I see what your saying.So,I should go with a 8 compartment (small) box & add eyes to them instead of no eyes. The $30.95 price ,is that what youd charge for 6 dif colors + the 10 heads? Also, what count should each color be?
I did a ten count of each color. That box will bump you for $4.00 too. Factor it in. I put eyes on the ones I did but give the customer an option of either/or. If they want eyes on two colors, then your 30...31 dollars isn't out of line. Where are they going to get 60 baits in a box with 20 jigs for less than that? Be sure to slip a price sheet in with the order so replacement baits can be bought. Also be sure to let them know that this is an "introductory" offer so you can bump the price of replacement plastic a bit. People put a lot of time into this stuff and you shouldn't just give it away.
I'll say this again.....these baits are not a store sstaple. People cannot go into Walmart and pick these up at their leisure. Thats the beauty of this hobby. I'm not saying to gouge people but I am saying do not cut your own throat. Keep in mind too that anything priced too low will raise suspicions about quality. You make great tackle. Its ok to offer an introductory package deal to get your stuff in someone's hands but the re-fill purchases should have a set price per count. The replacement price per 10 pack should be about $5.00 with eye. $4.00 without. Single colors without eyes is up to you since little work is found in them and these can be used as bargaiin baits. Customers may not purchase baits of two-color composition and/or with eyes but don't think they haven't seen them. Most often it will take one successful fishing trip for them to start thinking hard about the more vivid baits. Its just the nature of the angler.
I guess what I'd do is sit down and make a price sheet based on a given number of baits per package for plain un-eyes baits. Then do up a list for two color baits per 10 pack keeping in mind that you literally have to shoot the bait twice so adding 50% of the single color cost is not out of touch. Time is money as is handling things twice. Then have an add-on for units of ten with eyes. On ten baits,I'd charge all of $3.00 for eyes. [remember that eyes can make the bait but require a lot more work] Make copies of the proice sheet available to those with questions but be ready to explain that two color baits means you have twice as much time and two batches of plastic tied up. Also be ready to explain the eye thing. The eyes have to be able to tolerate the heat and the corrosive nature of the plastic. That means they cost more in the start but then the time to apply plays into things as does the need for yet anouter cup of clear plastic which is prone to charring and hard to control temp-wise. If you are prepared on paper and in your mind your sales will not suffer. Be straight forward and people shopping will listen and say to themselves that ok he's right so lets try it. I'd have pricing down pat for everything you offer and if you add something to your line-up be darned sure your prices are listed on all price sheets you hand out. I'd do a master sheet as Word document and save it so you can edit it at will and print off copies as you need them. I'd also insert at the bottom of the price sheet that "due to volatility in the petroleum markets prices may rise un-announced" but that you'll try to keep as current as possible. That can save your butt.
Before you decide to market anything have a clear picture of your costs are vs what you charge for your goods. I think I'd figure that if I started out with 2.5 gallons of plastic at Jason't 94.50 and was shooting small fry 1.75" baits and couldn't replace that same amount of plastic after using 1/3 of the original 2.5 gallons, then I'm not charging enough. You still need to consider replacement colorants, stabilizer and eyes. And packaging. Consider too how you handle the trim. I re-use mine time and time again. If you toss the trim, you'll have to charge more for the finished baits to account for that loss.
How are you shipping? If I send anything it goes in a small flat-rate box that costs $5.35 and is priority shipped. You can pack it up to 70 pounds at that rate. The next size larger is at $10.15/flat rate and priority. I din't hear of many complaints by adding a buck more than actual shipping to allow for time and gas running to a sub station to mail it. Just a though. This type of shipping make offering a couple methods with stable rates so there's no quibbling and if you can get a small order in a padded envelope you'll make a couple bucks to boot.
