You have lots and lots of options for promotional products resources. Ditto on business apparel. Do a quick GOOGLE search for marketing promotional products. Over 30 pages will load up. Same goes for business apparel, logo wear, corporate attire, t-shirts, hats and jackets.
Options … Options … Options.
But how do you know WHO to trust?
Now I know we just “met”, so I can understand why you might view my next
statements as something along the lines of...
And you would be right!
I may not have all the answers, but I’ll be back in touch to get the process started.
If you don’t hear from me, something is amiss. An email may not have arrived. In that case, please do something out of the ordinary … like CALL ME!
(I’m a huge fan of email … I like having a transcript but
sometimes an actual conversation is needed.)
I want to be your GO-TO SOURCE (honestly, I want to be your ONLY source) for anything and
everything that features your logo. Whether it’s on a coffee mug, a ball
cap, a pen, a tote bag, a toilet plunger, a yoga block, t-shirt, pull-over jacket, sweatshirt, gift boxes, deli paper, name
tags… basically ANY STUFF you need with your logo, I can get it.
... dare I say… even the KITCHEN SINK!
Typically, I like to know as much as possible about your project. If it’s a holiday gift, who is getting the gift and why are you giving? What do you want to accomplish? Tell me as much as you can possible can about the goals and who will be on the receiving end.
You may wonder WHY I want all those details. Those DETAILS reveal a bigger picture. And they provide inspiration.
Sometimes the inspiration is pretty simple.
Sometimes it’s, well, inspired.
It is most definitely a collaboration. I need your details. I then need your feedback. I need budget guidelines. I need timelines.
I encourage samples of the item under consideration.
Sometimes, time is not our friend and we can’t do that. In that case, I will direct you toward the items from partners who I know provide top notch quality. It is a bit of a gamble, ordering blind. That's why I encourage samples. This adds to the process, and in some cases, the cost. BUT, skipping this step can lead to disappointments.
As your partner, I want to do everything I can to minimize those risks.
PAYMENT:
Generally speaking, you will not be invoiced for a project
until it’s complete. However, there may be some exceptions. Example:
maybe it is an usually large order that requires a down payment.
We do accept credit cards.
ARTWORK:
Your logo MUST be in the proper format for best reproduction. Upon
review, I can let you know if conversions are needed. There are usually
always set up charges.
SHIPPING:
Shipping is applied to almost all
orders. (There is one pen company I work with quite a bit who provides
free shipping, and free set up but they are the exception to the rule.)
OVER
| UNDER CLAUSE:
This industry – promo products – has an OVER | UNDER
clause that gives them the wiggle room to provide 5-10% MORE or LESS
than the amount ordered. Your final invoice will reflect the amount
shipped. I’m not really a fan of this clause. If you’re not either, let
me know and we can request EXACT AMOUNT SHIPPED. SOME companies – so you
know—charge AN EXACT AMOUNT ORDERED CHARGE. Not a fan of that either …
and if these were small fees, I would just cover them … but they are
not. I don’t like unpleasant surprises that cost more money, so I like
to put it all out there … from the get go.