What's wrong with people?....

[bigdave]

Ive recently put in 2 proposals to 2 different companies, one for a run of business cards and one for a run of flyers. Both received samples from me and both loved them. I even went to great lengths explainging the differences between litho and digital, card stocks, finishes and the relevent pricing structures. Both clients seemed to understand what I was saying but both have come back and told me theyve found the design and print cheaper elsewhere so wont need my services. Thats fair enough, and just out of interest Ive asked them the name of the company theyre using.... any guesses....


..Vistaprint!!...


Really!?! I can't believe either of them are daft enough to believe theyre going to get anywhere near the same quality! what the hell is wrong with these people!

Rant over

[Corrosive]

It is a kick in the nuts to get this kind of thing back, especially when you have spend time explaining what quality actually means! Same is true of 'free' website builders etc. Funnily enough though, we have had two prospects come back to us recently having tried the 'cheap and cheerful' route and failed miserably. That is satisfying

Makes you wonder how many others have not had the guts to come back and admit they were wrong and having wasted hours learning a 'drag and drop' web builder only to find out that their efforts somehow don't look as good as the examples on these sites.

You'll have your satisfaction sir

[printbar]

I have this occasionally. Although I usually find that it's a decision that's been made by someone higher up the food chain, rather than the person I've been dealing with - that actually makes it less horrible.

Sorry buddy, all you can do is grin and bear it. At least they responded to your last email/message offering a quote, even if it was to tell you you hadn't won it (*hint hint* ;p)

[Boss Hog]

When they come back to you in a few weeks because the quality was crap put up your prices...

[smartsignsandprint]

I have had this in the past, but bear with it, you have a good chance of getting them knocking on your door again when they reveive their cards.

I seem to be at the other end of the routine, I regularly get people coming to me who have had a vista run done and now want some 'proper' cards

Mark

[djb]

What everyone else said really. Vistaprint will be sh*t. You can always send them a well-written email saying so and that when they want decent business cards to give you a ring.

[Minuteman Press]

We have a term 'Vista print refugees' which sums up exactly Mark's comments in the previous post. People learn from experience, just a shame the experience is not necessary.

[bigdave]

The really sad thing is that I'm starting to question whether I can even compete, as nobody seems to want or recognise high quality print. They just wan cheap and I couldn't bring myself to offer that end of the print spectrum. It would defeat the point of me going into business but I'm starting to think that if I don't get a foot in the door with these clients soon, there wont be business to be in.

[printbar]

The really sad thing is that I'm starting to question whether I can even compete, as nobody seems to want or recognise high quality print. They just wan cheap and I couldn't bring myself to offer that end of the print spectrum. It would defeat the point of me going into business but I'm starting to think that if I don't get a foot in the door with these clients soon, there wont be business to be in.

Just keep trucking, mate. Like people say above, they'll be back.

Margins may look awful thin right now, but there's always scope. My biggest client wouldn't let me quote on anything for months because she was convinced that I 'couldn't possibly beat the prices we have already'. I cut them in half and still make a healthy profit - but not through any particular brilliance of my own, just dumb luck!

Would say that:

1. March is often relatively lean (end of the tax year?) April probably will be as well this year due to the whole 'let's all go on a two week holiday at the same time because Wills and Kate couldn't get married at the weekend' cavalcade of bullshit. Don't let that put you off.

2. Personal experience suggests that margins will be pretty meagre for a few months until you establish your presence. This is as good a reason as any for keeping your overheads as low as possible, which should be pretty simple for a reseller, but often isn't because of what we will generously call 'not seeing that one good order does not a business plan make'.

3. You already know that Boss's reseller scheme is a good one. Explore others during your downtime as well.

--PB

[byronc]

I am starting out in the UK and finding its slow going etc, I did start a business in South Africa a while back and generated a few clients with dirt cheap rates. I kept those clients for years and by the time I left south Africa they were all paying good money and kept coming back for large software systems. One guy sticks in my mind who gave me a system that allowed me to enploy someone solely for that job for 6 months. Was quite nice. I think my mistake in the end was not expanding as I tried to do it all myself - just burnt out..