I had a very quick trip to the east coast last week, a two night-er, so, to save on time I allowed myself the luxury of parking *inside* LAX. $40 a night is steep, but, it was worth it to me to save the time on both ends of the trip. I mused to myself when I was about to pay my exorbitant $80 in parking fees, “I wonder how much is the most someone has paid here?”
Well, by the time I got to the attendants booth I had to ask “What’s the most you’ve seen someone pay to park here?” She was unimpressed with the question. “$500 or $600 is normal, someone paid $1,100 today actually”, was her totally nonchalant response.
WHAT?!?!? Someone parked *inside* LAX for 28 days at $40 a day?
I couldn’t speak.
The attendant continued, “Yep, and they paid it, no problem”.
I’ve spent every day since last week trying to figure out in what circumstance someone would make that plan for parking. If you lived in San Francisco, you could take a ride-share to and from LAX for cheaper than that!
This was the most extreme example I’ve seen of someone being unaware of the value they *could* get with the money they’re willing to spend, which is something I see too often in my business. Aside from looking for ways to get the same value cheaper, also look for increased value at the same cost you’re already spending!
I hope the $1,100 parking person re-assesses the value they got in parking for that amount!