Embroidery Digitizing - "Fixing" Designs

With the economy still “tender” and the industry trying to regroup this year, I’ve been getting more of what I call “fixer” designs. Stitch designs that came from somewhere else that have a production problem of some sort, and the customer wants me to fix the design so it’s usable because they don’t want to have the design redone. That’s when I get the call and they say “I can’t show this to my customer!”. Of course, they don’t have the wireframe master copy of the logo; only the stitch file and usually about half of the design has to be re-digitized anyway.

Then there are the customers that only send me the “more complicated stuff” that their cheap digitizer can’t seem to get right or know how to do at all. Sometimes they’ll have a very important client or account that they cannot afford to lose due to a low quality design job. They save money on the easy stuff with the cheap digitizer but when it’s more detailed or too difficult for them, or more important to get it right and fast, they come to me.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind the business, but I always wonder if the customer really feels it was worth it to go through the whole process twice, only to end up paying just as much or more; plus doubling their turn time. Had they used a reputable digitizer the first time they would have been able to meet their deadline and cross the finish line with a quality design.

I know you want to be your customer’s hero, their embroidery guru. I can’t stress enough the importance of building a rapport with a professional digitizer…personally… not ordering a design from a faceless company on a website.

Besides the inconsistency problem of never having the same person work on your designs, you can’t speak to the person directly for instructions, or changes to the design. If there’s a problem or need to call, you’ll likely get a message taker who’ll tell somebody to tell somebody. In the case of overseas companies, you can’t even do this because it is night-time there during your business day and they speak little, if any, English.

Spend a bit of time searching out a digitizer that’s a good fit with you and your business. Once you start a relationship with that person, I promise you, there will be many little benefits along the way you never got from the others. A little loyalty goes a long way also. Let them know where you’re coming from and work with them to create great embroidery for your clients. After all, quality is what brings your customers back to you!

Embroidery and the new tricks

As we bring in the new year, we usually reflect on the past one and are not able to resist comparison to previous years. I think it's safe to say, for most, 2009 didn't compare well to it's predecessors. Looking ahead is important and learning to flex and change with the times and situation of your business is the best protocol.

Take a look at your business and adjust in places you feel necessary. The direction you took even 2 years ago may bring you to another fork with another decision to make about the future of the way you do business, who your customers are, the services you provide and the way these customers will find you. It seems everything is done by computer now; day to day business, marketing, data streaming & customer contact. If you're not texting, tweeting or video streaming you are not in the loop, right? Well.....

Being an old(-er) dog that is still learning the new tricks, I still have a few up my sleeves. It's no secret the old dinosaurs like "cold calling" are extinct, but there are some new fangled ways to provide great service and let your customers know you are ready, willing and able to fulfill all their embroidery needs. You just need to be creative and stay up with the times. You may not feel that you have something to "tweet" every minute of the day but many companies have successfully incorporated Twitter into their marketing lineup. Social networking sites are abundant and there are even sites specifically geared toward embroidery and promotional advertisers. Many times you can have a page on these sites dedicated to your business with a profile to let potential customers know who you are and what you do.

Get creative and go to work! What things do you plan to incorporate into your business this year?

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Embroidery Digitizing - Mom was right!

This might be a bit on the rant side of the fence today but there’s something I just don’t get. After doing this for years and years, I still don’t understand what people don’t get about “You get what you pay for”. Now, granted, there are people who wouldn’t know good digitizing from bad, or are just willing to compromise for price sake. These are the one’s that seem shocked when they purchase digitizing from some $4/1000 online, faceless website or overseas only to get under par or inconsistent quality designs, 3-5 business days down the line where they are pushing their deadlines and go into a panic.

Did you ever wonder how these companies can charge only $4/1000 st and still stay in business? For the overseas companies the answer is obvious (and a whole other Oprah) but what about the US companies that are $4 -$6/1000? How do they pay for multiple softwares/computers, employees, overhead, and general operating expenses on that type of income? They may use some “automatic digitizing” software feature to save time which would be fine if it worked well and didn’t compromise quality; which they ALL do. That way they can pump out more design average per hour….or is that more average designs?

They may also add their editing fees on each time you request a change. And…we know how often customers change their mind or request changes…..at least 50% of the time. How often do you get designs from the digitizer that your customer never wants to change a thing? Or, the $4 price that is advertised happens to be their price for 5 day service; if you want a more normal 2 days service, it's quite a bit more.

Believe me, I know the draw of getting something you want or need for a cheaper price. And some may still say they’ve used a $4/1000 st company and gotten a decent design and they may, in fact, have. The thing is, even using the same web company each time, they will never get consistent quality because they’ll never get the same person digitizing for them each time. Plus, it’s very difficult (if not impossible) to get to actually speak to the digitizer; the person who actually created the design, to tell them what your customer wants.

BUT ITS SO MUCH CHEAPER…….

And it’s all good, paying that cheap price, until you get it to the machine. A good embroiderer understands that the final look is only half the equation. Is it alright with you if the design looks OK at the end but you tear out your hair just trying to make it through the runs on the machine. Is it fine with you that the machine is stopping and starting multiple times more than necessary due to poor pathing, giving you false thread breaks, tearing the fabric and having multiple excessive color changes?

If you’re doing this as a business, the idea is to keep your machine running to make your money (hair intact). If your designs continually slow down or stop your production, it’s time to find a new digitizer.

Wouldn’t it make more sense to find a digitizer you could speak to all the time, is consistently providing the quality you are proud to show your customers and meets your deadlines time after time so you can count on them? People, people, people, part of what you’re paying for is experience!!! Just like everything else, the good stuff cost a little more.

In the end, you’re able to provide a higher quality product and your quantity goes up because the designs run more efficiently enabling you to turn more production in a shorter time. This also helps your bottom line in labor costs and keeps your customers happy and returning!

….and who doesn’t love happy and returning customers? I sure do!