Thursday, June 2, 2011

Why do prices vary so much for similar products?

Have you ever wondered how there can be such major price differences for similar products from different suppliers? We get that question quite often and the answer is very difficult to answer. Consider the following examples.

I recently needed a new clothes dryer and went to Sears. I was surprised at the range in pricing considering that they all do the same thing. (dry clothes) The least expensive option was only $319 while the most expensive unit was over $1,500. How is this possible? Who would pay $1,500 for a product when there is a competitive option for only $319? (I bought the $450 option by the way.)

Obviously the same scenario plays out every day at car dealerships across the country. You can buy a new car for as little as $14,000, but most people spend between $25,000 - $35,000 for their new car and many people spend $50,000 - $60,000 or even more for a new car. Why?

There are many reasons that there are such a wide gaps in price ranges for cars, appliances and of course trade show displays. The main reason is quality. We all know that quality matters, but how do you compare and put a value on quality? Considering that almost everything comes with a warranty and usually all options (even the cheap ones) have a minimum quality standard that is "good enough." So why does anyone ever spend so much more for similar products when dramatically less expensive options are available?

Is it brand? Does marketing really hypnotize us to spend our money foolishly? Is it service? Maybe. I know that I am willing to spend a little more for excellent service. How about features? Oh yeah, now I'm seeing it - its features. We need to have those power windows, leather seats, and satellite radio right?

Features really are the most logical reason for price differences. That $1,500 clothes dryer was red bright and it was as shiny as a new car. It also had a big circle glass door and a chrome handle - plus a digital display and 32 different temperature settings. Wow!

In the trade show display industry "features" include reconfiguration options, portability, and of course design styling. But what happens when someone "knocks off" a unit that includes all the features, but it is simply made with less expensive components and materials? That's where quality comes back in to the equation.

CDS Displays offers a good quality economy retractable banner stand display for $299. A similar unit from the top "brand" name sells for nearly $600. You can also buy similar display stands online for as little as $99. What would you do? We would love to hear your feedback on this. We know it is entirely possible that the $99 stand may be good enough for some people. We also know that very many people buy the $600 units.

So why do prices vary so much for similar products?
 Please comment - we want your opinions on this topic.

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

2011 Summer Trade Show Season

The Summer has traditionally been the "slow" time of the year for trade shows, but 2011 is seeing something new. Many of the fall shows have changed their dates for 2011 and will take place in the summer. Specifically the HBA Global Expo in New York's Javits Convention Center.

The 2011 HBA Global Expo is taking place June 28 - 30 this year and is a nice change for companies like CDS Displays who provides displays, exhibit rentals and graphics to several HBA Global exhibitors. We are happy to see this popular show moved to the summer.

CDS has provided so many exhibits for the HBA Global Expo over the years that we actually created a separate micro-site specifically for HBA Global exhibitors. www.hbaexhibitrentals.com is our show specific website. We are considering creating a similar site for the New York Toy Fair since that too is a very busy rental show for CDS Displays. You can see some of our 2010 Toy Fair display examples at our main website http://www.cdsdisplays.com/ and on our Facebook page www.facebook.com/cdsdisplays.

Monday, May 30, 2011

Save Big Money at your next Trade Show

You can save big money at your next trade show by simply reducing the size and weight of your overall exhibit. Don't you know that the shipping companies and show sites charge you to handle your exhibit in transit based on it's weight.

Your shipping fees can be cut in half or more by designing a display that is light weight and portable versus a large custom crated monster. Shipping is only a portion of the cost. The next expense that can be greatly reduced is your "material Handling." (also known as "Drayage") The material handling rate on the last show that we arranged at the Javits Center in New York was $137 per 100 lbs. This equals $1.37 per pound of freight that you bring into the building.

We see many companies who do not hesitate to ship 5,000 or 10,000 or more pounds of crates into a convention center. You can do the math yourself, but prove our point a 10,000 pound crated exhibit at the rate of $1.37 per pound would cost $13,700 just to bring in the convention center. We are sure your company can find much better things to spend $13K on.

CDS has been a leader in designing and producing lightweight exhibits since 1983. We have saved companies as much as $100,000 on their annual trade show expenses simply by designing displays and exhibits with weight and shipping size in mind from the start.

Even if you are not able to look to switch to a lighter weight exhibit right away, we urge you to consider a lighter load. Believe it or not just 2 cases of bottle water packed in your crate can add over $70 to both your shipping and drayage fees. That's $140 or $3 per bottle.

Now how much do you think your paying for that over-sized wooden crate, of those heavy counter units? By simply replacing a heavy wood and laminate based counter with a lightweight, fabric and aluminum based counter you can actually save close to $500 per show - per counter.

We offer some free cost savings worksheets on our website ( www.cdsdisplays.com/costsavings ) to help you determine just how much you can save by thinking light before your next show.