PRINT: The Growing Multi in Multimedia

THE MEANS for companies to communicate with customers expand on an almost daily basis. The Internet, cell phones, movie theaters, kiosks and dozens of other outlets have joined print, radio and TV as popular methods of delivering ads and messages.

The market research firm Yankelovich quantifies the impact of the growing array of communication methods this way: consumers encounter between 3,500 and 5,000 marketing messages a day, or three to four times as many as in the 1970s.

In this environment, conventional wisdom would suggest that no single medium would prevail…and certainly not the one that has been around the longest. In fact, the centuries-old category of print rises above all others and accounts for almost half of all U.S. ad dollars. That includes direct mail, newspapers, yellow pages, consumer and business publications, collateral and point-of-sale materials.

The Adaptability of Print

What’s behind the ongoing vitality of print? Human nature partially explains it. Print thrives simply because people know and enjoy it. While that’s been true through the years, in a 24/7 technology-driven, world—one in which consumers have more media choices than ever—familiarity and likability don’t guarantee success.

Print remains at the forefront of communications media because of its unique ability to evolve, expand and adapt to meet the changing needs of business and society. In today’s multimedia environment, no other medium comes close to matching the multi-functional, multi-application and multi-technology power of print. Print is portable, and users choose to actively and physically engage in print, unlike other mediums that are forced on all of us.

Several market trends reflecting the dynamic nature of print—color, versioning, shorter runs and variable data—will continue to gain momentum in 2008. While each of these areas represents new ways of producing effective print, many communications programs incorporate all four aspects to maximize effectiveness.

Color and VDP Rising Fast

The increased use of color and variable data to create printed materials that stand out and produce results will accelerate during the coming years. Transpromo communications exemplify these types of new applications.

Transpromo communications are transactional documents used to deliver promotional messages. Bills, statements and other transactional documents, by their nature, have a captive audience and provide an ideal opportunity to tailor messages based on a consumer’s interests, preferences and patterns. Incorporating personalized color variable data into bills and statements creates a customer communication piece that gets attention and causes action.

Other color-driven, variable data solutions that will accelerate in 2008 include Web-based, customizable templates for brochures and marketing materials, personalized direct mail, books and catalogs, and photo services such as calendars, cards and books. These short-run jobs are ideal for customers to create and order online.

Web Storefronts to Proliferate

More print providers in 2008 will offer Web-to-print solutions with an electronic storefront, making it easy and efficient for users to place orders and for print providers to streamline processes, from production through invoicing. Linking an electronic storefront with a digital press creates an even more efficient system for developing and producing short-run, customized materials.

The growth in color and variable data spans offset and digital, and many print providers operating in blended production environments are combining conventional printing with a digital printing solution. Long runs of offset-printed full-color brochures, for example, serve as much more effective communication tools when personalized data gets added digitally.

Integrating ink-jet printing with offset presses represents another new application for color and variable data. This type of hybrid printing system gives printers strong competitive positions based on their cost structures and ability to produce personalized offset communications with rapid turnaround times.

Customized Newspapers

A recently introduced combination of technologies from Kodak and MAN Roland has brought on-press digital ink-jet printing at full speed to newspapers—and created the ultimate customized newspaper. The KODAK VERSAMARK DP6240 printer has been adapted to make it capable of printing 3,000 fpm on a newspaper press to add variable text, bar codes and images.

The technology enables variable numbering or coding on internal pages of folded newspapers to support a variety of news, advertising and promotional contest opportunities, tailored to specific audiences.

In 2008, new developments will lead to ink-jet printing systems that produce offset-class digital ink-jet images. Users can expect greater durability, gamut, speed and ease of use from these next-generation ink-jet systems.

The Workflow Behind it All

For print service providers to take advantage of the many functions, applications and technologies for printing, they will need a unified workflow. Bringing together the workflows associated with various systems and processes into a single workflow makes it easier for printers to manage and streamline their operations, increasing productivity and efficiency.

Print’s versatility extends beyond its multiple uses and applications as a stand-alone medium. Print service providers will find new growth potential by offering integrated services to comprise multimedia communications and campaigns, such as linking PURLs with VDP direct mail to create a highly personalized experience on paper and on the Web.

The Resiliency of Print

There are more media than ever for communicators to use to send their messages to audiences. Each option offers unique features, whether it’s reaching many people at once, such as through television, or delivering a message to a specific individual, as with a cell phone. Print is unparalleled in its ability to serve equally effectively as a mass medium, 1:1 marketing tool or part of a cross media campaign.

Print has a remarkable resiliency and unprecedented ability to become even more relevant with every new technology or medium. That’s the future of print. IPG

Jeffrey Hayzlett is chief business development officer and vice president of Eastman Kodak Co. With sales of $10.7 billion in 2006, Kodak is committed to a digitally oriented growth strategy focused on helping people better use meaningful images and information. For more information about Kodak’s Graphic Communications Group visit:

www.graphics.kodak.com