Customer thinks I’m ripping him off

[Octopus]

Thanks for the advice....yes have all the overheads that come with being a business....not sure if Tescos pay their trolley pushers that much

Tesco's pay for holiday, sick and pensions ...... so don't just go by the hourly rate as I suspect your weekly rate after ALL your costs won't be very different ............

Also I've been reading a few of your posts from last year and it sounds to me like you are really competing with handymen ........... so your rates are not really for doing sparking and will be lower as a direct result ..

 

[Brian Taylor]

well yes I suspect you are correct a lot of the electrical work i see is DIY in nature...difficult to compete with that...but it must be the same for all self employed sparks.

 

[telectrix]

at £15/hour to customer, after paying overheads, you end up with <£10/hour. aldi pay £9 for trainee shelf stackers

 

[Brian Taylor]

Sounds about right...my take home last year was about 8000.00

 

[ferg]

At £15 an hour it really is time to take a good look at where things are going wrong.

Unless of course you live in a very deprived area with masses of competition.

 

[Charlie_]

@Brian Taylor you would be much better off going cards in with an electrical firm or even sub contracting

 

[Brian Taylor]

Well it's not a particularly wealthy area....lots of unemployment...and yes I suppose there is lots of competition but other areas suffer in the same way i suppose

 

[Brian Taylor]

Well it's not a particularly wealthy area....lots of unemployment...and yes I suppose there is lots of competition but other areas suffer in the same way i suppose

 

[123]

Northern Ireland has amongst the lowest rates in the UK, but I can assure you I'll not be getting out of bed for £15 an hour self employed. Brickies and joiners charge more than that for goodness sake.

 

[Octopus]

Sounds about right...my take home last year was about 8000.00

£8K profit per year equates to £667.00 per month or £167 per week or £4.46 per hour

You sure you're telling us the whole story?

 

[Zerax]

The ideal situation is where you have a large enough customer base that is happy to pay you sensible prices on the basis that they like you and the work that you do. You turn up on time, do a great job and clear up afterwards etc.. If you're always competing for work where your quotes are compared to others, it makes it a tough old game.

 

[nbwriter]

Hi guys, I read this post with interest... Here's my thoughts:

Putting together written quotes is an art form... Practice it (a lot)! If you are brave enough to go "self employed". Most customers want discounts, or desire a job done on "the cheap", but it's a false economy...

I ended up telling customers, yeh: you may get someone for £5 per hour, but they probably wont be good time-keepers, probably wont have much training, and probably wont do a high-quality job... (If the job gets done at all)!

I personally had so much trouble with "domestic clients" (non-business clients) I simply stopped taking those jobs - The problems the clients created were endless... Didn't pay on time, didn't understand how long a job takes, little regard for health and safety, little appreciation of the cost of tools & materials, poor communication skills, prone to argue (rather than co-operate to find workable solutions)...

... The lesson is, you have to think ahead, be prepared and cover yourself ALL the time...

But, sometimes, you just have to walk away... The client just isn't listening... On a positive note, I would (and do) say to any potential client, obtain 3 quotes... In writing... You can do that if you (the trader) know how competitive your rates are... The phone will keep ringing, sure as the sun rises.

Regards, NB (Old School Tech)

 

[Squid]

Sounds about right...my take home last year was about 8000.00

£154 per week? I earn't more in a day as an IT contractor.

 

[richy3333]

Ouch, firstly being SE on £15 per hour ....... you might as well be collecting trolleys in Tesco's

You HAVE to increase your rates, but doubling them for existing clients will always be hard so ....I would suggest increasing your existing customer rates to £20 immediately, and all new clients start with £32 minimum.

Are you registered with a CPS, have a van, the necessary insurances and your 18th?

Your overheads for the year will be about £6K so think hard about what you are doing and if some clients won't pay your new rate, let them find some MUG who will.

If you can find 10 clients willing to pay £30 per hour, means you can leave 20 paying £15 behind or you may find they will pay £20 this year then increase it next year to £24 (increments of £4 makes calculating 1/4 hours easier!)

Brilliant advice from Murdoch.

You have to drive your business. Decide on your USP and follow it. Your not a sparky first, you’re a business.
To put it into context, I charge out more than that for my apprentice. Think you have it hard. Try negotiating rates with teuchters!

 

[Welchyboy1]

Well it's not a particularly wealthy area....lots of unemployment...and yes I suppose there is lots of competition but other areas suffer in the same way i suppose

Is that rainham in essex?

Im just up the road between basildon and southend.

I charge around £55 per hour and im turning work away

Its your customers that are the issue either that or.......dont take this personally, the speed you work.

 

[Brian Taylor]

Thanks for the advice all...it's Rainham in Kent and my customers are all domestic....I must admit that being the wrong side of 60 I'm not as fast as someone half my age. I think what sinks me every time is the costs associated with the business...things like paying for and running a van, accountancy fees, insurance etc. Would love to know how others deal with this without becomeing uncompetitive

 

[Octopus]

Thanks for the advice all...it's Rainham in Kent and my customers are all domestic....I must admit that being the wrong side of 60 I'm not as fast as someone half my age. I think what sinks me every time is the costs associated with the business...things like paying for and running a van, accountancy fees, insurance etc. Would love to know how others deal with this without becomeing uncompetitive

If you are really only making £8k net profit, you would be better off doing pretty much ANYTHING else as you are earning below the minimum wage .......

 

[ferg]

Thanks for the advice all...it's Rainham in Kent and my customers are all domestic....I must admit that being the wrong side of 60 I'm not as fast as someone half my age. I think what sinks me every time is the costs associated with the business...things like paying for and running a van, accountancy fees, insurance etc. Would love to know how others deal with this without becomeing uncompetitive

To be brutally honest I deal with it by charging enough to cover it.

 

[Welchyboy1]

Thanks for the advice all...it's Rainham in Kent and my customers are all domestic....I must admit that being the wrong side of 60 I'm not as fast as someone half my age. I think what sinks me every time is the costs associated with the business...things like paying for and running a van, accountancy fees, insurance etc. Would love to know how others deal with this without becomeing uncompetitive

This is not working out for you because of general maths i would assume, if you have not allowed enough to cover your outgoings plus wages plus profit your going to slowly sink, if you really cannot manage to earn past this amount then maybe its best doing something which requires a lot less imput, hassle and risk but would probably pay you more money

Earning well in the trades is generally about pricing correctly, good planning and speed.

Always work on a price if you can, be bloody quick whilst keeping the standard high and you'll do very well.
If that doesnt suit you personally or your a little slower at what you do, the alternative is to just work for a company on a salary or day rate. That way theres no stress and your guarenteed about £15 per hour on your hip, in kent without too many problems i would imagine

 

[Squid]

Is that rainham in essex?

Im just up the road between basildon and southend.

I charge around £55 per hour and im turning work away

Its your customers that are the issue either that or.......dont take this personally, the speed you work.

Employ Brian Taylor pay him £20ph hour and chill out in your villa in Spain ;o)))))