Newbie needs some guidance!!

[Cassondra Bennett]

Hey everyone
My name is Cassondra....I am brand new to the forum and new to the industry.....not sure exactly where to start so any advice and or guidance would be much needed and appreciated!! I have been doing my homework over the course of the last year and feel fairly comfortable with corel and have had the opportunity to work in an atmosphere using an Epilog laser so I have little doubt that I will be able to run the machine efficiently. I have lists and catalogs of suppliers and even some of my own designs ready to roll..... I am more concerned with If I build it will they come????? :confused::confused::confused:Where do I start?? Where do I find my customers?? Uhhhhhh!!!!! I was feeling pretty confident but now that the machine is on its way I am feeling a bit wiggly about the whole thing!! HELP!!!!! How did all of you begin?? Is there a good starting point???

I have made a list of all the local organizations, clubs schools..... anyone and everyone who I think might ever need or want something I might have to offer but whats the best way to get thier attention???

Thanks in advance for your help

Cassondra:confused:

[Scott Shepherd]

Welcome Cassondra! I'm sure you'll do just fine.

My only advice is to stay visible to them. If you drop off a card and never check back, they won't remember you. The more visible you are to them (without being irritating), the better chance there is for anyone to use you when they have the need. If they only see you once a year, they probably won't remember you when they do need something.

Stay visible!

[Dee Gallo]

Welcome to the creek, Cassondra!

We could probably be more helpful if you would give us an idea of the types of work you intend to do. There are hundreds of directions to go with laser engraving and I don't recommend trying them all at the same time!

Marketing an existing product is a lot harder than filling a need in the market. So if you figure out what type of work you want to do, that would be a place to start understanding where your customers are and how to get them to give you their money.

cheers, dee

[Michael Hunter]

Hi Cassondra

Your list of possible customers is a good starting point. You will need lots of patience though - even if you have or can do what they want, it might take a long time (like a year or three) before they get round to actually placing an order.

Be careful with adverts, flyers, newsletters etc.. The first one probably won't get any results at all, so you have to repeat as often as necessary (bearing in mind Scott's comment about being irritating).
Having started down this road YOU MUST NOT STOP! If you miss an advert/newsletter, then everyone will assume that you have "gone away".
So an affordable small-ad repeated in the local paper will ultimately be much more effective than a one-off glossy spread.

The downside of any form of advertising is the continual stream of insurance salesmen trying to sell to you!

You might find that schools or church organisations ask for a freebie to "try out the idea". Don't be tempted, as they will expect the next one free as well.
Better to make a small personalised gift (keyring or similar) for the person asking, who then has something to show to the committee or whoever is empowered to authorise a real order.

[Steve Chalmers]

Welcome Cassondra!

Since by your own admission you're a bit stressed at the moment, I would recommend serious amounts of the alcoholic beverage of your choice to calm the nerves. . .purely for medicinal purposes only! Once the desired effect has taken place then you can calmly look at the entire picture, but rational decisions will probably not be made in this condition. Fun ones, but not rational.

Continue to follow up with the contacts that you have made, and work on finding that niche market.

There is a tremendous amount of information available on this forum, and a lot of good folks who are willing to help. Don't hesitate to use this resource.

Oh, and one more thing. . .repeat the first paragraph as needed.

Steve

[Dan Hintz]

My suggestion? Leave trinkets disguised as a business card, not your average paper business card. A crazy-shaped, laser cut/engraved paper card is okay if that's what you're shooting for (like wedding invitations), but you need to tune your "card" to the business. If you're shooting for woodworkers, make the card out of wood veneer. If you're shooting for industrial, make a small (business-card sized, 2"x3", or similar) fake instrument panel with your info on the back... cut out holes, mark dial settings, etc. Don't make it so large that they just want it off of their desk, but don't make it so small they can't find it when they need it.