If youre a furniture maker, finding the perfect balance that enables you to sell your woodcraft or furniture at the right price per project is important. Every artist wants to make money and promote their business, but theres an art to pricing that you must follow.
So, youll understandably not want to sell yourwoodworking projectsat a low price. You also want the price of your work to be accessible by everyone. If no one is willing or able to buy your work, it’s not worth setting a price.
Factors To Consider
The factors below will determine the right price to sell your furniture project, both online and in retail stores. These are some of the things you should keep in mind when thinking about selling your woodworking projects.
Calculate the cost of raw materials
To ensure that your woodcraft business is profitable, it is crucial to calculate the cost of raw materials. Add the cost of the materials to this equation. These materials can include cedarwood, oak, and number lumber wood. These materials are the best for furniture and tablemaking, so you’ll likely be using them often.
Imagine you are trying to build a coffee table using 30 planks of wood. If a single plank costs the total cost of the material used to make the table will be This alone means you will need to charge at least for the table.
This method of calculating your price makes it easy to keep your business afloat and not come up with an incorrect price. This mathematical method could help you avoid overpricing and underpricing.
It will also help if you select the materials carefully. Experts recommend that you avoid substandard materials. They will only cause problems in the long-term. At the same time, try to go for a material that isnt so expensive. You can lower your raw material costs by doing this.
The only exception to the second rule is if the work will be for a luxurious customer who has the means to splurge on a woodworking project. If this is the case, you will know that they have enough money to pay for your work, your raw material costs, and other expenses.
Calculate the labor cost
The labor cost is the next thing to consider when evaluating a business. What was the time it took? Remember that time is measured in hours.
When estimating your fee per hour or day, know your worth and show confidence in your ability to accomplish the task. Think about how long it took you to complete the project, as well as an estimate of what rate you think your skill should fetch at the market.
You will need to take into account all tasks that were completed in order to get an accurate estimate of how many hours you have worked. You also need to estimate the total hour count you spent on each job to add up your hours.
It will help you come up with an hourly rate for woodwork projects that is 12 hours long.
Estimate overhead costs
Overhead costs refer to rental costs for tools and maintenance costs. Our experts found that the industry average for overhead expenses is about 13%. This means you can multiply your materials‘ price by the industry average.
So, going by the illustration we have above, your overhead average will be (the price of the materials) multiplied by 13 (the industry average for overhead cost).
Calculate profit
Your profit is the amount of money you intend to make from your shop work. You use this money to keep your business afloat and fund your expansion, so it is a significant number to consider and not just a simple mark-up.
Again, to calculate this, you need to know the industry average just as with the overhead cost for your business. If the average woodwork job takes 20%, then your profit will be 20% based on the sum of all three factors (materials and labor) as well as overhead costs. Getting to know the industry average will ensure that your final selling price doesnt end up scaring customers away. You would also be getting the right value for the rate you are selling.
Cost estimates for marketing and selling
Calculating final products selling costs will involve calculating payment for sales rep and marketing. Marketing professionals are needed to market your product and attract customers. They will also need to be paid an hourly wage.
You should consider the cost of marketing if you are planning to do it yourself. The average cost of marketing your products and all the associated tools would be used to calculate the marketing cost. Most times, marketing costs would include ads run or sites paid to put your work out there, as well as other marketing tools you used.
These factors will be added to the final price structure of your work. You are now well on your way towards getting the best pricing.
Tips For Pricing Woodworking Projects
Finding the appropriate price for your woodworking project might be difficult. However, the following tips can help you out:
Do your research
As we said, dont just mark up the price on the project once youre done. Look at the price ranges of other artists who make lumber and similar products in retail stores. Ascertain when they typically reduce the price of their lumber.It doesnt matter if you are selling a table or chairs; try to be within that, but remember your factors and ensure not to sell for too cheap.
Sell at the right places
It is important that you research the best places to sell your work. These places could be art fairs or art-centric websites that enable you to reach your target market.
Sell at the right places
You probably wont make any sales if your project isnt out there. So, ensure to work out an effective marketing strategy. This way, you know youre getting optimal visibility for what you make. Marketing campaigns have helped sell many projects.
Where To Sell Woodworking Projects
It can be difficult to sell your woodworking products at the right price. If you choose the right medium, it is possible to sell your products to buyers who are willing to pay more.
Selling your custom products to wholesale stores is a great sales strategy. Wholesalers have the best chance of selling your product to customers. You can choose to sell your product through a local shop, a retail store or a custom-made exhibition.
You could also set up an online store for easier sales. You could also market your woodworking projects by partnering with retailers who sell similar products. However, our experts recommend that you go online rather than going to a walk-in store.
Because their primary goal is to sell products, fairs can also be a great way to promote your projects. Online platforms and stores are your best option for now. The internet is a major part of our daily lives. Using popular social media platforms to market your products will help you get the right type of exposure, visibility, and time-savings.
So, online marketing improves your chances of making a sale. Social media allows you to make a living selling custom products to people around the globe.
FAQ
What should I charge for woodworking services?
How much you should charge for woodworking has no one-size-fits-all answer. To know the price to charge for woodworking, you need to find the total costs incurred and how long the project will take. This will allow you to calculate a fair price for the items. Add your expected profit.
How do you price a wood project?
To price a woodworking project, you will need to follow our extensive pricing guide above. Once you do that, whatever you get should be good enough. Do not feel pressured to lower the price in order to please your customer. However, keep in mind that you could always sell products for cheaper or give discounts on special occasions.
Conclusion
It is important to keep track of all expenses for woodworking projects. Once a furniture maker does this and adheres to tips on pricing woodworking projects, then they are good to go and can price handmade work. So, go ahead, add every single thing that goes into making that masterpiece in your shop, and charge every single penny. You must demand that they pay you what you are worth.
More woodworking project ideas? We have the following list of woodworking project ideas for you:
