$ sign package, when these guys place their ads in the paper each week, make sure you have a good photo of YOUR work in there.
Posted by Amy Brown (Member # 1963) on :
Piere,
Where do you get MDO for $32. Around here it's at least $50.
I always get underbid here. They sell 4x8's for $150 and they look like crap. I'm not worried about it. They can work themselves to death for $10 profit if they want to. I'm not going to!!
Posted by pierre (Member # 1462) on :
Try-City Lumber, Ace Western and Valley Lumber all sell it for that.
Posted by Tim Whitcher (Member # 685) on :
Ready White (prepainted 1/2" MDO) $60.00. El Cheapo Intermediate Vinyl, mask: $15.00. But who cares?? Are we just selling materials, here?? The lowest I'll go for a 4x8 single sided real estate sign is $340.00, pick it up at the shop and don't let the door hit you in the a$$ on the way out.
I just noticed 2 more beat to hell pick up trucks today with magnetics advertising 2 new "sign companys" in my area. They come and go. Nothing much you can do about it. It's a shame how they devalue the work, though.
Posted by Tasmus (Member # 445) on :
Around here, I Get Simpson DOUBLE FACE PRIMED ONE SIDE 1/2 INCH MDO for 21.95!!!!
Hard to believe but i have been scooping it up.
Best quality MDO in at least three years!
BaRRY
Posted by Si Allen (Member # 420) on :
yup! Easy to do 3 4x8's for $200 each!
Prepainted MDO $56 Lettering Enamel, Thinner, etc. $14
That leaves $130
$130 x 3 = $390
Now divide that by time to make pounce patterns and lettering them = X $/hr minus overhead.
So if you are willing to work for $10/hr...you can do it!
But why?
[ November 01, 2001: Message edited by: Si Allen ]
Posted by old paint (Member # 549) on :
in this wonderful market in pensacola.....i got em here doin 4 x 8 on corplast for $100. i do a 4 x 8 for $225.....but i usually do it on alum. and they buy the sheet of alum.(this way they feel their getting a deal) at this price its little over $7 a sq. ft. no painting substraight.(and i would probably paint it!!!!)
Posted by ScooterX (Member # 2023) on :
are you comparing "apples to apples"?
is the competition putting the same amount of effort and care into the prep and design as you are, or are you trying to deliver a custom product at an economy price?
want to offer the boards for $150? offer MDX or waferboard, two coats of white semi-gloss house paint, and use only bargain (3-year) vinyl. paint your 4x8s 10 at a time -- use a house sprayer. (better yet, hire a kid to do them -- that frees you up to sell 'em). you'll make a bundle.... and then you can move to a new town before the first ones warp/peel/fade/chip.
rather than waste your time trying to figure out how to shave a nickle from a $250 job, go spend your time finding customers who want quality work.
OR determine if your customer only needs a 1-year sign, and don't waste time making them to the same quality level as a 5-7or -10 year sign.... ie, offer your customer a one-year banner (4x8) for $140 and beat the competition!
Posted by Dave Grundy (Member # 103) on :
Just a quick calculation based on prices here in Canada and converted to U.S. funds.
4x8x½ single sided Crezon (prepainted with a smooth white finish that usually lasts about 3 years before starting to deteriorate. It will last MUCH longer if topcoated.)
5 yds of 24" 3 mil intermediate vinyl(if every square inch of the 4x8 was covered in vinyl).
Costs...
Crezon $40 U.S. Vinyl $10 U.S. total $50 U.S.(not including premask)
$200 selling price minus costs equals $150
time to produce each sign appx. 3 hrs (cutting,weeding and applying)
labour plus profit equals $50/hr.
I know it isn't $100/hr but it still ain't TOO bad.
I know it isn't challenging, or a work of art either but it puts food on the table.
And YES I hate doing those jobs too, but every once in a while all the customer wants is something to last a year.
SO the way I look at it..based on the above..is that doing three of those signs in a day and putting $450 U.S. net in my bank account is just fine.
By the way that $450 Us is $600+ in Canadian funds!
Posted by Monte Jumper (Member # 1106) on :
If this guy is goofy enough to do them for that ...he's goofy enough to wholesale them to you.So get there first sell it... sub it to him... let him do all the work and you get the price you want.
