U.S. patent application number 10/771132 was filed with the patent office on 2004-09-30 for device and method for pricing repair services.
Invention is credited to Abrams, James D..
Application Number | 20040193517 10/771132 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 24390886 |
Filed Date | 2004-09-30 |
United States Patent
Application |
20040193517 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Abrams, James D. |
September 30, 2004 |
Device and method for pricing repair services
Abstract
A list of pricing information for repair services includes a
potentially large number of repair services grouped into a limited
number of price categories such that the price of any given pricing
category represents the price of each different service included in
that category. A method of using this price list to determine the
price of a particular repair service desired by a customer includes
the steps of identifying in the price list the pricing category
which includes the particular service desired, and determining the
unique price assigned to that pricing category. Preferably, the
price list is initially displayed to a customer before the
customer's equipment is diagnosed, and the customer is informed
that the cost of the repair service will be one of the prices
associated with a listed pricing category. Upon diagnosing the
customer's equipment to determine the particular repair service
needed, and advising the customer of such, the service technician
as well as the customer can each reference the price list
independently to readily determine the price of the desired
service.
Inventors: |
Abrams, James D.; (Sarasota,
FL) |
Correspondence
Address: |
HARNESS, DICKEY, & PIERCE, P.L.C
7700 BONHOMME, STE 400
ST. LOUIS
MO
63105
US
|
Family ID: |
24390886 |
Appl. No.: |
10/771132 |
Filed: |
February 3, 2004 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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10771132 |
Feb 3, 2004 |
|
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09597290 |
Jun 20, 2000 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
705/34 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q 30/0206 20130101;
G06Q 30/04 20130101; G06Q 10/06 20130101; G06Q 30/0283
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
705/034 |
International
Class: |
G06F 017/60 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A method of determining pricing information corresponding to a
service desired by a customer, the method comprising: receiving
information relating to a plurality of different services offered
by a service provider, said information including a cost and an
expected frequency for each of the services; grouping the different
services into a limited set of pricing categories to optimize
pricing of the different services, at least one of said pricing
categories including at least two unrelated different services;
determining a unique price associated with each of the pricing
categories as a function of the cost and the expected frequency for
each of the different services in the respective pricing category;
generating a price list, said price list including the grouped
pricing categories and the determined unique prices associated
therewith; identifying in the price list the pricing category which
includes the desired service; and identifying in the price list the
unique price associated with the identified pricing category, the
identified price representing the price to be charged to the
customer for the desired service.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein each pricing category includes a
plurality of unrelated different services.
3. The method of claim 1 wherein the plurality of different
services is a large number of services and wherein the limited set
of pricing categories is no more than twenty five.
4. The method of claim 1 wherein the plurality of different
services is a large number of services and wherein the limited set
of pricing categories is no more than eight.
5. The method of claim 1 wherein the plurality of different
services is a large number of services and wherein the limited set
of pricing categories is no more than five.
6. The method of claim 1 wherein the method is performed by the
service provider and further comprises informing the customer of
the identified price.
7. The method of claim 1, further comprising diagnosing equipment
of the customer by the service provider to determine which of the
different services offered by the service provider is the service
desired.
8. The method of claim 7 wherein the equipment is selected from the
group consisting of HVAC, plumbing, electrical and appliance
equipment and diagnosing includes diagnosing the equipment at a
location of the customer.
9. The method of claim 7 wherein the equipment is selected from the
group consisting of automotive and appliance equipment and
diagnosing includes diagnosing the equipment at a service provider
facility.
10. A method of communicating to a customer pricing formation
corresponding to a service desired by the customer, the method
comprising: receiving information relating to a plurality of
different services offered by a service provider, said information
including a cost and an expected frequency for each of the
services; grouping the different services into a limited set of
pricing categories to optimize pricing of the services, at least
one of said pricing categories including at least two unrelated
different services; determining a unique price associated with each
of the pricing categories as a function of the cost and the
expected frequency for each of the different services in the
respective pricing category; generating a price list, said price
list including the grouped pricing categories and the determined
unique prices associated therewith; and displaying to the customer
the price list, thereby enabling the customer to determine the
price to be charged to the customer by the service provider for the
desired service by identifying in the price list the unique price
associated with the pricing category which includes the desired
service.
11. The method of claim 10 wherein each pricing category includes a
plurality of unrelated different services.
12. The method of claim 10 wherein the plurality of different
services is a large number of services and wherein the limited set
of pricing categories is no more than twenty five.
13. The method of claim 10 wherein the plurality of different
services is a large number of services and wherein the limited set
of pricing categories is no more than eight.
14. The method of claim 10 wherein the plurality of different
services is a large number of services and wherein the limited set
of pricing categories is no more than five.
15. The method of claim 10 wherein displaying includes displaying
the price list by the service provider to the customer at a
location of the customer.
16. The method of claim 10, further comprising diagnosing equipment
of the customer by the service provider to determine which of the
services offered by the service provider is the service
desired.
17. The method of claim 16 wherein the price list is displayed to
the customer by the service provider before the equipment is
diagnosed.
18. The method of claim 16, further comprising informing the
customer before the equipment is diagnosed that the price for the
desired service will be one of said unique prices.
19. The method of claim 16, further comprising advising the
customer by the service provider of the service desired after
diagnosing the equipment.
20. The method of claim 16 wherein the equipment is selected from
the group consisting of HVAC, plumbing, electrical and appliance
equipment and diagnosing includes diagnosing the equipment at a
location of the customer.
21. The method of claim 16 wherein the equipment is selected from
the group consisting of automotive and appliance equipment and
diagnosing includes diagnosing the equipment at a service provider
facility.
22. The method of claim 10 wherein displaying includes providing
the customer with a copy of the price list.
23. A method of pricing a plurality of different services offered
by a service provider, any one of which may be needed by a
customer, the method comprising: grouping the different services
into a limited set of pricing categories as a function of a cost of
each service and an expected frequency at which each service is
rendered; at least one of said pricing categories including at
least two unrelated different services; determining a unique price
for each of the pricing categories as a function of the cost and
the expected frequency for each of the services in the respective
pricing category; assigning the unique prices to the pricing
categories whereby the unique price assigned to a particular one of
the pricing categories represents the price of each service grouped
into that particular one pricing category; and rendering
information to the customer relating to the pricing categories and
the unique prices assigned thereto.
24. The method of claim 23 wherein grouping includes grouping at
least two unrelated different services into each pricing
category.
25. The method of claim 23 wherein the different services are
repair services.
26. The method of claim 23 wherein the plurality of different
services are of a type commonly rendered at a customer location and
are selected from the group consisting of HVAC, plumbing,
electrical, and appliance repair services.
27. The method of claim 23 wherein the plurality of different
services are of a type commonly rendered at a service provider
facility and are selected from the group consisting of automotive
repair and appliance repair services.
28. The method of claim 23, further comprising producing a price
list which includes the limited set of pricing categories, the
different services grouped therein, and the unique prices assigned
thereto.
29. The method of claim 23 wherein the plurality of different
services is a large number of different services and wherein
grouping includes grouping the different services into no more than
twenty-five pricing categories.
30. The method of claim 23 wherein the plurality different services
are a large number of HVAC services and grouping includes grouping
the large number of different HVAC services into the limited set of
pricing categories having no more than five pricing categories.
31. The method of claim 23 wherein the different services are a
large number of plumbing services and grouping includes grouping
the large number of different plumbing services into the limited
set of services categories having no more than eight pricing
categories.
32. The method of claim 23 wherein determining comprises
determining the unique price of said particular one pricing
category as a function of an average cost of rendering the
different services grouped therein.
33. The method of claim 32 wherein determining comprises
determining the unique price of said particular one pricing
category as a weighted function of the expected frequency at which
the different services grouped therein are rendered.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation of U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 09/597,290 filed on Jun. 20, 2000, the
disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The present invention relates generally to a device and
method for pricing repair services and, more particularly, to a
price list in which a potentially large number of repair services
are grouped into a limited number of price categories, and to
methods of using such a price list in bidding and communicating
pricing information to customers.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] A wide variety of repair services are rendered to customers
on an as-needed basis, including repair services of the type which
are commonly rendered at a customer's place of residence. Some
examples of these services include those routinely performed by
plumbers, electricians, HVAC technicians, appliance repair
technicians, etc. When determining the price to charge for these
services, providers typically employ either one of the following
two approaches: a time and materials approach; or a flat rate
approach.
[0004] According to the time and materials approach to pricing
repair services, a service technician must keep track of the amount
of time spent on a particular job, which is normally charged to the
customer at an hourly rate, taking into account the starting and
stopping times of each technician on the job, including perhaps for
lunch and other breaks. The service technician must also track the
cost of all parts, equipment and other materials which are used in
rendering the service (for purposes herein, replacement parts
and/or new equipment installation may be considered part of a
"service," when applicable). Thus, in addition to tracking the
materials used, the technician must also determine the cost of
these materials, typically by referencing a detailed parts catalog.
Not only is this a time consuming process, and requires each
technician in the field to be equipped with one or more parts
catalogs which can be expensive and cumbersome to use, it also
frequently results in errors in the calculated price to the
disadvantage of the customer or the service provider, or both where
such errors result in a dissatisfied customer. Further, the time
and materials approach to pricing repair services does not readily
lend itself to providing customers with accurate up-front price
quotes, as the amount of time required to perform the necessary
repairs may be generally unknown until the job is nearly completed.
This approach also has a tendency of creating apprehension on the
part of many customers as the amount of time spent on the job by
the technician increases, with a corresponding increase in the
ultimate price for the service.
[0005] According to the flat rate approach to pricing repair
services, once the particular repair service desired by a customer
is known (which is typically determined by the service technician
upon diagnosing the equipment in need of repair), the technician
can determine a flat rate price for the needed service. This is
accomplished by referencing a comprehensive pricing catalog which
includes "installed prices" for a wide variety of parts and
equipment. For example, such a pricing catalog may specify the
installed price of a specific gas control valve for an HVAC system
at $200, which represents the costs of the valve itself as well as
the cost to install it. However, because these catalogs typically
contain pricing information for numerous gas control valves, in
addition to a wide variety of other parts and equipment, it is not
uncommon for service technicians to make mistakes when trying to
price a particular repair service. Further, the pricing catalogs
themselves are typically quite expensive, and a separate catalog
must typically be purchased for each field technician of a service
organization on an annual or biannual basis, or whenever the
catalogs are updated to reflect new parts, services and price
changes.
[0006] In addition to the shortcomings noted above for each
approach, the average customer is generally unable to opportunity
independently confirm the accuracy of a price quoted for a
particular repair service, as the customer usually does not have
access to the necessary pricing catalogs and would probably be
incapable of using such catalogs even if faced with the quoted by
service technicians as suspect, and question at least to themselves
whether the quoted price is fair or accurate.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0007] Consequently, some customers may regard the prices in order
to solve these and other needs in the art, the inventor hereof has
succeeded at designing and developing an improved approach to
pricing repair services which minimizes the need for expensive
pricing catalogs, minimizes the amount of time required by service
technicians in bidding on repair services, minimizes the risk of
errors in the bidding process and, significantly, enables customers
to receive up front pricing information, the accuracy of which can
be readily and independently confirmed by the customer. To this
end, a list of pricing information is provided in which a
potentially large number of repair services are grouped into a
limited number of price categories such that the price of any given
service category represents the price of each different service
included in that category. Thus, to determine the price of a repair
service desired by a customer, a service technician need only
identify the service category which includes the desired repair
service, and then reference the price assigned to that particular
service category. Preferably, the price list is initially provided
to the customer before the customer's equipment is diagnosed, and
the customer is informed that the cost of the repair service will
be one of the prices associated with a listed service category.
Upon diagnosing the customer's equipment to determine the
particular repair service desired, and advising the customer of
such, the service technician as well as the customer can each
reference the 35 price list to determine the price associated with
the desired service. Due to the simplified format of the price
list, and the ability of both the service technician and the
customer to determine the price of a desired service therefrom, the
risk of errors in using the price list is virtually non-existent.
This approach to pricing repair services also contributes to
customer confidence in the service provider, as the customer
preferably receives up front and straightforward pricing
information, and is therefore less likely to expect errors or foul
play in the quoted price, and should also be less concerned with
the amount of time required for the technician to perform the
desired service since this will not affect the price charged to the
customer. This inventive approach to pricing repair services can
also facilitate comparison shopping, which is advantageous for the
customer and thus may further contribute to the commercial success
of the invention.
[0008] In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, a
method of determining pricing information corresponding to a
service desired by a customer comprises the steps of referencing a
price list having a plurality of service categories, where each
service category has a different price associated therewith and at
least one of the service categories includes a plurality of
different services, identifying in the price list the service
category which includes the desired service, and identifying in the
price list the unique price associated with the identified service
category, wherein the identified price represents the price of the
desired service. In accordance with another aspect of the present
invention, a method of communicating to a customer pricing
information corresponding to a service desired by the customer
comprises the steps of displaying to the customer a price list
having a plurality of service categories, where each service
category has a unique price associated therewith and at least one
of the service categories includes a plurality of different
services, thereby enabling the customer to determine the price of
the desired service by identifying in the price list the unique
price associated with the service category which includes the
desired service. In accordance with a further aspect of the present
invention, a method of pricing a plurality of different services,
any one of which may be needed by a customer, comprises the steps
of grouping the different services into a plurality of service
categories, and assigning a unique price to each of the service
categories whereby the unique price assigned to a particular one of
the service categories represents the price of each different
service grouped into that particular one service category.
[0009] In accordance with still another aspect of the present
invention, a list of pricing information for a plurality of
different services, any one of which services may be needed by a
customer, includes a plurality of service categories, where each
service category has a unique price associated therewith and at
least one the service categories includes a plurality of different
services, and where the price of a particular service included in
the list is the unique price associated with the service category
which includes that particular service.
[0010] While some of the principal features and advantages of the
present invention have been described above, a greater and more
thorough understanding of the invention may be attained by
referring to the drawings and the detailed description of preferred
embodiments which follow.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0011] FIG. 1 is an exemplary price list according to one 30
embodiment of the present invention.
[0012] FIG. 2 is a flow chart of a preferred method for
communicating pricing information to customers using the price list
of FIG. 1.
[0013] FIG. 3 illustrates a preferred approach to grouping
different services into the same service category, and to assigning
a unique price to that service category.
[0014] FIG. 4 illustrates an alternative approach to assigning
unique prices to service categories with consideration of the
frequency at which the different services in each category are
rendered.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0015] An exemplary price list according to one preferred
embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in FIG. 1 and is
referred to generally by reference character 100. Although this
particular price list 100 includes sample pricing information
specific to residential HVAC services, it should be understood that
the teachings of the present invention are applicable to a wide
variety of services, as will be apparent. The price list 100
includes several service categories A, B, C, D and E, and each of
these service categories preferably includes several different
service types. In this particular example, category A includes
services relating to the repair, replacement and/or installation
of, among other things, a condenser coil still covered under
factory warranty, category B includes services relating to the
repair, replacement and/or installation of, among other things,
factory burners, and category E includes services relating to,
among other things, the cleaning and/or adjustment of blowers,
breakers., drains, etc. As shown in FIG. 1, a different or unique
price is associated with each different service category.
Specifically, category A is priced at $890, category B is priced at
$477, category C is priced at $287, category D is priced at $189,
and category E is priced at $99. The price associated with a
particular service category represents the price of each different
service included in that particular service category. In other
words, the different services in any given service category are all
priced the same. Thus, a Customer in need of a blower adjustment
will pay the same as a customer requiring a humidifier cleaning,
because both of these services are grouped in the same category,
namely, category E. Further, both customers would be charged, in
this example, $99, as this is the price associated with category E.
As shown in FIG. 1, the price list 100 preferably comprises only a
single page. Although, according to the present invention, a
variety of services may be offered at the same price even though
such services were previously offered at different prices, the
grouping of the services into service categories and the assigning
of uniform prices thereto can be performed in such a manner as to
yield approximately the same overall revenue for the service
provider, if desired, as further explained below.
[0016] A preferred method of using the price list 100 shown in FIG.
1 to communicate pricing information to customers will now be
described with reference to the flow chart of FIG: 2. This method
preferably begins at step 200 when a service provider responds to a
request for service by a customer. In this particular example, the
different services included in the price list 100 relate to HVAC
services of the type commonly rendered at a customer's place of
residence. Thus, the service provider preferably responds to the
customer request for service by dispatching a field technician to
the customer residence. Alternatively, if the equipment in need of
service is capable of being transported, it can be delivered to the
service provider's facility for repair. At step 202, the price list
100 is displayed to the customer. In one preferred embodiment, this
step includes providing the customer with a hard copy of the price
list. Alternatively, the price list can be stored in a computer of
the service provider and transmitted to a computer of the customer
at an appropriate time. Regardless of how the price list is
provided to the customer for review, it may be so provided before
the field technician arrives at the customer residence or before
equipment of the customer is delivered to a service provider
facility for repair.
[0017] At step 204, the customer is preferably informed that the
price of the service desired is one of the prices set forth in the
price list 100. Thus, for the particular price list 100 shown in
FIG. 1, the customer would be informed that the cost of the service
desired will be $890, $477, $287, $189 or $99. The service
technician would then proceed to diagnose the equipment of the
customer to determine the specific service desired by the
customer.
[0018] Thus, although the general nature of the service desired by
the customer may be known at the outset (e.g., "fix my furnace"),
the particular service desired (e.g., replace the factory burners)
may be unknown until the equipment is diagnosed. Preferably, the
customer is advised of the results of the diagnosis (i.e., the
particular service desired is identified for the customer) at step
208. At step 210, the service technician as well as the customer/if
desired, can reference the price list 100 to determine the price of
the desired service. More specifically, the technician would first
identify in the price list 100 the service category which includes
the desired service. For example, if the desired service is to
replace factory burners, the technician would first determine that
this service is included in category B of the price list 100. The
technician would then identify the unique price associated with
that category B which, in this example, is $477. Thus, the price to
replace the factory burners in this example would be $477. At step
212, the customer is preferably informed of the price for the
desired service and can then, if desired, independently reference
the price list 100 to confirm the accuracy of the quoted price.
[0019] A preferred method for pricing a plurality of different
services in accordance with the present invention will now be
described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. As shown in FIG. 3, a
plurality of different service types 1-N are preferably arranged in
ascending order according to the individual prices at which such
services were previously offered. These services can then be
grouped into one or more service categories according to natural
price breaks or as otherwise desired. For example, in FIG. 3,
service types 5 1, 2, 3, 4 each fall within the range of $70 to
$100; and are each grouped into a category F. A unique price can
then be assigned to category F, preferably as a function of the
average of the individual prices for service types 1-4 which, in
this particular example, is $85. In this manner, a service provider
can implement the teachings of the present invention without
substantially affecting overall gross revenues. In the event that
certain services are rendered more frequently than others, then a
weighted average can be taken of the individual prices. An example
of this is shown in FIG. 4, where service types 2 and 4 are
rendered twice as frequently as service types 1 and 3. Thus, in an
effort to hold gross revenues constant, a weighted average price of
$87 can be used as the unique price for category F, rather than the
simple average price of $85 shown in FIG. 3.
[0020] Although the present invention has been described with
reference to specific embodiments for residential HVAC repair
services, it should be understood that the teachings of the
invention are not so limited, and can be applied to a wide variety
of other repair services including plumbing, electrical, appliance
repair, and automotive repair services, regardless of whether such
services are rendered at a customer residence or at a service
provider facility. The teachings of the present invention can also
be extended 30 to services other than repair services.
[0021] An important aspect of the present invention is the
elegantly simply format of the price list used both by service
providers and their customers. For this reason, the number of
service categories in any given price list must be limited, taking
into account the variety of services and the individual prices of
such services to be included in the price list. In the inventor's
most preferred embodiments, the total number of service categories
in any given price list is limited to no more than twenty-five.
Preferably, however, the number of service categories is limited to
no more than eight for price lists directed to residential plumbing
services, and to no more than five for price lists directed to
residential HVAC services. There are various changes and
modifications which may be made to the invention, as recognized by
those skilled in the art. However, these changes and modifications
are suggested by the disclosure. The invention should therefore be
limited only, by the scope of the claims appended hereto, and their
full range of legal equivalents.
* * * * *