"We will beat any written quote", etc. I look at these and I wonder, "Should we
be advertising like that?" "Am I choosing the wrong path to reach our clients?"You get what you pay for.
Every year, when the new phone directories
come out, I receive a new copy "specially delivered" to my home. This makes
sense since the publisher wants to make sure I see what we are paying for. And,
as usual, I am amazed at how my peers advertise. "Free" this and "Free" that.
"We will beat any written quote", etc. I look at these and I wonder, "Should we
be advertising like that?" "Am I choosing the wrong path to reach our clients?"
How about those that advertise "Up to 80% off!" Wow, sounds unbelievable. What do you think? Well, before I accuse anyone of anything, lets test it. Suppose you purchase a 31" x 61" wood blind from someone advertising 80% off. If the price you paid was $100, then that means the retail price would be ($100/1-.8 = $500) Now, do you really believe that anyone would pay $500 for a wood blind for their regular sized window? I didn't think so. Of course, if you do know someone like that, please direct them to us as I would love to retire to Fiji early.
How about "Free Installation"? Well, as nice as that sounds, is it really free? Someone is paying someone else to install your window coverings. If you know of any professional installers who, like Shoeless Joe Jackson in the movie "Field of Dreams", will "play for food" because they love what they do so much, please let me know as I would like to hire them. My wife is a great cook. The truth is we pay our installers about $6/unit for basic blind and shade installation. We could deduct this and let folks install them themselves, however, most folks would rather invest this minimal fee just to avoid the hassle. Plus we are responsible for the outcome and will make sure it is done right ... no matter what it takes.
Next would be "Free In Home Estimates". In order to continue to provide the standard of excellence expected from one of the best known window treatment retailers in Georgia we offer In-Home/Office consultations for a $49 fee. In return we give our clients a $50 coupon (with no expiration) towards anything we offer. You're already $1.00 ahead! By the way we now honor any "measure fees" you may have paid to another company (hint hint they have large orange and large blue stores that also sell lumber). So if you've already invested $50 or so with them and would rather work with us, we'll give you a credit toward your previous expense. Most, of our peers offer "Free Consultations". This is because they typically do not have a showroom for you to visit and the only way to see them or their products is for them to come to you. Many of them work part-time from their home. Would you rather consult with someone who works part-time from their home or someone who is a highly trained professional dedicated to their business. We prefer to serve folks who choose the latter.
I hope my little soap box rant has been enlightening and, at the least, slightly entertaining. My mission is to let folks know that this is what we do, we've been doing it for a while now, and we plan on doing it for a long time to come. You may think, "How can someone be so passionate about window coverings?" Well, I don't really know, I just am. This isn't what I planned on doing with my life, however, it is what I am doing. I figure if you're going to do anything, do it the best you possibly can or not at all. Are we the low price leader? No. Never have been and probably never will be. Service, reliability, and professionalism are more important to us and we only want to serve those who feel the same. Thank you for your time. Make it a great day!
- Jayson Smith
P.S. I have had a portion of the following quote on this page for some time now without giving credit to its author and without citing the entire quote. Please forgive my error and enjoy the following sage advice.
“It is unwise to pay too much, but it is worse to pay too little. When you pay too much, you lose a little money—that is all. When you pay too little you sometimes lose everything because the thing you bought was incapable of doing the thing it was bought to do ... If you deal with the lowest bidder, it is well to add something for the risk you run, and if you do that you will have enough to pay for something better.”
— John Ruskin (1819-1900)