Print
Solutions September 2005
E-FILES
Profile
Speed
and a Smile
UDesignWePrint.com
combines internet technology with
hands-on customer service.
BY
JOE DONATELLI
Sometimes
inspiration comes in a documentary,
sandwiched between Big Bird and
“The Life Cycle of the Banana
Slug.”
Three
years ago, Jenn Russo wasn’t
sure if she wanted to be a TV
reporter anymore. She took time
off, stepped back from her career
and focused on another—learning
the family business of printing.
One Saturday, she found herself
sitting on the couch, watching
PBS. The documentary, which Russo
vividly recalls, featured a post
card company that sold its wares
online. She formed a mental checklist
of the company’s equipment
as it appeared on the screen:
Heidelberg Speedmaster, 40-inch
presses, an Indigo—check,
check, check. Her father’s
business, JenMar Graphics in Totowa,
N.J., owned that equipment.
Russo
wondered: Why just post cards?
Why not brochures, posters and
catalogs? Why not, well, everything?
What’s the best way to harness
the burgeoning capabilities of
the internet and the brick-and-mortar
world of printing?
Three
years, many web site crashes and
some personal debt later, Russo
gave the world her answer.
‘U’
Is for User-Friendly
UDesignWePrint.com
launched in 2004. Its philosophy
is to combine the best of what
the traditional printer/salesperson
model offers and the internet’s
ability to streamline production
and provide competitive bids.
“In a very practical sense,
we are the big printing company
in town that you met online,”
Russo says.
The
Boston company, an affiliate of
JenMar Graphics, provides print
and design solutions for small
businesses, corporations, individuals
and governments nationwide, and
occasionally overseas. Its success
lies in combining technology with
customer service, a promise many
online printers make but don’t
fulfill. “We’re all-inclusive.
You can call us and talk to real
people,” Russo says.
The
ordering process, which took one
year to develop, places a premium
on speed. The customer visits
www.UDesignWePrint.com,
selects a product, follows a series
of prompts to upload the order
and proceeds to checkout, where
he or she can request a PDF or
an Indigo proof. The customer
enters billing and shipping information
and must check a box that states
the files meet all requirements.
Then, the customer receives a
confirmation email, and the order
is sent to the pressroom, where
it’s placed in a queue.
UDesignWePrint.com’s
five employees, as well as its
business partners, add some personal
touch. When Vice President of
Business Development Lisa Comella
finds out that a customer requested
a sample kit and wants more information,
or that a customer submitted a
quote request and doesn’t
have clear specifications, she
calls the client to discuss the
products and services he or she
will require.
“I
do this for any customer who needs
help,” Comella says. “It
could be a small company who will
order straight off the web site
or a buyer with an annual procurement
budget of a million dollars. Business
is still about trust and service.
Price is only one component of
a successful partnership.”
Strategy
to Secure Repeat Business
In
addition to printing, UDesignWePrint.com
offers design services through
its partners in New York City,
Boston and South Africa. Working
with designers in South Africa
gives clients excellent response
time, Russo says. If an American
customer requests a design on
Monday afternoon, a designer can
work on it during the next business
day in South Africa. The American
customer will receive a proof
by email by the time he or she
arrives at work Tuesday.
“Our
selling strategy is to attract
serious commercial printing customers
who are in business themselves
or represent viable businesses
that make volume printing purchases
annually,” Comella says.
“We want to make these customers
very happy and secure their repeat
business.”
UDesignWePrint.com’s
client roster includes each of
its first 35 accounts. Close to
90 percent of the company’s
customers order again, Russo says.
One such client is Gail Roberts,
vice president of Coldwell Banker
Residential Brokerage, Cambridge,
Mass. Like most clients, Roberts’
relationship with UDesignWePrint.com
began with a small order (post
cards). Now, she orders all of
her printed materials from the
company. “They’re
incredibly responsive,”
Roberts says. “I had a problem
with the mail service the other
day. Jenn called and took care
of everything. She gave me regular
updates on where things stood.”
Roberts
has worked so closely with UDesignWePrint.com
that Russo anticipated Roberts
wouldn’t like a certain
paper stock used on a new post
card order. “She knows what
I like and knew I wouldn’t
be happy,” Roberts says.
“I’m busy, and she
keeps pumping things out. When
you’re busy, you want to
work with people who will take
care of your needs.”
Russo
says UDesignWePrint.com’s
business model will enable it
to grow quickly in a scalable
manner. When the company was founded,
its focus was short run digital
printing. As clients came to trust
UDesignWePrint.com, they began
inquiring about larger offset
orders. Now, the company lets
customers know upfront that it
provides both.
That’s
possible, Russo says, because
UDesignWePrint.com has formed
trusting partnerships with manufacturers
in New Jersey and Arizona. As
its client roster grows, the company
continues to align with printers
that can grow with it. “If
we can maintain what we’re
doing now and evolve with the
technology, I know we’ll
be successful,” Russo says.
Joe
Donatelli is a freelance writer
in Los Angeles. Email us your
comments at bholt@printsolutionsmag.com.
The
File on UDesignWePrint.com
Company:
UDesignWePrint.com
Launched:
2004
Location:
Boston
Principal:
Jenn Russo, president
Business
in Brief: UDesignWePrint.com is
a time-sensitive online design
and print service for businesses
seeking efficient, competitively
priced, high-quality printing
that can be ordered online.
