Yard Signs, Is this out of line?

[2B]

wanting to make sure that our quote amounts were not out of line.

been working with a political campaign for awhile, quoting NUMEROUS products and the QTY breaks for each product

FINALLY got a reply back on the yard signs......

they wanted pricing on 18x24 3 color 2 sided QTY 1000, 2500 and 5000. we priced $4.47, $3.99, $3.88 each per the QTY.
We waived the design and set up fee (no designs were done thankfully) to try and get the bid. cherry on top were the 9ga H yard stakes were listed as .50, .48 and .46 each


seems they found a vendor who will do a QTY of 500 2 sided 3 colors stakes included AND free delivery for 3.49 each including designs and setup..............

Are we so far off on our pricing or has the dreaded wholesale pricing to retail buyer struck again?

 

[Z SIGNS]

This is the problem you run into when you try to sell something that can be had anywhere cheap.

 

[Stanton]

Lose at least 26% of your bids to over pricing.

Otherwise you are not charging enough.

 

[Christian @ 2CT Media]

Our experience on political projects is RUN!... Once they submit their candidacies they are solicited by hundreds of vendors and many of them pump out 10000+ units an hour and can sell it for next to nothing. We had a campaign last year that we lost to a supplier who was selling 18x24s for $1.99 with stakes and 4x4s for $10 and 4x8 for $16.

 

[Z SIGNS]

Lose at least 26% of your bids to over pricing.

Otherwise you are not charging enough.

I think I am around 75%
Probably closer to 90%
But that number is probably wrong too because I ignore 90% of the inquiries.

 

[Stanton]

I think I am around 75%
Probably closer to 90%
But that number is probably wrong too because I ignore 90% of the inquiries.

This is a business.

Fun decorating the skyline.
Still a business.

I understand many of you apply stickers and don't have a business license.
You think you are too damn talented for rules.

I have a C-45. (California Contractor Sign License)




Good night. Going long at 4:00pm tomorrow

120 miles out.

Gonna sleep on anchor. That scares me bad.
Fish the next day.

Dorrado and yellow tail.


Sea is going to be tossy.
Storm just passed here.

Dumped 0.18" of rain. (that's real rain here in San Diego)

Cure for sea sick is jump in the water.


Show of hands . . . how many think I am making this trash up ?

 

[player]

You're still swimming with sharks.

 

[phototec]

wanting to make sure that our quote amounts were not out of line.

been working with a political campaign for awhile, quoting NUMEROUS products and the QTY breaks for each product

FINALLY got a reply back on the yard signs......

they wanted pricing on 18x24 3 color 2 sided QTY 1000, 2500 and 5000. we priced $4.47, $3.99, $3.88 each per the QTY.
We waived the design and set up fee (no designs were done thankfully) to try and get the bid. cherry on top were the 9ga H yard stakes were listed as .50, .48 and .46 each


seems they found a vendor who will do a QTY of 500 2 sided 3 colors stakes included AND free delivery for 3.49 each including designs and setup..............

Are we so far off on our pricing or has the dreaded wholesale pricing to retail buyer struck again?

In-house or out sourced?

 

[FireSprint.com]

$3.49 is pretty low. I would not compete against that price directly. Often times when we see pricing like that, there's something missing, but some times not.

I tell our customers not to bid to beat that price, try to stay competitive, but don't beat the lowest bid. You're going to offer face to face service that is worth more than typing a credit card into a website that ends up God knows where.

Let us know what we can do to help.

 

[FireSprint.com]

..

 

[J Hill Designs]

I have a C-45. (California Contractor Sign License)

Electrical sign contractors license

you are so full of yourself. ask me how i know.

 

[Ragin Cajun]

I am in another business that is more competitive that this.

You just have to name your price to where you can make money.

If you lose the job...you lose the job.

Some people are desperate and will work for peanuts.

They look at it like this...If they did not do signs...they would work at Walmart for $9.50 an hour.

So..if they are making $12 an hour...they are flying high.

I know it is hard to say you don't need it...But you really don't if you have to do it just to say you got the job.

 

[Gino]

This is a business.
Fun decorating the skyline.
Still a business.
I understand many of you apply stickers and don't have a business license.
You think you are too damn talented for rules.
I have a C-45. (California Contractor Sign License)

Good night. Going long at 4:00pm tomorrow
120 miles out.
Gonna sleep on anchor. That scares me bad.
Fish the next day.
Dorrado and yellow tail.
Sea is going to be tossy.
Storm just passed here.
Dumped 0.18" of rain. (that's real rain here in San Diego)
Cure for sea sick is jump in the water.


Show of hands . . . how many think I am making this trash up ?

​

 

[CES020]

What equipment are you printing them with? After attending the ISA show and seeing some of the equipment there, I'm guessing it's quite possible to do it very inexpensive. Some of those machines were running 2700 sq. ft. per hour.

 

[Gino]

Like he said, you hafta get what you need to get in order to keep your doors open. Sure, once in a while you can shave a little more than usual, but for politicians, I generally add to it. I don't like them. None of them. So, let them get their cheap crap off-line and not support their constituents. See if I care.

We were bidding out some political signs two years ago. They were gonna use us and then they found the 18" x 24"s on line for 78¢ each....... yes that's seventy eight cents a piece for double sided..... including stand.

 

[Pat Whatley]

Are we so far off on our pricing or has the dreaded wholesale pricing to retail buyer struck again?

Yes....and it's going to keep getting worse with commodity products like political campaign signs. If they were willing to spend another hour or so looking they'd be able to get those signs for under $3 each. Call most sign suppliers and they can buy the wire stakes wholesale, too.

 

[Biker Scout]

I think some sign shops practically give away these kind of signs (to both parties) so they can write off political contributions.

 

[TheSnowman]

Ya know...I live in a small town, and I was driving up and down the streets looking all over the lawns covered in political signs, wind farm signs, annexation signs, anti wind farm signs, anti annexation signs, and I was hacked off because only two of those people came to me even looking for quotes. I was mad because I felt like my town was at war, and I was mad because they just look like trash. Out of probably 10 people that have signs up, maybe one looks decent enough I'd have claimed it. There's banners and 4X8's and yard signs by the 1000's in this tiny little town. I was just mad, because I wanted them to support small business, because I know by the designs, maybe only one other guy in town got one of those jobs. The rest look like they were straight out of that devil printer who I won't give any publicity, and just call them VP.

After reading this thread, I got to thinking about all of the people on that list that never approached me for any work, and the kind of image that most of them have around town, and what a pain in the butt most of them are because they want everything for free, and I'm suddenly not really caring that I lost them all. It seems that there is a lot of "bottom of the barrel" work to go around, and I've slowly been passing on people that were either a pain in the butt to deal with, or came in telling me what THEY wanted to pay for a sign, instead of just letting me quote it for them, and so far, my life has been way easier since I got rid of those people.

I think each shop needs to quote what works for them, and not leave money on the table, but obviously that's not what everyone does, otherwise we'd all be like doctors charging higher prices for what our products SHOULD be worth, and not so many people struggling because the lowballers all over set the "new standard". That being said, (and I got this advice from here years ago) from when I started charging more, and losing more jobs, my sales are way up, my customers are way less pains in the butt, and my tire kickers are down.

Whenever anyone comes in now that is even slightly difficult, and I don't see big dollar signs on the end of it, I generally will refer them to someone else, because right behind it, there's always a worthwhile job I can spend time on and make good money.

 

[ddarlak]

Show of hands . . . how many think I am making this trash up ?

show of hands who gives a rats a$$

 

[Hero Signs]

I tend to be a little lower on political since it is all outsourced, I am at 12% margin on political. It did and sometime does bother me that I see so many signs we did not create but then just as was mentioned, the bottom feeders and cheapskates that do not want to pay are not worth the time. The internet has allowed these people to feel empowered because they are in control of their products and it does not matter if they suck because their perception of reality is skewed.