FAQs
- What should the customer know about your pricing (e.g., discounts, fees)?
There is a saying; price, quality, speed, you can only pick 2! I don't do work unless quality is in the list and usually customers want a good price so don't expect super speed and if you want quality and speed then expect to pay a premium for it. First I don't do hourly work 99% of the time, I do however estimate my jobs on a daily rate which is roughly $500 and equates to 45-62.50/hr depending on 8-10 hours. I do factor in my travel time and usually encourage customers to pick up their custom items from me to save on the total cost and/or other compromises to meet a budget since a lot of customers still have a consumerist mindset and don't realize all of the things that go into a custom job. At the end of the day it all boils down to total time and materials. My previously mentioned rates are for my time/labor, materials will be factored additionally as needed. I do my best to give a solid estimate but if the job is variable I will provide a range. I like to give my customers a price that we agree to so there is some flexibility on the completion time that way they don't worry about the price going up and I don't worry about someone trying to rush me; quality first. For custom furniture building I do require a partially non refundable deposit to cover the materials and part of the labor. The non refundable portion covers my time and labor up to that point and if materials have already been purchased I will not refund those items but you are welcome to pick up the materials. I've yet to encounter this situation but I will detail out how much and for what the deposit covers.
- What is your typical process for working with a new customer?
First I gather more information. Most customers don't include enough information to even give a ballpark figure. It's like going to a car dealership and saying you want a car then asking for a quote on the price. Even if you tell them a brand and model that still can be a wide range. Generally speaking I will gather as much information from the customer regarding their project that they're aware of then bring up issues they're not aware of to get their choices. Probably the most important and helpful piece of information is a customers budget or what they were hoping to pay. I say this because much less information about the project is needed to determine if we're even on the same page. If you're wanting a BMW for the price of a Honda I'm sorry but I don't need to know if you want leather seats. For some reason there are a lot of people who just refuse to deal with this topic either at all or initially and those people I can't help. I assume it's people thinking they're going to be taken advantage of and if that's your perspective then I don't want to work with you because all of my relationships with my customers are based on communication, consideration and trust. Something else to please keep in mind is that I get charged by thumbtack usually $10-$30 for the first response of communication and so does every other instance of communication with another person for that very same job. I don't mind discussing projects with people but I do when I am charged that much long before it's even determined that we can work together. On that note I do direct customers to contact me outside of thumbtack until we've decided to work together; my email is chris.wascher at hotmail.com and phone is six one nine five six five zero two nine one. Feel free to reach out even just to chat about a possible project and if I have time I will gladly help out. Things to include but not limited to (provide as much information as possible): Complete project description Budget Pictures - examples, area of work, items etc. Product links, preferably links to assembly manuals Time frames Once again please do reach out to me via phone or email because even if you've provided everything you can there will still be things that need to be discussed before I can give you an accurate idea of pricing and time frames. I will not chase you down for information I need considering I invest a fair amount of my time as it is just communicating and designing before I ever get a penny and that's on good faith. My approach to business is to try to help people as I would friends and family, not as an employee. Since I will give your project 110% effort I expect the same from you. Do your best to help me help you or please look for someone else to hire.
- What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
Commercial electrician, worked at a stereo shop as a kid, been woodworking since I was very little, same with computers and have been building them since I was 13, design and build my own furniture/storage, home remodeling off and on since I was a kid, car repairs since my first car, self taught basic coding skills from age 10.