Why this matters for a CNC shop
A one-time customer buys one sign or one tumbler. An organization buys every season: plaques every spring, shirts-and-tumblers every fall, a closing gift every time a house sells, a bracket every time a machine wears one out. Once your files and settings are saved, a reorder takes a fraction of the setup time of a new job. Chasing these buyers on purpose, instead of hoping they come back, is one of the steadiest kinds of work a small shop can build.
What you need
- Five to ten finished samples you're proud of, sized to hand out or leave behind
- A one-page sheet: what you make, a starting price or "price per piece at 10, 25 and 50," your turnaround, and contact info
- A simple account sheet (spreadsheet) for each repeat buyer, laid out below
- A folder system for saved art, fonts and machine files
- A calendar or reminder app
Buyers who reorder
| Segment | What they buy again and again |
|---|---|
| Schools and school boosters | Awards and plaques, senior gifts, teacher gifts, name plates, spirit signs, prototype and robotics parts |
| Sports clubs and leagues | End-of-season awards, coach gifts, banquet trophies, team tumblers, sponsor signs |
| Insurance agencies, realtors and title companies | Closing gifts (cutting boards, house signs, keychains), client appreciation gifts, office signs |
| Breweries, bars and restaurants | Tap handles, menu boards, coasters, custom glassware, wall signs, table numbers |
| Churches | Signs, donor and memorial plaques, gifts for volunteers and staff, event items |
| Businesses of all kinds | Promo items, employee service awards, holiday gifts, branded tumblers and pens, office signs |
| Local manufacturers, farms and repair shops (machining and 3D printing) | Replacement parts, fixtures and jigs, short production runs, prototypes, brackets and spacers |
Step-by-step setup
- Pick two segments to start. Don't chase all of them. Pick the two that fit your machines and what you like making. A laser shop might start with realtors and schools. A machine shop might start with local manufacturers and ag repair shops.
- Build a list of 20 names in each. Use Google Maps ("title company near me," "brewery in [Town]"), your chamber of commerce member list, school district and athletic websites, league websites, church directories, and your own past customers. For machining, look at industrial parks, the local economic development office's employer list, and machine and ag repair shops. Write down the business, the person who buys (office manager, athletic director, owner, maintenance lead, purchasing), phone and email.
- Make a sample for each segment. Put their kind of item in their hands. A realtor gets a cutting board engraved "Welcome Home, The [Sample] Family." A brewery gets a coaster with their own logo. A machine shop contact gets a clean part with a note on the tolerance you held. Use their logo only on a sample you hand to that business, never in your own ads without permission.
- Make first contact. Stop by in person when you can, with the sample. Use the scripts below. Follow up by email the same day.
- Follow up twice, then move on. One follow-up a week later, one more two or three weeks after that. If there's no interest, mark them "not now" and try again next season.
- When they order, set up the account. Save their files, fill in the account sheet, and set their reorder reminder before you ship the first order.
First-contact scripts
Walk-in, with a sample
"Hi, I'm [Name]. I run [Shop Name] here in [Town]. We make [custom closing gifts / awards / tap handles / parts]. I made this one to show you what we do. Is [the person who orders these] around? ... I'd like to leave it with you along with a price sheet. If you ever need [a batch for a closing / end-of-season awards / a part in a hurry], I'm local and I keep your files on hand, so reorders are quick."
Phone
"Hi, this is [Name] with [Shop Name] in [Town]. Who handles ordering [awards / client gifts / signs / replacement parts] there? ... I make those right here in town. Could I drop off a sample and a price sheet this week? It takes two minutes."
Follow-up email
Subject: Sample from [Shop Name]
Hi [Name],
Thanks for your time today. As promised, here's my price sheet [attached / link].
Quick summary:
- [What you make for them]
- Price per piece at 10 / 25 / 50: [$ / $ / $]
- Usual turnaround: [X] business days
- I save your logo and files, so reorders are fast
If you have something coming up, reply with the date and quantity and I'll send a quote.
[Your Name]
[Shop Name] · [Phone]
Machining: to a maintenance lead or buyer
Subject: Local machine shop for parts and short runs
Hi [Name],
I run [Shop Name], a [one/two/three]-person machine shop in [Town]. We do [CNC milling / turning] in [aluminum, steel, plastics], from one-off replacement parts to short runs, working from a drawing, a CAD file, or a worn part.
If you have a part that's hard to get, slow to ship, or needs a small change, send me a drawing or a photo and I'll quote it.
[Your Name] · [Phone] · [Email]
Standing orders and reorder reminders
Offer a standing order
When a buyer has a pattern (awards every May, a closing gift for every house), offer to set it up so they don't have to think about it.
"Since you do this every [season / closing], want me to put it on a schedule? I'll email you [four weeks] ahead to confirm the count and any name changes, and you'll never be scrambling the week before."
Set the reminder
Every time a repeat buyer orders, put a reminder in your calendar for the next likely order, a few weeks before they'll need it. Put their name and what they bought in the reminder title.
Subject: Time to start your [spring awards / holiday gifts]?
Hi [Name],
Last [year / season] we made [quantity] [items] for [Organization] and they went out [date]. I still have your files saved.
Want the same again? Send me the count and any name changes by [date] and I'll have them ready by [date].
[Your Name]
Keep art and files on file
- One folder per account. Name it the customer's name. Inside: logo files, fonts, the finished design, the machine file (laser job, toolpath, slicer profile or CAM program), and a photo of the finished piece.
- Write down the settings. Material, size, power and speed, bit or tool, filament and color, finish. Keep it in a text file in the same folder. Next time you won't be guessing.
- Back it up. Keep a second copy in cloud storage or on an external drive.
- Get permission for logos. Only use a customer's logo on their own orders unless they say in writing you can show it.
The account sheet
One row per repeat buyer, in any spreadsheet.
| Column | Example |
|---|---|
| Organization | Central High Booster Club |
| Buyer name and role | Dana Lee, booster treasurer |
| Phone / email | (555) 555-0100 · dana@example.com |
| Segment | School |
| What they buy | Senior awards, coach plaques |
| Last order date and quantity | April 28 · 42 plaques |
| Usual timing | Every April, banquet early May |
| Next reminder date | March 15 |
| File folder | /Accounts/Central High Boosters |
| Price paid / terms | $[x] each · pays by check on pickup |
| Notes | Needs a proof approved by the athletic director |
Keep it going: the weekly routine
- Monday, 30 minutes: check the account sheet for reminders due this week and send them.
- One visit or call a week: reach one new prospect from your list of 20.
- After every repeat order: update the row and set the next reminder.
Checklist
- Two segments picked
- List of 20 prospects in each
- A sample made for each segment
- One-page price sheet with quantity pricing
- Account sheet started
- File folder for every repeat buyer, with settings written down
- Reorder reminder set for every repeat buyer
- Standing order offered to anyone with a pattern
Common mistakes
- Talking to whoever answers instead of finding the person who actually orders.
- Giving away big free samples to everyone. Keep samples small and targeted.
- Losing the file and settings, then redoing setup on a "quick" reorder.
- Waiting for the customer to remember you. Send the reminder.
- Quoting one price with no quantity breaks. Organizations buy in batches.
- Promising a turnaround you can't hold during a busy season.
Notes by shop type
| Shop | What's different |
|---|---|
| Wood carving and signs | Breweries, churches and businesses reorder signs less often but spend more. Keep in touch for new locations, menu changes and events. |
| Laser engraving | The best fit for this page. Schools, clubs, realtors and corporate gifts all order on a pattern. Quantity price sheets matter most here. |
| 3D printing | Look for businesses that need custom holders, jigs, replacement knobs and clips, and small runs. Save the print profile with every file. |
| Machining | Relationships are with the maintenance lead, engineer or buyer. Some will ask you to fill out a vendor or supplier form and provide a W-9 and insurance certificate. Have them ready. Keep revision letters on every drawing so a reorder matches the right version. |
Want Annie's to do this for you? We can build your prospect list, price sheet and account sheet, and set up the reorder reminders for you.