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A Tacoma industrial company recently called us about embroidery and logo wear.  They said they were unhappy with their current embroidery vendor and looking for a change.  It seemed like an easy fit because they already had identified from their prior work a variety of clothing options that were available from our suppliers.  When we visited to clarify things and make the order official, someone handed us two jackets that “the owner picked up at Costco” and asked, “Can you do these too?”  Wanting to please a potentially lucrative client, and figuring we could put our foot down later about our No Customer-Supplied Items policy, we agreed.

Fast forward one week.  We successfully embroidered and prepared all of the clothing items this client had requested.  The two Costco jackets remained.  We put the first one on one of our embroidery machines.  Less than 60 seconds later, disaster struck and the machine tore a hole through the jacket.   The odds of this happening on any garment placed on a machine at any shop industry wide are are 2%.  But when the garment is something that the customer supplied and the logistics of replacing it involve driving around a city to purchase a replacement jacket at retail pricing while not getting other clients’ orders fulfilled, the odds seem to approach 50%.  So then, because the client wanted to save $10-20 on a jacket, we have to decide whether to spend $300-$400 of down time and cash outlay to fix something.

We’ve previously written about our general policy of not accepting customer-supplied items (see http://iminstitches.com/2011/five-reasons-why-embroidery-screen-printing-shops-dont-want-to-work-with-garments-you-have-supplied/).  It gets tempting to break that rule when we think there’s a nice big client on the other side of “just this one time.”  But every time we are reminded why the local embroidery shops that did do this have gone out of business.

Sorry folks, but that’s not worth the effort.  A business that wants to stay in business for the long haul can’t lose a dollar of business for clients who want to save a dime.

Through our engagement in local business and community groups, we have had the opportunity to see a lot of small businesses come and go.  We can almost sniff out the ones that are going to fail based upon the way their representatives present themselves.  One of the most important indicators is whether that representative projects confidence.   I think this goes right down to the subjective, perhaps even unconscious decision-making that is wired into our brains that guides how some of us vote for leaders, decide who we admire, and perhaps even choose friends.  Would it not be advantageous to have that same wiring working to boost a prospect’s interest in your business?

We recently supplied some embroidered shirts to a small startup that supplies camera equipment.  The owner ordered only four shirts.  He wanted them because he was heading off to a trade show.  What do the shirts accomplish for him?  Several things:

1. Awareness — At least people will know what he represents whether or not they ever speak to him.
2. Branding — This builds upon Awareness because the firm has other marketing materials and is trying to achieve a consistent brand image.
3. Boost A Prospect’s Confidence — Consistent branding materials help a consumer to decide whether your company is stable and a viable long-term supplier.

Stability is particularly important for potential clients who are looking for a long term relationship with your business.  They want to know if your company is just a flash in the pan or if you will be there to support your product several years down the road.

Think through how your company looks to your prospects.  Does your company inspire confidence?  Do your prospects feel comfortable that you will be there for years to come?  Do your representatives look and act like they are mercenary hires or like they belong to a brand?  Your website, your print materials, and your logo wear all help mold that brand image in the eyes of your target market.

I received a thought-provoking e-mail from a vendor who would like to earn our business.  The service the vendor was selling was embroidery digitizing as well as conversion of art files into vector formats for screen printing.

I had just hit the delete button when it struck us what was most odd about the pitch — a bold claim in the vendor’s e-mail that read:  ”We guarantee quality.”

That one statement solidified why I was not interested in working with that vendor.  How can they guarantee quality?  Whose quality?  Who judges the quality?  Their boldest claim does not speak to whether the needs of my clients will be fulfilled.  That is what I guarantee.  That is what I require my vendors to guarantee.

Digitizing logos for machine embroidery is part software and part art.  Just guaranteeing that there will be an outcome is insufficient to ensure that my clients are achieving their branding goals.