Stereotyping of Model Maker’s Capabilities

Building reputation and long term relationships with customers is one of the primary objectives of model making business’ marketing.  Clients interested in model making services in most cases will become returning customers. Whenever a client is a museum, an architect, a product developer or a designer, it is unlikely that the project they commissioned you for was the one and only. By the nature, such businesses will do other projects in the future, where they also will be in need of model maker’s assistance. If you treated them right, followed the client’s requirements, provided a high quality product by reasonable price, that client will come back for more.

Depending of the type and nature of the initial project a client might, however, to form a certain opinion of your capabilities, which might affect your whole further relationships with that client. Despite model maker’s effort to present and market his universal capabilities, a stereotype, which limits these capabilities might be imprinted on your client’s mind after completion of the initial project or a series of initial projects.

Say, you made a model of a spacecraft, a satellite. Be aware that from now on the customer most likely will be thinking of you as of “a satellite maker”. It is not a client’s fault, this is a subconscious process, a client might not even have much of a control over it. Also, it is related to client’s confidence in your abilities based on past experience. You provided a model of a satellite and it was good. So from now on your client knows that you are comfortable with making a models of satellites, therefore, the client is comfortable with ordering more models of satellites from you.

Imprinting of such stereotype in many cases is not bad at all. If you are working with architectural or property development firm, they will be interested in ordering architectural models and nothing else. Therefore you will have with them a reputation of a good and reliable architectural model maker, which is all you need. A client such as furniture manufacturer will see you as a maker of fixture’s prototypes. There is no reason to fight it, because such customers are specializing in particular narrow field and are not interested in any other types of models by default.

It is different if your client is a museum or exhibit designer, for example. Once a part of a design might be a scale replica of a vehicle, once – architectural model, once – oversized model of an insect or a particular device. Relationships with such client might be exciting and quite fruitable, first of all in terms of receiving interesting jobs different by nature. Beware of imprinting on the mind of such client a stereotype of you as a provider of only one of the types of models that the client might be needing. It might affect the whole relationships with that customer and a work flow.

I was working and keep working with one of the largest manufacturers of novelty collectibles in the United States. One of the biggest problems with that customer was that after a while they formed a stereotype of me as an architectural model maker. I had no problem receiving a flow of architecture related models and replicas, both scale accurate and whimsical. However, each time my client was needed a replica of a vehicle, aircraft or spacecraft I felt reluctance and a luck of confidentiality coming from my client. More than that, when it came to sculpted models – dolls and figurines, a reluctance and resistance were increasing to a maximum. It was especially frustrating because the vice-president for product development is a smart and open minded person, knew me for years and was well aware of the range of my capabilities.

Here is another example of stereotyping of my company’s capabilities. I was approached by large local property development firm, which has a big 2-part model of residential complex. They needed to transport the model to a trade show, given a disassembly of it was definitely requiring a trained model maker. The model was built in Boston and, as I learned by much higher price that I would ask for it. I was very much interested in establishing relationships with that firm, hoping that the next models will be ordered from my company. I made sure to let the client know my intentions, I was assured that I will be given an opportunity to bid on the next model. I transported the model four or five times to a trade show, to the township and back to the office. Unfortunately, although I clearly presented my capabilities as a model making company, presented my company’s portfolio and a web site, and even provided a complimentary routine maintenance and repairs of the model, I started to feel that a stereotype of my role as merely a model’s transporter was formed despite all my efforts. As soon as I learned that the established relationships go nowhere beyond transporting the model and the next one is, again, ordered from another remote model maker without even inviting me to bid I refused to transport the model anymore.

This phenomena is most often seen in actor’s career. Once an actor appeared in one or more movies as a comic, an image and stereotype of that actor  as a “funny guy” is formed and that is the type of roles that will be offered to him or her. It will take an enormous effort to break this stereotype and to appear in serious movie. You can come up yourself with a long list of such actors. Same phenomena applies on model makers.

A stereotype might be even narrower, than it affect your work flow even greater. I mentioned earlier that stereotyping is not a bad thing when you are working for architectural firm because such client interested in architectural models only. Yet a narrower stereotyping might occur in specialized field and affect a work flow. Imagine that you are working with architects that designed a school or a few schools in a row. The firm ordered from you model or models of schools. Relationships are established, you provided excellent models,  earned a spotless reputation – everyone is happy.  Next your client approaches you regarding a model of, let’s say, a hospital. You suddenly find yourself in a situation when your client is carefully asking you if you can do a model of a hospital, if you ever did models of hospitals, if you did models of hospitals in that particular scale and such… You feel a reluctance of your client and sudden doubt in your abilities, which you cannot explain to yourself. How so – you’ve completed a few successful models for the client, you proved yourself, your expertize, your skills, your trustworthiness! You feel like you have to build the relationships and a trust all over again. That is because you’ve been stereotyped. For you a model of the hospital is another architectural model, same process, same principles apply – only a subject is different. For your client you are a “school’s model builder”, a stereotype that is subconsciously imprinted. Sadly, yes, there is not much you can do about it, you have to build the trust and reputation all over again, as wisely and carefully as you did it the first time.

Unfortunate? Yes.

Ridiculous? Yes, in most cases, and make no mistake – stereotyping hurts, affecting your reputation and a work flow.

However, the very knowledge of the phenomena should make your job easier. Being aware of it will help you to redirect your marketing tactics.  Determine clients with potential to assign you diversity of jobs, concentrate on them, let them know the full extent of your capabilities. Sending out a newsletter or promotional brochure make sure that such clients will be receiving an information about products other than products they ordered or currently ordering from you. Make sure these customers receive this information more frequently than the others. It will not completely guarantee you from forming a stereotype, however it will reduce the effect on your business and a work flow.