Flat Rate Pricing

[ericmccurley]

Does anyone have any good resources for flat rate pricing? I'm wanting to switch from hourly to flat rate. Basically I'm trying to build out my own assemblies using standard labor units. Should I simply add the price of material, material markup, and labor into every piece of material and add line items for every material used on a job or build out assemblies? Example, new circuit install will need breaker, wire, outlet box, outlet, and cover in as one assembly and adjust for wire length. Please let me know if you think it is good or bad or could improve! Thank you

 

[PaulMmn]

Have you been introduced to Mr. Murphy yet??
You may want to start with checklists instead of assemblies-- easier to update until you get the lumps out of the process! But the checklists will be helpful in loading the truck and preparing the itemized bill.
.
There will be a lot of variables-- extra things like electrical tape, staples, solderless connectors. Labor will depend on where that new cable has to go!

 

[ActionDave]

Have you been introduced to Mr. Murphy yet??
You may want to start with checklists instead of assemblies-- easier to update until you get the lumps out of the process! But the checklists will be helpful in loading the truck and preparing the itemized bill.
.
There will be a lot of variables-- extra things like electrical tape, staples, solderless connectors. Labor will depend on where that new cable has to go!

The OP identifies himself as an electrician. I'm sure he understands that electrical tape costs money. I'm doubly sure he knows that labor to pull wire varies. What's your next piece of advice? Maybe some insight like how it takes more gas to drive across town than it does to cross the street.

 

[macmikeman]

This link is my suggestion to your question- https://www.es2elite.com/special-free-demo.html

 

[ericmccurley]

This link is my suggestion to your question- https://www.es2elite.com/special-free-demo.html

have you used this platform or know anyone that has?

 

[macmikeman]

I have used it, but no longer a subscriber cause all my jobs nowadays are bigger pre-bid mostly commercial pipe.

 

[cdslotz]

Does anyone have any good resources for flat rate pricing? I'm wanting to switch from hourly to flat rate. Basically I'm trying to build out my own assemblies using standard labor units. Should I simply add the price of material, material markup, and labor into every piece of material and add line items for every material used on a job or build out assemblies? Example, new circuit install will need breaker, wire, outlet box, outlet, and cover in as one assembly and adjust for wire length. Please let me know if you think it is good or bad or could improve! Thank you

Do you have estimating software? If you do, you can easily build/edit assemblies and price out each. They will have labor units and material prices can be updated automatically

 

[Roskamp]

Do you have estimating software? If you do, you can easily build/edit assemblies and price out each. They will have labor units and material prices can be updated automatically

Any recommendations for such a software that’d have all the needed pieces?

 

[letgomywago]

Any recommendations for such a software that’d have all the needed pieces?

I ended up building my own using quickbooks for residential service. Everything else had to be an actual bid.

 

[Roskamp]

To clarify, you used QB and built your own book on the QB platform? What service package do you have with QB?

 

[letgomywago]

To clarify, you used QB and built your own book on the QB platform? What service package do you have with QB?

I use online with payroll nothing special. I looked at all my work orders and time sheets from half way through being an apprentice on to going on my own and broke things down as well as I could into assemblies. Then compared bids with other friends who are contractors when I could and see if the final came out similar or in my favor. Things I was too expensive for their blood I targeted for being the prime contractor for such as service changes where I was about 30% higher than most of my non "system" competition who did one time price gouging and it worked good. The others were always booked doing remodels or things like that and so my market was open for service work but homeowners can't stand getting a per hour price when they don't know if they have a 2 hour fix or a 3 week rewire situation. The flat rate being on the high end but not obscene is a good middle ground. Also makes add ons and upsells easy. On quickbooks online you can make a list of services. This is a huge undertaking to get your numbers in the end so keep that in mind. There's also the downside of basically everything is a bid so you need to hustle but it can make a good outcome for both customer and you and it can make it easy to add an employee into the mix. Remember they'll always be half as fast as you even if you're slow they'll always be slower so price based off how long it would take an employee to do that task and remember you'll only ever get 20 hours billable on average as a service electrician. Any extra should be gravy not bread for you as an owner.

 

[Roskamp]

I use online with payroll nothing special. I looked at all my work orders and time sheets from half way through being an apprentice on to going on my own and broke things down as well as I could into assemblies. Then compared bids with other friends who are contractors when I could and see if the final came out similar or in my favor. Things I was too expensive for their blood I targeted for being the prime contractor for such as service changes where I was about 30% higher than most of my non "system" competition who did one time price gouging and it worked good. The others were always booked doing remodels or things like that and so my market was open for service work but homeowners can't stand getting a per hour price when they don't know if they have a 2 hour fix or a 3 week rewire situation. The flat rate being on the high end but not obscene is a good middle ground. Also makes add ons and upsells easy. On quickbooks online you can make a list of services. This is a huge undertaking to get your numbers in the end so keep that in mind. There's also the downside of basically everything is a bid so you need to hustle but it can make a good outcome for both customer and you and it can make it easy to add an employee into the mix. Remember they'll always be half as fast as you even if you're slow they'll always be slower so price based off how long it would take an employee to do that task and remember you'll only ever get 20 hours billable on average as a service electrician. Any extra should be gravy not bread for you as an owner.

Thanks a lot. This is helpful.
Have you ever used the NECA Labor Unit Manual?

 

[Strathead]

Any recommendations for such a software that’d have all the needed pieces?

Most of them. The thing with estimating software is that it is quite personal. What one person loves another hates. What works great for one business stinks for another. And every one that I have used is useless out of the box, which is what most contractors expect to do with it. That said, most of the programs offer demo's. None of them are cheap, but they do pay for themselves.

 

[letgomywago]

Thanks a lot. This is helpful.
Have you ever used the NECA Labor Unit Manual?

Those don't work except for change orders. I looked at the numbers and no they won't work just plugging them into a flat rate company if you want to win jobs especially small ones for normal people.

 

[ericmccurley]

Do you have estimating software? If you do, you can easily build/edit assemblies and price out each. They will have labor units and material prices can be updated automatically

That's a good idea! here me out on this though. say I convert to flat rate pricing. I am a small company and I do not have much recognition in my city because I started in August 2022. With flat rate pricing everything I do will be more expensive then hourly. Because I'm assuming I have to add in for worst-case scenario on every flat rate pricing, for instance, installing a new ceiling fan, I may have to change the box to a fan rated box. This could cost me to lose jobs. However, it could weed out all of the customers that I do not want. And if I was going to do any type of incentive program for my guys to up sale and give them a percentage. I would definitely have to have more in the job. I believe in the flat rate scheme, but I'm not sure if it's something that a small start up company could really affectively execute. There is a market for this, but your market is the Country club stay at home wife who needs a ceiling fan installed which honestly this is my customer base that I want because at the end of the day I'm not trying to roll around in a beer Honda Civic, or a beat up Ford F150 I'm trying to roll around in a F250 platinum because I've worked hard to get where I'm at and I've had to take on the stress of running my own busines

 

[Omid]

Does anyone have any good resources for flat rate pricing? I'm wanting to switch from hourly to flat rate. Basically I'm trying to build out my own assemblies using standard labor units. Should I simply add the price of material, material markup, and labor into every piece of material and add line items for every material used on a job or build out assemblies? Example, new circuit install will need breaker, wire, outlet box, outlet, and cover in as one assembly and adjust for wire length. Please let me know if you think it is good or bad or could improve! Thank you

That's what I did when I started to work for myself. I am using this https://www.maralm.com/mysite/register/ now.

 

[Ursus]

I just started on my own and so far Excel has been quite helpful. I just know the basic part of Excel but its been working great.

 

[OK Sparky 93]

That's what I did when I started to work for myself. I am using this https://www.maralm.com/mysite/register/ now.

How did you find out about this?

Do you mind sharing what it cost?
Does this allow you to store customer info and track how they got your info?
Does it keep up with material pricing or is that on you?
Does it have labor units? If so does it have most of what you or any sparky would use regularly?

 

[ericmccurley]

How did you find out about this?

Do you mind sharing what it cost?
Does this allow you to store customer info and track how they got your info?
Does it keep up with material pricing or is that on you?
Does it have labor units? If so does it have most of what you or any sparky would use regularly?

All good questions Ok sparky 93

 

[Omid]

How did you find out about this?

Do you mind sharing what it cost?
Does this allow you to store customer info and track how they got your info?
Does it keep up with material pricing or is that on you?
Does it have labor units? If so does it have most of what you or any sparky would use regularly?

Sorry for delay,

Do you mind sharing what it cost?
It's in beta, and for now, it's free with limited user access.

Does this allow you to store customer info and track how they got your info?
Yes, I am a service company for chain stores, and I find this feature very useful. If I understand the second part of question right, currently, it doesn't record from which advertising outlet they found us. A workaround could be using one of it's feature which is rating customers based on the advertising outlet, but it still requires manual input when adding customer info.

Does it keep up with material pricing or is that on you?
The price of materials is updated every few months through its API to suppliers.

Does it have labor units? If so does it have most of what you or any sparky would use regularly?
Yes, it has labor units. For the second part, it's sufficient for me, but I can't speak for every sparky. Currently, it covers all the regular parts, and you can also add to it if it's not there.

Return to your first question;
How did you find out about this?
the short answer is I built it. Like the OP, I began with an Excel sheet, then move it to Access. Long before Covid, I scaled down my electrical work and began building the app. It was very challenging to code initially, but I think anyone who can wire those emergency ballasts can do it too!