To make my little stringing business just a little bit more professional, I wanted to get myself some flyers that I could hand out at tournaments. However, I've noticed that I'm in fact a bit sh*t in creating a layout and some artwork to give that flyer just a remotely professional look, so I'm hoping to find a fellow BCer who might have the motivation and some time at hands to support me here. So if anyone has some creative ideas for a general design layout, logo or single piece of artwork that could represent a reliable, quick and fair priced stringing service, feel free to put up your ideas in here or as PM. And as an additional question to all those with limitied creative abilities like myself - which information would you expect to read on such a flyer? Gear? Available strings? Prices? Turnaround times? Some nice word about experience and motivation? etc.? Never thought it could be so hard to put together what seems to be a completely simple and basic thing.
Ha, got you! Decided to upgrade to that fancy new stringing machine huh? (jealous here of course) Information I would like to know: - A little bit about you at the bottom, what club are you with, stringing for so many years, whatever. Just to give me a little confidence that you're not just running away with my rackets. (can be one whole sentence) - Strings available with prices (own string/ your string/expensive string) - Average turnaround time is nice Artwork: I you're going with home printing I would stick with simple design with a vector art or something and no photos, photos don't come off well on home printers. If you're going to print glossy at a print shop and get it cut nicely (not that expensive) you can make a nice simple flyer with a picture of a racket on the machine? Just a top bar with "Breathe new life into your racket with new Strings!", a 1/3rd picture, and a bottom part with the info would be fine. You can angle the lines from the top bar/bottom block to be fancy a bit. But have you thought of the logistics involved? Whenever people ask me to string that are not from my club it's always a hassle to drop off / pick up rackets and stuff. That's why I only string for my club, easy logistics and less business/more friendly service for my hobby-friends. I've got a bit of experience and have some time to spare, when you know what you want I can mock you up something if you want.
Personally, I don't care about the layout. Important information would include: Your name, and contact details (at least email and phone/WhatsApp number) How you are available: At tournaments? Do you have an office (or a club at a certain time) where I drop off rackets? How long will it usually take for a racket to be strung? I.e. do you offer same-day service? Personally, I have switched from a office-based stringing service to bringing the rackets to tournaments or training camps, because then I usually get back the racket within hours, and don't have to worry about picking it up. What's the price? What strings do you offer? This can be included with the price. Can I supply my own strings? Why are you a good stringer? Do you have any certificates? Do you use good equipment? I wouldn't be able to rate it, but I'd value a professional-looking electronic stringing machine.
Darn it, that was just too obvious. To be honest, the current issue is independet from a possible machine upgrade (although it would make a perfect line of argumentation towards the management at home...). Great input, and thanks a lot for the offer! I'll get back to that one! I'm definitely planning to go with professional printed glossy ones. They don't seem to be that overly expensive and the quality level is mile above the selfmade ones imo. Currently, I'm planning to get them done by Vistaprint which I guess is also available in the Netherlands. Logistics is a really good topic. I'm currently stringing pretty much exclusively for my own club which makes it super easy to pick up and return the rackets during club nights. I have a handfull of clients from nearby clubs who normally bring me their rackets either at home or make a short visit at our club night. And basically, I want to limit my business to a radius that is reachable within 20-30 minutes max. by car. And also, it's not like I'm planning to make stringing a serious part time job - so the numbers should stay within the "hobby'ish" range.
A matte print can look great too, it really depends on the design.... or the design depends on the print. It's kinda like the Egg and the Chicken. I also PMed you to talk in my native language and share some ideas. I see why you say this, but it's different for me. The first question I thought about was not, "What information do I want?", but more about how I can draw attention and how can I keep this attention up. A way that draws a lot of attention to many people I know are the free postcards you can get in Bars, Cafes, .... that are either funny or nice. Most of them use the backside for a little bit of advertisements, some use the entire backside. Why not do it like this and use the backside for the important information? Maybe you'll need to go slightly larger than postcard size, but that should not be a problem. For me, something like that would and up on my fridge or my dishwasher (magnetic surfaces, there already are some invitations, packages of tea I'm trying to find in Germany, some other funny stuff, ...), so I have the information available and be reminded of it, something else would end up in some pile.... .... just so you know what I'm talking about. Other than that, I mostly agree with the Information needed. For me, Info about you and your equipment would not be important when I get this at a tournament where you're stringing or when I get this from someone I know who already trusts you with his rackets.... and to be honest, there's not so many other ways, because the German badminton community is so small. edit (to add it): For my idea, thicker paper would be great or even needed, but to me that's always a sign that someone cares about quality. The costs should still be reasonable.
Love the one with the Möpse! I've already replied to your PM, so thanks a lot for the suggestions already! And I agree completely that the design can make the difference between going to the trash in seconds or get pinned to the fridge. So imo it's definitely worth investing some thoughts into that.
I would recommend you a small website and a business name. The tax office is 100% required if you don't string only for friends! On the website you also have more space for detailed information. Besides flyers you could also print very cheap business cards. You don't throw them away as badminton players and see them in your wallet again later. - x years of experience - many strings from Yonex, LiNing... - fast stringing - more information on www.website.de
there are website that do graphics design for $5-10. I haven't used them for years but I am sure they are still around. you need to give the designers some idea what you want, and then they will crowdsource the design, you only pay for the one you like.
Don't forget to advertise on any badminton buy/sell Facebook groups in your area. Would probably get more hits than pamphlets. Sent from my SM-G965W using Tapatalk
I'm actually planning to register a small business before I do anything serious regarding promotion and maybe start stringing at local tournaments. Luckily, it's not that complicated to run a socalled "Kleingewerbe" in Germany and you basically don't have to pay any taxes up to a certain profit level. I'm not so convinced regarding a website tbh. Amongst the badminton community around here, it's the word-of-mouth advertising that works far better than anything else. So the important thing will be to get a foot into the surrounding clubs and then it's all about giving good service and letting the word spread. From my current client base, I'm sure that maybe 1 or 2 people would care about going on a website to look for details. Although it could be interesting to start a FB page to inform about tournament appearances and so on. That sounds super interesting. Are there any sites in particular that you have worked with in the past and/or you could recommend?
Look here: https://www.fiverr.com/categories/graphics-design/creative-brochure-design?source=gallery-listing Umsatzsteuer und Einkommensteuer fällt beim Kleingewerbe an. Gewerbesteuer ab 24.500€. Dazu einfache Buchführung.
I have a professional accountant at home, so all that tax and bookkeeping stuff wouldn't be a real issue. And Umsatzsteuer is only mandatory if your turnover exceeds 17.500 EUR per year which I think is still a bit far fetched for a 1 person stringing business. That website looks interersting, thanks for the link!
