Merging Print And Marketing

Feeling distant from your organization's marketing department? It's time to get closer. Printing marketing materials just might save your shop.

by Vic Barkin

"That dang marketing department! They never talk to us, always go outside to other printers, and have no idea what we do around here!"

Sound familiar?

In many corporations, organizations and universities, the printing and copying operations were not created to aid their parent's external marketing efforts. As a result, many in-plants are still segregated from those who determine the marketing strategies.

But with the Web and the desktop printer conspiring to steal certain traditional sources of in-plant work, the time is at hand for in-plants to develop closer relationships with their marketing departments. Printing your organization's marketing materials just might be the only thing that keeps your shop alive in the difficult years ahead.

Just Another Customer?

In a recent survey of university printers conducted by John T. Sarantakos, director of Printing Services for Central Missouri State University, 89 percent of respondents said they answered to the finance department and/or administration.

Of those who responded to a follow-up question, 62 percent said they had a very close working relationship with their marketing department—but 38 percent said marketing was a customer just like everyone else.

That's the kind of thinking that can get you into trouble.

To quote Ray Chambers, vice president and CIO for Juniata College, "Several people mentioned that marketing was 'just another customer.' I couldn't agree less. The work coming out of the marketing department is very, very important to the university and its leadership. It's strategic. And, going back to one of the key arguments against being outsourced, an organization should never outsource a strategic process."

Those who consider the marketing department "just another customer" should rethink their relationship. The expertise in-plants have is invaluable and is an untapped resource for marketers and recruiters. You need to promote and market that point to them.

Marketing is more than just print on paper. Web design and content management, newspaper and magazine ads, radio, television, telemarketing, billboards and CDs are just some of the methods marketers use to communicate to prospects. To intelligently discuss a merger or partnership, you must realize that printed communication is sometimes a very small part in your organization's overall marketing strategy.

What you do want them to realize is that they have a potential partner right in their own backyard who is totally committed to them and ready to help achieve their desired outcome, as far as printed material is concerned.

Marketing departments have one mission in life. They must find ways to increase market share, while getting the most return for their advertising dollar.

Advertising budgets vary from business to business. The standard is anywhere from 4 to 25 percent, depending on product, desired visibility, brand retention and the amount of competition in the marketplace. A soft drink manufacturer is much more likely to have a higher advertising budget than a toilet manufacturer. Why? Because a consumer does not buy a six-pack of toilets on a regular basis. The trick is to allocate the proper amount of dollars to best target the most appropriate audience.

Institutional vs. Product Advertising

Most organizations use two primary promotional methods. The first is branding or "institutional" advertising in which the company's image is forged and maintained. This type of marketing is the basis for the second method, that of "product" advertising, where specific items are marketed under the branded image or persona of the organization.

Institutional branding is where in-plants can gain a firm foothold, especially if the organization's main graphics department is part of your printing operation. By creating and maintaining a persona, every marketing piece produced will have the same look and feel to it. If you're involved in this process with the marketing department, you can lay the foundation for a steady stream of work in every segment of your production world.

If the marketing department has its own design group and you don't, or if both departments do but they're segregated, start talking about handling the jobs they may be outsourcing that fall within your department's niche. If you are properly budgeted and your equipment has a decent utilization rate, there is no reason you cannot be competitive with an outside vendor's pricing.

Promote Your Value

Demonstrate in tangible form all the benefits of a partnership or merger with the marketing department. Foremost should be the cost savings of internally coordinating projects, which can save a tremendous amount of time—and time is money to any department.

Design and job specifications, proof approvals and press checks, not to mention delivery and distribution logistics, are all time-consuming activities. Hours, if not days, can be saved if jobs are produced in-house. What is a marketer's time actually worth to the company? An average figure is probably somewhere between $25 and $50 per hour, depending on budgeted hourly rate distribution (number of departmental employees divided by operational overhead, including labor).

Next, look at pricing. Are you competitive with the outside vendors the marketing department is currently using? What do they offer that you can do better, or at least as well, at a lower cost? Is the absence of sales tax an incentive? Are you located in the same facility as the mailing department? How much time will be saved by streamlining distribution processes? All of this has value.

Finally, look for other benefits you can offer that will demonstrate a competitive advantage in the marketplace. Be faster and leaner than the competition and offer a true production partnership with your marketing department. Convince them you are one of them—a part of their arsenal.

Two approaches are available to form a cohesive union with your marketing group. The first and most desirable is a top-down approach with full administrative support. If different silos exist, and the marketing department reports to the vice president of sales and the printing department reports to the vice president of auxiliary services, then both administrators must be brought on board. Demonstrate the financial benefits that can be realized by a more streamlined, integrated approach.

This may not be as easy as it sounds, as old walls are sometimes harder to knock down. So the second approach is to build a grass roots effort between the different departments or even specific people. Develop stronger relationships with the marketing and advertising departments through exploratory meetings to see where your department can help in the overall efforts of the organization.

Carefully look at everything that represents your organization's image. No doubt some jobs were, for whatever reason, either badly conceived or cost more to produce or mail than necessary. Make suggestions. Evaluate jobs that could be produced more efficiently or with more up-to-date technology. Variable data and personalization are prime areas to target.

Tactfully demonstrate achievable dollar savings or better returns that can be realized with modifications to existing documents. These people must see you're here to help, not move in on their territory. Demonstrate your expertise and make sure they're aware of it.

If properly implemented, a partnership can prove to be a big feather in the caps of all concerned. It also can ensure your survival when your old, reliable work mix dries up. This will mean taking a close look at what technology you will need to fulfill the marketing department's needs. Dispose of underutilized equipment and determine what your future needs will be based on your organization's marketing strategy.

Become A Valued Partner

The bottom line is to be a valued partner in the eyes of your organization's community. Your goals should be, first, supporting the mission and goals of your parent company; second, making a financial contribution to the organization; and third, leading the way with innovation and technology.

Get out and prove to the marketers in your organization that you can be of great value to them. Do your research, and market yourselves as the best possible source for their needs. Investigate what kind of work they need, both now and in the future, and how it fits into your market niche.

Forge partnerships. Ask yourself if the volume in any given area justifies delving into new areas of service. Can you save marketers time and money? Are their best interests served by your department's commitment to investing in new equipment?

By moving to ensure your own survival, you may find you not only can help your department's bottom line, but you can also help your work force achieve a greater sense of pride and accomplishment. After all, they will be part of the team responsible for your parent organization's positive image and success in the marketplace.

Vic Nathan Barkin is the Printing and Reproductions Manager for Northern Arizona University. He has more than 20 years of experience in the printing industry, including seven years at Northland Press book publishers and seven years at NAU. In 1995 Vic received a Customer Service Excellence award from the Society of Service Professionals in Printing, and in 1998, Vic obtained his certification from the International Publishing Management Association as a Certified Graphic Communication manager. You can contact him at: Victor.Barkin@nau.edu

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Sidebar: NAU's 'Toolbox' Approach

Prior to 1992, marketing at the Northern Arizona University was decentralized. The News and Publications department outsourced most printing jobs, and Duplicating Services, then a separate entity, produced mostly operational documents.

The merger of the two departments in 1992 into what is now NAU Creative Communications opened a floodgate of different kinds of work. The Publications operation (which was split off from the news division) and the Duplicating Services arm started producing many pieces that were previously outsourced.

In 1998 Northern Arizona University strategically reorganized what has become the Office of Public Affairs and Marketing (OPAM) to create an integrated "toolbox of services," including:

• Media Relations

• Issues Management

• Community Relations

• Internal Communications

• Creative Services

• Printing and Copying Services

• Special Events Planning and Consulting Services

• Student Recruitment

• Reputation Management/Persona

• Marketing Consultative Services

This reorganization was spearheaded by Kurt Davis, vice president of the Office of Public Affairs and Marketing.

During the initial restructuring, all parties participated in planning meetings followed by team-building workshops and a continuing series of retreats to solve issues and brainstorm new approaches to fulfill the goals of the university.

Over time, new partners were brought under the OPAM umbrella to further the overall marketing, recruitment and retention objectives of the university. New efforts will soon be implemented that will further ensure the integration of all segments of marketing. This includes the integration of enrollment management, electronic forms management and data warehousing.

NAU is developing an overall strategy that ties together every aspect of student recruitment and retention, and seamlessly integrates marketing, printing, mail and data functions, even though they don't all have the same reporting structure. Strategically planned branding and messaging will enable Creative Communications to protect the university's image and promote a cohesive identity.

The end result is an NAU "brand" that can be globally exploited so anyone, anywhere, can look at one of our marketing pieces and recognize it as NAU.