A few years ago during a visit to China I remember being grilled by the head of one of our factories about the number of quotes we had been requesting relative to the amount of business he had received from us. He had a legitimate point. We had asked for dozens of quotes and only managed to win two projects, which we awarded to his factory. I know exactly how he felt because it is often how I feel when we get quote requests that seem frivolous or disingenuous. As with any business, we understand that quoting retail POP displays is a necessary step to securing business.
It’s the job of the sales team in every POP display company to qualify a lead to ensure a particular inquiry is legitimate and a good fit for the company. However, it is also incumbent upon the requestor to ensure that quote requests are realistic and for legitimate projects. If a POP company detects a pattern of unproductive quote requests, it will be difficult for the requesting company to establish a solid, long-term working relationship with the POP display company, and inevitably requests from that company will be given lower priority. So what’s the big fuss? Is quoting really all that much work anyway? The answer is yes. Here’s why.
In order to get a prospective customer the best price on a custom point-of-purchase display, the display manufacturer needs to go through multiple steps and perform detailed cost analysis. So why not just skip those steps and provide an estimate? Estimating also requires a fair amount of work, but it is typically faster than providing a detailed quote. The problem with an estimate is that it is likely to have some degree of padding to allow for the unknowns, which means it may not be the best price for the customer.
To get a detailed quote, we often begin by creating a render of a POP display design. If the customer likes the render, then we do detailed mechanical drawings specifying all of the engineering details and materials to be used. For a typical retail floor display these drawings can easily be 10-15 pages and require several days of design time to complete. Once the drawings are completed, we need to cost out all of the materials and individual components of the display. This might involve calling as many as a dozen material suppliers to check availability and get current prices at various quantities.
For sheet goods like MDF, for example, we need to construct detailed nesting files to get an accurate picture of material yields. We spend time understanding how we would actually produce the unit and estimate labor costs. If it is a complex or delicate display, we might meet with our packaging supplier and develop a packaging solution which also needs to be factored into the cost of the display. All of these inputs require time and effort on the part of multiple suppliers who are trusting that the POP display company’s inquiry is legitimate.
The quoting process often involves freight as well. If the displays are being manufactured in China, inland freight in China may need to be calculated for ex-factory quotes. Container loading needs to be determined along with ocean freight costs, duties, tariffs, and inland transportation from the port. Cost of shipping from the POP company to the customer is another step that often requires contacting at least 3-4 freight companies and determining pallet loading or UPS/FEDEX shipping costs.
Customers often want to see numerous scenarios for a given display project. Can you quote it with and without signs? What would the cost be for bulk packing vs. individual boxing? How much more would it be to ship it assembled rather than knock-down? The list goes on. Most POP companies realize that many of these requests are reasonable and legitimate and don’t mind doing the work. However, it is pretty easy to feel burned when trying to be helpful to customers who are not really serious about their project and don’t even take the time to acknowledge receipt of the quote.
The worst quote request offenders are the ones who ask for a quote on 5,000 and 10,000 units, get you to jump through a lot of hoops, and then order 100, which is the quantity they planned on all along. That strategy might work once or twice, but it is not likely to endear you to your POP display provider. Then there are the customers who need an urgent sample for a Wal-Mart roll-out, only to find out they really just wanted something to put in their booth at their upcoming tradeshow.
The point of this blog is not to gripe about the arduous work of quoting or complain about customers. Most of our customers are genuine, respectful, and serious about their inquiries. The message to any customer or prospect working with a POP display provider is to be thoughtful about your requests and to make sure you understand what is involved in generating a quote. You’ll find that it is easier to get the most out of your POP display provider if you can motivate them to devote the right resources to your project and work closely with you to generate a great outcome.
Jim Hollen is the owner and President of RICH LTD. (www.richltd.com), a 35+ year-old California-based point-of-purchase display, retail store fixture, and merchandising solutions firm which has been named among the Top 50 U.S. POP display companies for 9 consecutive years. A former management consultant with McKinsey & Co. and graduate of Stanford Business School, Jim Hollen has served more than 3000 brands and retailers over more than 20 years and has authored nearly 500 blogs and e-Books on a wide range of topics related to POP displays, store fixtures, and retail merchandising.
Jim has been to China more than 50 times and has worked directly with more than 30 factories in Asia across a broad range of material categories, including metal, wood, acrylic, injection molded and vacuum formed plastic, corrugated, glass, LED lighting, digital media player, and more. Jim Hollen also oversees RICH LTD.’s domestic manufacturing operation and has experience manufacturing, sourcing, and importing from numerous Asian countries as well as Vietnam and Mexico.
His experience working with brands and retailers spans more than 25 industries such as food and beverage, apparel, consumer electronics, cosmetics/beauty, sporting goods, automotive, pet, gifts and souvenirs, toys, wine and spirits, home improvement, jewelry, eyewear, footwear, consumer products, mass market retail, specialty retail, convenience stores, and numerous other product/retailer categories.