I have an exhibit at the end of the month and at the last minute, I decided I wanted to make up some CDs with screensavers on them. I thought it would be a nice touch to print up some CD covers for the thin jewel cases and figured with them being 4.75 inches in size I could fit 2 to a page. My goal was to find the cheapest place locally to print them or print them myself. As ink cartridges are so expensive these days, my husband and I did the math and figured it would cost us about dollar a page to print on photo paper with our home printer.
We recently cashed in on the 20 free 4x6 photos Walgreens was offering so I decided to check there first. The last order I placed online was ready to be picked up in half an hour which would be really convenient in this situation. I found their price list in only a few clicks. Each 8x10 would cost $3.99. Meh, not a great idea since I want to sell the CDs for a couple bucks a piece.
So I went to FedEx/Kinko’s site to see if I could find out what their prices were to print up a color 8.5x11. Hmm… Nothing on the front page about print prices. So I hit the old faithful CTRL+F to bring up the Firefox Find tool bar and typed the word “price” hoping it could help in my quest for the hidden price page. I’m interested in sending them the file online and picking up the prints locally, so I start with the “Online Printing” page. Nothing about price there either… nor is there any information in the next 15 pages I look. The FAQ is useless. Searching for the term “print”? Useless. After looking for a price list for over half an hour, I come to the conclusion that FedEx/Kinko’s must not WANT me to buy anything from them because while they seem to find it important to answer questions like “Where do I install Microsoft .NET Framework?” they never answer questions like “How much is a freaking color print?” So I found a phone number for the local FedEx/Kinko’s near me, which was my last resort since I really hate talking to strangers on the phone. I call and they tell me it will be $.89 for each one-sided color print; if I want it on glossy it will cost $1.78.
Grrr @ them. Why do they do it this way? The only answer I can surmise is that they give each individual store the ability to raise or lower the prices as they choose. But why make it so hard for potential customers to find out something about their product or service, something as basic as price? To this, I give an emphatic “Booo!” Get with the program, Kinko’s. There must be 5000 Walgreen stores across America, yet they can still find a way to regulate prices.
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I'm Stacy Reed, welcome to my blog! In the folders below, you'll find galleries of my artwork. I like to dabble in a bit of everything, from digital experimentations with kaleidoscopes and fractals to to sculpting and painting with acrylics and watercolors. I also like to post things that amuse and interest me, videos about art, mathematics and science... oh yeah, and once a month I post a picture of my messy desk.
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FedEx/Kinko's - The Price Hunt
Comments
Re: FedEx/Kinko's - The Price Hunt
by
Dee Marie
on Sun 28 Jan 2007 08:19 AM EST | Permanent Link
I understand your frustration. My novel completed, I have been searching for alternative printing methods to send copies to my line editors. I just wasted over an hour at the FedEx Kinko web site. The site is a dismal excuse for locating pricing information, or even information on specific printing services provided.
I would think that since Kinko’s is a chain, they would have a universal price sheet. Or, at the very least a price sheet with a disclaimer “individual store prices may vary.” Not a great way to induce new customers to use their services. Ironically, on one of their demos they state: “there are no hidden costs when sending online content to be printed.” Best of luck with your future art exhibits. Beautiful work! Dee-Marie Re: FedEx/Kinko's - The Price Hunt
by
Anonymous
on Fri 13 Jul 2007 05:57 PM EDT | Permanent Link
Ever tried Mimeo.com. I found this promo code online where you get $100 off your first order. go2print. Put it in when you sign up for an account. They don't have the prices upfront but it shows you the price as you create whatever your planning to print. At least you see the price along the way.
Re: FedEx/Kinko's - The Price Hunt
by
Anonymous
on Tue 13 Nov 2007 02:54 PM EST | Permanent Link
I came across this page as I myself searched for Kinko's printing prices. Oh irony.
You're right on about why they don't post prices on their main site. Trolling through cyberspace, I found quite a few entries for individual centers, and sure enough they all had different prices. So how much does it cost to print at Kinko's? I believe the answer is, "whatever they feel people are willing to pay." Re: FedEx/Kinko's - The Price Hunt
by
Samantha
on Thu 24 Apr 2008 10:27 PM EDT | Permanent Link
Ahh...I thought I was the only one who noticed this, in fact, I found this by doing a Google search for the price of color prints for FedEx/Kinkos.
Re: Re: FedEx/Kinko's - The Price Hunt
by
Anonymous
on Thu 08 May 2008 11:06 AM EDT | Permanent Link
Kinkos lost my printing business. Don't know it would have been worth the trip, but I just used the local Officemax since Kinks couldn't be bothered to list prices.
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