Pricing Sawn Lumber

[Qweaver]

This is and has always been a huge problem for me.  I recently sold 150 BdFt of really nice walnut to a customer who thought my price of $3 a bdft was really high.  That included one 3x12x10' board that was mainly clear.  I have a big stack of mainly clear cherry and I just can't sell it at $2 a bdft.  I got the walnut and cherry free but had to go a ways to get it. i.e., time and money spent.  I only make money when they bring me their logs to saw.  I've got a shed full of a variety of types and sizes...just can't sell it.  I tried adds in the local radio and paper.  Just money thrown away.  My saw has saved me a ton of money on my own building projects but I'm glad I do not have to rely on it for income.  Perplexed :

[Dozer_Man]

I have had trouble selling walnut, cherry, and ERC.  I can only get about $1 bf here in Southwest Virginia.  I can saw the same stuff into mantles and live edge material and sale a 3 inch 5ft-7ft piece green anywhere from $150-$200 depending on grain pattern. Also some folks want oak and snarl their nose at $.65bf. I can sell the log for $.75bf at the local log yard for the lowest grade oak here. So why would I mill it up. What I have started doing though is sawing beech, cucumber, and other trashy hardwoods up and selling those as farmer's mixed hardwoods I call it. They fetch $.60bf or $.70bf (delivered locally) here and the farmers are happy and most don't notice the difference. Most of what their wanting is gonna be fence boards or onto the side of a building and painted anyways.  So you may could in your area call it something else and get more outta of it. It all depends on your location. Around here I also make more money sawing other peoples logs but this is a rural area.

[TKehl]

My thoughts:

1.  Newspapers and radio are dead and dying respectively in terms of local ads.  Craigslist and facebook are free and reach a wider audience.  They work well together.  Use craigslist to drive traffic to FB and/or your own website.  Have lots of pictures and descriptions.  This weeds out a lot of "tire kickers", so the ones that call are mostly buyers.
2.  You may consider leaving logs as logs.  Customer can buy the whole log and have cut to order.  (EX that 3x12x10' may be exactly what someone wants, but most people would look at it and have to rip it down to smaller dimensions.  IE they have to work and want a discount to compensate.    :)
3.  There's something to be said for character in a log.  Wholesalers hate it.  Many woodworkers will drive extra miles to get it and pay well.
4.  It could be your geography.  May need to sell into different markets.  (1 & 3 above)
5.  What I can't sell, I make into something of higher value.  If that doesn't work, drop the price or bundle with something.  If that doesn't work, donate to charity auction and take a tax writeoff.   

[Darrel]

I've pretty much decided I didn't want to be in the lumber selling business. People expect to pay half the price that they'd have to pay in town. Somehow they've got the idea that a good deal only makes them happy.

A 6"x6"x8' juniper fence posts starts at $22.50 ea in town if you can find them yet I'm expected to sell them for $10.00 because I didn't pay for the logs.  Just my sweat, my blood, my chain saw, my gas, my oil, my trailer, my truck, my sawmill, my time and my food that I ate so I'd have the energy to do it.

Yes, I enjoy the work and would do it for free if I could afford to but can't. It all costs me in one way or another and I have to make ends meet. 

End of rant. I wish I had an answer. In the meantime, I have a fence to build and if somebody comes along and offers me a good price for my 6x6 fence posts I'll sell them and cut myself some more free fence posts. 
8)

[WV Sawmiller]

Quint,

   Mine does not sell fast but I get $5/bf for walnut and $3/bf for my cherry. I try to leave as logs as long as I can without them going bad but sometimes you just have to cut it into stock.

   I make half page flyers on my home printer and post them where I shop including feed and seed stores, local grocery store, every convenience/country store in the area, barber shops, local hardware stores, and local trader/shopper papers. All this is free. These are places I shop and they know me and have a community service board for people to use. I also take a trailer load of assorted wood, tenon & mortise benches, cookies, etc. to our big local flea markets a couple times a year. I sell a little there but mostly I talk to people and it is advertising for custom sawing or if somebody sees a 6' cherry board I can tell them I have 8' live edge slabs back at home if they want to come look.

   I think in your area you need to hit some to the tourists passing through maybe on the way to the bridge or Badcock State Park or traveling along highway 19 and such and let them know what you have and find some woodworkers and there.

   Local subsistence farmers aren't likely the market you want for your high end stuff. Good luck.

[Billikenfan]

I just sell oak.  I don't mess with grade lumber.  Basically trailer floors,barn stalls,barn siding, ect.  My prices are as follows.  $1 a bdft for 8ft and under.  Everything less than. 8ft is considered 8ft for pricing.  Anything over 8" wide is $1.25 a bdft.  Over 8ft goes to $1.25.  Over 8" wide goes to $1.50.  16ft plus is 1.75.  Over 8" is $2.  I sell a decent amount of lumber.  Very few people gripe about the price.  Only person that gets it cheaper is a pipe company.  They buy 2.5x3.5 x8ft blocking.  They pay $.70 a bdft.  They buy 30-35k bdft s year.  It's nice to have a constant customer.  Its hard to sell much cheaper because my firewood brings  $1 a bdft.

Scott