Creating Your Business Opportunity 6

What's the difference between companies that make a lot of money and those that don't?

"The main difference is quality of the printing and the ability to meet deadlines," Nancy Clayton says, "You might get a lot of first orders, but to really build your business you need to develop repeat business. I have customers who have been giving me work for five years or more. A customer needs to know that if the job is needed on a specific day, it will be there. What good does it do to print T-shirts for a company picnic and have them delivered the day after the event? It can be tricky at certain times of the year, but in nine years I have only missed one crucial deadline and that was due to a major storm and power failure. You also need to stand behind your work and replace anything that is defective."

Where can I find information on the Internet about screen printing?

Here are several good places to start gathering information: http://www.usscreen.com Screen Printing Professional Forum on America Online (keyword, screen printers) http://www.t-shirtshopper.com/websites/wholesale (an extensive list of T-shirt wholesalers) http://www.hanes2u.com (general information from Hanes Corp., as well as a source of supplies) http://www.proworldinc.com (information about transfer paper and printing transfers from your computer as well as transfer machines and other supplies for people who want to start this business. http://www.geoknight.com/intro.html (general information and supplies for heat transfer) Magazines http://www.screenweb.com http://www.impressionsmag.com http://www.promomart.com/pmindex.asp

What does it take to make it as a consultant?

The keys to success as a consultant are knowing your industry inside and out, taking the time to know what your client wants, and delivering what your client wants in a professional way. James A. Smith, a Chicago resident who has worked as an independent consultant to radio stations for more than 20 years, says that in his field, a consultant needs "an understanding of how radio stations operate, particularly within a given format and a given market size." The needs of a country music station in Wisconsin are obviously going to be different from those of a rock music station in Detroit.

To make money as a consultant, Smith says, you need to do the following: "(1) keep the customer satisfied; (2) remember you are just advising others how to do things, you are not in control; (3) agree in advance on the goals, expectations, and methods of measuring the success of your work; (4) don't try to change too much or too little [in the client's operation]; (5) don't bite off more than you can chew or let yourself stagnate in a changing field."

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