Simple tips and tricks.

[Brass]

Here's one to start with:
Discontinued framing = Limited edition framing.
Got any more like that?

[drpeej]

Got any more like that?

No - because it's discontinued

[kartoffelngeist]

I always write 'disco' on the back of stuff that I have a bit of in stock but know has been discontinued.

Every now and then someone asks why and I always say it's because it's 'as dead as disco'.

Everyone's always accepted that and never made the link between disco and discontinued.

I get a giggle to myself every time I see it.

[Bobble]

In my 'Memory Book' where folks were going to exhibit, or order lots of framing, or boast about their valuable homes & artwork, etc., never to return, they eventually became T W.
In my head, the late, great Terry Wogan (in case my notes were ever observed or queried) but of course Time Wasters in reality. Anybody else get TWs as they were 'Just Passing''?

[prospero]

I've got a similar one. TVs = Time Vampires.


There are also Headbangers, Gawpers, Brain Donors and plain old Knobheads.

[pramsay13]

I have a sale moulding section. It's where I put the ones that are discontinued but I still have in stock so I know I can only sell a certain amount of each.

When doing a cheap job for a friend or charity, always record what moulding and mountboard used, even if just using up scrap pieces, as they will always come back looking for another similar framing job.

Give away (or sell) picture hooks - nothing worse than the customer getting home and having to leave it sitting on the floor for a few days until they manage to get some. Better for them to get the frame up on the wall straight away and start admiring it.

[GeoSpectrum]

I had a TW visit a couple of times, he ordered one frame but seemed to like to chat... he said he didn't want to waste my time.. I said your not wasting my time if you order frames....I never saw him again....

[prospero]

I knew a chap who was the Basil Fawlty of the framing profession. He got a bit ratty with a TW one day and the guy said,
"Is that any way to speak to a customer?" The answer he got was, "Customers buy things. You never buy anything".

The best one was when woman interrupted him while he was occupied selling an expensive painting. She was very persistent.
All she wanted was directions to a nearby hotel.
So he marched her to the door, pointed down the street and said, "Do you see that big building on the corner?". "Well that's that's
the ########### Tourist Information Office".

[Bobble]

Still waiting for Steve N's contribution. Always enjoy his acerbic comments, pithy but realistic!
Faffless framing like most of us, methinks.

[Steve N]

Well Bobble here it is, hope it's not too pithy
I have found you always get a build up of dry glue on the underpinner, especially on the top bung and the fences, no matter how often you try and clean up after each job, so I now have as can be seen from the photo put a layer of masking tape on the face of the fences and some handy wrap on the top bung, now all I need to do when I see a lot of dry glue is simply take the masking tape off and replace, and the same with the handy wrap, less than a minute's work

IMG_20180522_093121.jpg (291.02 KiB) Viewed 5942 times

When pricing up, start with the smallest job and work your way up, then as the jobs get larger the prices increase but does not too too much than if you do it the other way around , such as 50x40cm frame could cost £60.00 and a 40x30cm frame cost £50.00 so not a lot cheaper , but if you give the 40x30 as £50.00 and then the 50x40 as £60, well it's only a little bit more for a bigger frame

Sometimes when I give a quote for a job, I hear either a sharp intake of breath, or "What!" or Wow", my reaction is" Yes I know, I don't know how we do it for that price, a custom made to measure frame for that price, you would think we would be losing money! " we normally get the job

Another favourite of mine is, when I give a quote of say £90.00, the customer will say "what's your best price?" to which I reply "No my best is £140.00 "

[prospero]

I wonder sometimes how these hagglers would react if their boss came up to them every day and asked,
"What's your best salary today?".
The merest suggestion of a wage cut would likely provoke a riot in most business establishments.
Yet they are asking the same. It rankles with me a bit because basically they are implying in a roundabout way
that you are charging too much. If the price is more than they want to pay, fair enough. But trying to knock you down
is really an insult to your integrity.

So if they don't like it they can get stuffed.