Gimbel & Associates Blog

 

For two long years, nobody put on an in-person event. Organizers migrated everything to virtual affairs or cancelled their plans outright. Now people are feeling safe enough to attend live events again. Sports teams are back to playing in front of their fans and entertainers are performing for audiences.

If you once had plans to host an open house at your printing company and never got the chance, it’s time to put that event back on the calendar.

Getting Back to In-Person Events

There’s no promotional investment that can make a bigger impression on customers and prospects than the personal interaction made possible with live events. Well-executed open houses are great ways for print service providers to achieve their goals for new business development, launching new product lines, or expanding business relationships.

 

Like the rest of us, print buyers have come through a challenging time. COVID has surely affected their jobs, and the profession itself has changed as print’s place in the marketing spectrum has evolved.

Today’s buyers include highly experienced professionals who understand the technicalities of print and are fascinated by equipment, and newly minted entrants who are likely to be digital natives or marketers without a great deal of printing experience. For them, buying print is not a primary function, but only one task in a broader portfolio. And let’s not forget that a lot of print buying has moved online.

 

Well, we are certainly living in interesting times. Two years of a global pandemic, followed by conflict in Ukraine, have resulted in labor disruptions, a choked global supply chain, and a shifting marketplace. What’s next is anyone’s guess at this point.

Interesting times certainly bring a host of challenges, but they also bring opportunity. That’s as true for the printing industry, which was living through its own interesting times even before the pandemic, as it is for individuals and society.

 

Online shopping is part of our culture.  During the pandemic we learned that even the least tech savvy consumer was doing their shopping online.  E-commerce is growing while retail businesses face declines in traditional in-person shopping. The trends in B2B shopping closely follow the consumer trends and the printing business is no exception. Online stores, also known as web-to-print or W2P, are an opportunity for printing companies to add value to their products, interact with clients in the ways they prefer, and grow their businesses.

A well-designed web-to-print solution can be a new sales tool for you, allowing you to make more sales to your existing client base.  Online storefronts allow print service providers to reach a broader audience with their existing clients. You may have a relationship with a solitary print buyer, but his or her company employs many other individuals who also order print, such as managers, administrative assistants, salespeople, or support staff. 

By analyzing the data collected from online storefront software about orders you receive, you can also gain knowledge about your clients or spot trends across market segments and adjust your marketing efforts accordingly.

 

Expanding into wide-format offerings is exciting on many fronts. It’s also challenging and complex as, among other things, it requires creating a smart manufacturing layout to produce the printed items profitably.

A good floor plan is like a puzzle—all the pieces must fit together to achieve the most efficiency. This includes moving materials, accessing equipment, creating networks, and other elements. Properly done, an efficient floor plan will reduce waste, increase productivity, and boost competitiveness.

Overall, the goal is to achieve an optimal flow. Create the most direct and productive means of physically moving a job from intake to production, to finishing and then shipping. The challenge is accommodating multiple printers, cutters, laminators, mounting devices, and other equipment into the flow.

The printing process is intricate and complex. Printing is a finely tuned and calibrated engineering feat with thousands of parts all moving in perfect harmony. On top of that, various technologies execute the function in different ways. While your customers needn’t be exposed to all the details, a little bit of knowledge about printing technology can’t hurt. Sharing information like this with your customers shows them you are a professional who has a thorough understanding of the industry.

Feel free to use the descriptions in this article to populate your own newsletters, blogs, emails, brochures or other communications aimed at your customers.

In-plant printing operations are different from commercial shops in significant ways. They are, for example, expected to provide services that support the goals of their parent companies. Sometimes that means decisions regarding scheduling, production, or resource allocation are dictated by the needs, wants, demands, and whims of the parent company, regardless of any financial impact on the in-plant.

But in-plants are like commercial shops in that they are expected to run efficiently and keep costs down while handily meeting customer expectations and delivering work on time. To operate at that

Wide-format printing, a large and resilient category, continues to show potential for growth and profitability. If you haven’t delved into wide format, it can be a significant new revenue stream for your print operations.

Definitions vary, but for our purposes, wide format means inkjet devices with printing widths of roughly five feet and greater. Encompassing many applications—posters, banners, pop-ups, labels, back-lit displays, textiles, home décor, wall art, and packaging—it also excels at very short runs with variable printing and customization.

In the first article of this two-part blog, we discussed the major considerations of a business plan for a start-up printing company. This time, we’ll look at other aspects that must be handled well to succeed in the printing industry.

Equipment and Software

If you’re like most printers, you love equipment. The speeds, the colors, the rhythmic whir of the sheet intake and output — they’re all mesmerizing. Even if you’re not awed by presses and laser cutters now, you will be. It’s inevitable.

Designing for print and designing for digital presentation can be quite different. Some aspects are common to both, such as visual appeal, a pleasing use of color, and effective space utilization. Other practices, techniques, and executions will differ.

Complimentary Webinar Available

Navigating Your Inkjet Journey -

Navigating Your Inkjet Journey is a two part session with Part 1 focusing on the discovery process in this on-line webinar presented by Randall Swope, Sr. Consultant - New Market Development for Gimbel & Associates. In conjunction with Xplor International, the webinar is free to all those who wish to attend. 

In The Discovery Process discussions feature key milestones required to identify and select the best fit for your needs. Randy will cover the growing demand for digital print and how inkjet is leading this growth. What is happening with inkjet technology evolution, and key factors for defining if inkjet is the right fit. Then we will delve into the development of the business case, a step not to be missed. The discovery process we will show you how to define the best opportunities for targeting customers and applications, as well as considerations for workflow, media, and finishing. We will then cover how to build customer value propositions for the inkjet business, and focus on how to prepare the sales force for selling inkjet value.

It is a lot to take in but the framework for the Discovery Process will help you to better structure your approach to inkjet opportunities!

About the Presenter:

Randall draws on more than 30 years of international sales and marketing experience including living in multiple overseas assignments and regional management for Developing Markets. He brings a wealth of talent to bear by managing client consulting projects; developing strategy; providing organizational and business analysis; and conducting sales training and seminars for customers.

Unlike one-dimensional digital ads, printed marketing materials connect with more of our senses. You can you see vividly printed pieces, but you can also touch, feel, and even smell them.

A printed piece appeals to us visually and makes us want to touch it. We become engaged at a deeper neurological level. This heightened response makes us more receptive to messages conveyed through print. Printers can intensify this haptic response with embellishments that add tactile appeal.

Printers have historically performed embossing, debossing, foiling, die cutting, spot varnishing, and raised UV in post-press production, often outsourcing the work. Today, printers can embellish documents in-house. Some techniques can even be performed inline on an offset or digital press.

 

Printing can be alluring. The technology is fascinating and the end result, with its popping colors and textured finishes, can be a feast for the eyes. But behind the fancy ink and substrates, there’s a business to run. If you’ve ever considered starting a print company, make sure you have a firm handle on all the variables before jumping into the business. Also, keep in mind that some of the biggest printing firms started as a dream in a basement or a garage.

Establishing or expanding a printing business can be a complex undertaking that requires a lot of strategizing, planning, and a good business plan. Let’s run through the key areas of that plan.

Printers often focus on how a project looks. Are the colors right? Is the registration exact? Any smears or smudges? Are the graphics and text sharp and clear? These are all important, of course, but we usually base the analysis on what we can see, hold, and touch. How often do you consider the suitability of a printed piece for someone with a disability? Nearly a quarter of the global population is disabled, and regulations like the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) make looking at a piece from an accessibility aspect important.