Digitizers as Storage?

what are your thoughts? you contract a digitizer.. they provide you with the file, you run the job... months later you come to them to retrieve the file? years later? what do you feel is the appropriate time for your digitizer to store your design after you have run your initial job successfully? To me.. my job is to see you through the job on hand when you ordered.. but 10 years later? really???? what is YOUR limit as to what you expect? seriously.. most of my clients have not been around 10 years.. we are fortunate to have 24

For years we have used RackSpace managed hosting, they back up our files 2 times a day.. and we have hardware and software firewalls... but it runs us about $1000.00 per month... however that insures that our clients in good standing do not have to worry as their files are secure and available. ( remember we are saving over 208,000 designs at this point! with quite a few more on prehistoric memory storage devices.. lol ...) But when we have a client that has not used us in 6 plus months or owes us money I feel the ability to access those past files takes a different turn in each case.

I agree with Steve as well... with the affordability of cloud storage our clients should also take advantage of that as well.

so last week a client wanted to know why a design we did for them before we created our website.. so 2003, was not available to them ON OUR WEBSITE. Now this client ordered 6 designs from us in all of 2013... and they are requesting a design be available to them OR redone for free from 2003?
Luckily we had it on Zip storage devices (anyone remember them?? LOL) but really, we do a design and it is a one hit wonder... we make our 20, 30 , 40 bucks one time... they get to use it for every order, hats, shirts, etc... forever! their income potential is ongoing... WE get 1 time. yet we are supposed to store it? heck, they are lucky we are still around! Just my opinion but it happens every month! what do you think?

Wow, how often does a client ask for their design later then? Anyone demand you owe them that and you have to repunch for them?

this morning a client that has not ordered from us in 23 months sent in a request for the master outline file for a design done in 2007. I advised that would run a $25 fee, they responded that they would never use us again!.

zombie thread!

but I thought I would revive it as the questions and issues still apply today.

Client recently sold their business... new owner apparently thought we were their storage for all the digitized files. Problem is the old client's account was locked for non payment... 3 invoices from 2016 were never paid so we shut them down. I told the new owner that if they paid the $275.00 owed then the account would be reopened. Without that payment we will not allow access to the previous client's library of over 600 designs.

Sorry. Did previous client not store them? Guess they were going through some financial issues hence the sale to another... but what are your thoughts? Account locked for non payment.

Or should only the designs that were not paid for be off limits? (I don't think this is OK)

We keep all our digitized master files as well. This client did receive their files.. they ran orders.. then chose not to pay us when the terms were due. BUT they DID have the files and DID complete their projects . Not my fault they did not keep a copy. Digitizers come and go each year so who in their right business mind would expect them to be storage forever?

You do not pay your digitizing fees we shut the account down. Period. (takes about 90 days to give them ample opportunity on net 30} I obviously do not think this is unfair.

wow, that sux.. been there we offer terms to anyone who asks... MOST honor those terms until such time as they start using another digitizer or go out of business. I have a client right now who keeps swearing the checks are in the mail... but even those checks would be considered net 60 lol. I believe they are good for it, fingers crossed, because they are going through some growing pains with a new buyout. Their account is still open for that reason even though they are into us about 1600.00.

so would you allow access of these files to the client who did not pay you? This goes back to this thread.

I have also contacted the end users a few times in my history... and more than once got business from it! (they liked going direct) After all the actual file is theirs since nothing was paid for and what use is it to me... I just email them the dst. Many have paid for it or another version of it.

zombie thread:

well with hurricanes in Texas, Florida and today Puerto Rico.

ANY of those clients... when they get back on their feet we would have NO problem sending them all of their previous designs. (although with internet they can access them on their own off our site. but just in case) like Digidana expressed earlier in this thread. Storage is no issue for anyone going through any personal calamity!

In fact we would have no problem offering free digitizing for a while to help them get back on their feet. Honestly it is the least we can do and if I knew how to help more I would.