How Do You Check Out Your Competitor Prices?

[Dukesy 0]

Keeping it simple, how do you find out your competitor prices as a business, as not knowing your market, knowing your competition and knowing the price elasticity in your area is essential to understand, especially when you find the reasonable point of acceptance/resistance when raising price! Don't forget, polls are anonymous.

[vokf 0]

I start with what I think is a reasonable price, and then find out information from clients.

 

Feedback from clients is that other quotes do not contain enough information, or they were simply just thrown a price.

Based on that, I know roughly what the rate is for my area and I don't need (or want) to create bogus calls.

[TonyB 0]

I find out from the clients too.

 

Not overly bothered what they charge as they are not the same quality as me tongue out icon

 

[John C 0]

I agree with Tony.

 

I work out what I need for an evenings pay and charge that. Usually about £250

[Kingy 0]

I do not check, but am usually dearer.

 

I do not usually offer a price match service.

[McCardle 1]

I think price matching is the beginning of the end. It may be attractive if there is only £10 or £15 difference, but what happens if you are asked to match for sombody 50% cheaper?, after all if word gets around that you actively match other Deejays prices, the client will try harder to find a cheaper disco in order to shave some ££'s off your bill, do you want to be encouraging clients to go off in search of the competition?.

[Bouncy Dancefloor 0]

not too bothered really, from years of experience, i know the "going rate" and i tend to quote the "going rate" or slightly higher

 

im happy with my income

[MobileDisco4Hire 0]

I don't check I quote what I believe I'm worth

And I don't normally lose many enquiries.

People do not always book on "price alone"

 

[Slimboy Fat 0]

I think price matching is the beginning of the end. It may be attractive if there is only £10 or £15 difference, but what happens if you are asked to match for sombody 50% cheaper?, after all if word gets around that you actively match other Deejays prices, the client will try harder to find a cheaper disco in order to shave some ££'s off your bill, do you want to be encouraging clients to go off in search of the competition?.

 

Spot on, Mac!

 

Such activity would eventually spark a price war which could ultimately drive down the fee that we feel our services are worth as entertainers.

[TonyB 0]

Spot on, Mac!

 

Such activity would eventually spark a price war which could ultimately drive down the fee that we feel our services are worth as entertainers.

 

But isn't that exactly what a lot of DJ's do?

 

How many times do you see the comment "I can't charge more than, e.g., £120 because thats what everyone else around here charges".

 

It seems a lot of DJ's are frightened to put their prices up in case they lose business to others that are then going to be charging less i.e. they price match (or undercut) and don't base their charges on the actual cost of running a disco.

 

Either someone somewhere has to start increasing prices and then the others will follow suit or you have to start selling on service and ability rather than price.

[C.S 0]

never have , never will

[McCardle 1]

But isn't that exactly what a lot of DJ's do?

 

How many times do you see the comment "I can't charge more than, e.g., £120 because thats what everyone else around here charges"

 

So are you saying that you always choose the most expensive option. Whether its a holiday / house / car insurance?. If there is a £900 quote and a £290 one, you'd go for the £900 everytime on the basis that they charge the earth, so they must deliver it? and their hotels, service and claims back up should be 2nd to none.

 

Personally, i think the whole of the Uk is now price comparison crazy, whether its utilties, holidays, flights, insurance, mobile phones and even broadband, there is some comparison website offering you all of the best deals at the click of a mouse. We should hardly be surprised that our service is being devalued because everybody elses is too.

 

I believe first and foremost that people using sites like Gocompare, [link blocked at request of third party], Confused.com and Goodparty are doing so with one aim - shopping on price, rather than the fact they are looking to pay a premium price for a premium service, or worse still, they expect both! :scared: .

 

What is the first thing a client asks normally when they ring or email. Is it "how long have you been in business, can you provide references etc? or is it simply "I'm looking for a quote"?. Again, the first priority for them is the price, anything else and the other questions come later = lower priority.

Edited February 16, 2009 by McCardle

[travis1579 0]

Still realtively new to dj'ing started last year done a few cheap or free gigs for charity/local nursury not to general public though, not too bothered if people are cheaper, hoping i will be known for my qualities so word of mouth best recommendation, been to so many disco's over the years where the dj has killed the party by not reading the crowd etc(im sure it was none of you on here) thats why i started dj'ing oh and of course my love for music.

 

I was on gumtree the other day you can hire your own mixer amp and speaker for £59 i think it was, there will be some people who may well hire this do a cheap job claiming to be dj's but dont think they will get repeat custom and client probably not pleased when they end up making their special night :poo: .

 

Saying that i have only had one repeat booking and that was the local pre school nusury :hurt: but live in hope smile icon

[TonyB 0]

Not everyone. There are people that associate price with quality otherwise the likes of Harrods wouldn't exist and everyone would shop at the likes of Tescos or if everyone went for the cheapest they would go to the likes of Netto. There are also people who have got their fingers burnt by buying the cheapest. Often when getting estimates at least 3 are obtained and the middle (average) one is selected, not always the cheapest and not always the most expensive.

 

Why do DJ's buy more expensive kit when there is cheaper budget kit available? If everything was just price driven with no accounting for quality and reliability then no one would buy more expensive stuff that does the same job.

 

Why pay £90 for a pair of jeans just because it has a designer badge on it when you can get the same jeans from Primark or similar for £19.99? My mum used to work in the rag trade and the company she worked for used to make designer jeans under licence but they were made from exactly the same denim as the budget ones on the same machines using the same cotton. Apart from the badge, the only other difference was a patent stitching design on the pockets.

 

I believe its all down to marketing, branding and reputation. Its something the British public are very gullible for. Dress up a cheap product with fancy marketing, establish a brand charge a lot of money for it and they will want to buy it.

 

It becomes a status symbol because they can flash the badge that says "I paid a lot of money for this".

 

Apply the same to running a disco. Get your name established and a reputation for being reassuringly expensive and people will book you just so they can gloat about the name thats associated with costing more than a budget disco. There seriously are people like that our there. The ones with more money than sense. The ones that want something just because it is expensive and they can tell everyone about it.

[McCardle 1]

All, good points but how many Harrods outlets are available?. Demand can't be 'that' great otherwise there would be an outlet in every major city.

 

If every Deejay became their own entertainment version of Harrods overnight then wouldn't it dilute the existing requirement somewhat?, and would Harrods enjoy the same amount of success if it was located in another city such as Birmingham or Sheffield?.

 

Isn't it a point of fact that there exists so many 'cheaper' and 'budget' versions of various services so freely available whether it be supermarkets, cheap imported flat pack furniture or holiday companies, and that since Tesco is more common a site than Harrods on the high street, that one fact alone perhaps points to where the actual consumer damand lies?.

 

In most cases, there are two or three similar budget entities in any one medium - large town, Aldi, Netto's and Lidl, are all common sites, sometimes even all trading in the same few miles of each other, yet all seem to be able to earn their keep and make money even when competing with each other (Why can't deejays do the same). Do you think that Harrods and Fortnam and Mason would exist and thrive on the high street in an average town?. If so, why haven't they?, after all F & M have had 300 years to expand, yet have chosen not to. smile icon

 

Why do DJ's buy more expensive kit when there is cheaper budget kit available? If everything was just price driven with no accounting for quality and reliability then no one would buy more expensive stuff that does the same job

 

This is a different market place, this point is relating to goods rather than the provision of services. I would hope that most garage mechanics would be using tools manufactured by names like Makita and Bosch, rather than Stanley or Wolf which are aimed at the DIY / occasional, hobbyist market. Since the 'tools' are part of his / her business and the means to earning money, then it goes without saying that they are potential investments as a means to providing their services. That said, there does seem to be constant reference to price on some discussion threads, and those who are under the illusion that you can start out with a complete kit for £500. I wonder in contrast how many people buy gear from Maplin?, they aren't even a disco retailer as such, at least not in the conventional sense.

 

I think that, some clients just see discos as a one off event, and more often than not they are and ultimately that they could also treat it with the same criteria as they would when searching for a plumber or somebody to fix their washing machine, so that there is an element of shopping around, especially when they see, that the number of available companies, unlike Harrods may number 20 or 30 in their area alone. Plenty of choice then and we are hardly a dying industry or in short supply, and back to the main topic discussion, I still don't think that we should be encouraging customers en masse to run a dutch auction between us, and two or three other competitors. After all, if they see one Disco company willing to price match, maybe they think that your competitors might be able to better your 'best price' and go back and put it to them and so the circle of despair begins.

Edited February 16, 2009 by McCardle

[UKHero 0]

I telephone Kingey then triple his quote works every time tongue out icon

 

 

Nik

[Kingy 0]

I telephone Kingey then triple his quote works every time tongue out icon

Nik

 

Either way the client gets a bum deal, eh nik?

[Raymilkybarkid 0]

We don't price match either.

 

It's quiet funny, we have just quoted on of our regular corporate customer for a large production set up. We have submitted our usual quote with the same price they have paid since 2006. To be told that They have received a quote some £1900 cheaper.

We are unable to compete with the price that our client has been quoted, the our competitor quoting running at a loss,breaking even or could it the the client trying it on?

Our overheads have risen by 18% since 2006 (Excluding Fuel).

 

We are sticking to our price to this customer as there is no way to shave the cost down.

 

Another point the going rate ??

DJ X Charges £150

DJ Y Charges £500

 

So what is the going rate is it £150 OR £500 or in between the two.

I think the market rate is what the client is prepared to pay for your services.

Most DJ's work comes from word of mouth.

We are currently Taking bookings for 2010/11 for weddings although most of the Brides haven't decided on the show type and or venue in some cases.

 

We all have come across everyone else charges £XXX for a night, our reply is well we charge £XXX. our prices vary as most of our shows are bespoke. Lighting from very simple classic shows right up to a Mobile nightclub.

 

On the equipment side as I have stated before its that designer badge thing again....Take this example Mackie or Tapco ? they both come from the same design team, both come from the same factory, big price difference between the two.

It seems to be a status thing, come across our local pub DJ with Pioneer CDJ 1000's, DJM600, Mackie sound system. earns £50 per night. On talking to him is a DJ with All The Gear and No Idea all financed with payments higher than he is earning. He stated "you've got to have best stuff init if ya want to gig".

 

 

 

 

[UKHero 0]

Either way the client gets a bum deal, eh nik?

 

No I would not say that... I'm very good at what you do tongue out icon

 

Nik

[spinner 0]

I think the market rate is what the client is prepared to pay for your services.

 

Precisely.

[D.X 0]

I dont care what my competitors charge. If they charge more than me then good luck to them, I admire them. if they charge less than me then bad luck, let them take the cheaper gigs.

Edited March 2, 2009 by D.X

[soundwaves 0]

My prices are competitive for work in my area , dont check competitors prices as they have no effect on me whatsoever. Their charges are their business , likewise mine, I DO however tell potential clients to make sure whoever supplies their evenings entertainment can provide proof of PLI & PAT Test , as 90% in this area cannot they seem to book me :pro:

[daryll 0]

My prices are competitive for work in my area , dont check competitors prices as they have no effect on me whatsoever. Their charges are their business , likewise mine, I DO however tell potential clients to make sure whoever supplies their evenings entertainment can provide proof of PLI & PAT Test , as 90% in this area cannot they seem to book me :pro:

 

 

:dukesy: Agree 100%

 

I have been told I charge to much for pub/social clubs and not enough for wedding`s.

well considering I`me booked up to new year and beyond , I can live with that. :lol2: :lol2:

 

Daryll

[DjDennis 0]

If I need to check I call them Direct and ask

I say to them what I am charging and I adjust just a little higher than them

 

now that I am looking at Semi retirement (after 30 years in this crazy biz) well if I dont get the work thats ok with me

 

I am doing more and more computer work/repairs anyway