How to explain outsourcing?

[gnubler]

I've had some customers who grill me with questions about a job....what kind of ink do you use, why can't you print on x-type of paper/material, what kind of printer do you use, etc. I'm sure we've all been asked "Are you doing that in-house?" When the answer is no, what do you say to customers? I've dealt with some who seem turned off by the fact that their project isn't being done entirely in one place, or is potentially being farmed out/brokered out. I don't think any shop can do it all, and outsources one thing or another.

What's the best approach? Without lying.

 

[Notarealsignguy]

Find out why they are asking so you can address a specific concern.
I ask contractors if they have their own crew with actual W2 employees because the ones that don't tend to have crappy quality control, low skill level and don't stand behind their work. It might not always be the case but I'm not going to roll the dice. The ones that can manage to make payroll through thick and thin are usually good at their trade because it takes time, experience and a strong reputation to get to that level. The latter won't risk their reputation by not standing behind their work. That is my 2 cents.

 

[signheremd]

I would say something along the lines of, "We do 90% of the work in house. We do use some business to business vendors to expand our offerings and to help our customers have access to more business solutions at a fair price. The advantage of working with us on those items is that we have access to vendors that do not deal with the public and who we can work with to ensure a quality product."

 

[Texas_Signmaker]

I like signheremd's explanation. I don't think I've had people ask me those types of questions though.

 

[Stacey K]

Signheremd's answer renders me speechless - perfect!

I used to say something like that before I had my printer (but not as good lol). It did open up the conversation where I would say a printer and laminator are very expensive pieces of equipment and it takes some time to do research into which is the best one etc. and having only been in business a few years, I need to watch my overhead, etc. - sound financially responsible. I've had a number of customers come in after I finally bought one and they were very happy for me that "business must be doing well," etc. "Good for you, how does it work, are you happy with it, bla bla bla". It's not always a bad thing for customers to know you plan to expand and you are financially responsible, etc. I'm not afraid to tell people that I farm out certain things "to save them money".

 

[gnubler]

I'm not afraid to tell people that I farm out certain things "to save them money".

That's good, along with Signheremd's answer. I usually just say I use wholesalers/trade providers for certain things because as a one-person business I can't do it all, or don't have enough sales volume to justify certain equipment purchases.

I live in a small town where "keeping it local" is a strong sentiment. Maybe it's different in bigger markets.

 

[Johnny Best]

Tell them you are like a grocery store. The farmer grows the food and you buy that from them and mark it up. Check signs365 and see what inks they use and type of material and tell customer that information. Don’t be embarrassed you can’t make all that work you sell them. Tell them you are the “hack down the street”.

 

[Gino]

I was always taught to never say what "we can't do" but rather what we offer.

My cousin was a tailor. He advertised as a custom tailor shop. I found out later, he would take all the measurements and he'd send the stuff off to some country where the girls have little hands and sewing machines and could knock this stuff out in a jiffy. He'd get it back and make some final adjustments and it was considered tailor made by an italian immigrant who learned the trade in italy and brought it to America. He never told a sole his secret, but his kid did.

 

[DL Signs]

Some you just have to tell the story to...
Your car wasn't made at the dealership you bought it from. It was made by a manufacturer, with parts that came from vendors.
Sign shops are the same, we partner with manufacturers and vendors who provide unique to the industry components and parts that we use to create a custom finished product, quicker, better, and more affordable than fabricating everything in house.
Cheers

 

[Johnny Best]

You can’t use a car for example. Ford owns the factory that made the car. We don’t own 365 or Gemini.

 

[Solventinkjet]

Some you just have to tell the story to...
Your car wasn't made at the dealership you bought it from. It was made by a manufacturer, with parts that came from vendors.
Sign shops are the same, we partner with manufacturers and vendors who provide unique to the industry components and parts that we use to create a custom finished product, quicker, better, and more affordable than fabricating everything in house.
Cheers

Even your dentist sends the mold to another guy to make the crown.

 

[DL Signs]

You can’t use a car for example. Ford owns the factory that made the car. We don’t own 365 or Gemini.

No, but we are their dealerships, they manufacture, we consign and sell their brands just like the Ford lot down the street does.
We just don't have to stick to just one "brand on the lot".

 

[gnubler]

You can’t use a car for example. Ford owns the factory that made the car. We don’t own 365 or Gemini.

Yes, but...Ford probably outsources to hundreds of vendors for various components and parts of the cars. I read once that a typical car contains 20,000 parts. I can believe it.

 

[Johnny Best]

Yes, but...Ford probably outsources to hundreds of vendors for various components and parts of the cars. I read once that a typical car contains 20,000 parts. I can believe it.

They probably do outsource a lot of things. Do you think they have a problem explaining it as you do.

 

[Notarealsignguy]

Except you're an assembler, not a manufacturer and doing in house work is within the realm of what a sign shop does. It isn't the norm for Ford to make their own nuts and bolts just like we don't cast our own PVC. Not everyone is OK with using a middle man even if they do not have access to the wholesale vendors that you use.

 

[FireSprint.com]

Call us a partner. I have a partner that does those. Or a sister company. Or my buddy runs another shop. What’s most important is you get confident enough in your answer.

There are going to be a few customers that can’t stand the idea of you “middle-manning” a part of the job and go elsewhere. Those customers don’t understand your worth. You don’t need them all. Add value, do great design, professional installation, consult on materials and graphics. Make your customers brand stand out. If you do that, who cares where the factory is that sprayed the ink on the substrate?

When you buy signs from FireSprint, do you care that we didn’t extrude our own plastic? Or formulate our own ink? Nope. I know it’s not exactly the same, but it kind of is. We add value. So do you.

 

[damonCA21]

9 times out of 10 when people start asking stuff like that what they mean is 'can you tell me who you get to do them so I can try and go to them direct and get it cheaper'....
The same as when they ask about vinyl and inks, because they read on some forum you should only use these specific materials and inks ( always the most overpriced ) without actually knowing anything about printing themselves.

 

[rydods]

Call us a partner. I have a partner that does those. Or a sister company. Or my buddy runs another shop. What’s most important is you get confident enough in your answer.

There are going to be a few customers that can’t stand the idea of you “middle-manning” a part of the job and go elsewhere. Those customers don’t understand your worth. You don’t need them all. Add value, do great design, professional installation, consult on materials and graphics. Make your customers brand stand out. If you do that, who cares where the factory is that sprayed the ink on the substrate?

When you buy signs from FireSprint, do you care that we didn’t extrude our own plastic? Or formulate our own ink? Nope. I know it’s not exactly the same, but it kind of is. We add value. So do you.

I agree. My cousin owns an apparel shop in town and when customers ask if they can get business cards, shirts or hats I say "no, we don't offer this but our sister company does, I'll let them know you're stopping by or calling and I'll send them your logo."
For things we outsource, like banners, I'll tell customers we outsource these to ensure proper hemmed edges or lighted signs so that they meet the proper electrical requirements.
Like said above, we can't do everything and some things we just shouldn't do in house.

 

[visual800]

I do have people ask about my printing and I tell them I dsign everything BUT its more cost effective to utsource my digital printing as things are always changing and I dont do enuff printing to justify havin gmy own machine.. As far as installs I still do a high number of installs but with huge pylon jobs I get help from other with larger trucks from other companies

 

[caribmike]

My business went from 95% in-house to 95% outsource over a period of 5 years.

If someone asks where their order is made (which is extremely rare), I just say its made at our "other" facility.

But, we don't even have a store front and our production space is the first floor of my house.

Easily 95% of the orders come in by email, phone or website anyway and I often deliver.