How To Determine the Best Way to Buy Screen Supplies

First and foremost, you need to evaluate the kind of printer you are...Are you a large graphic or textile printer? A medium sized print shop? Perhaps you are just starting out in your garage. Next, what market segment do you fall into? Are you producing high-end graphics, using specialized uv inks? Or perhaps just printing T-shirts in your spare time?

These are all factors that will determine where you will shop. Market segment will not only determine your customer base, but also the kind of costumer you present to your vendors. Unfortunately to them you represent only purchasing capacity. There was a time when business development was considered a very useful tool to help small shops grow into medium or even larger shops. There were knowledgeable salesmen that would visit monthly with helpful product and equipment suggestions, even marketing ideas, all with the intention of helping you expand, so that one day you become a large consumer of screen products, and you would remain loyal to the vendor that helped you grow.

In the current economy, vendors classify you as an "A, B, C, or D" account, based on your purchase capacity. If you are not spending six figures with them, you automatically are considered a "C, or D" account, which in some cases equates to a "house account" where no salesman will call on you. Now, you would still be buying the same exact products as the "A and B" accounts, but paying up to 30% higher prices. All of this without the service of an industry savvy salesman occasionally expediting your orders, or running over a gallon of the special ink you just ran out of.

Then there's the internet. On the internet, vendors are not able to classify you as a potential customer; you could be one mouse click away from making a large enough purchase worthy of an "A or B" account. In addition, vendors are forced to display their most aggressive pricing long before you reveal your intent. This puts you in an advantageous position every time you shop for a better product, a lower price, or a new vendor.

Companies on the internet offer the same products without the overhead cost of the old fashioned distributors, so you always get the best price. Furthermore, the competitive market we are in forces them to offer other incentives, like no taxes, and even free shipping. Just type in your search criteria, and you are off to a new world of discounted screen supplies.


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