There
has been a lot of talk going around mail order that most Print and Mail
dealers
are rip-offs. In fact, some people claim that all Print and Mail
dealers
are this way. Many mail order entrepreneurs have been able to build
my
business through them in the past. Think about it _ if all Print and Mail
dealers
were crooks, why do all of us receive tons of mail every day?
The
problem lies in the fact that there are people involved in Print and Mail
that
are rip-offs. It's an easy thing to do. Advertise that you will Print
and
Mail 5x8 circulars for $8 per 1,000. When orders come in, pocket the
money
and throw the customer's ad in the trash. The customer won't know the
difference.
Most won't keep tabs on who they sent a Print and Mail order to
and
no one can trace if you, in fact, actually printed and mailed their ad.
When
a rip-off P&M dealer get caught,
news travels fast within the mail
order
industry! In addition, they will be inundated with phone calls or
letters
asking "why" a checking copy was not received. Someone will even-
tually
publish your name as a rip-off artist and they'll be publicized as a
"bad"
dealer. When this happens _ they might as well kiss their mail order
business
career good-bye.
And
don't think they can just open another post office box under another name
and
commit the same scam. The Simmons Company is California was notorious for
several
years of selling his "Turn-A-Copy", nicknamed
"Turn-A-Junk." Just
prior
to the holidays, he would begin advertising his scam for $14.95 to get
money
for Christmas. Not only was this guy made a laughing stock but the
postal
authorities were alerted and he soon had trouble opening up a post
office
box anywhere in his county. Mr. Simmons would have had to actually
move
or drive several hundred miles just to open up a post office box to
commit
his scam again _ which is hard to do for an old man.
Most
people don't realize that they can't fool the post office for long
periods
of time. Once they are blackballed and their post office box closed
computers
make it handy to alert other area post office's so it will be hard
to
obtain a post office box. Some people will have relatives and friends open
one
up for them _ but again _ the post office box will be closed and all the
mail
seized when the scam is uncovered again.
Therefore,
YOU the customer must use sound judgment before using a Print and
Mail
dealer. Check out their reputation. If in doubt, send in a small order;
code
it and monitor the responses to it. When you find a honest Print and
Mail
dealer (and there are quite a few), stick with that person. Give them
your
repeat business. Support them and their business will grow. Eventually,
the
honest dealers will outshine the dishonest ones. In other words _ don't
be
a fool. Don't spend your money for a "pig in a poke." It doesn't make
good
business
sense.
So,
you might say, "What's wrong with spending $2 for a possible 10,000
circulation?
Even if the ad only makes it in 25 or 50 copies, it's nothing
to
lose $2." However, by thinking this way, you are keeping rip-off artists
in
business. The fact is _ your ad will be thrown in the trash and you've
given
the rip-off another $2 to buy a pack of cigarettes and laugh at you
for
making it all possible.
When
you look through the mail order tabloids, be cautious of anyone claiming
to
do a print and mail for less than $25 per 1,000 (exception of tabloids
printed
on web presses.) The normal price for 5,000 sheets of 20-pound bond
paper
(a case) is around $25 or $6.25 per 1,000. The ink and time needed to
run
your job costs another $4 _ we're up to $10. Now the dealer only has $15
left
to pay for postage and make a profit for his/her business. That's
cutting
it close. So there is no way anyone can print and mail 1,000
circulars
for $6 or even $10 unless they are a multi-millionaire with nothing
to
do but spend money and take losses.
If
you send an advertisement to your local newspaper, there is never any
doubt
that they will keep your money and not print the paper that particular
day.
It's sad that the mail order industry cannot say the same thing _ but
perhaps
one day it will. It's up to every one of us to use sound judgment
in
spending our own money.
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