From the Editor: The Value of Adding Value
For years now we’ve encouraged in-plant managers to add new services to their repertoires, so they can increase the value they bring to their organizations. We did it again last month, with a feature story highlighting some of the unique services in-plants have launched.
It’s not only in-plants that are looking for new services to add, though. Commercial printers are expanding and diversifying as well, ever watchful for new revenue opportunities and a chance to differentiate themselves from competitors. And it seems to be paying off.
In a recent InfoTrends survey of Printing Impressions readers, print providers that have expanded their services beyond ink/toner on paper reported an 8 to 10 percent boost in annual revenues as well as the addition of new customers. Though their motives are slightly different from those of in-plants, some lessons can be learned from commercial printers’ experiences.
The types of value-added services commonly offered by commercial printers fall into three main areas: print-related services, marketing services and digital publishing. Print-related services (e.g., finishing, mailing, personalized communications, fulfillment) enable more cross- and up-selling, they say; digital media services (e.g., Website development, hosting and digital signage) expand their customer bases; and marketing services (e.g., design services, data preparation, content creation/management and cross-media marketing) offer competitive differentiation and strengthen customer relationships.
Survey respondents reported winning new customers as a result of adding these services. New print-related services earned them, on average, 14 new customers; adding digital media services brought in 11 new customers; and introducing marketing services gained them six new customers. This shows that communication buyers value print providers that offer a broad array of innovative services.
There are hurdles to adding services, though, as every in-plant manager knows. The main one is training employees to perform these new tasks. Then there’s the challenge of educating customers about the new offerings. One strategy reported by respondents is to test services by offering them to select customers before rolling them out to everyone else.
Also difficult, printers say, is ascertaining true costs and establishing accurate pricing estimates. While most printers are used to pricing work based on standardized manufacturing costs and the time required to do the work, for some of these new services the amount charged should be based instead on the value of the work. (Asking other in-plants what they charge is a good way to start.)
Despite the challenges, seeking out new services should be part of your strategy for 2015. Start by reading the story I wrote on value-added services in last month’s issue, and see what ideas that may inspire.
Related story: Add Services, Add Value
Bob has served as editor of In-plant Impressions since October of 1994. Prior to that he served for three years as managing editor of Printing Impressions, a commercial printing publication. Mr. Neubauer is very active in the U.S. in-plant industry. He attends all the major in-plant conferences and has visited more than 180 in-plant operations around the world. He has given presentations to numerous in-plant groups in the U.S., Canada and Australia, including the Association of College and University Printers and the In-plant Printing and Mailing Association. He also coordinates the annual In-Print contest, co-sponsored by IPMA and In-plant Impressions.