Don’t give people crap just because it’s cheap.

Cheap can be great. Junk isn’t. A pen that doesn’t write tells people your company buys garbage.

What it costs you

Your name is on it.

Whatever you hand out says something about you.

You can’t control what it says. The item says it for you.

A pen that skips while your client signs says, “We cut corners.”

A charger that quits in a month says, “Our stuff doesn’t last.”

A shirt nobody wants to wear says, “We didn’t really think about you.”

That’s the exact opposite of what you paid it to say.

A real example

Two umbrellas

Two businesses hand out umbrellas.

The cheap one flips inside out the first windy day. It ends up sticking out of a trash can on the sidewalk, logo up, for the whole street to see.

The good one rides in the trunk for five years. It comes out every time it rains. It gets lent to a friend, and comes back.

The good umbrella cost more. It was still the inexpensive one.

The cheap one cost less, did its job once, and then did the opposite of its job.

The cheap one1windy day. Then your name, upside down, in a trash can.

The good one5years in the trunk, out every time it rains.

Cheap means it didn’t cost much. Inexpensive means it did a lot for what it cost. You want inexpensive. You almost never want cheap.

Why it happens

Why the junk keeps getting ordered

“It was the lowest price on the page.”Lowest price isn’t a reason. It’s a number.

“It’s just a giveaway.”Your name is still on it.

“Nobody will notice.”They notice the second it skips, leaks or breaks.

“I’d rather have more of them.”Five hundred bad pens is five hundred bad impressions.

Every penny counts. That’s exactly why you shouldn’t waste them on cheap.

Do this instead

Count the uses, not the price.

Don’t look at what the item costs. Look at what it costs every time somebody uses it. The better one is usually the bargain.

The item	Cost per use
Pen that skips: $0.40, used 10 times	4¢ a use
Pen that writes all year: $1.50, used 250 times	0.6¢ a use
Scratchy, boxy T-shirt: $4, worn once	$4.00 a wear
Soft T-shirt they love: $9, worn 50 times	18¢ a wear
Tumbler that leaks: $6, used 3 times	$2.00 a use
Tumbler that goes to work every day: $20, used 250 times	8¢ a use

This is not about spending more. An emery board from a nail salon costs pocket change, and it’s perfect. So is a seed packet from a garden center. Sometimes the best answer costs pennies. Sometimes it costs twenty dollars. It’s never the one that falls apart. Before you order, run the proud test: Does it feel good in your hand? Does it work the first time and the tenth time? Will it still be used in a year? Would you be proud to hand it to your best customer? Four yeses is inexpensive. Anything less is just cheap.

Do this today

Cost: $0Time: 10 minutes

1
Go to the box of stuff you hand out. Take one of each thing out.
2
Hold each one in your hand and run the proud test.
3
If it passes, hand them all out. If it doesn’t, don’t reorder it.
4
Write down what you’ll buy instead next time, and why.

Don’t put your name on something that breaks. Buy the one you’d be proud to hand over.

Stolen from the masters · Warren Buffett

Warren Buffett is one of the most successful investors who has ever lived. Every year, he writes a letter to the people who own shares in his company. In one of them, he put the whole idea in nine words:

“Price is what you pay; value is what you get.”

Buffett made his fortune by looking past the price tag. You can do the same thing with a pen. Don’t ask, “What does it cost?” Ask, “What do I get for it?”

From the book