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Ever wonder what would happen if you printed everything on Twitter?
Mar 9th
This was going around Twitter and I thought it had some pretty interesting facts. I figured that since we are printers and we are on twitter that this would be fun to share with you.
Special thanks – Infographic by Cartridge Save for printer cartridges
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Putting 1:1 Targeted Mailings into Action
Feb 24th
When it comes to 1:1 printing, there is more to success than design. There is also more to success than the amount of data you use. Well-executed 1:1 printing often falls under the umbrella of “relationship marketing,” an approach that focuses on fostering long-term relationships with customers rather than focusing exclusively on the short-term sale.
What might this look like in real life?
Say you are an entrepreneur with a small retail shop selling organic dog treats. Normally, customers walk in and place an order. You smile and greet them, hoping that friendly service, great products and reasonable prices will keep them coming back. You might have special discounts or promotions on a placard or written up on a blackboard behind the counter.
But what might this look like if you decide to implement a proactive relationship marketing program using 1:1 printing?
In this scenario, when customers walk in, you smile and greet them, but you also ask whether they would like to be on your mailing list for your newsletter, “Pet Pampering.” If they say yes, you collect their name, address, e-mail address and critical information for personalizing the content and message, such as their pet’s name, birthday and favorite treats.
Once a month, you send out personalized versions of “Pet Pampering,” addressing the pet owner and pet by name. You provide pet care tips, pet recipes and make relevant offers based on past purchases. If a pet’s birthday is coming up, you might offer a bulk discount. Around the holidays, you might suggest cross-sells to unusual pet gifts. When sales are slow, you might boost end-of-month revenues by offering a free sample of your latest creation if the pet owner brings in a coupon.
Because relationship marketing is about relationships, you might want to create excuses to open dialogs with your customers. This might include an occasional customer survey, feedback form or customer contest, such as for the best new dog treat flavor idea or the best picture of a pet eating your treats. This creates an interaction between you and your customers that makes each person feel valued and gives them a stake in their relationship with you. At the same time, it gives you more information to further personalize future mailings!
That’s relationship marketing—and it’s one of the factors that makes 1:1 printing great.
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So, which is the “best” press to use for VDP?
Feb 7th
What Are You Printing On?
When considering 1:1 print personalization, one of the questions that marketers often ask is, “What
type of digital press should I be printing on?” It’s a natural question. In the world of traditional print,
marketers are used to scrutinizing the output quality of their printers’ offset presses. Thus, it’s natural
to want to apply the same standards to the world of digital and VDP print.
There is a wide range of output technology that can be used for VDP. At minimum, the press must
be fully digital. This means that it uses an electrostatic, inkjet or other digital process to apply toner
to the paper. This toner can be in liquid form (a limited number of models) or dry toner form (the bulk of
press offerings). These presses can also be cut sheet models for ultra short to standard length runs or
continuous stream models for high-volume commercial and transactional work.
These presses come in a wide variety of sizes, at a wide variety of speeds, at a wide variety of
price points. The result is that, whether you need 250 pieces or 2.5 million, there will be a
combination of VDP program and press output to fit your budget.
Can You Tell the Difference?
You don’t have to sacrifice quality, even on ultra short runs. Resolution on these boxes can range from
300 dpi to 2400 dpi, and with the ability to coat and laminate digital output, the results are so close to
offset that even many veteran marketers — let alone their customers — would be hard pressed to tell the
difference.The number of colors can range widely, as well. In the early days, the most toner-based presses
could output was four colors. Today, many digital presses can print five colors, six colors or in rare cases,
even more. Even for presses that do not have the ability to print special colors (which is
still the majority), the ability to accurately simulate special colors from fourcolor
process has dramatically improved, as has the ability to simulate metallics. Some
presses are able to use hi-fi color systems,
such as Hexachrome.
So, which is the “best” press to use for VDP?
In most cases, it doesn’t matter. Are you thinking, “Did I read that right?” Yes, you did.
Unless you have unique needs, such as extremely high- or lowvolume 1:1 printing or unique color requirements that demand a five-color or more press, the output technology is relevant, but not critical. There are highly successful VDP specialists producing these jobs on big, robust production presses and there are highly successful VDP specialists producing these jobs on smallfootprint digital printers.Unless you have special run-length or color requirements,choosing your VDP production partner should not be done on the basis of equipment. It should be done on the basis of the working relationship.
The component that has the most impact on the success of your VDP campaign is your database — its accuracy, completeness, and how that data is used, as well as the planning and strategy that goes into the campaign. These are the factors that will make or break your VDP project and are independent of output technology.
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Down Saving from Indesign CS4 to Indesign CS2
Feb 1st
Indesign CS4
Many of us have been there.
Try to work on an Indesign file only to find out that the last person who saved it was using a newer version of Indesign than we have.
Adobe was somewhat prepared for this and offers us the ability to save it as an .INX file to use in the previous version of Indesign. That’s fine and dandy if you’re trying to go from CS3-CS2 or CS4-CS3.
Now, if you’re fortunate enough to own all three versions (or have an imaging department that needs them, like us!) Then you can save from CS4 to CS3, open it in CS3 and save down to CS2, and from there do whatever editing you need to do. Unfortunately most of us don’t own several versions of Indesign.In fact, a lot of us don’t even have the latest version or the version before that! (hence the need for this post)
Indesign CS2
But what about skipping two versions of Indesign? I don’t think Adobe wants us to do that, otherwise they would have included it, right?
Well, sorry Adobe, but sometimes we just have work that needs to get done and get done now. Printing is a deadline oriented business don’t forget.
Well, one of my awesome co-workers taught me a little trick (hack) that may help you out in a pinch. (*Editors note: This really should only be used in a pinch as there are new features every version that may not convert down properly)
1. Save the project in Indesign CS4 as an .INX file as you would normally to convert it to CS3.
2. Right Click & Open the .INX file in your favorite plain text editor. ( BBEdit for Mac users or Notepad / Notepad++ for PC users)
3. The first line of text reads:
<?aid style=”33″ type=”document” DOMVersion=”6.0″ readerVersion=”5.0″ featureSet=”257″ product=”6.0(352)” ?>
and change some of the numbers to read (the ones in boldface)
<?aid style=”33″ type=”document” DOMVersion=”5.0″ readerVersion=”4.0″ featureSet=”257″ product=”5.0(662)” ?>
Presto Change-O, you should now be able to open that .INX file in Indesign CS2.
Again, I’d like to mention that this should should only be done if necessary.
Down saving even one version the proper way has caused me text wrap and effects issues in the past. So be sure to carefully inspect the file after you have converted and keep a backup of the original CS4 file. This trick obviously works better for people with simple Indesign files. The more complex the greater the likelihood of compatibility issues when down saving.
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Cost Per Lead vs. Cost Per Piece
Jan 28th
One of the best practices for 1:1 printing is to evaluate the cost of campaigns differently from traditional campaigns. Instead of looking at the costs of a print campaign in terms of cost per-piece, evaluate it in terms of cost per lead. With traditional print marketing, the cost per piece might be $.10
each ($.36 with postage). But if a 10,000-piece campaign generates a 1% response, rate, the cost per lead is $36. If a marketer spends 10 times more on the print portion of a 1:1 campaign ($1.36 with postage) but generates a 12% response rate, the cost per piece triples, but the cost per lead drops to $11. When it comes to 1:1 printing, the method of measurement matters.
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Looking for New Customers? Try Old Ones!
Jan 22nd
Often, when marketers are looking to generate new business, they purchase a prospect list and send out a direct mail campaign. This can be a very effective strategy. However, there is an expense involved in purchasing, qualifying and cleaning up a new list.
There is another way to drum up new business. You can invigorate an old customer list instead!
This was the successful strategy of Quality Lawn Care, a small company that provides a variety of lawn care services. It wanted to bring in more revenue, but instead of purchasing a list, it resurrected relationships with former customers.
Working with its creative agency, Quality Lawn Care mailed 300 1:1 pieces to these inactive customers. The design featured a child on a well-landscaped lawn. A personalized message referred to services that recipients had used in the past and invited them to reconnect with the company through a special offer.
The mailer read as follows:
<<firstname>>
You’ve already taken advantage of our reliable <<services>>. We now offer an affordable <<additional service option>>. Our program includes <<number>> visits per year:
<<list of services>>
A successful lawn care program must start in early March. Call us now to schedule your appointment.
Quality Lawn Care
(000) 000-000
Don’t forget to call us about gutter cleaning and top soil delivery!
The results? The campaign generated a response rate of 14.6%. Among those responding, the close rate was 27%. The project immediately generated $5,700 in revenues, but with a lifetime value to the client of $52,000, the projected ROI was more than 8,000%! All without purchasing a new list.
Do you think this is just a fluke? Metro Nissan of Redlands launched a similar program and had a similar result. It dug into its database for customers who had not visited the store in a period of three to eighteen months. To each customer, it sent a personalized direct mailer with a personalized incentive to come back. The response rate was 5%. For customers who hadn’t been to the dealership in more than 12 months, ROI was 467%. For those who had not been to the dealership in nine months, ROI jumped to 655%. Total campaign investment? $4,500.
What are you doing with your inactive customer list?
*Please visit our friends at Great Reach Inc or follow them on Twitter @greatreach*
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Pantone and CMYK – What’s the difference and how to convert them?
Jan 21st
What is the difference between Pantone & CMYK?
Pantone (PMS) colors are often referred to as spot colors and CMYK are considered to process colors.
Pantone (PMS/Spot) colors have an exact color value which is mixed before the printing process. They tend to be used when you need a color to be totally consistent throughout print materials, usually for the purpose of branding. (Think Mcdonalds Yellow, or Yahoo! purple)
CMYK (process) colors are Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and blacK. These colors are applied by the press at different angles (screens) in differing amounts to create colors
Here is a color spectrum that identifies the colors achievable through different methods. Pantone, CMYK, RGB, and the visible spectrum. (RGB stands for Red Green & Blue, this is the way that monitors display color, but that’s another subject for another time)
Color Spectrums for RGB CMYK Pantone and visible colors
As you can see, A fair amount of color falls outside of the CMYK region into Pantone. If you convert a Pantone color that falls inside both spectrums you should be ok, but a great deal of other factors (press, pressman, rollers, plates and more) could still effect the color outcome slightly. Therefore CMYK colors are not guaranteed to be a perfect match from one print job to the next. Most times, however, the variation is not even noticeable to the naked eye, but only through a printers loupe at a “spots and dots” level.
If you convert a Pantone color that falls outside of the CMYK spectrum, you will most likely have some variation of your final color. As evidenced in the photo below.
Pantone Colors converted to CMYK values
Generally, Pantone (Spot) colors are more expensive because they require additional services (Mixing the ink, additional plates etc). So as a rule of thumb it is better to convert a Pantone to CMYK when abolute color precision is not an issue. Exceptions to this rule may apply if you are only printing a 1-2 color piece as it is cheaper to use a spot color (requiring one plate) than to try and recreate it with process colors (requiring four plates). Ask your printer if you are uncertain.
How do I convert a Pantone to CMYK?
Well ask 3 designers and you may hear three different answers.
One might tell you the easiest way is to just convert the color in your layout or design software. You can simply click on the color swatch and select CMYK values.
Another designer may tell you to use printed swatch books to get a more accurate match as you are taking the color off the screen (which is RGB not CMYK) and applying it to its intended medium, paper. You can purchase swatches from Pantone or make a visit to your local printing company and ask them for some help (Plug – That’s Whitman Communications if you live in New Hampshire or Vermont)You can also get the Pantone Color Bridge free for joining the Pantone community.
A third designer might tell you to do an online search for color conversions or go to Whitman.biz and use their online color chart.
However you choose to do it, it’s important to know which colors you should print with Pantone and which can be converted to process colors. Learning the difference will not only save you time and money, but also insure you get the high quality print job you’re looking for.
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Boost Responses the Easy Way! ~ Prefilling Return Forms
Jan 21st
Make responding to your marketing easier for your customers.
Try Pre Filling Response Cards For Your Customers
Now, your marketing budget can go further than you ever thought possible.
Do you include tear-off response cards or other forms in your direct marketing pieces? If so, do you send them blank, or do you pre-fill them with information from your database?
If you are sending forms blank, you are leaving money on the table. Why? Because the more steps recipients must take to respond to your offer, the less likely they are to do it. Conversely, the easier you make it for them to drop the card in the mail, the more likely they are to respond.
Pre-filling your response cards is really a “no brainer” because it’s likely that you have all of the information in your database already. After all, you used it to mail the piece. So pre-fill your response cards with as much data as you have—the recipient’s name, address, company and other information they might need to register for an event, request information or whatever else you are asking them to do. By doing so, you remove one of the barriers and your response rate goes up.
One marketer had been promoting its customer education seminars with a self-mailer that included the dates and details of upcoming workshops. The mailers included a detachable reply card for registration. After more than two years, however, the marketer was frustrated that most of its registrations were still coming through its web site or sales reps, not the direct mailers it was paying for.
To generate more responses, the company decided to switch gears. It freshened up the design and moved to a heavier coated stock. It also ditched its static response forms and began pre-filling them so all that recipients had to do was add the stamp and drop the forms into the mail. It received such a bump in its responses that it had to add an extra seminar session!
The sky is the limit!
Would you like to get a quick and easy boost to your response rates? If so, and you are sending out any kind of form or response card, it might be as easy as doubling up on the data you’re already using.
*Please visit our friends at Great Reach Inc or follow them on Twitter @greatreach*
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2010 – A New Year for New Ideas
Jan 4th
2010: A New Year is here!
So here it is , Monday January 4, and it’s back to the grind. Back to our respective businesses with their respective hardships caused by this 2009 recession. No, it won’t go away just because it’s a new year. But there are things you can do about it. “Out with the old, in the new” I say. New business plans, new marketing strategies.
That’s what we’re doing. New web site, new digital printing storefront, new prices, new perspective on the future. The trials and tribulations of 2009 aren’t going to fix themselves. It takes some legwork.
But we have got some good NEW ideas to get you started:
How about a new variable data direct mail marketing campaign? With Purls and the accompanying analytics, it’s easier than ever to track your ROI on mass mailings.
Maybe try new product sheets or catalogs. Why not let customer distinguish which of your products or catalog issues are new with just a glance. It’s not always about redesign, sometimes just a simple gloss coating or heavier stock will make a print product stand out.
New business card design. Sure, I know, you’ve had that logo design and layout for sooo long that people are familiar it. But you can make them take notice with a fresh design, maybe go vertical instead of horizontal. How about a die cut card? Sometimes the little things can make a big impact.
New environmental stance. GREEN wasn’t just the buzzword for 2009. It’s an outlook for a more sustainable future. Utilizing more environmentally friendly products and services not only alerts your customers to your conscience stance, but it’s just plain good karma. After all, once this Earth is gone, we don’t get another one.
One way to show your customers you care is by using Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified papers. Having the FSC logo on your printed marketing material means that a Chain-of-Custody was implented to insure your printed piece was made from sustainable forestry practices. The best part? It doesn’t cost any extra! Just ask and you shall receive.
New advertising campaigns. Me, I love funny and heartwarming campaigns. You may prefer something a little more serious and direct, either way it may be time to re-evaluate your current campaigns and see if you can’t spark some new business interests. Here’s some funny ones for inspiration.
Establish some Social Marketing: You’ve probably heard all about social media on the television and radio, but like many others don’t know where to begin. Make the commitment to try just one new way of engaging with your customers. For example, create a “page” on Facebook, and invite all your current customers to become fans or tell customers about deals via Twitter . Most important, remember WHY you are doing this. You’re not going to land that next big venture just because you tweeted something or someone became a fan on facebook. What you are doing is establishing an IDENTITY. Making people remember you by placing yourself in front of customers regularly, being there with helpful advice and a smile. Make your “social marketing” prospects feel exclusive with special offers and promotions. My sister is a waitress and she sums it up well: “If you make people feel special, you get a bigger tip!”
Redesign your Website: What first impression are you making? Research shows that 2/3 of consumers turn to the internet first for information about companies so not having a website could be a deal-breaker. Or maybe you do have one but it’s just not doing what it’s supposed to. Try some Search Engine Optimization (SEO) just because your page is pretty or may have the information you want on there, doesn’t mean you dotted the i’s and crossed the t’s in the more technical backend. Try adding a blog or some other dynamic elements to you web page to keep content fresh, you don’t even have to write the blogs, there are plenty of feeds out there (probably several in your own industry) waiting to be shared.
If those weren’t big enough resolutions for this coming year well here are a few more for designers: (51 good resolutions for designers ;P)
