Moving into VDP

SINCE THE development and maturation of digital presses, the concept of variable data printing (VDP) has become a reality. With today’s digital presses and software options it is possible to customize virtually every element on a page for every sheet that comes off of a digital press. The level of sophistication that can be achieved with today’s hardware and software options is mind-boggling.

The hot buzz term right now is “One-to-one Marketing.” Sending a personalized or customized message to an individual that has more relevance or meaning to them has proven to be a more effective way of marketing. Personalization can help break through the marketing clutter associated with our society.

Personalized marketing can be delivered by sending an explicit message, a transparent message or a combination of the two.

Transparent personalization would be sending a message to an individual that is personally meant for them, though they may not be aware of it. For example, a personalized marketing campaign could be developed for a group of people where the age of the person is known. Text and images can then be changed between specific age groups to appeal more to the age group being targeted. The person receiving the marketing message may not be aware that the information given to them may be different than information given to someone within another age group.

Explicit personalization then would contain text or images specific to a given individual, such as a person’s name or business address. A marketing piece can contain both transparent and explicit messages.

Personalized vs. Versioning

VDP as it relates to marketing can be categorized as either personalized or a form of versioning. A personalized piece would be designed to be unique for one specific person. A personalized document includes variations of text, graphics and layout to meet the needs of an individual consumer. A common example would be a piece that has a person’s first name built into the design and would therefore not be appropriate to send to any other individual (see photo).

Versioning, on the other hand, can have the same design sent to multiple people. An example of versioning would be a printed piece listing a regional toll free number or a mailer listing a local store location.

Another form of VDP printing that may or may not include marketing is transactional printing. Transactional printing includes all bills and statements sent to individuals or businesses. Because it incorporates personalized and customized content, transactional printing is actually the single highest use of VDP today. VDP has been available for a long time in the form of direct mail. Direct mail can simply be sending a mailing to a large group of people that only has their name and address on it. On much of today’s direct mail, the only varying elements are the black-and-white name and address changes. This is really a form of mass marketing and is proven to be not as effective as more targeted marketing. VDP then, is really a form of marketing.

Software for Personalization

There are currently hundreds of software options available for designing and producing VDP. Personalization can be done with something as simple as Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel at a relatively low cost. But the options are also limited with these software programs.

On the other end of the spectrum are software packages that can produce personalized messages within a graphic image or applications that can create not only variable printed pages but also variable e-mails and personalized URLs (PURLs). Combining PURLs with printed VDP is known as cross-media personalization.

The most popular software programs are either sold as stand-alone programs or plug-in programs that work within other applications such as Adobe InDesign, QuarkXPress or Adobe Acrobat. Plug-in options include Fusion Pro Desktop, which is a plug-in to Acrobat (www.printable.com) and uDirect (www.xmpie.com), which is a plug-in to InDesign. An example of a stand-alone software is PrintShop Mail (www.atlassoftware.com). Stand-alone software applications allow the static design information to be created in another application such as InDesign, Illustrator or QuarkXPress. Then it can be imported into PrintShop Mail where the variable information is added or created.

Although various VDP software applications offer different options depending on customer needs, most have the ability to vary text and graphics based on rules that can be customized for each printed piece. The software seems to be less of a restriction than the creative experience to design a variable piece. Since VDP is still relatively new in the field of design, it requires some creative thinking to design a piece that incorporates more than just the variation of someone’s first name.

Data Dependent

Another factor that contributes to the effectiveness of VDP is the data available. The more that is known about someone, the more relevant the message that can be sent to that individual. Even knowing someone’s gender or age can help. It becomes increasingly important to understand how to acquire and manage data when making the transition into VDP.

What if a university is doing a fund-raising campaign? If targeting alumni for a VDP direct mail piece, a wealth of relevant data exists that can be used to target that individual, such as year of graduation, degree or department. Perhaps images of buildings on campus that they are familiar with could be used or their name could be written on the sidewalk or on a building.

Likewise, many universities have done successful campaigns to prospective students using VDP. Personal messages can be sent to them from the department chair overseeing their area of interest.

Although VDP is very effective, and response rates are generally higher than less personalized campaigns, the challenge still remains in how to sell or price VDP. Because of the incorporation of variable data, the production and sales cycle is longer than producing static information. Therefore, the cost of VDP is higher than static printing.

It is very important then to communicate to customers the benefits of VDP so they can see the value in the added cost per piece. Most companies estimate and sell VDP based on the cost per response or cost per conversion (getting a customer to act on whatever is being marketed) rather than the cost per piece.

Since VDP is more effective, it is important to educate the customer on the overall results of an effective campaign, which can actually generate more revenue for the parent organization. IPG

Penny K. Bennett is an associate professor in the Graphic Communication Department of California Polytechnic State University, in San Luis Obispo, Calif. She teaches digital printing, electronic publishing, digital prepress, consumer packaging and specialty printing. Penny has a Ph. D. in Education from the University of Idaho. Her Master’s degree is from University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and her Bachelor’s degree is from Ferris State University, in Big Rapids, Mich. A consultant on digital printing and variable data printing issues, she has given presentations at numerous conferences, including Graph Expo and the PIA/GATF Variable Data and Personalization Conference. She has authored a book titled “The Handbook for Digital Printing and Variable-Data Printing.” It can be purchased from www.gain.net or www.amazon.com. You can reach her at: pkbennet@calpoly.edu