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Post by artisans on Jul 27, 2010 21:28:18 GMT 2
One of the most common questions asked on forums is ‘how much is a Mythos?’ Come to Roda in early May and you may pay 3 euros – so why are people now selling Mythos for 2.50 or even 2.30 euros? Why are Roda’s businessmen saying that generally the price of a pint hasn’t changed for five years, and who has absorbed the increases from suppliers, the water & electricity costs, more taxes and higher delivery charges? Of course, it is the businessmen themselves who take less profit to ensure that their visitors get a good deal.
Like many others, Makis has a double problem in that less people staying in his rooms means less money spent in his bar and lower takings in his daughter’s take-away. His family has just six months to earn a year’s wage. Put yourselves in his shoes – he fixes a room rate and he has rooms empty – what should he do? Some might argue that the price should go up so that those who are supporting him provide him with a good income, but that is using loyal customers to subsidise those who have bailed out. Of course, the laws of supply & demand state that people will buy more of a product at a lower price than at a higher price. By lowering his initial prices, Makis clearly hoped to attract more customers to cover his fixed costs and at least ensure that his six month’s hard work is not in vain. He is trying to fill every room. I suspect most of us would do exactly the same and those who were first to commit themselves may find that they paid more. This is a principle that has been in operation since man started trading.
Another point to consider is that Makis should be just as entitled to apply the laws of supply & demand as, say, Thomas Cook or Tui; why should we expect it of them but not of Makis? Last year I remember someone who had booked to come to Roda and then been told that a pint was 3.50 euros, cancelling his holiday and losing £250. He had presumably worked out that he & his family would drink at least 250 pints during their stay and he never considered that prices might have come down by the time they arrived. The differential at Makis is small by comparison.
Nobody should blame local businesses for trying to get a fair price for their products or their services – this happens everywhere. If their businesses fail to attract sufficient volume for reasons beyond their control, it is only right that they should have the option of changing their prices. The alternative is to see them fail altogether and then everyone loses.
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Post by guest on Jul 27, 2010 23:41:41 GMT 2
The point i was trying to make was that the people that booked through this forum were happy with the price qouted to them or they would not have booked it in the first place , the fact that on arrival the going rate was lower was to other people's benefit and did not have them up in arms demanding a refund. This sort of thing has probably happened to everyone in one form or another over the years and whilst perhaps not being the cleverest thing Makis could have done it amounts to one drink each per day - not the end of the world surely ? pete. Yes we were happy with the price quoted on this forum & we did question Makis about the lower price but as I said before he suddenly couldn't understand English !!! We were on the late saturday night flight & asked to keep the room until 6pm... charge 20 euro. Please tell me what incentive is there to stay there again.
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Post by guest on Jul 27, 2010 23:50:18 GMT 2
like i said previously i was qouted 25 euros per night in october 09 .iwould have been upset if on arrival iwas given a different price .if you look back on the thread where steve took bookings this price was 2-3 euros dearer and has been explained why .many times i have booked early with a company only to find sitting next to someone paying less ,thats how it goes . but like lisydaly states 70 euro is not a sum to be sneezed at or dismissed ,by comparing to a 1 euro cut to a meal whilst the village was quiet it was better than i have seen it in the past 5 years. the answer is book direct with makis, then you know the price ,book through a third party and the possibilities of on-cost may occur . You were quoted 25 euros in October, so why change the prices with Steve for forum bookings? If we had a day flight we would of turned up & paid the lower price but we had a night flight & needed to know we had somewhere to stay at 2am
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Post by artisans on Jul 28, 2010 7:51:46 GMT 2
As a long-standing customer, John made his own arrangements with Makis long before there were any thoughts of having a webpage on Roda Online. Makis determined the prices in March 2010 and the lower rate that he subsequently offered appeared after the season had started. My chart shows that Roda Online took no bookings at all for May, with the first two people arriving on 11th &12th June. I imagine it was sometime during that period that Makis decided to offer a lower price to attract more business. The first that I knew about the new rate was sometime around the 18th June when it was reported by a forum member.
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Post by sthelenssaint on Jul 28, 2010 8:04:26 GMT 2
i did not see the prices till the following day as i only arrived after midnight , but i had no input into makis and his prices. i assume he took advice from his fellow greeks in october ,when he realised he would have to go independant. i feel you should have paid the price posted in his bar and not the price on the forum . but thats only what i think
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Post by needsaholiday on Jul 28, 2010 9:12:51 GMT 2
sthelenssaint we also arrived late at night. Paid the next morning before I saw the price advertised at the bar. When I queried it Makis said 'you know the price' Didn't want it to upset our holiday so didn't argue the point.
Steve you should PM everyone who has a booking there just to let them know to check prices before paying or this could carry on all season.
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Post by WL on Jul 28, 2010 10:15:43 GMT 2
Or cancel the boking through here & book direct with makis, thats what i'd do, if i had a prob with it. its the booking thru hear that seems 2 b the prob.
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jacks
Roda Anorak
Posts: 3,853
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Post by jacks on Jul 28, 2010 10:20:29 GMT 2
Last year I remember someone who had booked to come to Roda and then been told that a pint was 3.50 euros, cancelling his holiday and losing £250. He had presumably worked out that he & his family would drink at least 250 pints during their stay and he never considered that prices might have come down by the time they arrived. Someone actually done that?!?!
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Post by artisans on Jul 28, 2010 19:57:11 GMT 2
I remember Pete telling us on a couple of occasions how he has had to go into the Thomas Cook website four different ways before he finds the lowest price for the same holiday. These obstacles are deliberately introduced to foil the less persistent and to target different markets.
Airlines and other travel companies use differentiated pricing regularly, as they sell travel products and services simultaneously to different market segments. This is often done by assigning capacity to various booking classes, which sell for different prices. When Makis takes a booking directly, or through Roda Online, he is also taking a risk. He does not ask for a deposit and he offers a ‘book now pay later’ policy. If the customer fails to turn up, at best he has lost one booking. At worst he has lost two or more because other customers may have been turned away. The likelihood is that a person turning up and seeing the price on the bar is looking for somewhere to stay that night and cash changes hands immediately. These are two distinct market segments. The only variance would seem to be people booking directly with Makis. As he speaks little English at the moment, some may prefer to pay a little more and be sure of what is happening. We each have a choice.
Makis is just a small player in a huge market, but he would seem to understand that dual-pricing has some merit in that it offers different prices to different types of customer. When you are selling any product or service, there is always a case to be made for dual pricing in order to maximise your profits. The downside is that not everyone thinks it is fair.
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Post by needsaholiday on Jul 28, 2010 22:56:26 GMT 2
Steve you have said you will refuse any money Makis offers you at the end of the season. Don't refuse it... take it but donate it to CARE a very worthy cause!
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Post by artisans on Jul 29, 2010 8:20:44 GMT 2
We have previously been asked by several accommodation owners in the village to take a commission on any bookings we can secure. We have always refused and will continue to do so. With Makis, the situation was slightly different because he was in our house and wouldn't go away until we agreed. We added on his suggested 'cover charge' in the belief it would be forgotten by the end of the season. We have been asked for three years by one reputable business owner to set up an agency and add 10% to all prices for ourselves. This also we have refused to do.
Our aim has always been to promote the whole of Roda and we can only do this by remaining neutral. People see our presence in the village on a daily basis and they naturally believe that we can find them the additional bookings that they need but we cannot be at the beck & call of a few people for the sake of two euros when we are trying to be fair to all. I can confirm that all enquiries have been fairly dealt with and nobody has been pointed in Maki's direction with the intention of earning commission. We are occasionally asked to suggest accommodations and we have done so based purely on the specific requirements of the enquirer. We have always tried to offer a choice of at least three possible venues and let the enquirer decide for themselves.
If, and when, Makis wants to pay commission, it will be refused as was always the intention. Until the issue was raised in this thread, we had forgotten all about it.
Steve
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