Events tend to have a life of their own. Sometimes they develop from a small, intimate gathering into a large, elaborate event. Clients often begin with one idea, but with vendor input, it transforms into an entirely different concept.
As events change, so do their costs. To keep clients informed about the true cost of an event, vendors need accurate pricing.
As an event rental company, Marquee Event Group can produce up to 20 proposals for the same event over the course of its planning. We use Alert Management Systems rental software to track changes in our fixed rate rental items.
Variable rate costs, such as additional labor, are often overlooked and difficult to include — our largest overlooked cost is the labor to deliver and pick up equipment. Currently, our rates for rental items and delivery charges are easy to define. They are based on the purchase cost of rental items and the distance to the job site. For a 1,000-person party, the delivery labor is significantly different than it would be for a party of 250.
Three factors influence the variable costs in equipment rental: the distance to the job; the number of trucks required to make the delivery; and the amount of labor needed to deliver and pick up the rental equipment. Marquee uses ZIP codes to determine the truck cost. We allocate a charge for each truck needed to make the delivery. To include the labor required to move the equipment, we recently added a delivery labor charge as a percentage of the rental amount. The charge is the same percent for each client and grows as the order grows.
Marquee's Alert Management Systems rental software is an innovative tool for dynamic pricing. The software addresses the fixed and dynamic costs of a changing event. Current pricing is always shown correctly on each revision of the order. As a result, clients are not surprised when the delivery charge changes as their rental order expands. As we're compensated for all products and services supplied, customers also benefit from paying a fair price for a valuable product or service.
You can customize dynamic pricing for all cost/pricing inconsistencies — just identify your costs ahead of time, and you can accurately reflect the charges on each of the event's proposals.
Keeping rental rates low is a top priority. Dynamic pricing allows us to charge clients for services they request and equipment they use at a fair, competitive price. We have the security of knowing our costs are covered. As a result, we're not wondering why we didn't make a profit on the last event.
Do your client and yourself a favor, and identify each of your costs and charges. Next, charge a fair price for those services. Your customer will be happy, and your bottom line will be better!
Crystal clear: Marquee Event Group's dynamic pricing works to eliminate surprising expenses at an event's end (top).
A tent on a view: A glimpse of a Marquee Event Group country wedding on a Texas hill (bottom).
Name: Damon W. Holditch, CSEP, CERP
Company: Marquee Event Group
Address: 9402 United Drive
Austin, TX 78758 USA
Phone: 877/21-PARTY
E-mail: [email protected]
