Being from Norway one of my concerns when it comes to the discussion of paper weight, wall plaque or other add on items related to the calibration is price, shipping costs and on top of that the tax I have to pay when getting the items trough customs here in Norway (add 25% of total cost of items and shipping). I guess that the cost of having it in hand here in Norway will probably be double of what ever the list price to calibrator will be. I would really like to be able to add some thing like this to the calibrations I do, but for me it will come down to how much I have to charge extra to make up for the cost.
Based on discussions with friends, clients and others at a couple of small trade shows the last couple of months I have ended up dividing my potential clients in three groups for this discussion.
First are the ones that have read or been told that they should have their display calibrated and just want it done so that they can stop wondering what it means. They will most of the time agree that they can see the difference, but they won´t even ask for a report and couldn´t care less for a plaque of a paper weight. For this group it would though be nice to be able to leave an “official” THX demo disk. Not sure they would ever use it, but as part of the education during the session I talk about the user settings and having an “official” disk to hand over at the end of the session would be a nice thing.
The next group are the ones that take an interest in the before and after report, and that take active part during the education part of the calibration. In addition to an “official” THX demo disk and the reports from the calibration for this group I think the possibility of providing some sort of letter stating that the display is calibrated within THX specifications would add some value. Don´t think they would pay extra for it, but this is something I would be able to factor into my pricing. This would set me apart from other calibrators.
The last group are the ones that I think would be potential customers for a plaque. Typically they will have a dedicated home theater and will already have some THX, DTS, DD or brand name plaques on the wall. We have some people producing wall plaques in Norway, and online sources abroad as well. It turns out people are willing to pay 70-80 USD for a nice looking wall plaque with the “right” logo – THX being one of those logos:D
For this group of people it would be great to have the option of providing a nice, unique THX wall plaque that only could be gotten trough a certified calibrator after a calibration job. This would be a plaque that would mean something in their home theater, and set them apart. A plaque like that next to an THX letter stating that the display system in the home theater is THX certified, and with a valid until date would be a nice addition for an enthusiast. Not to mention that the follow up calibration would be more or less sealed…..
Of course the “official” demo disk would be nice here as well. Most of them will probably have one or more of the calibration disk already, but a unique THX disk would be a nice addition.
Long reply, but I spent some time thinking trough this after the training class in January as part of figuring out my marketing plan, and with the question of a plaque coming up I ended up going through it again.
Not sure what a THX disk would cost, but I think 15-20 USD for a unique demo disk wouldn´t be a problem. The THX approval letter for the calibrated display would obviously come at a cost as well. For some clients the option of getting a unique wall plaque for an additional cost would be nice. I would like to see my cost of that plaque to be in the 25-30 USD price range, but I really don´t know if that is possible. I don´t want to come across a penny pincher, but as mentioned I´m looking at doubling the cost here in Norway before I get my hands on the items.
G-man
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