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Hello! I'm hoping for a little input, if you have the time.
I did a job last Saturday that I totally lost my heinie on. It was my first trailer & for a family friend of sorts, so I priced it knowing there would be little profit, but I didn't expect it to take as long as it did. Silly girl, trailers aren't built perfectly square! Don't forget the rivets! LOL! I installed it onsite in a driveway, in the wind, sun & humidity, so that was fun.
I've attached a pic of the finished 16' trailer. It was 2 sides & the back, white & black 2 mil cast vinyl. The client's wife is a graphic designer, so she supplied the files & a Photoshopped layout of exactly how they wanted it to look. From start to finish, took me almost 8 hours including cutting, weeding, driving, prep & installation. I also learned that the client's idea of a "clean" trailer is quite a bit different than mine.
So my question is, what would YOU have charged (roughly) for a job like this???
-------------------- Marge Cameron Cameron Arts, Inc. Posts: 56 | From: Salem, Ohio | Registered: Jun 2009
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I use SignCraft magazine's Sign Pricing Guide as a guide to help me with pricing - it is very helpful. This layout to me, would be considered a basic design. I would charge between $550 to $700 for this size trailer and this design. Measuring the trailer before you layout and cut the vinyl - 10 to 15 minutes. Layout of the graphic design 1/2 hour. Since it's just white and black, I would block together most of the lettering, so that it can be applied in one application - so the logo should've been all one piece - the text and phone number should be all one piece. I figure cutting, weeding & premasking the vinyl for the whole trailer - 1 hour, tops. Cleaning & preping a dirty trailer - 1 hour (Clean trailer - 15 minutes). Layout of graphics peices on the trailer - 20 minutes. Application of all graphics - 2 hours. On trailer jobs, I am adamant to the customer, that they must wash the trailer for me. Rivets add a lot of time to the job, plan accordingly. I NEVER let my customers layout my graphics jobs for me. Just because some one is a graphic designer does not make them a PRODUCTION designer - most often they don't understand what the heck you're doing. When I measure the trailer, I also I snap digital pictures of both sides and rear doors - then put them on my computer, in my drawing program at 100% full size and layout my graphics. That way I can try to avoid as many rivets as possible when applying my vinyl graphics. It also helps me plan the application, so there are no surprises. I hope more of our Letterville community responds to this thread - I'd be interested in knowing what others would charge, as well. Trailers are big - they'll always take several hours to do, but the more of them you do, you'll figure out how to make them a little easier. I hope this helps Marge! Good thread!
-------------------- Kathy Weeks Weeks-End Signs & Graphics Lake Elmo, Minnesota Posts: 249 | From: Lake Elmo, Minnesota | Registered: Mar 2009
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Did you realize you can remove those screws? A square bit will work even tho it looks like a star bit. Saves a lot of time. Also a basic job for me. Thinking around the same price as Kathy, around 700. Even if the trailer is clean when I get it, I still re wash it. Looks nice! Hope the next one is profitable!
-------------------- Lynda Yoder Wayne Yoder Signs & Designs 4735 List Rd Grass Lake, MI 5176884951 Posts: 154 | From: Grass Lake, MI | Registered: Feb 2007
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Lynda, I had no idea I could remove those things. I saw the hex/square head, but envisioned the whole thing falling apart if they were ever removed. LOL! I was lucky & able to adjust the layout slightly to accommodate all rivets. That's by far what took the longest.
I suppose for a construction trailer, it was pretty clean. A final wash is inevitable, I guess. The tar boogers could've been taken care of ahead of time, but I wasn't very specific.
Kathy, thank you for all that detail. Gives me a MUCH better idea what's reasonable time-wise. I agree about the graphics. I did choose to make an adjustment, as one side had been laid out higher than the other one. Even though you can't see both sides at once, it looked strange!
I wish I could've cut everything in big chunks, but my Roland is only 24" wide. That meant I had to rotate stuff & nest it together to cut it all. For example, the hammer was a separate piece from the rest of the logo. I had printed certain sections of it out on paper, taped it together on my window/lightbox, & used that as a guide for placing the vinyl in the proper locations relative to all the other pieces.
I will definitely pick up that Signcraft Sign Pricing Guide. I was wondering how accurate or helpful it would really be, given the range of pricing differences across the country. Nice to know it will be a big help!
Oh, & just to thoroughly embarrass myself, I only charged $200. (Ducking & heading for cover.)
-------------------- Marge Cameron Cameron Arts, Inc. Posts: 56 | From: Salem, Ohio | Registered: Jun 2009
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Ouch - that customer got a good deal! Don't beat yourself up though, on the price. Now your educated. You did a nice job on the trailer! If I were you, I'd try to cut out any extra work involved, such as, the paper pattern. Try taking digital pictures of your project - One picture, direct on, of each side, and one of the rear (direct on - not at an angle). Then take measurements of things like the rear doors (width & height), and side panels (width & ht.). Most commercial sign programs should allow you to place a digital photo on a page, and scale it up to 100% - use the measurements you took to scale it up. This will make your layouts easier, more accurate, and you can size graphics to your vinyl cutter. (I also have a 24" Roland, and have had no issues cutting graphics for 20' enclosed trailers - I cut them in sections.) I have my customers bring their trailers to me for an initial meeting, so that I can measure them for my layouts and production, and then they bring their trailers to me again, for the application. I tell them that's how I do things, and they obey. One other good thing, about taking digital pictures before you work on a vehicle, is just in case a customer wants to accuse you of denting or scratching their vehicle - you have proof in a prior photo that the dent or scratch was already there. I've never had this problem with a customer, but it is a nice little insurance policy! I've had good luck with my process, but you'll figure out what works best for you. Trailers will always take several hours for production and application, so make sure you charge accordingly for that. (I believe most sign shops charge $65 to $75 an hour, just for labor. Also, for pricing - figure out a price for your meeting time, materials, any design time.) You may need to educate your customers that your talent and time are worth something (actually worth a lot), and therefore you need to charge for them. Thanks again, for this thread - good idea!
-------------------- Kathy Weeks Weeks-End Signs & Graphics Lake Elmo, Minnesota Posts: 249 | From: Lake Elmo, Minnesota | Registered: Mar 2009
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AND...if you were trying to miss the screws, you did a good job making it NOT look like you were trying to miss obstacles. Have you ever noticed jobs that just look plain goofy 'cause they tried to miss obstacles?
-------------------- Lynda Yoder Wayne Yoder Signs & Designs 4735 List Rd Grass Lake, MI 5176884951 Posts: 154 | From: Grass Lake, MI | Registered: Feb 2007
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Marge I charge $200 for two truck doors. That trailer would have been about $850-$950 at my shop. I learned the old rivet removal trick at my second Letterhead meet. And I am pretty good at getting a lot of copy out of 15" vinyl! Next time you'll know. Good advice from your fellow sign ladies too! Love....Jill
Posts: 8834 | From: Butler, PA, USA | Registered: Jan 2001
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$200 is fine if the vinyl was lo-performance. There isn't a lot of coverage, so I wouldn't be too embarassed. $250 would have covered your cost a bit better.
If I tried to get much more around here than that, my customers would laugh and walk.
Sorry, Jill-!!! I'm surrounded by tight@$$e$ around here.
-------------------- Michael Gene Adkins The Fontry 1576 S Hwy 59 Watts OK 74964 Posts: 845 | From: Watts, OK USA | Registered: Jun 1999
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That doesn't look like a 16 foot trailer to me....
But at any rate, I'd have charged at least $600... we'd have removed any screws that conflicted with the graphice, and replaced them afterwards using a small stainless steel washer under each screw head to prevent "twisting" the vinyl.
[ July 23, 2010, 10:34 AM: Message edited by: Ed Gregorowicz ]
-------------------- Ed The Signwerks 1951 SR 254 Orangeville, Pa. Posts: 199 | From: Orangeville, Pa. USA | Registered: Dec 2000
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If you put a little soap on the heads of those screws, or lick them real good, they'll spin goin' in and you won't need the washer.
When lettering my first trailer, we went all over town trying to match that star head. Then we figured out they take a square bit.
Sometimes the screws are really stuck to the paint when removing, so make sure you're in the screw good and hold some pressure to em when removing. Also, some can be fairly easy to strip putting back in, so set your chuck clutch pretty light.
-------------------- Ace Graphics & Printing Camdenton, MO. USA
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