How to best do market research

[immortalight]

I'm thinking about starting a small business doing lighting for weddings and other events. I need to develop a business plan and a finacial plan. I have no problem finding out what the equipment I need to buy costs, but i am at a loss as to how to find out what I can charge for my services. I thought of contacting wedding and event planners in my area but what do i say? Can I just tell them I am starting a business and want to research prices for same type services in my area? I've c-hecked out a lot of websites and I dont think the services I would be offering are really available much around here. There are no posted prices anywhere.

Any thoughts are much appreciated.

[Pack-Secure]

Have you considered joining wedding planning forums? Then ask there. Just a thought.

[huggytree]

you MUST find out where the market is at

some markets are just beat up price wise and not worth getting into (printing for example)

there are 2 prices....the price you WANT to charge and the price that the MARKET will allow......you need to find the high and low end of the market and put yourself in between those 2 price points....

id go hire (4) wedding planners in your area.....get some quotes from them for your fake wedding

price shopping your competition is the best way to get an accurate info

my competition calls me for price quotes....i sometimes think i can tell when its a fake call....


i tried the hit or miss method when i first started out...i ended up pricing myself way under the competition....and it got me no jobs...people thought there was something wrong because my price was so low....as soon as i got in the middle of the market range i started winning jobs

[vangogh]

You can call other event planners and ask them. If they aren't going to be direct competitors, maybe in an area far enough away from you, they probably won't have any issue talking to you. If they have websites or any kind of promotional material you can check there and see if any pricing information is listed. You can call pretending to be a potential customer and ask for some basic pricing information. Don't spend too much time if you go this route since you don't want to waste their time, but you can spend a couple minutes asking questions.

If you search you might be able to find some industry rates that were collected.

Do your best you can to find out as much as you can, but if you can't find an exact rate to charge don't let it stop you. Charge what you think right for the first job and then adjust once you have the experience from that job.

[immortalight]

Thanks for responding you guys. I guess I'll just call some planners, I'm not competition for them, I'm more of a contractor they would be hiring. I dont think I'd feel comfortable faking like I was looking for prices for my own wedding. I'm pretty sure I'd give myself away. I guess I'll just go the honest approach and see where it gets me. I'll use the idea of calling outside my immediate area first.

[immortalight]

Pack-Secure, that's a great idea I will do that for sure!

[Phoenix MAC]

Immortalight.... Couple of thoughts....

1.. Don't limit your client base from the beginning... Be a lighting company, not just a wedding lighting company.


2. Contact popular wedding venues in your area, and determine their specific needs before you contact wedding and event planners. This gives you some material to talk about when you approach wedding planners and a better idea of your initial equipment needs, plus gets you contacts direct with the venues who may be able to throw you little jobs until you get established.

3. Think outside of the box, and contact other people, catering companies... dress stores, to see if you can leave some promo flyers or mailers in their stores or restaurants.

4. Be proactive in getting things out there before you approach wedding planners, and don't expect them to be your only clients.

4. Don't limit your client base from the beginning... Be a lighting company, not just a wedding lighting company.

Best of luck, IF you ever need advice, you can contact me or other marketing consultants in the area.

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