Custom
'Printfomercials'
Are in the Mail
As the production inkjet printing market approaches the $1 billion landmark, could the
commercial publication sector be its next frontier? Magalogs are 'infomercials in print' that
represent the latest in highly customized, direct response marketing. By MARK VRUNO
I
magine a late-night infomercial where the bubbly hostess mentions
you by name, then refers to previous items that you've purchased. I
might jump off the couch if I heard that, thinking I was dreaming.
Yet a similar approach for the print medium is being carried out
almost daily, as inkjet presses produce more and more custom printfomercials. Keep reading to find out how 16-page, full-color, variable-data
inserts and glossy, personalized onserts were produced for 300,000 selected readers of Popular Mechanics magazine.
The innovative concept was so successful that publisher Hearst has created
similar four-color campaigns, on coated
paper, in Harper's Bazaar with advertisers
PRODUCTION
INKJET PRESSES
In the production inkjet market, the hardware
certainly takes center stage.
Additional color production
inkjet presses can be found
in our online Buyers' Guide
on MyPRINTResource.com.
To fnd out more about a
specifc product listed, visit
the link at the bottom of the
product item.
such as Christian Dior, Lord & Taylor,
Macy's, and Neiman Marcus. "There
are more [programs] in the pipeline,"
reports Doug Sexton, manager of global
T400 Color Inkjet Web Press
HP has introduced the HP T400 Color Inkjet Web Press. With its 600 fpm speed, the
press prints up to 5,200 full-color, letter-size pages per minute. It brings the concept
of mass customization to printing
by combining the personalization
features of digital printing with
the efciencies of high-volume
production. New HP A50 processcolor inks work with new HP A10
printheads, which use HP Scalable
Printing Technology in a compact,
1,200-nozzles-per-inch printhead design. New, advanced web tension controls and dryer
systems provide reliable, fast, and consistent productivity.
Users of standard-size (20.5-inch) digital web press fnishing equipment can produce
two jobs simultaneously on the HP T400, using an optional slitter at the end of the press
to convert the roll into side-by-side webs. Scalable job imposition tools allow operators
to impose separate variable data jobs side-by-side on the web.
MyPRINTResource.com/10240592
8
AUGUST 2013
• INKJET'S AGE
www.MyPRINTResource.com