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The 7 per cent Solution of G
The 7 per cent Solution of G
You can still buy the printed book or the movie version on Amazon, we checked 
Yesterday, we were doing some research and entered this question in the algorithm's jaws: "Size of Commercial Printing Industry."
One gets back all kinds of results ranging from $79 billion dollars to about 100 billion dollars. Big, by anyone's yardstick.
And that got us thinking about a discussion with a printer-friend who told us about learning that his best customer, a business that accounted for 20% of the printer's annual revenue was now in bankruptcy and full liquidation. Gulp.
These are harrowing times in our big but battered global graphic arts industry, And we hope that every printer, great or small knows exactly the per cent-age of revenue attributed to your top ten customers. Maybe you have one firm that is throwing off 5 per cent or 7 per cent or God forbid, 20 per cent of your overall revenue. If so, stay close to them, very, very close.
And the same would apply to any one of your top ten key clients.
The solution for keeping a client that accounts for 7 per cent of revenue, is to look for every possible means to stay close to them, visit them, thank them, reward them and build out the relationship so masterfully that you can anticipate ways in which your products and services can help them sell more to their clients.
In these wickedly fast times, folks have a penchant for pulling in their horns a little, they cut marketing dollars at the exact moment when investing in an ever closer relationship with key clients is crucial.
We have firms in Toronto and Detroit, in Vancouver and Seattle and in New York and Iowa and California and overseas too who are still working on their International Gallery entries for 2010.
We accommodate them as one of those entries might be a 7 per cent Solution of
There are a few firms that always submit entries and haven't so far in 2010, so we ask them why, (we try to stay close to our key clients too!)
For most, the answer is centered on TIME, they are running super lean and are just tuckered out. A few offer the canard that they didn't print anything of quality this year (oh oh!) but most just say, they need time.
So we suggest that you remember how to eat an elephant: one bite at a time.
Identify your top 3 customers, look through what you have done for them this year, and select one or two projects you recall the client seemed very proud of, and presto, the hard work is done, you have executed a smart marketing strategy, and should you win an award on behalf of a most assuredly delighted client, well you will thank your lucky leprechaun you found some time. Remember this happy picture of Mike Kenna from Printery Communications presenting an award to an important customer?
(of course if you go through what you have done for your top 3 clients and still can't find anything of any quality, just maybe there is a different problem....)
Last Friday, Kevin Sperrazza from Power Print in Connecticut contacted us looking for a printer in Orange County California who could tackle a post card printing project, as you might surmise, we could direct Kevin to half a dozen firms whose work we became familiar with due to their entries in past International Gallery events. And in every case, we closed the e-mail connections with the true observation: Gallery can be Good for Busine$$!
Also on Friday, we collected a number of entry parcels from firms like MWM Dexter in Springfield, Missouri, and Hawk Embossing in Concord, California, and JRS Print Solutions in Calgary, Alberta and Esprit Graphic Communications in Kennewick, Washington.
If awards aren't important to customers, and employees and owners and the local press too, then why do so many (and probably most) printing firm websites present a visual depiction of awards won?
http://www.hawkembossing.com/awards.php#images/awards/158.jpg
So gentle reader, check the clock, check the revenue reports and relax. You have time, and you need to do this thing, this 7 per cent Solution of G.
Here, for the final time this season, is the 2010 Call for Entries. The deadline (really truly doubly final deadline) is 31 August.
"Excellence, Watson, we reward excellence, it's elementary my good man!"
http://blog.americanprinter.com/kob/
In a message dated 8/4/2010 4:04:52 P.M. Central Daylight Time, steve@copresco writes:
I have entries! Now I need to fill out the paperwork and send them.
What's my dead (as in, after that, you're dead) line ?
***************************************************
Steve Johnson630/690-2000 fax 630/690-8182
CoprescoDigital On-Demand Printing
http://twitter.com/copresco
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"August 31st my good man," thus sayeth Holmes to his little known side-kick the loopy lawyer leprechaun named Lucky.
Large Format, it'll be the death of Moi!
Large Format, it'll be the death of Moi!
Whether you call it Large Format, or Super-Wide, or Grand Format, printing is showing up all over, and sometimes in the most unexpected places.
The following was an e-mail thread sent to a large number of global graphic arts practitioners on 27 July 2010.
Hi
Kevin P. Keane as an estate planning attorney, we regularly counsel clients on such delicate matters as dispersal of cremains (there's a California outfit that will share Uncle Charlie's dust via fireworks, really!!!) But never before had we considered the opportunity for large format printers to offer decorative caskets as an extension of the product line. From an award winning digital printer in Christchurch, New Zealand (Klever those Kiwi's !)
I have entries! Now I need to fill out the paperwork and send them.
What's my dead (as in, after that, you're dead) line ?
***************************************************
Steve Johnson630/690-2000 fax 630/690-8182
CoprescoDigital On-Demand Printing
http://twitter.com/copresco
***************************************************
Kev-bo Keane-O -- Qwerty Query
Kev-bo Keane-O -- Qwerty Query
Matthew Alexander is president of Colour Innovations in Toronto and is an IAPHC member, his website has a section titled: "Do Printing Awards Matter?" and the section goes on to answer in a compelling manner with a resounding affirmative YES They DO!
They matter to customers, employees, owners and the press.
The photo shows IAPHC Member John Robinson, president of Artcraft Label in Burlington Ontario Canada, his wife Edna and two members of their team in front of their International Gallery Awards Wall of Fame.
Kevin I have one more firm in Calgary that called me yesterday can I still get in if we send it Tuesday next week?Bain
Hi Kevin,You will be happy to know that I Federal Expressed a box of Gallery entries yesterday to arrive today. I had an intern fill in the manifest, hopefully he did it correctly. I’m short staffed at the moment and busy so I wasn’t able to help him much. I entered five pieces. I believe my bookkeeper sent in my member at large dues. She is on vacation this week so I wasn’t able to double check. If she hasn’t I will get that taken care of asap.I would welcome a Linked In recommendationI enjoy reading your Facebook posts!Lee Ann G. BennardoPresidentPrint Management, LLC800 Vinial Street, Suite B210Pittsburgh, PA 15212
Hi Kevin,We have sent 17 entries to you by FedEx under airway bill no. 8546 6838 2999. These entries will be arrived to your office on 30 July (Friday) for your attention. Please confirm your safe receipt by return this mail.Thanks for your kindly assistance again.Best Regards,Kester Lo
Regal Printing (China) Limited
http://www.regalprinting.com.hk
Kevin, I sent an entry off yesterday. Should arrive on Monday in MN.
Your efforts motivated me to enter.
Just wanted you to know.
ScottCappel
Sorrento Mesa Printing
7398 Trade Street
San Diego, CA 92121-2422
Esprit Graphic Communications, Inc.
110 N. Cascade
Kennewick, WA 99336-0493
Hi Skip and PaulineAmong the parcels of entries to the 36th International Gallery yesterday, was a large box of gorgeous entries sent by Thomas Molfetto, Marketing Director at DG3 (Diversified Global Graphics Group) in Jersey City NJ.Last year, company founder Dr. Michael Cunningham sent as part of the DG3 submissions, a book called RWANDA, and this spring we were pleased to ship highly personalized duplicate GOLD awards for the RWANDA book as ordered by DG3, to a marketing agency in London and a designer who lives in the Ascot region of the UK who had partnered with DG3 on the project.Also yesterday, Rick Schildgen, Board member for the NAPL, IAPHC member, and president of CL Graphics (your marketing and cross-media resource is his company tagline) renewed his annual membership and sent 5 splendid entries. He sent an e-note too:In a message dated 7/28/2010 10:09:38 A.M. Central Daylight Time, ricks@clgraphic.com writes:Kevin –Actually I had sent out a package to you all on Monday – so I finally made the time! Thanks,RickAnd we fielded a call mid-afternoon from Janice Divincen at Garlich Printing in St Louis Missouri who told us that the person who normally enters the usual batch of ten or so great Garlich entries had been out, so Janice was just finishing the entry forms and would be shipping, likely today.To which we heaved a sigh of relief, Garlich has always entered the International Gallery and we wondered if we had offended someone, said something dumb, or some other mishap, but no it was just that old matter of time.So that's the purpose of this note. You had commented:In a message dated 7/8/2010 8:31:04 A.M. Central Daylight Time, skip@esprit.net writes:Hi Kevin,
Thank you for your kind email and deadline extension. We will work on choosing a few entries in the next week or so.
Wishing you a wonderful Thursday! - skipAnd then Pauline and I had a nice chat on 20 July about how many copies we need of each entry and so forth.So, just call me the Bald Bird-Dawg Barrister, but I just wanted to circle back and see if you have shipped already or if I should keep a weather eye out for the wonderful entries from Esprit Graphic Communications any day now.That's All Folks, and I promise to quit bugging thee, altho you must admit I am one persistent cussCheerioKev-bo Keane-O - Proud Proselytizer for the Potential of PrintPlease e-mail me at kkeane1069@aol.com if you have any questions whatsoever, and thank you!
So you can see gentle reader, that entries are still enroute from every corner of North America and indeed the globe. Printing awards matter, and you still have time to pound out a message on your QWERTY keyboard:
"Hey Kev-bo, can I still send some award winning submissions you persistently and patently bald cuss?"
If you liked it then you should have put a label on it
If you liked it then you should have put a label on it
From an e-mail sent to label printers all over the world on 27 July.
Hi,
Kevin:Can we still submit some entries?BILL ORME | MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS MGR.SMYTH COMPANIES, LLC
Kevin if we still have time I’m going to try and pull three samples to send in to you today.Bill BarteeVintage 99 Label Mfg. Inc.611 Enterprise CourtLivermore, CA 94550
Cheers,
Kevin Keane - Proud Proselytizer for the Potential of Print
EXTEND ? Flexible R Us
EXTEND ? Flexible R Us
Global Designers/Printers/Finishers all work in a world of ever shorter run lengths and ever more absurd client delivery needs; in a phrase -
time-pressed / over-stressed.
Thus, at the request of many of these fine folks, the International Gallery entry deadline has been extended until 30 July 2010.
Testimonial marketing works, always has, always will. That photo was found on the website of Sentinel Printing based in St. Cloud, Minnesota, a firm that regularly wins in the International Gallery and also won the Best of Show in the 2010 Central Minnesota local area chapter Gallery event. The photo salutes Chad Corey the author of an AWARD WINNING graphic novel called Tales of Tralodren which has won both Chad as client, and Sentinel as printer partner, oodles of residual marketing opportunities. The picture says it all! And here is the link to the Sentinel Awards section of their website:
Now, as we are fervent believers in the power of the International Gallery, we see the cross-marketing symbiosis that derives when Sentinel salutes Chad and Chad salutes Sentinel and who is to say when Chad will be sitting at a convention of fellow graphic novelists who want to know who prints his books, and voila, new business opportunities arise from marketing of past Gallery success?
We know this, as we send new business possibilities to printers and other graphic professionals every single business day and we always send these leads to folks whose expertise we were made aware of by virtue of their past International Gallery entry participation.
And frankly, what we don't know is why any printer or other graphic professional would forego the opportunity to honor an existing client as per the photo above, or to have a chance to see unexpected new business.
Isn't that the logic of most business: take good care of existing clientele and be open and welcoming to new customers too? But maybe you need to hear it phrased in the words of a longtime entrant/winner in each successive International Gallery event. This is what Hopkins Printing in Columbus Ohio told us: .
In a message dated 12/11/2009 7:11:48 A.M. Central Standard Time, waterhouse@hopkins.com writes:
Hi Kevin!That's funny - I must be dyslexic too because I didn't notice the "prinring," typo, neither did any of our sales reps!!I would LOVE for you to ship them today, or next week if that's better for you.There are many reasons why this is my favorite contest - first of all, it's international. Our customers are always surprised to know their piece won a print contest with people from Hong Kong, England and everywhere in between. Next - The award is a really nice looking plaque - colorful, wooden, easy to hang... Also, once we hear that we've won we can expect to get the awards in our hands within a couple weeks (or however long it takes me to get the exact wording they want on their plaques!). And - that is the best part of your award - you give me the time and availability to word the award exactly as we would like it. I just thought of another great Gallery point - the cost of your award is included in the entry fee.I don't know if I've told you this, but we stopped competing in the PIA Benny contest about 5 years ago when they instituted a $45 fee to change any part of the award from the way you entered it. (They want all awards to go to Hopkins Printing and for us to pay $95 to get duplicates for all our customers.)So - thank you for making it easy for printers. Thanks for all you do Kevin.Have a great weekend!Michelle
So dear urgent entrant, just pretend you're Eric Idle doing a Monty Python skit:
"Say no more! Say no more! Just tell me where to find the Call for Entries with the extended flexibility of the 30 July entry deadline, I have good current customers who just might be tickled if their project wins an International Award (note to self, must promise to market any and all success) and I can always use more customers!" The Call for Entries with entry date revisions can be obtained by e-mailing kkeane1069@aol.com or by visiting the Gallery section of the IAPHC website www.iaphc.org and looking under the Gallery button for the sub-button "Call for Entries." As noted above the entry deadline is revised til 30 July 2010.
Further note to self, "I will not limit my marketing to the print and graphics industry trade press, it's all well and good that my erstwhile competitor and lawn darts partner Jim-Bob Gill-hooey, of Jim-Bob's Emporium of Print and Taxidermy (we sell egg rolls too) is gonna read about my success on behalf of my client(s), but the folks I really want to read about it are NOT in my industry, they are current or prospective customers who might be in my town, or they might be half a world away. "
INTERNATIONAL entries still roll in: On 13 July we collected 16 gorgeous entries from The Lowe-Martin Group in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada; and we are very glad to see Tucker Printers in Rochester, New York (a Consolidated Graphics company) continue its annual patronage of the International Gallery; and 12 very drinkable wine labels from Collotype Labels (part of Multi-Color Corporation) in Mile End South, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa; and 7 superlative web offset entries from recent Web Offset Award winner Evergreen Printing & Publishing in balmy Bellmawr, New Jersey; and 9 entries from Metro Label with plants in Napa, Vancouver and Toronto and Montreal; and a courier envelope with the payment details for the 60 entries from C&C Offset Printing Company Ltd. in Tai Po, The New Territories, Hong Kong and 3 great envelope entries from Premier Envelope in Vancouver, and Edmonton and Calgary, and an additional entry (his fifth) from John Robinson, president of Artcraft Label in Burlington, Ontario who sent us a promotional label he ran for Nilpeter USA, which was so well received by the maker of flexo presses that they sent it on to world headquarters in Denmark to be displayed at Label Expo Europe. Oh and one more very secure parcel sent by:
Dear Sir,
Hope you have received all our lenticular entries on time. Kindly intimate us for the same. Eagerly awaiting for the results, so keep in touch.
Thanks,
Vinit Jadhav
Taco Visions Pvt. Ltd
38 A & B Government Industrial Estate,
Kandivali West, Mumbai - 400 067
India
And we reflect again on Michelle Waterhouse's comment: "Our customers are always surprised to know their piece won a print contest with people from Hong Kong, England and everywhere in between."
If you are a member of the IAPHC Facebook or LinkedIn Group pages (all are welcomed!) you may recall that we recently posted a link from C&C Offset:
http://www.candcprinting.com/eng/news/news_all_detail.aspx?NewsNo=101
You are cordially invited to join the above noted firms to take advantage of the marketing/public relations/customer relations management bonanza that an International Award Winning imprimatur can bestow upon your firm.
REMINDER on NEW Ship-To Address:
iPhone and Going Postal Cardashian
iPhone and Going Postal Cardashian
The wonderful graphics industry website in the UK (Print Week) had an article online Monday (5 July 2010):
http://www.printweek.com/news/1014127/ADP-launches-postcard-app-iPhone/
The opener to the article by Jez Abbott revealed:
"Advantage Digital Print (ADP) has launched an iPhone app that enables users to create and upload postcards that the company then prints and sends.
Post cards created on the iPostcard app are sent via FTP at 4pm every day and are then printed on 300gsm card on the Dorchester printer's Xerox iGen4 press.
They are given a UV gloss finish, collected by Royal Mail at 5.15pm and sent anywhere in the world. iPostcards cost 99p for UK and £1.49 for worldwide delivery."
Wait a minute, we said, wasn't there a Illinois printing firm that had done something similar ??? and Google agreed, and reminded us of the PixyMe app for the iPhone:
http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/pixyme-app-drives-sales-of-virtual-physical-postcards/
Note especially, the image personalization feature of the PixyMe app, and that in addition to printed postcards, the messages can be sent via several social media platforms. Frank DeFino Jr. at Tukaiz is a heckuva marketeer, and he may have been one of the first to create an iPhone app for post card production, but by no means was he the only one; Kevin Kurz, president of PrintYourLife.com in Tucker, Georgia got his app team rocking in 2008:
http://www.printyourlife.com/About.html
And in that red sauce (ersatz?) state of Bolonga, Italy, your iPhone can hook up with Postino courtesy of:
And in fact, ADP is not alone in the UK, TouchNote.com is also in the field:
http://www.touchnote.com/all-about/about-touchnote/more-about-the-company/
What we like about all of these efforts is the presence of mind (and probably a few freakishly smart IT felleristas too :) to not be run over in despair by the onrush of new technology but rather to leverage it to build new markets, and new opportunities.
And since a moving picture always tells the story rather well, here's a You Tube video featuring the legendary Apple Macintosh software developer Bill Atkinson showing his post card app for the iPhone.
Cheers,
Kevin Keane
