Despite COVID-19, business basics still apply. What’s new for printing service providers is finding creative ways to refresh and execute proven strategies. Here's how service providers are altering or updating their execution to improve business results.
Barbara A. Pellow
Successful print service providers understand that change is mandatory and embrace it. As 2020 approaches, developing strategies that incorporate market changes will be vital to print providers’ success. Here are the top trends that will yield the most influence for service providers of all types and sizes.
Marketing attribution is defined as the science of using advanced analytics and key metrics to allocate proportional credit to each marketing touchpoint across all online and offline channels that have led to the desired customer behavior.
When the Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival was in full swing last month, the wildly cheering crowd included several dozen in-plant managers who had traveled to Rochester, NY, to attend an educational event hosted by Xerox. Taking place a week after the In-plant Printing and Mailing Association conference, the two-day forum drew 56 people from…
The current economy can be viewed as a threat or an opportunity. For in-plants that have made the right investments, the economy has opened the door to some new and exciting opportunities.
You need to proactively and succinctly communicate the value that the in-plant is delivering to the organization in terms that all levels of management will understand.
Digital technologies and demands from users are forcing in-plants to adjust their service portfolios. Today’s market is all about adding value to the overall communications process.
In a difficult economic climate, organizations are seeking to improve business metrics by outsourcing operations that are not directly related to their core products.
THE IN-PLANT market is probably the most underestimated user of digital printing technology. The influence of the in-plant is apparent from an examination of the segments where on-demand devices are being placed. The in-plant market drove the adoption of black-and-white digital printing and currently accounts for 40 percent of high-speed monochrome print-on-demand cut-sheet installations. The in-plants are also leading the color charge, accounting for 30 percent of placements in the 24-59 pages per minute (ppm) production color segment and 20 percent of the convenience color copier/printers and production color devices in excess of 60 ppm. Just like the entire print-for-pay market, in-plants are
AS ALTERNATIVE media threaten print volumes, in-plants must take another look at their business models and adapt to the changing business climate. Revenue growth will depend on cost reduction through new workflow efficiencies, as well as new revenue sources from value-added services. Although hardware improvements will certainly play a role in advancing these objectives, the software driving these devices—along with other workflow solutions—will allow printers to differentiate themselves. Research indicates a growing divide between service providers that are growing their businesses and those that see their businesses in decline. Those who “get it” understand that continued growth depends on a three-pronged approach:
THE QUICK printing market doesn’t bear a lot of resemblance to the little “mom and pop” shops that opened on the corner back in the 1960s. The small quick printer was typically identified with a franchise network and was doing work that was “down and dirty.” Today’s market consists of a series of high-tech wizards, all striving for profitable business in the enterprise market. In-plants need to ask themselves, “Am I competing with quick printers for work that could otherwise be produced in the in-plant? Are there emerging sources of competition I haven’t thought about?” THEN AND NOW Ten years ago, the term
DIGITAL COLOR was introduced to the marketplace more than a decade ago. Indigo and Xeikon unveiled key new products in the mid-1990s, and early projections were that these technologies would take off. Initially, as with a number of new technologies, there were technical issues. Presses were unreliable; ink and toner didn’t stick to the paper; and the cost of consumables was too high to generate any substantial application transfer from offset technology. Today, Indigo has been taken over by Hewlett Packard. Xeikon faced bankruptcy before being acquired by Punch Technologies. Kodak bought out Heidelberg’s share of NexPress. Ink and toner are now sticking
WHILE DIGITAL color has been the hot topic in the printing industry for the past few years, digital black-and-white printing still accounts for the majority of the digital print volume. According to InfoTrends, black-and-white devices produced 874 billion impressions and generated $17.8 billion in retail value of print in 2005. Total equipment revenues (equipment, supplies and service) reached $7.41 billion. Equipment vendors have not lost sight of this opportunity and have continued to introduce new and improved devices to replace existing digital black-and-white equipment, as well as to open new market opportunities. Vendors realize that selling equipment has become about more than feeds and
PAPER IS the sole opportunity for an audience to hold your organization’s identity in its hands. Paper reaches the target audiences’ sense of touch, and the paper used to communicate your organization’s message influences recipients’ perceptions of the organization. As they touch your letter, sales collateral or direct mailer, the consumer may make judgments about your quality, durability and whether or not you are high-tech. As little as five years ago, digital presses and color copiers could not run all the papers that offset presses could. The Indigo E-Print required special pre-treatment of all papers (otherwise the ink just rubbed off). Xeikon-based
THE MARKETING budget in corporate America typically falls victim to intense scrutiny. In a results-driven age, the chief marketing officer feels intense pressure from executive officers, boards, shareholders and customers to deliver measurable results. As a consequence, marketers are always asking questions like these: • How can I be as efficient as possible in my marketing efforts so I don’t waste time and money? • How can I make sales personnel more productive in prospecting and closing business? • How do I keep the sales funnel filled with qualified leads? • How can I more effectively get clients to come to me instead of
