Sources
Commercial Printing, DMIA's Formtrac 2003; Digital Printing, CAP Ventures, Weymouth, Mass.; Direct Mail, DMIA's Formtrac 2003; Security Documents, National Check Fraud Center, Charleston, S.C.; Plastic Cards, International Card Manufacturers Association, Princeton Junction, N.J.; Promotional Products, PPAI, Irving, Texas; Packaging, Flexible Packaging Association, Linthicum, Md.; Labels, The Freedonia Group, Cleveland, Ohio; Bar Coding, Venture Development Corporation, Natick, Mass.; Tags, DMIA's Formtrac 2003.
Chicago is a great place to catch a ball game, and the Print Solutions 2004 Conference & Expo is a great place to snag new products and solutions. At both, you're likely to meet new faces, have a few drinks and see some home runs. (OK, the show floor doesn't have an ivy-lined outfield wall, but grand-slam ideas abound.)
To get you started, we present our annual 10 Hot Products feature, where you can read about 10 distributors who understand their clients' needs. These printing pros scored big time by providing value. Each story includes details about a successful application, plus bonus insight that can lead to big-league growth.
NO. LINEUP STATS
14 Commercial Printing Shipments to rise 4 percent in 2005
20 Promotional Products Sales in 2003 increased 4.6 percent over 2002
26 Digital Printing Retail value expected to reach $57.6 billion in 2006
30 Direct Mail Shipments (including promotional products) to rise 3.8 percent in 2005
36 Security Documents $10 billion dollars lost annually to check fraud and counterfeiting
40 Plastic Cards 10.7 billion cards manufactured globally in 2002
48 Packaging U.S. flexible packaging industry worth $20 billion
54 Labels Label shipments to reach $13 billion in 2006
62 Bar Coding AIDC hardware sales to grow 6 percent annually through 2006
66 Tags Shipments (including labels) to rise 3.5 percent in 2005
Warren Business Graphics, Waltham, Mass., transformed from a traditional distributorship selling mostly forms to a supplier of custom catalogs. The company's focus on this niche helps it gain business in a variety of industries.
Commercial Printing
Distributorship carves a niche and profits by selling catalogs.
Many distributors have expanded their product offerings, selling anything with print to turn a profit. Francis Warren has taken the opposite approach. "Instead of furthering my product mix, I decided I'd be better off concentrating on one thing," says Warren, vice president of distributorship Warren Business Graphics, Waltham, Mass. Warren selected commercial printing and even narrowed down that niche. "I also decided to get away from the small stuff," he says. "So I sell primarily catalogs." concentrating on one thing," says Warren, vice president of distributorship Warren Business Graphics, Waltham, Mass. Warren selected commercial printing and even narrowed down that niche. "I also decided to get away from the small stuff," he says. "So I sell primarily catalogs."
Warren began his company as a traditional distributorship, marketing mostly forms. He still sells forms, but four years ago he started providing business-to-business catalogs for companies that sell everything from tools to clothing to motorcycle parts. Today, he supplies more than 30 full-color catalogs a year to customers.
Warren distinguishes himself from competitors, mostly direct-selling commercial printers, with personal service. "I sit down with people and tell them I'm going to take care of their problems," he says. And problems--usually with computer files--often occur in these multipage products.
"A lot of my clients have in-house designers, but they don't know exactly what they're doing," Warren says. So the distributorship offers preflighting services, electronically checking all native files prior to sending them to the manufacturer. Warren Business Graphics has one full-time employee who makes sure all fonts are included, checks the resolution of pictures and examines page layout. The distributorship relies on several software programs: The main one is Markzware's FlightCheck®, which checks for approximately 150 prepress problems.
On one recent afternoon, Warren Business Graphics solved problems on three different catalogs. The first was an 80-page catalog for a company that sells scientific experiments to schools. During preflighting, the troubleshooting software indicated that the file should have 15 different fonts, most of which weren't included. Warren talked to the customer and learned it hadn't intended to use most of those fonts. The distributorship fixed the file.
Later in the day, Warren examined a proof of a catalog for fine-arts collectibles. The client was unhappy with the pictures, so the distributorship color corrected the file. Finally, a machine tool company that buys five catalogs from Warren sent a file created on a PC. It included an Excel spreadsheet. The distributorship recreated the chart using QuarkXPress™.
Thanks to manufacturer Compuset Printing, Pointe Claire, Quebec, for assistance.
7 Tips on Selling Commercial Printing
1. Start small. Rather than take on a big commercial printing project from scratch, try selling a few reorders first. For example, Francis Warren, president of Warren Business Graphics, Waltham, Mass., bid recently on a catalog for a wire hardware manufacturer. The company had a catalog and simply wanted to update its pricing. Several vendors with on-staff designers bid on complete redesigns, while Warren submitted a reasonable bid that reflected changes in pricing only. "You don't need designers to do all the commercial printing work that's out there," he says. While Warren Business Graphics offers full design services, it also works on catalog projects with minor edits and updates.
2. Ask for referrals. Because commercial pieces directly reflect the companies they promote, prospects are less likely to trust distributors they don't know. Promote your company with marketing pieces that feature quotes from satisfied customers, and don't forget to ask clients for leads.
3. Minimize sticker shock. Show new clients a price list for commercial printing jobs from major 4-color companies to confirm that you're not overcharging them.
4. Make ordering commercial printing easy. Some customers may avoid commercial printing because they imagine their only options are expensive 4-color pieces. But distributors can offer options for lower costs and still provide great-looking marketing materials. Consider offering clip art as a way to reduce art costs.
5. Expect longer turnaround times. Compared with business forms orders, commercial printing jobs can take much longer to complete. Much of that extra time is spent on prepress--clients often require more proofs than for other projects. Discuss the process with clients, and develop realistic timelines. In order to deliver on time, use manufacturers who work well under deadline pressures.
6. Don't forget the final acts. Even the most fabulous printing job can become a disaster if the project isn't finished properly. Inexact trimming or a botched collating job can ruin a project and your chances for a repeat customer. Know the finishing services a project needs, such as collating, tabbing, folding, trimming, stapling, saddle-stitching, perfect binding, spiral binding and gluing, and let your customer know that those processes take time.
7. Learn about the equipment. Knowledge about the capabilities and limitations of commercial printing presses is one of distributors' most useful tools, saving them time and preventing them from sending work to the wrong printers.
