Prices - Losing sleep!

[Pooh]

I think I worry more about prices than any other single thing to do with mobile nailing :-(

I know it is time I put them up a little (or make some savings) but I am charging roughly the same as local salons.

I know the salons have bigger overheads but on the other hand have to run the car and I DO save people having to travel into town and save them having to fit in with salon hours.

Thing is ... there is that terrible thought of putting prices up and then spending the next few weeks watching clients go elswhere.

EVERY business struggles with this problem I know ... but that doesn't make ME fee; any better

Comparison, just to put my mind at rest?: What do others (mobile or salon) charge for (for example) a complete set of acrylic extensions, French finish.?

 

[hayls]

Im sure that when peeps reply to this thread that they are going to say, prices are totally different from region to region. In Carmarthenshire, where I live the average price for a set of Forever French L&p doesnt exist because nobody offers it apart from me (soon).
Gels on the other hand, anywhere from £30-£60.

Do some market research, go and get brochures and pricelists from other salons.

At the end of the day its your time you are charging for not really the service.

Good luck anyway xx

 

[blossom]

Hi Pooh!

Well of course, it does depend on your area but for what it's worth, I work from home (used to be mobile and priced the same) and I charge the same as the salons, a bit more than some, but I have always maintained that I don't want people to come to me because I'm cheap, I want them to come to me because they like the job I do on their nails. And I would say my business is very successful. I charge £35 for l&p in natural and £40 for permanent French l&p extensions. NNO I charge £30 natural and £35 permanent French. If you mean natural extensions with a French polish (done with nail polish) then I would say I don't do that very often, the permanent l&p french is more popular, but if I did it I would just charge the natural price (I don't make a charge for polishing the nails but some geeks do).

Do a ring round of your local salons and mobiles asking for prices, I would also check out what they charge for rebalances and replacement nails (I never used to charge for replacement nails in the beginning and when I started to, it raised my income by a fair bit).

I hate putting prices up too, but so far nobody has gone elsewhere. I would say it's better to give them a bit of notice, and also it's easier to put prices up by a small amount, more often, than put them up less often and put them up by a few pounds. hth

Good luck xxx

 

[Mrs Gadget]

I work mobile and from home.

I charge fs l+p p/w £40, glitter £45, fs gel/fabric# £40, rebalance 2 week £25, 3 week £27, 4 week £30, over 4 weeks fs price applies. If it's l+p glitter rebalance £5 extra.

I put my prices up in feb and haven't lost a client, in fact have gained new ones.

I know it varies area to area, on average here salons charge £35-£40 fs, rebalances £22-£25.

Ju x

 

[tori23]

i am mobile and i have realised i must be wayy to cheap!
full set £25
rebalance £17
manicure £12

i am not teeming with clients at these prices and i am average price around my local area. lots of other mobile girls that adertise are a lot cheaper then me!! obviously i dont know what products they use so they are probably cheap cos cheap products!! i rang some toher mobiles out of the paper and asked them to post me a price list so i could compare. it does worry me that some are a lot cheaper but i know my clients appreciate what i do. its only my 1st year on my own so maybe i will put my prices up next year

tori xx

 

[JDs]

Ewww, I think most of us feel the same way about this.

Business classes that I have gone to through out the years always say that if you are booked 75% or more of your time (working hours) it is time to raise your prices. Then you raise them 10-15% more of your current price.

Raising is always the hardest thing to do. Especially when you get the client who has to ask that question : Oh! why did you raise them?

*Price of gas is going up.
*Price of food is going up.
*Cost of living is going up.
*Price of materials is going up.
*Other people who get a wage , gets raises. why not you?

You may or may not lose a client. If they are happy with you as a person, happy with the way you provide the service and aren't cheap. You probably won't. But if you do, just remember that you have a space for a new client. And with your price raise, you haven't lost any money.

Have you sat down and put down all your expenses for running a mobile business and put down you income and figured out exactly how much money you are making? Dividing that down into weeks and days? (this is called a profit and loss statement)
If you do that, you will have no worries about raising your prices. You will see just how little money you really are making. Aren't you worth more?:hug:

 

[Mrs.Clooney]

This is what I did when I went mobile. Icollected price brochure from various reputable and not so reputable local salons (Get at least 10). I also phoned local mobile techs or those working from home. Then I made a simple table of their pricing. Then from there you can formulate your own pricing structure based on the cost of your products, professional time, fuel etc.

I agree with you that mobile should not neccesarily be cheaper than salons. Yes, salons have huge overheads, but as you say, you have to pay your insurance, fuel, wear and tear on your car, find parking in rain or shine whilst also offering your client the luxury of not having to go out of their own home.

Perhaps you would like to give us an example of prices in your area and we can take it from there?

 

[Kim Lawless]

This is why I think you're better off calling yourself FREELANCE rather than MOBILE. Freelance sounds a bit more upmarket.

 

[MINKUS]

This is why I think you're better off calling yourself FREELANCE rather than MOBILE. Freelance sounds a bit more upmarket.

Your right it does ! good point
amb x

 

[Zo Zo]

This is why I think you're better off calling yourself FREELANCE rather than MOBILE. Freelance sounds a bit more upmarket.

Yes, I agree, freelance does sound good!

But in answer to your post I would say put them up but maybe only a couple of pounds. I don't think clients will give them selves the aggravation of looking elsewhere if its a reasonable increase. And if they ask, just say something like... well I haven't changed my prices for 2 years (or however long it is) and I've noticed I'm slightly out of keeping with the rest of the market.
Peeps that are 'employed' normally get at least an annual increase in their wages

 

[Mrs.Clooney]

This is why I think you're better off calling yourself FREELANCE rather than MOBILE. Freelance sounds a bit more upmarket.

Never thought of it quite like that, but good point.

 

[blossom]

This is why I think you're better off calling yourself FREELANCE rather than MOBILE. Freelance sounds a bit more upmarket.

You are so right. It sounds way better!

 

[TheBeautifier]

I'm mobile, I worry about putting my prices up as well. I review my prices every year, I look at other mobile's price list & check the prices of local salon in the areas I cover.

When I do put my prices up I decide on a date that my prices will rise & I tell all my clients a few weeks in advance, then about 3 weeks before I send them all a reminder along with a new price list. On both times I explain why my prices will be rising.

I so far have never had any problems, I usually only put my prices up a little eg by 50p or £1 at the most, to be perfectly honest if I didn't tell my clients they probably wouldn't even notice.

I approached it this way purely from the salon I used to work in, for 6 years they put their prices up every year at the same time & always used to tell clients about a month beforehand. Prices only used to go up by £1.00 at the most. The salon then moved to a bigger shop, when it came to putting the prices up they put them up by £10 on some things, not everything, some things only went up by £1, but it was the treatments that went up by £10 that the clients noticed & they were not happy. Alot of clients said, "Oh so the salon moves to a posher place & we have to pay for it??" As far as I know the salon is still busy but I know a few of the old regulars left.

I guess my clients see that I'm still in the same little van I've had for 4 years & they see my reasons for putting my prices up are genuine.

So from all my waffling what I'm trying to say is as long as your straight with your clients & give them notice, in general thay don't mind at all.

On saying all this I still worry & know what ya going through.

 

[gillian w]

This is why I think you're better off calling yourself FREELANCE rather than MOBILE. Freelance sounds a bit more upmarket.

OOh yes from now on im freelance.

 

[1999judy]

You have to be prepared to charge what people are prepared to pay in the area that you work.
Don't underprice yourself but again don't charge more than you feel you are worth. At the end of the day, your clients know how much is the "going rate" in your area and will compare you to other techs that may be more or less experienced than you are.. it's a bit hit and miss at times but if you know you can do it, and they do too they will be glad to have you as their tech.
If you are working mobile you need to think of your petrol, if you work in a salon you need to think of your rent.(and insurance in both cases and your NI contributions)
Once this is covered you need to think of the cost of your products and how good you are, in comparison to other techs in the area.
And if you feel you can't deal with the competition get better training and reap the benefits.
If you find it a bit hard to deal with discussing price changes then why not print a new price list out on the computer and mention to your clients that there are price changes and give them the list?

 

[gillian w]

I do operate a bit of a two tier system (ok not very good business i know but..) I have clients,single mums,young people just setting off buying houses,oaps, that i know cannot afford anymore than i charge them already and i would rather keep them than lose them so i keep the prices down.I call it loyalty discount other people and new people pay more.

 

[sarita]

the first time i put my prices up, i let my clients know in advance.

Then after time i realised i wanted to put it up again some time later so what i did was, honoured my very loyal regular clients with the prices they were paying (4 clients) , BUT any new clients that came were given the new revised price lists. (and they would never know any difference because they have not been before) This way my loyal few clients feel they are getting something special but everyone else that cam after had to pay the new tarif. I have not encountered any problems with this.

this way you dont need to upset your regular clients (if you feel you are going to) but are putting up the prices for evry new person that comes.

sorry does this make sense coz im having a rough day today!