Quick Printing

JUL 2013

Quick Printing is the only business resource serving the quick and small commercial printing niche in North America. Quick Printing is the authoritative source for business information, emerging technologies, shop profiles and management insight.

Issue link: https://quickprinting.epubxp.com/i/141230

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 15 of 35

kstock to/Thin ckpho © iSto The Competitive Landscape Continues to Shift Printers must employ disruptive thinking and creative ideas if they want to lead the pack. By Bob Hall here is no denying that the face of competition for the small commercial print segment continues to change. At one time, competitors were other independent and franchise printers in town, then came Kinko's and other chains, then the Internet changed the rules and Vistaprint and other online printers were in the competitive mix. Meanwhile, the typical job mix was changing, and simply putting ink or toner on paper and competing on price was no longer enough T 16 QUICK PRINTING / July 2013 to ensure success. And then came the doomsayers—PrintisDying! Well, let's get one thing straight from the outset. Print isn't dying, but it sure is changing and printers are having to adapt to compete. According to a recent InfoTrends survey of 1,000 companies, nearly half reported that they were linking their printed marketing materials to online digital channels. Those same companies reported that online marketing and mobile will see growth while printing will see continued decline. That said, print will still account for 30 percent of marketing expenditures. However, things such as printed brochures and direct mail will be linked to online websites, social media, and mobile apps. So, not only is the competitive landscape changing, so is the nature of print itself. To get a read on what is really going on in the field, I asked several industry professionals how the following are affecting the small commercial market segment: • Online printers (e.g.: Vistaprint, 4Over,Moo.com,etc.) • Big box stores and shipping franchises (Staples, Office Depot, UPS Store, FedExOffice,etc.) • Traditionalprintersmovingtoonline options(e.g.:Web-to-print) • Demand for non-traditional services such as multi-media marketing campaigns, mailing and fulfillment, website maintenance, list maintenance, etc. w w w. M y P R I N T R e s o u r c e . c o m

Articles in this issue

Links on this page

Archives of this issue

view archives of Quick Printing - JUL 2013