Set Up for Success

If you are a person that has been in charge of purchasing promotional products before, you have more than likely seen a wide variety of something called a “set up charge.”  I’ll admit those small charges added on top of the per-piece price of an item can seem rather annoying - especially when you are tacking $50.00 on to a $10,000.00 order.  Is that $50.00 really necessary? How about the laser charges or the die cut charges?  Do they really cost upwards to $200?  The answer to that is yes they do...  The highest set up charge that I have been quoted was $2,500.00 and I’m sure someone has been quoted even more than that!What about no set ups? I know there are plenty of options out there that have the “free set up” label.  How convenient, right!?  Let’s be real though, can we just get rid of the marketing lingo?  Everything costs money – how much money can be determined by multiple factors.  How about you as the buyer just look at the total cost of the promotional project?  Maybe even ask your promotional supplier to provide you with an all-inclusive price so you don’t have to think about set ups, run charges, etc.  The way I see it is that in most cases the higher the set up fees go the more impactful your promotional campaign will be.  All the time I see buyers getting gun shy on a project because there are $200 in set up fees and they think it’s not practical to spend their marketing dollars on something like a set up.  Stop thinking like that! That is where you differentiate yourself from everyone else.  MOST people are thinking that same exact way.  Be different!  Ask me how you can pay more in set up fees! :)- Matt Oye