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Ok, sorta made a spur of the moment desicion. I bought a 54" Roland Soljet xc-540. Then I had to tear out a wall, replace carpet and paint etc. Now it's here and 6 people have come in wanting to know what a banner will cost, graphics on a truck door, 18 x 24 signs (all text) about 100 of them.
I have not printed one thing yet, I did get a 66" royal sovereign laminator too.
So the starter questions I have are: Is there some sort of a base price for "stuff"? My supplier said digitally printed banners run $9 to $11 a sq ft. I don't know how much I believe suppliers. I don't want to be way cheap, but again I don't want to be really high and not get any work. I have no competition within about 30 minutes. One of my sign magazines had a run on vehicle wrap articles. The pricing there is $10 - $15 a sq ft.
I know all this depends on market area, overhead etc. But a starting point would be wonderful. So I can at least tell these people something!!!
The other question is all this media is pretty big compared to my vinyl rolls. Any tips for storage? On end, is a shelf ok? Watch for dust etc?????
I have a good size warehouse but it is pretty dusty, not totally climate controled but not really hot or cold. Avg, 60 - 90 degrees winter to summer.
Any other advise or tips would be great. As I said this was kinda spur of the moment. A deal I just couldn't pass up.
-------------------- Ronda Neb Custom Imaging 912 Denver Ave. Fort Lupton, CO 80621 Posts: 20 | From: Fort Lupton, CO | Registered: Jan 2006
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yes. printed banners here are going for 10 bux a sq ft..
-------------------- Leaper of Tall buildings.. If you find my posts divisive or otherwise snarky please ignore them. If you do not know how then PM me about it and I will demonstrate. Posts: 5274 | From: Im a nowhere man | Registered: Jul 2001
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Hiya Rhonda, Unless you know some about digital printing, you may have gotten a lot more than you bargained for. The printing and laminating equipment is only part of the "big picure" From what you're saying, you should be able to charge a premium for your work. When I started into digital, I was getting about $25 square foot. Now, in a competive environment, I get anywhere from $5 - $15 (and sometimes more), but there are a lot of variables. The low end is for unlaminated banners from a client's "output ready" file. The high end would be for a challenging vehicle wrap.
Havin' fun,
Checkers
-------------------- a.k.a. Brian Born www.CheckersCustom.com Harrisburg, Pa Work Smart, Play Hard Posts: 3775 | From: Harrisburg, Pa. U.S.A. | Registered: Nov 1998
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And then there's the whole "color" thing....figuring out how to color correct and tweak files for an output that you expect....
One piece of advice I can give you is to at least start out using only Roland Approved and Profiled materials.....at least until you get the hang of your printer. Otherwise, you will have a lot of headaches with prints having banding and other issues.....trust me, I know the hard way.
It might be good to do a sample banner or some other "test" project and keep very accurate notes on your time, amount of material used, waste material factor, etc....and then figure it all up and come up with a profitable price over and above everything else.
You'll probably get quicker and have better results when you've grown to know the nuances of the equipment/software etc.
At $10 a square foot, an 2 X 8 banner is only running $160. I wouldn't charge any less than $200 personally....and I really don't know what anybody else charges around me....but I've never had a customer balk at my price.
If you're in an upscale area...don't be afraid to charge a little more than your fear-factor price....you'll probably discover you'll get it.
-------------------- Todd Gill Outside The Lines Potterville, MI Posts: 7792 | From: Potterville, MI | Registered: Dec 2001
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Get yourself a pricing guide from SignCraft Ronda. It will give you something to go by until you have figured out what you will NEED to make money. Some people (like me ) just seem to take more material to get the job right than the average bear. You've started a real learning curve girl, hang on!
-------------------- Deri Russell Wildwood Signs Hanover, Ontario
You're just jealous 'cause the little voices only talk to me. Posts: 1904 | From: Hanover, Ontario, Canada | Registered: Dec 1998
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