Who has the time in clothing business to invest in secondary works like embroidery? No one! There are people who are ready to provide these for you. So, concentrate on your business and leave the embroidery to professional embroidery services.
Outsourcing embroideries do not necessarily mean you will just put it aside! You need to find the best providers who have the chrome to stitch detailed needle-works. You don’t want a crappy embroidered product after all.
And, there are some basic factors that drive the decision you are going to make. This is exactly what we are going to answer in this very article. Savvy?
Here’s what you should consider before trying an embroidery service to get the very best out of it:
Giving Specific and Clear Requirements
It is not only frustrating but also time-consuming for an embroidery service to work with incomplete or unclear details of a project. Make sure to place an order with a clear, complete and specific list of requirements for the project if your intention is to get the very best service.
Providing them with generic details won’t do any good. Be as much clear and concise about them as you can. For example, a statement such as “I want a great quality”, basically means nothing.
As ‘Great Quality’ is so much vague as a term that anybody can interpret this in their own way. It does not really say much about your intention when you say “Great Quality”. So, it is very much unlikely that your embroidery service provider will be able to comprehend it fully.
Your service provider can make some edits to the version they supplied you first after you complain. But believe me, it will not be as half good. Edits are made only to make small changes regarding the details which were ignored or unclear in previous communications. They are in no way an alternative to the first directions you gave.
Always Communicating Swiftly
Now that you know how important it is to get the project requirements properly delivered, we will focus on the second tip which is ensuring a swift communication in the ongoing project. It’s not only during the first contact but swift interactions are something which should be done all through to the project completion.
Never treat your embroidery service providers as your own employees. As they are located far from you, they naturally require more background and in-depth details of any given project. And this demands a swift and smooth communication all along the operation of a project.
The last thing is that you should inquire about any update on the progress so as to make sure that everything is going smoothly. Prevention is better than cure, so it’s simpler and easier to fix things before the project is complete(and shit gets real).
Long-term Partnership
Your embroidery service provider is your business partner, meditate the correlation like that. So try to maintain a long-term relationship. It won’t do any good for your business if you constantly keep changing your embroidery service every now and then.
What will happen if you do this?
- Firstly, it will render lesser stability to the structure of your business operation.
- Secondly, you will have to spend more time when start dealing with new services.
- And lastly, you will not get the results you want if you continue on that path. Getting ‘the best’ results is not possible if you don’t spend enough time with a specific service provider.
When you outsource embroidery designs, you should allow sufficient time to your supplier before they know what your requirements, preferences, and styles are like.
Once you and your facilitator understand each other, the operation will go smooth and swift. By the time, they will know what you expect and work accordingly. It brings stability to your business.
It is less trouble than dealing with a new service every month or so, explaining and making them understand the same stuff over and over again and then correcting them until they get it right. Whoof!
Being Mindful about Time-Zones
Check if your outsourced embroidery service is located at a different time-zone, be chary of it. If you want to take out the trouble of waiting, it is suggested to inquire your embroidery facilitator about the time-zone. Then it will get easier to plan and place your orders timely.
Similarly, make inquiries about the working hours so that it’s easy for you to create a much precise and time-saving schedule. It will help to remove the frustrating delay you have to face during orders and pretty unhappy customers during your opening hours.
Also, take their local holidays into account. You definitely don’t want to wait after arriving earlyand then come to know that yourfiles and designswon’t be supplied to you now.
In fact, you should bank on this difference between your time zone and theirs to upsurge your advantage. For instance, if you outsource to an embroidery service that is behind about 10-12 hours from your location. Herein, your best option is to send them the files just before you’re going to sleep.
And while you are resting, they will work and organize the files and then contact you for details in the next morning.
Developing Minimum Expertise
You should try to get a hold of how the software and machinery work.So that you can develop a certain level of expertise at embroidery designs. Don’t get me wrong!It’s not that you should try to completely become a Ph.D. in working with the software.
Your schedule won’t let you do that, we know. And being an expert is the job of professionals at what they do and focus their mind to.This minimum expertise is suggested so that you can do analysis on the products that you will receive.
It is basic knowledge but it will help you. Specially when you will be making your final decision to deal with an embroidery service.
Another reason why this point is so important is that you will be on the same page with your provider. Try to imagine how frustrated and irritated your service provider will be while trying to explain the details to you but you are not getting it. It’ll also be irritating for you. Either way, you and your business will suffer in the process.
Acquiring a skill is a tedious and gradual process. So start today because there will always be a “tomorrow”.
Why would you want to get a minimum expertise in embroidery?
Here’s why;
- You can examine the procedures of the embroidery services properly.
- You will be able to discern between good and bad embroideries.
- You will learn to match the design with the colors. It maybe a seam or a stitch placement on a shirt or a hat.
- You will get familiarized with the machines and voice your opinions about the working machines.
- Last, of all, you will not be fooled easily.
How will I ensure Top Quality Embroideries?
When you get the embroidered products in hand that you ordered, you will probably take one look and decide if these meet the expectations you had. And that’s probably just before you will distribute your products. This should be a yes or no decision on your side.
Don’t stress out about the quality of the embroidery. Pick a service who takes their job seriously. Make sure to check their quality on previous projects. Passion and sincerity are important.
Equipment Used
Just like any machinery, the quality of each and every embroidery equipment will vary, and in a true sense you will “get what you paid for”. So keep in mind some points. Like;
- Do they useonly new equipment or both old and new?
- If it’s all from a high-quality manufacturer then you can ignore the new and old point.
- Look up the machines to see if they have a good reputation in the embroidery realm. Remember Quality equipment will produce quality results for years to come.
Check the Maintenance Program
It’s well known that if the equipment is clean and well-maintained then the product will be consistently well.
Why should you check maintenance program?
- Sensitive electronic and moving parts are always affected by dust-dirt, grime etc.that build up over time.
- It’s inevitable and without exception, when low maintenance standard is maintained machines will not work as they should. And that means a decrease in quality and quantity of the product. This is a serious indication that service issues are present.
So keep in mind that if your embroidery service provider maintains a fair maintenance standard or not.
Some Extra Tips
- Be ready to make judgment calls if you see any wrong that will help both of you to achieve great quality products.
- Each and every stitch of any embroidery design is usually placed by the software or the operator. So remember to check up on the setup.
- If you see something that you don't like, don’t keep quiet. Let them know so that they can fix it before they supply the products to you.
- Examine their final review procedure, if you feel they need to add something to their criteria list, make them aware. Do it before the shipping process starts and it is too late.
Final words
How you choose your service provider matters most. Your final decision should be “What is good for your business”. Not what feels good to you! So don’t even think of cheaping out on a good embroidery service.
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