ColorFX Inc.
Why Print – Part 4 of 5
Continued from previous post: Part 3 of 5 on Why Print
Print puts them in control.
Telemarketing is the crudest form of cold calling and, with the growth in do-not-call lists, its effectiveness has sunk to an all-time low. In fact, a Time magazine poll ranked telemarketing number four on the list of the worst ideas of the 20th century. Today, it has gotten to the point that many companies stay away from the phone because they don’t want their reputations damaged by overeager telemarketers.
But what happens when we add print to the equation? Send prospects a personalized mailing that introduces the caller and lets them tell you the best time to call. Now you’re putting the potential customer in control of the situation. There are no more interruptions at dinner. There is only a positive flow of information between the marketer and the consumer. The bond starts to get stronger, the relationship grows, and the sale becomes a natural progression of the power of print rather than a rude intrusion. Continue Reading…
Market Your Printing Services or Die
You are the master of your own destiny.
Cliché, while (by definition) often overused, are educational. A favorite of mine is that old adage: “There’s never money to advertise until it’s time to advertise Going out of Business.” Printers, no matter how much we want to believe it to be otherwise, are not immune to this business reality. Often we figure the costs associated with producing our products – even the overhead expenses (what a concept!) – but we fail to consider that funds are necessary to promote our printing business so that there will be business tomorrow.
It’s a fact of business life that there are more printing companies than just about any other kind of business; promotional budgets are not only nice to have but essential.
In the marketplace, consumers pigeonhole their vendors. That is to say, customers have a preconceived notion about what the printing company is capable of doing and more importantly how much their products and services are worth. Like it or not, a company’s success depends on which “hole” they are placed in. Customers make their judgment regarding a particular vendor largely based on the information the vendor provides. So, while the customer does the categorization, the supplier (in our case the printer) provides the input by which the customer makes his or her decision.
The Keys to Successful Direct Mail
Whether it’s called direct mail, direct marketing, or mail marketing, the use of database marketing and the U.S. Postal Service can be a cost-effective way to find new customers. One major caution though, direct mail without proper preparation and a solid follow-up process may not only fail, it can be very costly.
If your printing, or related graphic arts company is like most, your customers may be scattered all over specific region or a an area no bigger than a single zip code. If you are a larger, more specialized firm, your customers may be spread across the nation. Identifying and locating new prospects and converting them into customers cannot always be done efficiently with a sales force alone. This is where a well planned, creative, and sustained mail marketing program can be very successful.
The first thing to do before considering the use of direct mail is to determine whether the markets and/or industries your company serves will respond to mail marketing. If the answer is yes, then you must identify the prospect’s “hot buttons”. In other words, what will get their attention and cause a response. This is where the creative aspects of direct marketing meet the science of direct mail. I have seen many perfectly executed direct mail campaigns fail because they lacked a creative, attention getting hook.
Marketing and Consultative Selling
Although the use of marketing has increased in the Printing and related Graphic Arts industries over the last ten years, it is still not practiced to the degree it should be. There is no other industry with annual sales over $130 billion that employs so few marketing tools.
When printing companies do prepare a marketing plan and execute promotion programs, all too often it is done ineffectively, without proper measurement, or follow up. Is it any wonder that many of these companies abandon their marketing efforts complaining that marketing does not work or is not necessary in the printing field.
Unfortunately the “good old days” when a printer could simply purchase a new press, fill it with work and make a profit are long gone. Competitive pressures and the inherent challenges of over-capacity in the printing industry, require a more strategic approach.
More that ever, the printing industry must embrace the disciplines of marketing. Most important, printers need to do a better job of positioning themselves through differentiation strategies. What good does it do to invest money in sales materials, advertising, or any form of self-promotion that do not clearly communicate how the company is different or better than the competition?