Say Ollie ...*

 

... why don't we offer different price levels in Morning Flight, like those found in the Crouser Guides?

Fair question. The short answer would be that I disagree with it on strategic grounds. That would be true, but the reasons go much deeper than that.

However, let's start with why it isn't good pricing strategy. One of the quickest ways to lose a customer is to price 1,000 of that customer's letterheads at $50 last month (level three), at $40 today (level two), and at $60 next month (level four). If a temporary slowdown forces a price reduction (or a sudden influx of orders lets you raise your prices to make up for those reductions), there is an easy way to do that in Morning Flight: Adjust hourly press rates.

The problem with price levels is that they're too broad, too much of a shotgun-type remedy. On some jobs, switching from level three to level two may merely lower your profits. On others, it will mean you're selling below cost. Adjusting hourly press rates is just as broad and no better that way. That's why Morning Flight offers a more targeted approach. Here, price adjustments are linked to individual customers.

 

More reasons against

 

•Ease of Use. Morning Flight is designed to let office staff handle the low end quotes, freeing the shop's owner to tend to the heavy lifting. Price levels would put that at risk. Rolling the dice by picking a level at random is probably not the sort of thing you'd want to entrust to cousin Mel. Customer-by-Customer adjustments, on the other hand, can be preset to good effect by the owner/manager.

•The Internet. Somewhere down the road, you'll have a web site that offers your customers unattended, 24/7 pricing. When that happens, price levels - and most price adjustments - will become untenable and go flying out the window.
 

 

 

Step by Step

 

Click the My Store button, then click My Customers.

•Double-click the customer to open the customer entry window, then click Terms.

•Enter either the courtesy Discount you want to extend to this customer, or the aggravation Surcharge you've finally decided to collect for the constant high-maintenance VIP treatment.

•Click OK.

On quote sheets, discounts and surcharges are factored into the cost of the product. By contrast, price sheets and time sheets always reflect the actual prices calculated by Morning Flight. Quote sheets may look the same as price sheets, but if the customer is subject to a price adjustment, prices on the two sheets will be different.