Not that this is anything earth-shattering, but the problem is with places like Amazon.com, Buy.com, etc (a HUGE list, BTW), most off-the-shelf items have become simple commodities. That is what the consumer perceives, and what you are fighting daily. CNC? Hah- now guys think that all you have to do is draw it, chuck a chunk of metal, then cut it. Bam- instant custom part that
'has to be cheap because they didn't have to build it by hand'.
Again- it's an issue of consumer perception, not your reality.
While most of the older guys might not internet shop- The customer that is going to pay your bills for the next 30 years is well versed in shopping around. Note that I did not mention Summit & Jegs... they changed the buying landscape, but that was going to happen anyway. If it wasn't them it would have been somebody else (remember when the PAW catalog was 400+ pages?).
John- you know as well as I do what happens to the guys that are in business to undercut the 'other guy'. They won't last long. If guys are price shopping, let them. They'll be back around when the real character of the 'other guy' comes out.
Jeff