The Faux Finish School
is proud to welcome:
Susan Bickford of
teaching
The Art of Making a Profit "Taking the Guesswork out of Estimating and Pricing" "A Faux Finish School EXCLUSIVE Workshop!"
April 24th - 25th 2008 Few Openings! July 7th - 8th 2008 Just Posted!
How do I figure out what I should be charging?
What am I really making on this faux painting job?
How do I price a faux finish I've never done before?
Will doing proposals ever get easier and faster?
At tax time - Wow! I thought I was making more money that that!!
Overhead - what's that? And why is it important?
Can I afford help faux painting? and How do I bid a job using help?
You mean I have to read a blueprint and do a bid from that!?!
How do I figure the area of a dome 20 feet up??
The designer says she wants a 20% markup, another says she wants 20% of the job - what's the difference and how is it figured?
If you have asked yourself these questions, this class is for you! Whether you are just starting your faux painting business or have an established business - if you've ever confronted these issues, or felt the least bit unsure of your pricing, this class will enable you to refine your pricing and estimating skills and be able to do it quickly with confidence. With this class you will receive a CD with invaluable automated job costing and estimating forms, invoice/proposal forms, as well as other valuable tools and information. Laptops with spreadsheet program are required for this class.
This faux painting business class was developed for those who use computers in their faux painting business, with both the beginner and established faux artisan in mind. Laptops with a spreadsheet program are required for this class. This business class will focus strictly on job costing - how to bid a job, how to manage larger jobs requiring help, and how to price with confidence - even if you've never done the finish! During this class you will get an introduction to cost accounting, how to figure your own overhead, how to read a blueprint, and most importantly - how to use the automated Job Cost and Estimating program designed specifically for decorative artisans. Each student will receive a CD that contains the automated job cost and estimating template, an automated invoice/proposal template, as well as other valuable tools and information. The Job Cost and Estimating Program will not only serve as a tool to do estimates and refine your pricing with ease, it also serves as a tool to track your progress during the job, and when complete - a job cost history for your client file that you can refer to for future bid work. During this two day class, you will take a project from blueprint to proposal, and discover how easy it can be to present a bid with confidence without second guessing yourself.
The class will be taught by Susan Bickford, developer and designer of the Job Cost and Estimating program. Susan is owner and principal artist of Susan Bickford Singing Walls in Nashville, TN. Because of her background in finance and accounting, and experience in developing automated spreadsheets and databases, the first thing she did when she started her business was develop an automated system to track job costs and easily and efficiently develop estimates. Through the years, she has refined the automated program, as well as her estimating techniques to a fine art.
Susan says, "In talking to friends in the business, I realized that this was an area in which a lot of artists struggle, even after years in business. The issue of how to price and whether one was actually making a profit was a big question mark for a lot of artisans. In helping other artists, I began to realize another area of difficulty was in figuring square footage and how to read blueprints - both skills that are necessary in refining the art of pricing and estimating. That's when the idea for a business class focusing on pricing and estimating began to grow. I felt compelled to share my knowledge and teach other professional artisans the true cost and value of the talent and craftsmanship they provide their clients. "The first step in elevating the perceived value of an artisan's craft is for the artist to value themselves."
Susan's bio:
Susan Bickford, owner and principal artist of Susan Bickford Singing Walls, Nashville, TN, started her business in 1999 after a long detour into the corporate world. Bickford studied Fine Arts and Business at Austin Peay State University in the mid 70s. Although she had begun oil painting and canvas work in the late 60s, progressing quickly to finishing accessories and furniture, she viewed decorative arts as a hobby. By the mid 70s she was a regular at flea markets finding interesting cast offs to turn into pieces of fine furniture and interesting art pieces - primarily for herself, but friends and family soon started requesting and purchasing pieces. By the early 80s her drive to paint things spread to the walls and the thought of a full time business in decorative painting began. However, the idea remained a dream while she pursued a career in corporate public affairs.
For just over 20 years, Bickford was employed by Norfolk Southern Corporation in their Public Affairs Department, the last 12 years serving as Public Affairs Manager for Tennessee. During her early years at NS Bickford returned to school in the evenings and completed work on a BBA in Finance and Economics, graduating Magna Cum Laude from TSU. Her duties as corporate lobbyist for NS demanded an extensive knowledge of economics, finance, accounting, taxes and government regulation. While at NS, Bickford developed a database system to track rail-highway grade crossing accidents in Tennessee and served on the Board and as Treasurer of Tennessee Operation Lifesaver from it's inception in 1980 until 2000. TNOL is a non-profit rail-highway safety program. In addition, to setting up and maintaining the finances and accounting for the non-profit, Bickford also set up and maintained the accounting system for her husband's small business.
Martin Alan Hirsch continues his quest to contract with the best instructors to guest teach at The Faux Finish School. He is excited to have Susan Bickford join the list of such talents. . The only prerequisite is that you are a current, practicing finisher in the field. Lunches will be catered during the two day workshop.. "I'm looking forward to this class and introducing my Job Cost Estimating Spreadsheet. It was put together specifically for our line of work and I've refined it over the years. It makes job estimating a breeze and also provides you with a job cost history to refer back to when the job is complete. It's designed to automatically calculate and include your overhead percentage on every job, as well as what your mark ups need to be for designers and referrals. It also makes it easy and efficient in recalculating changes and options on jobs. It really takes the guesswork out of doing estimates." Susan Bickford
"Since applying the Job Costing Program into my business I have gained a confidence and comfort that I never imagined possible! Being in business for 5 years, this was still an area that I struggled with and the proposal process was always stressful for me. I knew I could accomplish the finish but was unsure of what to charge and how to bid things. I now know without a doubt that it is the right price for me and for my clients. After using the program, I now plan to input some of my previous jobs to build a job cost history so I'll have a better handle on true square foot prices, making all future consultations much easier by knowing what to charge." Elaine Castronovo, Creative Lane, Pittsburgh, PA (Beta Tester for the New Improved Job Cost and Estimating program)
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2007 The Faux Finish School
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Louisville, Kentucky
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This faux painting business class was developed for those who use computers in their faux painting business, with both the beginner and established faux artisan in mind. Laptops with a spreadsheet program are required for this class. This business class will focus strictly on job costing - how to bid a job, how to manage larger jobs requiring help, and how to price with confidence - even if you've never done the finish! During this class you will get an introduction to cost accounting, how to figure your own overhead, how to read a blueprint, and most importantly - how to use the automated Job Cost and Estimating program designed specifically for decorative artisans. 
Each student will receive a CD that contains the automated job cost and estimating template, an automated invoice/proposal template, as well as other valuable tools and information. The Job Cost and Estimating Program will not only serve as a tool to do estimates and refine your pricing with ease, it also serves as a tool to track your progress during the job, and when complete - a job cost history for your client file that you can refer to for future bid work. 
During this two day class, you will take a project from blueprint to proposal, and discover how easy it can be to present a bid with confidence without second guessing yourself. 
The class will be taught by Susan Bickford, developer and designer of the Job Cost and Estimating program. Susan is owner and principal artist of Susan Bickford Singing Walls in Nashville, TN. Because of her background in finance and accounting, and experience in developing automated spreadsheets and databases, the first thing she did when she started her business was develop an automated system to track job costs and easily and efficiently develop estimates. Through the years, she has refined the automated program, as well as her estimating techniques to a fine art.
Susan says, "In talking to friends in the business, I realized that this was an area in which a lot of artists struggle, even after years in business. The issue of how to price and whether one was actually making a profit was a big question mark for a lot of artisans. In helping other artists, I began to realize another area of difficulty was in figuring square footage and how to read blueprints - both skills that are necessary in refining the art of pricing and estimating. That's when the idea for a business class focusing on pricing and estimating began to grow. I felt compelled to share my knowledge and teach other professional artisans the true cost and value of the talent and craftsmanship they provide their clients. 
Martin Alan Hirsch continues his quest to contract with the best instructors to guest teach at The Faux Finish School. He is excited to have Susan Bickford join the list of such talents. . The only prerequisite is that you are a current, practicing finisher in the field. Lunches will be catered during the two day workshop.. "I'm looking forward to this class and introducing my Job Cost Estimating Spreadsheet. It was put together specifically for our line of work and I've refined it over the years. It makes job estimating a breeze and also provides you with a job cost history to refer back to when the job is complete. It's designed to automatically calculate and include your overhead percentage on every job, as well as what your mark ups need to be for designers and referrals. It also makes it easy and efficient in recalculating changes and options on jobs. It really takes the guesswork out of doing estimates."
