I know there have been a number of threads about folks not reading on the website about pricing. Let me join the numbers!
I just had a bride who sampled with me and everything only to tell my that while my cakes are delicious and my work is wonderful I am out of their budget. I am so annoyed.
I just don't know how to make it clear ahead of time that this is my price, make sure it is in your budget before you make an appointment!
How do ya'll deal with this?
I just read on another thread that a person asks for their budget and serving number, that way they know if they should even schedule a consultation. It avoids waisting their time & samples. I think it's a great idea.
That's a good idea but you wanna work with people too--I mean they may want a Sylvia cake that no one will touch for under $100 a serving
I mean we do need things spelled out for us as consumers.
If you read $5 a serving that doesn't really compute--if you say 'your potential cake for 100 will be $500, is that within your budget?'--then you're making it easy for people to make decisions.
That's what we do as salespeople. We make it easy for people to make decisions. The easy deal breaker ones should be out there free and clear before we invest our time but you gotta balance that too.
I mean some brides might re-arrange their budget too. Gets tricky huh.
I just had a bride email me with a budget of $150 for 200 people, and at the most expensive country club in the area. The old me would have worked with her to try and make it fit. Now, after a couple of years and a larger backbone, I just told her she was being unbelievably unrealistic and a better budget would be $500 MINIMUM, and that's with a bunch of sheet cakes.
Never expected to hear back from her, but she got right back to me, thanked me for being so frank and proceeded to book. Meeting with her tonite, and I can honestly say that the fact she gave me a budget is the only reason we're working together. K8 is right- per serving pricing doesn't always make it to the brain, and if she would have come to the tasting and THEN given me her budget... well lets just say the scene wouldn't have been pretty...
k8 is right ... people dont' know how to DoTheMath anymore.
I don't have it on my website, but on my price lists that I email to brides, cakes and catering, I do the math.
"Meatballs are $2.25/person ($225 per 100 guests)"
"Cake is $3.50/serving ($350 per 100 guests)"
Psst! Hey k8! Do you know how long I mentally pronounced your screen name as "Kay-Eight" until it dawned it me it was "Kate"? 
Don't worry, I just figured out the "Kate" thing last month myself!!!!
I need to start doing that too....making sure the person wants to pay my prices before they get a tasting. I have been doing tastings for people lately and not getting orders out of it. Not alot...but you can tell during the tasting when they start balking at prices that you have a problem on your hands.
I'm not cheap but on the other hand for the type of cakes I offer I'm more affordable than the bigger cake artist places.....I should really go ahead and start telling people "You aren't going to get that style of cake anywhere else for much lower of a price."
This is why I don't mind giving detailed information to brides over the phone/email before the consultation - it saves me the time of having them over if they can't afford me.
And I needed Indydebi to point out the K-8...Kate pronunciation! It's like the personalized license plates - I can't read those either!! 
LOL! Well, don't I feel like an idiot! I've been reading your posts for months, and it never even occured to me that Kay-8 would be kate. DUH
Psst! Hey k8! Do you know how long I mentally pronounced your screen name as "Kay-Eight" until it dawned it me it was "Kate"?
(((and everyone else who said it)))
Remind me never to ask you to be on my pictograph team!
Totally off topic, but if you want more practice at the personalized plates, try the Claire Montrose series of books by April Henry. They are mysteries, but the main character's job is at the DMV approving personal plates, so there are a lot of examples throughout the books.
Yeah it's K8 'Kate'--didja get the 10 C part? Tennessee?
I'm blessed that I gotta cool nickname-ish when it's in print.
But some of my friends do say 'Kay 8'
Totally off topic, but if you want more practice at the personalized plates, try the Claire Montrose series of books by April Henry. They are mysteries, but the main character's job is at the DMV approving personal plates, so there are a lot of examples throughout the books.
This sounds so cool. I love plays on words and stuff like that.
Once, again, just to play devil's advocate...Brides tend to find the money for the things they really want. We have open tastings. Anyone who has received an invitation can attend. We are probably the most expensive cake vendor in our area, so a lot of people come in with a budget that won't cover our cake. But, a fairly decent percentage who leave end up calling back and booking with us because dad said he would pay etc...
If your cake is really stand out, if you have unique flavors or do some things that no one else does in your area, it is in your best interests to get that cake in as many mouths as possible. You may not sell this cake, but you may sell others because of this tasting. That is one of the reasons I let brides bring as many people as they want to the tasting.They still only get one plate of cake, but they can share it with as many people as they like. Remember that someone is going to buy them a grooms cake and a shower cake etc...
SnarkyBaker, you just completely rock. When I open my business, I'm going to camp out in your shop just to soak up all your knowledge. And eat cake.
I'll be getting a new printing of my brochures soon and I'm actually changing a section about filled to cakes. I have the price per slice and how many slices per size for 6, 8, 10, 12 and 14" round and squares, but people just don't do the math. I'm actually changing to say that 6" ... xx servings....$xx. They don't have to do the match, it's right there.
When you first communicate with the bride, just state your prices. Then if they didn't see them already, you have definately let them know.
Jen 
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