This is actually a re-post, when I first made the Menu Board Tutorial, I used to include the prices of the materials, but I actually removed the prices because I didn't think they actually helped....until now.
For those of you who follow my facebook page, you will have noticed that I posted about a rather disgruntled blogger who claimed that my Menu Board packages were "ridiculously overpriced" and that they could easily make one for "$20.00 MAX". While at first I was slightly bothered by the comment and maybe even a little hurt, I quickly realized, that they may not be the only person who feels that my Menu Board packages are overpriced. While I can guarantee that you cannot make a board EXACTLY like mine for $20.00, I'm sure you can make one similarly. (Perhaps if you did it all on a paper calendar as opposed to a board and wrote everything yourself on regular white paper and didn't include all the extras that this board has to offer, sure, I guess you can do it for $20.00.) Anyways, with all that being said, I wanted to give you all a price breakdown of my Menu Board packages, just to give you an insight as to how much it costs to make these boards.
Just so you know, these are all my costs, and why I charge what I charge...
Packages A & C:
Dry Erase Calendar: $16.91 (Including Tax & Shipping)
Card Stock: $2.96 (74 sheets of cardstock at $0.04 a sheet)
Ink: $2.22 ($0.03 per page)
Labels: $0.25 (Labels are $0.25 for every 100 labels, this package actually takes 126 labels.)
Push Pins: $0.24 (12 push pins at $0.02 each)
Magnets: $4.17 (For 36 Magnets)
Jewels: $2.52 (For 36 Jewels)
"Really Useful Boxes": $2.13 (For 2 Boxes)
Round Tub For Magents: $0.53
Magentic Tape: $0.50
Binder Rings: $1.44 (12 Binder Rings)
Shipping: $25.00 (I charge a flat rate for everyone. Sometimes it's more, sometimes it's less.)
Shipping Materials: $5.00 (For The Box & Tape)
Labor $20.00 for Package A/ $40.00 for Package C (I charge $10.00 per hour. This includes my time & gas for my vehicle to gather together supplies, cut if need be, package and deliver to the post office.)
Taxes & Fees $25.00 (I add this is to the package price as well because of the taxes and fees I need to pay from using Paypal.)
Package A Total: $108.87 (I like round numbers, so I rounded the package up to $110.00)
Package C Total: $128.87
Packages B & D:
Dry Erase Calendar: $16.91 (Including Tax & Shipping)
Card Stock: $5.28 (132 sheets of cardstock at $0.04 a sheet)
Ink: $3.96 ($0.03 per page)
Labels: $0.25 (Labels are $0.25 for every 100 labels, this package actually takes 126 labels.)
Push Pins: $0.44 (22 push pins at $0.02 each)
Magnets: $4.17 (For 36 Magnets)
Jewels: $2.52 (For 36 Jewels)
"Really Useful Boxes": $2.13 (For 2 Boxes)
Round Tub For Magents: $0.53
Magentic Tape: $0.50
Binder Rings: $3.96 (33 Binder Rings)
Shipping: $35.00 (I charge a flat rate for everyone. Sometimes it's more, sometimes it's less.)
Shipping Materials: $5.00 (For The Box & Tape)
Labor $30.00 for Package B/ $50.00 for Package D (I charge $10.00 per hour. This includes my time & gas for my vehicle to gather together supplies, cut if need be, package and deliver to the post office.)
Taxes & Fees $35.00 (I add this is to the package price as well because of the taxes and fees I need to pay from using Paypal.)
Package B Total: $145.65 (I like round numbers, so I rounded the package down to $145.00)
Package D Total: $165.65
Packages E & F:
Dry Erase Calendar: $16.91 (Including Tax & Shipping)
Card Stock: $23.36 (584 sheets of cardstock at $0.04 a sheet)
Ink: $17.52 ($0.03 per page)
Labels: $2.50 (Labels are $0.25 for every 100 labels, this package actually takes 1,052 labels.)
Hooks: $3.00 (For 22 Hooks)
Magnets: $4.17 (For 36 Magnets)
Jewels: $2.52 (For 36 Jewels)
Round Tub For Magents: $0.53
Magentic Tape: $0.50
Binder Rings: $5.16 (43 Binder Rings)
Shipping: $45.00 (I charge a flat rate for everyone. Sometimes it's more, sometimes it's less.)
Shipping Materials: $5.00 (For The Box & Tape)
Labor $50.00 for Package E/ $120.00 for Package F (Package F actually takes me a minimum of 14 hours to cut everything out and assemble it all, so you actully get kind of a deal on the labor area of Package F)
Taxes & Fees $50.00 (I add this is to the package price as well because of the taxes and fees I need to pay from using Paypal.)
Package E Total: $226.17 (I like round numbers, so I rounded the package down to $230.00)
Package F Total: $296.17
I hope this makes a lot of you feel better when you are looking at pricing for my Menu Board Packages, and also gives you an idea of what it could cost you to make your own. Yes, I am sure I can come down in my labor charges, but I really think that asking only $10.00 an hour to assemble the board for you is a fair price, especially considering I don't add my laser printer, cutting machine and other tools used to create the boards into your prices (in other words, I don't charge overhead). Sometimes it comes out to be less money per hour if you make special requests (that I don't charge extra labor for) or if my life is just so crazy it takes me longer to make the board than if I had time to just sit down and do it from beginning to end.
Thank you so much to those of you who understand and have stuck by me and the Menu Board, it warms my heart so much to hear your stories and how it has truly changed the lives of you and your family members, never did I ever dream that my little idea to help out my little family could do so much to help others. I thank you all so very very much!
I made my menu board a few weeks ago, and your pricing is the same as what I spent locally. I am not sure why anyone would think they can make a board of the same quality for only $20.00. I LOVE my menu board! I can tell that this person's comment has really bothered you. Please know that many of us are perfectly happy with our projects and what we paid for them. I appreciate your creativity and hard work. :) ~Sandy~
ReplyDeleteI am still in the process of making my board, and while I don't know the exact $ amount I have spent so far I know for a fact that it was more than $20. Now for my own personal taste I did make some changes that I am super excited to show. But my opinion is this, if they think that your price is too high don't buy one that is pre-made, go buy all the materials and spend the time and efforts to create it themselves. Although I understand 100% on your pricing and your boards are beautiful I just can't afford that much at one time, so I bought things over time and lucked out and found several things on sale so I was able to save some money on it, but still the time it takes to put everything together takes a while(although you have made so many I am sure you can get one done A LOT faster than me lol :) )I say don't let the ones being negative get you down, no matter what you do or how much you charge for your beautiful boards there is bound to be at least one person to complain. Can't wait to see your next creations. ~Amanda
ReplyDeleteI follow your blog BECAUSE of the menu board! Although I have not found the time or extra cash to put one together myself, it is a great product and you have done AMAZING tutorials! Don't sell yourself short just because of a nay-sayer (or two...) because your time is worth at LEAST the $10/hr your asking.
ReplyDeleteKeep up the good work!!!
I'm very glad you posted your cost breakdown because from that vantage point, it looks like you've got fair pricing on your products. And what you have does look really nice and like it would be helpful in the home. I still can't afford it so I'll have to come up with my own system, but that doesn't mean your product isn't worth it.
ReplyDeleteChin up! You're prices are extremely fair! Yes, it might look like a big chunk of change.. but this takes a lot of time & effort to create such beautiful & well organized menu board. Keep up the good work!
ReplyDeleteI see you mentioned the breakdown of the cost but i didn't see where you added how much time it takes you to make these lovely things. Keep up the good work. You deserve lots of kudos for a job you love doing. It is definitely made from the heart and not profit. As a fellow crafter I know that when you make several of the same item over and over it gets easier after time. But when your doing your first one it takes a lot longer.
ReplyDeleteCheers to you and keep on creating. Love your ideas
terry@eastbayorganizers.com
Thank you Terry! It actually takes me about 4 hours to complete package C (the one with 100 recipes), about 6 hours to complete package D (the one with the CD and 1,000 recipe title cards and at least 13 hours to complete package F (the one where all 1,000 recipes are cut out and the holes are drilled into the board.) I am definitely not doing it for profit, which tends to annoy my dad lol, as he is a business owner, but I keep trying to tell him that I just do this because people ask, not because I am trying to make a living or make more money than my own husband lol.
ReplyDeleteI cannot wait to save up $250.00 to buy your board, I think it is brillient!!
ReplyDeleteI love your menu board, seriously. I'm still in the process of finding a way that works for out family. I'm set on trying this. Your pricing is very fair. I do a lot of crafting and supplies are not cheap. I have been coveting your board for a while and only now have had the time to really look at it. I understand you are already offering a large number of options, but have you ever done a more "semi-DIY" kit? I mean, you gather and print everything, but only send the components to people? I'd gladly cut my own cards or stick gems to magnets LOL.
ReplyDeleteFor someone to message you something so insensitive is annoying. How do most crafters make a profit? Yes, it IS usually something people CAN do themselves, but why when for a slightly elevated cost the finished product is there and ready for use?
can you make "a board" for 20 bucks? sure.. IF you already have a lot of the parts, and you don't factor that in. or you only use a paper calender on your fridge.
ReplyDeletehonestly, calender prices are absurd in the stores these days. while i may not have the money to buy the big package (and with my food allergies and huge craft stash i will make my own) its a very FAIR price.
Just found your blog today. AWESOME!!
ReplyDeleteI really love that you broke down your costs. I am a crafter.....mostly cards and scrapping at this point in my life......I never thought I would be able to make a DIME doing what I love because everyone seems to want the cards for about a buck each!! Say WHAT?!?! :-) People tend to compare handmade, unique, items to Made-in-China garbage. They think that everything should be cheap. It is a sad mindset in this country. Your work is lovely, and I can see how much time it must take to put all of that together. I cannot personally afford anything like this, but I am sure there are others out there who can. Thanks so much for your blog.
I didn't even blink when I saw your costs. I saw them after deciding to make my own stuff and just buy the files. I will probably buy the cyber files after I get done filling in my own recipes but even that I was happy to pay for. It's worth the $5 to have your template rather than even do the free downloads you've made available.
ReplyDeleteYou charge absolutely a fair price for your kits. If I hadn't already had so much of this on hand I probably would have considered it.
Your only part you didn't factor in to little Miss "I can make this for $20" is that some of this you buy in bulk so you get a pricing that we won't get when buying at single serve prices. With that in mind you would actually be able to make your cheaper than we would.
Believe me, being a crafter who sometimes sells her goods I'm quick to come to your defense. You have more than fair prices!!
I can't wait to get mine started. I literally squealed tonight at WalMart when I saw I could get the exact same calendar you used. On Friday it will be mine. I'm off to work on my recipe cards. Cheers!
Well, I must disagree with several posters and say that your prices are NOT fair!! Bear with me...they are not fair TO YOU!!! You are the creator of a beautiful product; you are generously sharing this creation; offering to make it or gather the parts for us or even let us have the files for free!
ReplyDeleteAll you haven't offered to do is come to our house and cook the meals for us! lol!
Seriously, please don't feel you have to justify your prices. As Dr. Phil used to say (when I watched it years ago), "If you don't like it, you can change the channel."
I don't understand why unhappy people feel the need to share their unhappiness. My response is: pray for them and move on to bringing more happiness in to your life!
Blessings to you, Robin.
M <><.