The loaded question- How much does one of your landscape lighting systems cost?

29 Aug The loaded question- How much does one of your landscape lighting systems cost?

By Mike Gambino

Maybe you can relate in your own line of work. You’re at a business or social event, someone asks what you do and you tell them. Then comes, “Nice. How much does it cost?”

Or, you get a call or email from someone who found you online, and there it is, “How much does it cost?”

If your business has a set fee structure, then you can quickly and easily respond, if you choose. For other more creative artistic service-type businesses like landscape lighting the answer isn’t so simple and often depends on project specifics.

For many smaller, creative service-type businesses it may also depend on the current workload and even the desirability of the client or project. Regardless, I will say that any price you give will be too much if the person asking doesn’t fully know, understand, and believe in the value of your product. This deserves repeating. Any price you give will be too much if the person asking doesn’t fully know, understand, and believe in the value of your product.

I would even venture to guess that about 95% of the people asking the question don’t fully know, understand, and believe in the value of our product and our service. That’s the problem and it often poses a major dilemma for business owners who provide custom, high-level, or creative services.

Do we sacrifice high, customized quality for a cookie-cutter approach that allows for a defined, but often more low end, fee structure? Or, do we stick to our guns and focus on the type of clients who value high, customized quality – and can afford it?

We chose the latter and it works very nicely for us.

For those who choose the later it probably won’t matter how you answer the cost question coming from the type of person described earlier, because whatever you say will, most likely, be too much. So, rather than spending time and energy trying to convince those price shoppers that our product is worth it, we focus that time and energy on getting more (qualified) prospects to know, understand, and believe in the value of our product.

How we do that could be the focus of an entirely new article. But, I’ll offer some parting thoughts for now.

Certainly, referrals from trusted sources are one of the best ways. Additionally, good press — if we’re lucky enough to get it, good marketplace exposure (if you do good work, and it’s visible, smart folks will always want to know who’s behind it.), this blog (especially to the right audience), and lastly – great marketing including lots of smart, engaging, content.

This landscape lighting blog is published by Mike Gambino of Gambino landscape lighting inc. all rights reserved. Mike is a professional landscape lighting system designer/ builder and has been designing, installing and maintaining landscape lighting systems for more than 20 years. Mike resides in the Los Angeles area with his wife and 2 sons. To visit his website go to www.gambinolighting.com . To inquire about hiring Mike please click here .

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