moh Posted December 31, 2016 Report Share Posted December 31, 2016 Hi all, I recently received a request to send "samples". What does that mean exactly? If you ship them the samples, is the expectation that you'll get it back? If not, would you charge a full price for them? Who pays for shipping? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bciskepottery Posted December 31, 2016 Report Share Posted December 31, 2016 Sounds fishy to me -- perhaps a scam. Is the requestor valid and legitimate? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glazenerd Posted December 31, 2016 Report Share Posted December 31, 2016 I work with two interior designers: who sell my crystalline tile. Not uncommon for them to ask for a sample to match a specific color palette they are working with. Because I work with them exclusively at this point: I send them a 5" round test tile (for color) for $5, plus shipping (non-refundable). I suspect this is a different scenario than what you are dealing with. Nerd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moh Posted December 31, 2016 Author Report Share Posted December 31, 2016 Hm, that does make sense RE: interior designers. I'll just go ahead and ask them, obviously the most sensible. Just didn't wanna sound like a clueless person Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GiselleNo5 Posted December 31, 2016 Report Share Posted December 31, 2016 Did she want a color sample or a product sample? Many potters send out test tiles for a few dollars so people can make sure a color will work in their decor.I have had countless people contact me over the years in a variety of ways asking for free stuff. One woman offered, in exchange for a payment from me of $20 AND an item that would not be returned, to feature me on her blog which had about 100-200 followers. I am also often contacted on Etsy for free products for charities, samples, trade, and advertising (this last is always of very dubious value to me). My answer to all these attempts is always always NO. If it was someone that I knew was legitimate and trusted that their main objective was not to scam free stuff I would make a different decision, but so far that has not come up for me. And if it's someone new to you, you've gotta go with your gut and don't risk more than you're willing to lose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chilly Posted December 31, 2016 Report Share Posted December 31, 2016 Beware, know who you are dealing with, these are often scams. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnnyK Posted December 31, 2016 Report Share Posted December 31, 2016 Samples of what? What is it that you're producing that they want samples of? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted December 31, 2016 Report Share Posted December 31, 2016 If you are a tile maker-this makes some sense-if you are a potter it makes no sense. In my 40 years I never sent a sample of anything-was I asked well yes but it made no sense so I passed . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callie Beller Diesel Posted December 31, 2016 Report Share Posted December 31, 2016 The answer to your question definitely depends on who's asking, and why. Others have covered IRL situations, and because I spend waaaaaay to much time on the web, I'll cover the possibility that you're asking about being contacted by a blogger, e-zine publisher, instagrammer or other content creator. Any online content generators, or other tastemakers who are actually worth being featured by are spectacularly unlikely to solicit samples from you out of the blue, unless the two of you are somehow soul mates. They're simply too busy, and their email boxes are inundated with other people's offers of products to be featured. Why should they go looking, if the content they need is already in their lap? If you apply for a feature, it is indeed common to send a free sample for their use on your dime, and not get it back. Sometimes, there is an additional fee, depending on the person's reach. That's usually the cost of advertising in this fashion, and it can be lucrative, if the match between their audience and yours is a good one. That said, if someone is soliciting samples for purposes of generating their own content, it doesn't necessarily indicate something shady. A feature from blogger who is growing, and that has a small but ideal audience can be a nice boost to your own business. It is, however, as a savvy business person, expected and perfectly acceptable for you to ask questions about their reach (how many followers they have), and their audience demographics before you say yes. Have a look at what the content creator is putting out there, and who they're speaking to. Are these people your customers as well? Are they people that are probably interested in what you have to offer? What are this blogger's engagement and click through rate like? If it looks good, in this instance sending them a free small quantity or product on your dime is still the etiquette. If it's a larger, or more expensive piece, she should pay the shipping, or buy it wholesale, or send it back. If the blogger doesn't have this information, doesn't want to supply it, their demographics are wrong, or the blog has a tiny reach and/or no engagement (Giselle mentioned 200 followers), say no. its ok. They'll be used to it. It's part of the business. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callie Beller Diesel Posted December 31, 2016 Report Share Posted December 31, 2016 I'll also add that I agree with Giselle: anyone looking for free stuff that contacts you through your Etsy shop is best avoided unless you know them. Make up a polite refusal form letter that you can cut and paste. It saves a lot of time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glazenerd Posted December 31, 2016 Report Share Posted December 31, 2016 If you are a tile maker-this makes some sense-if you are a potter it makes no sense. Mark: It should also be noted that I have worked with these two for over two decades: even before I started making crystalline tile. Sending samples, almost always ends up being an order. Nerd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted December 31, 2016 Report Share Posted December 31, 2016 I just recalled giving a woman a sample back in the 80s for a sample for gift baskets-that deal went south and I have since turned down at least 3 other basket ideas. If they are serious about your work just sell it to them and then they can decide what they want to do with it. One other point is just about every organization asks me for donations -hey they are tax deductible that say-well its only the cost of materials. I choose only those I want to support and limit it now to 5 tops and ask them to advertise my donation so then I call it advertising for tax purposes . I'm never been that hungry to give away samples hoping something will come back in economics after the basket idea went south. I have been approached with so many ideas on folks wanting to make money from my work-like in the 90s when everyone wanted to sell my stuff on their web site-all this nonsense as you can sell your own stuff -its just not that hard. As a functional potter you need to keep an eye on the bottom line-samples go against that. The exception is tile and say interior designer products. Not my fields As a potter I have to limit my time on web as its not cost effective really. Making work is way more. You cannot sell it if you do not have it. I have written about this before as in average of 6-7 e-mails to sell and ship a piece of work to a customer. Good work sells itself-its been that way for me for many decades Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rakukuku Posted January 1, 2017 Report Share Posted January 1, 2017 Seems like if this is legit then good photos would suffice. I would beware. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.