How going from $65,000 to $2,000 in print revenue can be a good thing

We recently spoke with Walter Payne, president of ImageMark and a member of PODi, who showed us that decreasing print revenue can be a good thing. The key was developing a solution that met the customer’s needs and also established the service provider as a strategic partner.

ImageMark’s customer was an aftermarket automotive supplier customer that had 125 different flyers that they were spending $65,000 to reprint annually. By moving this collateral to a print-on-demand solution the service provider saved their customer thousands of dollars and now they only spend $2,000 annually on production. But most importantly for the service provider, this program enabled them to build their relationship and credibility with the customer. From this print-on-demand solution they have branched into other lucrative marketing programs for the customer.

An important insight shared by Walter is that Web to Print solutions are a key application to promote during a down economy. Here’s why…

Marketing departments are currently experiencing tremendous pressure to reduce costs while increasing results. Printers can address this need by offering a Web to Print solution which will reduce production costs by only printing documents as needed. This also reduces costs associated with inventory storage, waste due to out-of-date materials, and labor costs associated with manual pick and pack kitting. Web to Print solutions can also have the added benefit of controlling the company brand across all collateral while allowing individual dealers or channel members to customize materials for their specific needs.

Another reason to promote Web to Print solutions is that they are very “sticky,” meaning that once the program has been implemented the customer will find it difficult to move elsewhere. The service provider wins because these sticky solutions provide recurring revenue and the marketer wins because they have found a partner committed to providing high-value, on-going services.

To learn more about Web to Print solutions check out these resources which are free to PODi members:

·        Our online case study database at www.podi.org/casestudy. In the left-hand navigation select Application / Collateral Management/Personalized Sales Collateral. Some recent case studies to review are:

·        Invisalign Increases Sales and Brand Awareness with Personalized Marketing Collateral – Reduced production costs by $380,000

·        Disney Destinations Cuts Costs and Improves Results With Customized Sales Collateral – Cut printing and storage costs by 50%

·        Smith & Nephew Reduces Cost and Saves Time Using On-Demand Sales Collateral System – system has saved company hundreds of thousands of dollars and cut turnaround time

·        For help in selling these solutions review the Collateral Management Solution Presentation in the S3 Council.