By: SUMESH VIJ
Submitted: 2009-10-29 01:31:53 | Word Count: 654
So herein lies the first lesson. Cheap doesn't always equate to 'value for money'. The two concepts are very different, and buying a batch of envelopes that are put out for the bin men still in their box because they are of such poor quality whilst spending valuable time and resources hunting down replacement envelopes does not equate to value for money. Rule number one – buy envelopes from online companies that specialise in stationary. Despite the temptations of Ebay, established online suppliers have the purchasing power to be able to get good quality envelopes in bulk and pass on those price savings to their customers. More importantly, they offer consistency, being able to replicate orders to exact specifications every time.
Established online suppliers can also provide you with the full range of envelopes, suitable for any situation you can name. A mailshot may require windowed envelopes to cut down on printing time, ink and costs but try buying 2000 windowed envelopes off Ebay and see how far you get.
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Because online suppliers have such high stock turnovers, you can also be sure that your envelopes will actually stick, as the gum strips haven't been sitting there for months on end, becoming less sticky as time goes on. That alone can save you a fortune in time and cellotape and, more importantly, present the right image to your customers. Nobody will take a business letter seriously when the envelope has to be sealed shut with a bit of tape.
Picture the scene. Your boss has asked you, as procurements monitor and general stationary bod, to find your company the cheapest envelopes possible. Your usual supplier is cheap, but you're sure you can shave an extra few pounds off the price by buying envelopes online. As soon as the boss walks away, you log onto good old Ebay in the hunt for 'Buy it now' bargains and the cheapest envelopes you can find. Sounds like a plan. A few minutes of searching yields up a host of results and you sit back, smug in the knowledge that your purchase has saved your company money and moved you up a notch in the boss's eyes. The trouble starts when the envelopes arrive and they're those horrible, desperately thin and sickly looking 'off-white' (read 'grey') coloured things that still rely on the human tongue to activate the sealing process and leave everyone, including the boss, with a really nasty taste in their mouths.
Your boss is furious because he has a tongue covered in foul-tasting glue and your latest mailshot has been an unmitigated disaster because the envelopes were so cheap they gave completely the wrong impression to your customers and all ended up as landfill.
Finally, if you're buying envelopes online for a large organisation, utilise your own buying power. You're the customer. And everyone knows that the 'customer is always right', so take advantage of your position. Don't be tempted to just click the buy now button. Contact the company first, explain your position, what you need and what kind of prices you're prepared to pay. If you hint that you're going to be a regular customer, you may find your stationary representative has a few more bargains up their sleeves. Buying stationary is exactly the same as any other form of business negotiation, the operative word being 'negotiation', so negotiate. Your account manager will be anxious to bring you on board as a customer so don't always think that the online price is the price you have to pay. Once you've established a rapport with your online supplier, further orders will be literally a click of the button, guaranteeing consistency, quality and price every time.
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