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  • Mike Brown

    Member
    September 22, 2002 at 8:06 pm

    Nice one Ed’!

    I like the white buffer around the dark blue text – gives it a bit of a boost!…stylish text and a nice logo…well done…easy to forget you’re still new to all this!

    blimey Ed’! – if you need to wear glasses – and still be that close to see what you’re doin’…well, no wonder your normal photo shows you kinda’ squinting! 😛 😆 😆

  • eddie cotter

    Member
    September 22, 2002 at 8:11 pm

    pure concentration mike 😀 😀 😀 just thinking, sunday afternoon
    hear is me stuck on a step ladder & all my mates down the local
    having a lovely pint of the black stuff, am i mad or what

  • Robert Lambie

    Member
    September 22, 2002 at 8:23 pm

    dedication will get you to the top eddie… not to the pub 😉

    a wise man told me that about 2 mins ago… it was er well me 😀 😆

  • Martin Pearson

    Member
    September 22, 2002 at 10:20 pm

    Do you work every week-end Eddie ? Or do you work around what is suitable for your customers ?
    I am always telling people I dont work at the week-end, but it doesnt work because it is usually the only time that is suitable for them and I need the money!!!

  • eddie cotter

    Member
    September 22, 2002 at 10:38 pm

    hi martin, i work most weekends, especialy on commercial vehicles
    they are usualy off the road at the weekends, so it suits the customer.
    as they dont have any down time! the wife gets a bit fed up now and then
    especialy if its a nice day & every ones heading to the beach
    we have two small boys, & its a bit hard on them to,
    but then at the end of the day, they wear the best of designer gear
    & the cupboard is always full of food so you cant have it every way can you………eddie

  • Robert Lambie

    Member
    September 22, 2002 at 11:09 pm

    very true eddie…
    its always good to keep the customers happy. especially when you start out. once you have built up a good customer base you can stand back and start to say when you are working and for who….
    untill then… the same old phrase will be shouted as you walk in the door…
    “your dinner is in the oven” 😆 😆 😆

  • Phill Fenton

    Member
    September 23, 2002 at 8:07 am

    Excellent work Eddie. I like what you have done there very much. 😀

  • eddie cotter

    Member
    September 23, 2002 at 3:28 pm

    thanks phill, it means a lot to me to get comments like that from real professionals like your self,,,,,eddie

  • Martin Pearson

    Member
    September 23, 2002 at 8:52 pm

    I’m pretty much like you Eddie, I do the work when it suits my customers, I can’t afford to turn work away because I want the week-end off, your right though it can be hard when you have a family. Robert my dinner usually ends up in the dog not the oven !!!!!

  • eddie cotter

    Member
    September 24, 2002 at 3:05 pm

    hi gray, yeah when or if i get the sign biz off the ground, then i can spend more time with the wife & kids, the nearest beach to us is clonea strand,
    outside the town of dungarvan, co, waterford, i can get to it in forty minutes by car, its only a small place nothing their but it has a lovely small beach, its kind of like a cove,
    the next one is dungarvan, in co, waterford again, its just over an hour away, its alot more commercialised, amusements & all that.
    if you ever get over this neck of the woods, ile show you around!!!
    hear is a picture of my two little lads, future signmakers
    while i cut the lawn,,,,,eddie 🙂


    Attachments:

  • Steve Broughton

    Member
    September 24, 2002 at 5:51 pm

    The big one looks like his dad, poor child 😆 😕

  • Robert Lambie

    Member
    September 24, 2002 at 7:07 pm

    yep… definately a couple of cotter “mini-me’s” 😉

  • Martin Pearson

    Member
    September 24, 2002 at 11:30 pm

    What do you mean when or if you get the sign biz off the ground ?

    With work like your turning out I dont think there is an if, its just a question of how quickly the biz will grow. From the work I have seen I would have thought you had been in the business quite a long time if I didnt know better.

  • eddie cotter

    Member
    September 25, 2002 at 9:07 pm

    thanks martin, i did a small bit of brush work way back, & then left it
    when the plotter came along! big mistake, & thats something i cant change
    only look forward to the future, i think i am starting to get the hang of the pc now, your not going to beleive this but that man truck i did on sunday, the bloke rang me tonight & said he wasnt happy with the light blue shadow & asked how could he get it off, i told him i spent three hours designing different styles & that one was what he chose (:)
    you cant win can you 👿

  • Martin Pearson

    Member
    September 25, 2002 at 10:01 pm

    Your right Eddie, no matter how hard you try you will never please all of the people all of the time. Why does the guy now want the shadow removed ? he obviously liked it before or he wouldn’t have chosen it. Before he rips it all off and makes a mess could you put a small bit of text on a scrap bit of board without the shadow to show him what it would look like ?

  • eddie cotter

    Member
    September 25, 2002 at 10:11 pm

    lets just say ” i am on a realy fast learning curve” martin when are we going to get your picture on the boards 😮 eddie

  • eddie cotter

    Member
    September 25, 2002 at 10:18 pm

    sorry martin, i was so hurt after getting the phone call tonight, he can shove it 👿 i was going to say next weekend ile be down the pub,
    but ive just thaught? ive got a scania143 & renault magnum truck to do next sat& sun…………..eddie

  • Phill Fenton

    Member
    September 25, 2002 at 10:32 pm

    Why on earth does he want to remove the pale blue? That’s what makes it Eddie.

    Are you sure he’s not looking to find fault and angling for a discount. If so – don’t fall for it Eddie. Remember, the customer needs you as much as you need him, and there’s a lot of sharks out there 😡

    You’ve gone out of your way for him already by working on a Sunday to fit this – he owes it to you to respect your work ( and if he really doesn’t like the shadow – take it off without involving you).

    I presume he was shown a proof printout of this design – and if so – he really doesn’t have a case.

    I once did a sign for a guy who was very pleased with it, but next day phoned me up and asked if there was any way I could make it bigger.
    I said yes – I could make a bigger version of the sign – and I would send him a quote for this (at which point he decided to make do with the sign he’d already bought).

    Truth is – there are a lot of honest and decent people out there. But unfortunately we all need to be on our guard against those individuals who try and take liberties. Another classic example is the person who having agreed a price is not happy with the final job. He assumes that you will be grateful for any return on the work and will negotiate a discount rather than a full refund. In these cases I always make it clear I want the sign back (or removed) and will refund in full rather than be taken for a ride.

    They soon learn Eddie – (Honestly) – stand your ground on this. And next time he asks you to letter a vehicle on a Sunday – take the Kids to the beach instead 😀

  • Martin Pearson

    Member
    September 25, 2002 at 11:32 pm

    No need to appologise to me Eddie, I liked it as it was, as Phill said the shadow really set the text off. You sound pretty upset about this mate, I know its hard but I would just forget about it. I know when you have done a good job and you are proud of it yourself its hard not to get upset but just look on it as his loss not yours. Think about all the jobs you have done where the customer really appriciated what you did for them and what you can do to help your next customer.
    As Phill said he might just be trying his luck for a discount but if he has had a proof copy that he approved then he really doesnt have any grounds for complaint.
    Explain to him that it really needs the shadow both for balance and effect but if he really wants it removed you would be happy to do it for a price. Remember it probably takes longer to take off than put on.

  • eddie cotter

    Member
    September 29, 2002 at 2:37 am

    thanks for the lengthy reply phill!, & thanks martin,,,,,,,,,,
    yeah i kind of got the impression that he thaught it was a bit dear
    €290.00, thats in euros, thats probarbly about £200.00 sterling
    after talking to another man today that knows this fellow, it appears that he is a bit of a cowboy, so that makes me feel better.
    now when i get a chance on monday morning i am going to
    design a job sheet, whith all job details on so i can get a signature for each job before i start,,,, so if any one trys to take the p*** in future
    at least i have something on paper, what do you think.
    again thanks for your intrest, eddie

  • signscript

    Member
    September 29, 2002 at 7:27 am

    i get it all the time eddie, club managers decied they are having the event the week after and need the dates on the banner changing, or they have got the times wrong, as i dont see many of my customers i do all my proofs by email, once they have confirmed that its ok (in writing) usually by email, i send them and email stating that this is the final proof and include the filename of the proof including the date and time it was modified. then when they come back and want things changing i can charge them…
    they cant argue as they have signed off the original proof

  • Martin Pearson

    Member
    September 29, 2002 at 10:32 pm

    We give our customers a written estimate which details what we are going to do and a visual sheet with the layout of the sign, to get round the problem of vinyl colours not matching computer printouts exactly we attach a small piece of each colour of vinyl and the product code to the visual sheet. This way we have a record so if the customer complains we have something to fall back on and also if the customer aquires a nother vehicle in the future we have all the details we need.

  • Robert Lambie

    Member
    September 29, 2002 at 10:44 pm

    Yeh. A good proof sheet is a must Eddie.
    Just have something with you logo etc on it. Then a space for date and signature. But next to the signature a bit saying. I have checked over the above design and I am completely satisfied with the artwork provided.
    Signed Joe bloggs. You could like martin says stick a couple of vinyl samples with it just to make sure…
    But yeh.. Get a signature first “always” 😉

  • eddie cotter

    Member
    September 30, 2002 at 8:59 am

    thanks robert, i am working on it as we speak, eddie

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