by Craig | Jul 11, 2015 | General posts, Pricing/Value
Faux tin ceiling
“How much is this going to cost me?” Whether our customers say it or not, the price of their painting project is a primary concern.
We like to be upfront with our pricing, meaning that the price we give you on our written quote is the price that you pay at the end of the job.
“Is there a situation in which the price on the quote will change?” Fair question, the price on the quote will not change unless there is additional work added to the scope of work, in which case we will give you the additional cost in writing and ask for your approval before going ahead.
Let’s take an example, if you have us price the painting of ceiling and walls in a room, and later decide that the trim should be done, there will be an additional charge for that in writing and we will not proceed with it until you have approved the extra cost.
How do we arrive at the price on our quote? It’s actually rather simple, when I quote a painting project I figure out how long each aspect of the project will take based on setting up, production rates for each task, and clean up afterwards.
I take the total number of hours and multiply it by our hourly charge rate, which is $40/hr (as of summer of 2015) for basic painting services. Material costs are added to the labour cost and that is the price that ends up on the bottom of the quote.
“Can I just pay you $40/hr instead of the fixed price you’ve quoted?” The reason we give fixed prices is for your benefit, it eliminates the risk of not knowing what the final price will be. A fixed price turns your painting project into a stress-free endevour.
We’ve just dealt strictly with pricing here, and we don’t have time to get into the most important aspect, which is “Cost vs. Value” which will be the subject of our next post….
by Craig | Jul 6, 2015 | General posts
I, Craig Armstrong, started CAM Painters in Toronto, ON back in 2001, but how did I end up in the painting business? Here is my story…
I was born and raised in the east end of Toronto and the only memories of painting and decorating as a child was pulling up the seams of the wallpaper my dad had installed in my bedroom – he was not very pleased! Fast forward a number of years to when I was studying at University of Toronto I needed to pay for my books, tuition and other school related expenses and my brother was running a painting business at the time, so I decided to work for him. My brother’s business mainly consisted of exterior residential repaints and some interior residential repaints and I really enjoyed working outside during the summers in my university years.
When I graduated university I decided to start CAM Painters, I was attracted to running my own business and being able to set the standard of quality, rather than have a boss set the standard of quality, which might not have been the same as mine. When I started CAM Painters in 2001 I had very little money, so my marketing consisted of printing flyers and going door-to-door, mainly in the York Mills and Leslie area. From that point I was able to book some work and grow the business from there.
Although I have used traditional forms of advertising, the main source of work over the years has been referral based. I am truly appreciative for my customers promoting my services to their friends and family, as it has truly been the lifeblood of my business.
Running a business can be very challenging at times, but the payoff is when a customer’s home is transformed and seeing the look of delight on their faces and hearing their appreciative words.
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Transform Your Home With Lasting Beauty!
