Cullen Fuller and his four partners named their Naperville, Ill., distributorship The Ocular Group because the name denotes vision. Given that envelopes are one of the firm's specialties, the name seems ideal: Envelopes do more than meets the eye.
Distributors say many industry pros look past the envelopes market because its lacks the allure of splashier niches such as commercial printing or promotional items. To put it bluntly, some folks think envelopes are what you tear in half and toss in the trash. Fuller believes otherwise. "They're lead-ins to large accounts--that's what they really can do," he says. "Selling envelopes can bring great opportunities to distributors, especially those who are intent on offering value."
One advantage of offering envelopes is that nearly every company uses them. Most firms need envelopes for outgoing mail (invoices, statements, etc.), internal mail (departmental correspondence, memos among branches, etc.) and office routines (personnel files, photograph files, etc.). Another advantage is that most envelopes--and the printed products inside them--are reordered, unlike many one-time commercial printing projects.
"In that sense, envelopes are an easier sell than most products in this industry," says Scott Pope, president of Pinnacle Business Products, a distributorship in Nashville, Tenn., that began operating last year. Envelopes--mostly #10s and #9s used for billing and core mail-center functions--account for 60 percent of his business.
To discard the importance of basic envelopes would be folly, but many distributors suggest that clients add features such as logos, graphics, teasers and special window positions onto envelopes. The reason: Custom envelopes help clients achieve a feel, not just a function. And distributors say they can impress clients who want to improve their image and increase their direct mail response rates.
"The fun part of envelopes is the room for creativity," says Bill Lowe, owner of Advantage Plus, a 2-person distributorship in Boonsboro, Md., that he operates with his wife Anita. Bill Lowe began his career manufacturing envelopes in 1966 and has worked for three envelope-making companies. "Many customers are somewhat intimidated by decisions like special windows and extra features, but for us it's like eating breakfast in the morning--pretty simple," he says. "As distributors, we can make envelopes valuable products."
Making Eyes at Marketing
Distributors say more small and medium-sized companies lacking sky-high budgets are turning to envelopes to market their capabilities. Instead of paying large amounts of money for slick advertising campaigns, they use envelopes as main representations of their companies.
To that end, distributors say it's important to include eye-catching envelopes with direct mail projects. In those situations, the client typically has one main goal--to get the receiver to open the envelope. "As direct mail applications become more complex and people try to get more direct value for their dollars, color is a growing factor," Fuller says. "So does the ability to convert special sizes in short runs."
Three of The Ocular Group's
five partners began their careers at Curtis 1000, an envelope manufacturer
recently sold by Mail-Well. Envelopes account for approximately 20 percent of
the distributorship's business. "They're a high-profit product for us, and
business has taken us into direct mail and direct marketing avenues," Fuller
says.
One of The Ocular Group's specialties is
designing and supplying clients' matching 4-color letterhead, business cards and
envelopes. The distributorship's in-house design staff recently completed
promotional work for an insurance client that laid off its marketing
employees.
"People use envelopes in different ways to
convey brand and marketing consistency," Fuller says. "Interestingly enough,
some long-standing clients in the legal industry are using a lot more color than
new companies. And new companies are using more traditional, plain envelopes to
make it seem as if they've been around for a while."
Visualizing the
Application
Distributors emphasize matching customers'
needs to envelopes of various sizes, shapes and styles. "It's important to let
the application dictate your choice," Lowe says. He suggests asking end users
several questions to ascertain that envelopes fit the form and purpose. For
instance, what's the purpose of the envelope? How's it going to be filled? Will
it be automated? How will the client store it?
Determining the best envelope size and style
can be more complicated than it seems. Although #10 envelopes seem like a
natural for many applications, smaller ones work better for companies mailing
small pieces of paper. Also, larger envelopes don't always cost more in the long
run. If you can eliminate the need to fold documents by choosing larger
envelopes, distributors say, you probably can justify the higher
cost.
Lowe says many small companies hand-insert
envelope contents. "For those companies," he says, "it's usually best to include
latex gum on the envelope. They can insert contents and seal the envelopes much
faster." Lowe recently redesigned an outgoing envelope for a client offering
marketing and design services. The client, which operates multiple companies
from various locations, needed a more efficient way to send invoices. Rather
than preprint the different company names and locations on separate envelopes,
Lowe suggested a new envelope that included a return-address
window.
Peering Into
Services
Distributors say the envelope market is increasingly competitive, so many printing pros are offering services such as envelope design, inventory management and large-order warehousing to stay viable. Another option for distributors is offering list-management services. Companies selling direct mail can purchase mailing lists from agencies and resell them to clients looking for specific types of buyers. "Most end users view envelopes as a commodity, so distributors are challenged daily on pricing from competitors who want to take your business," Pope says. "If you don't distinguish yourself based on service, expertise and credibility, you can't compete."
When selling envelopes, adding value is key, Lowe says. "Anyone can sell a white #10 envelope with black ink on the corner," he says. Advantage Plus offers warehousing capabilities for large envelope clients. The distributorship stores the products and ships them weekly or as required. The value-added service recently helped Advantage Plus land its largest envelopes order--2.6 million #10 envelopes--for a banking client.
Pinnacle Business Products offers same-day delivery and specializes in helping clients understand U.S. Postal Service mailing regulations. His company also acts as a liaison between clients and mailing houses, trying to secure discounts and other cost-saving plans.
To stay abreast of postal stipulations, Pope receives monthly and quarterly newsletters and works closely with an employee at a nearby mail center in Nashville. Pinnacle Business Products recently added bar codes to a client's business-reply envelopes, enabling the mail house to process the envelopes more quickly via optical scanning and obtain post-office discounts. "Essentially," Pope says, "we streamlined the process so envelopes go through multiline sorters until they reach their carrier routes."
"Imaging is now a big selling point for distributors," Pope says. "When we can offer a way to prevent customers from having to pay people in house to stuff envelopes and get them out the door, that's a super opportunity for us. A lot of people selling against us could take envelopes to 10 manufacturers and talk about lower prices, but few can match our ability to bring value to the table."
Darin Painter is managing editor of Print Solutions. Email
him your comments to dpainter@PSDA.org.
Thanks to Wisco Envelope, based in Tullahoma, Tenn., and Western States Envelope Co., based in Milwaukee, for assistance.
