Twin Willows Farm - Buying
Fleece from Internet Vendors
Many
people buy fleeces over the Internet from fiber shops and ‘off
the farm’ from shepherds. I have a vested interest in this
topic
since I do sell most of my fleeces this way. Everyone who has
ever
bought anything sight unseen knows that there is a certain amount of
risk
involved, but there are ways to decrease the risk. So let’s
go over
some points for buyers out there to be aware of.
Reputation
is everything.
If you subscribe
to one of the many fiber arts e-mail lists you have already heard about
some of the venders out there in cyberspace. You’ve probably
heard both good and not-so-good. It’s difficult to accept
anyone’s point of view from an e-mail. Here’s a couple of
ways to sort through the muddle.
If
you see a person consistently posting articles running down other
people or businesses, you start to notice that it’s a pattern and can
disregard that person’s opinion. The same goes for people who
are constantly cranky and write complaining or whining e-mails in
general. These are not people you want to consider an opinion
from if you want to make informed choices. For
myself, I also filter these people into the trash folder once I’ve made
this decision. Life’s too short to spend reading e-junk.
If
you see several happy customers comment on fleeces purchased from a
vendor, jot down that vendor’s name and keep it in a file somewhere, or
cut and paste those e-mails into a folder for future
reference. Look
for patterns to see if several people have given good comments about
the
same vendor. Do the same for people who post unfavorable
comments about
vendors or their fleece, but do take into account the person posting
and
whether or not he/she belongs to the group listed above.
Visit
the web pages of vendors and look for a comments page.
Any vender can post any comment true or imagined, but there should be a
name with the quote and you may recognize some from the e-mail
lists. Don’t be afraid to ask a vender for references, past
customers who you may contact. Honest venders won’t mind
providing these, either by providing you the
e-mail addresses, or by asking the reference to contact you directly.
I
would not recommend asking for opinions on the e-mail
lists. That just invites negative opinions. For
some reason, people are much
more motivated to post negative comments than positive comments via the
electronic realm and the data you collected would most likely be skewed
that way.
Asking
for samples is a thing of the past.
I’m not sure just when it changed, but as the Internet advanced, old
fashioned mailings have become almost obsolete. Fleeces sell
so fast on the Internet that mailing out samples only slows down the
process and many vendors no longer offer this service. For
example, if I take the time to mail a
sample to Suzy Spinner in Colorado, it will take that sample at least 4
days
to arrive. In those 4 days, I may have another 4 offers to
buy the
same fleece without sending a sample. As a vendor, it doesn’t
make sense
for me to turn away 4 customers who are willing to buy to wait for 1
customer
who ‘may’ buy. It’s not that I am against sending samples
because of
postage costs or bother, it’s just a matter of good business practices
and
satisfying customers who know what they want when they want it.
Photos
are the new samples.
Most vendors
have photos of their fleeces available for viewing. The best
way to evaluate from a photo is to have the fleece pictured with a
ruler. This allows the
buyer to observe an approximate crimp per inch and length of
staple. Unfortunately, there is no way to truly show the feel
of the fleece from a photograph. Knowing the breeds of sheep
and knowing the range of wool type within that breed is a huge help to
the buyer. Research in this area will help the buyer make
informed choices.
Always
ask for insured mailings.
Whether
the vendor you’re purchasing from uses UPS or USPS or FedEx, be sure to
ask for and pay the extra cost to have your fleece insured.
With the USPS, insurance
for up to $50 costs only $1.30. Things do happen and a lost
box,
a damaged box where the address cannot be read, or a damaged box where
the fleece itself is harmed can make an otherwise happy purchase turn
into
a disaster.
Stick
with a good thing.
Spinners tend to
have favorite types of fleece. When you find a vendor who has
what you like, you can avoid all the guesswork by going back to that
source for your fleeces in the future. At least 75% of my
fleeces sell to repeat customers. That makes me happy and
obviously pleases them as well. Don’t think of it as ‘being
in a rut’, but rather think of it as ‘buying a sure thing’!
All
articles are copyright protected and may not be copied for any use
without the author's written permission.
Contact Pegg
Thomas at twinwillowsfarm@gmail.com.
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