Can they really sell it for that???

This seems to be a conversation I am having with our sales team on a fairly regular basis these days. As the economy gets tight and companies slash their marketing budgets, printers all across the country begin to cut their prices to keep the presses running. Well, not all printers, but we have seen a number of our competitors submit what I would consider ridiculously low bids.

A few months ago we decided to take a run at the government printing office. We only bid on work that fit our capabilities well and were totally blown out of the water. I’m not talking by 10 or 20 percent but by 30 and 40 percent!! We have another client that went to the reverse auction purchasing model. We watch jobs during the auction that would normally sell for $20,000 go for half that! What do these printers know that we don’t? Maybe they don’t pay a sales commission on that work…neither do we. Maybe they are substituting a cheaper stock or paying pressman bare minimum wages? What’s their secret?

We know our pricing is competitive with the market because our loyal customers tell us so every day. We provide the value our customers require with regards to high quality service and printed products. We don't short-change our customers or our pressmen. Our management team has made sure that we stay on the forefront with our technology offerings that help our customers save on both hard and soft costs. So I ask again... how can these other companies offer such cheap services?

There is one competitor here in Columbus that has been selling at well below market levels for some time now. The problem with this is that it is trashing the market. In my view, it is unfair to the market for setting artificially low pricing levels in the short term. It’s even more unfair to the employees of that company because there is a good chance they won’t be around in a year or two. How many examples of this have we seen in Columbus and around the country? Wake up!!! Profit is not a bad thing! Profit gives us the ability to invest in our business so we can continue to provide our customers with the newest technology and services. It allows us to grow internally as well as externally, an important opportunity in this ever-changing industry. With the industry in such a transitional time and approaching an uncertain future, shouldn't companies be trying to secure consistent and sustainable income? I would think. The only way to do this is by providing consistent and fair pricing. Doing only one or the other, or worse, neither, will only result in your company closing its doors.

To all the companies who are, knowingly or not, doing this, all I have to say is that there is plenty of work to go around. Be confident in your company and the relationships you currently have. When calling on new prospects, you’ll have far more credibility if your pricing is in the range of your competition. Sell value not price!!!

Written by Jeff Lampert, Director of Marketing and Business Development

“If you aim low, you only end up shooting yourself in the foot.”