A p r i l 2 0 1 4 / Q U I C K P R I N T I N G 11
w w w. M y P R I N T R e s o u r c e . c o m
Convergence is the operative word for many quick and small commercial print
firms under the franchise umbrella. By Mark Vruno
Blending marketing into the
print mix is not so different.
Just ask Denise Spalding and
Jennifer Eberle, co-owners of
Allegra Marketing Services of
Louisville-East Kentucky. With
annual sales of $6.46 million
last year, the dynamic duo is
Alliance Franchise Brands' "Sales
Excellence" award winner for
2013. (Annual sales within the
Alliance network averaged slight-
ly more than $1 million per shop
last year.)
Akin to a broad investment
portfolio, diversification can
build print-related profits, too. In
addition to the old-standby ser-
vices of color and monochrome
offset and digital printing, there
are other revenue streams pop-
ping up more and growing in
print shops across the country:
prepress/premedia, binding/
finishing, and mailing services
are among the largest ancillary
offerings. Demand for Internet/
web services tripled last year to
C
onvergence is happening all around us,
with food, music, ideas, and technolo-
gy. As Mike Zimmer, president of large
enterprise operations at Xerox, put
it. "Remember the frst time you saw
a smartphone? It just made sense," Zimmer
wrote in Chief Optimist magazine, which itself
is an example of convergence between Xerox
and Forbes magazine. "One device for phone
calls, texting, email, pictures, GPS directions,
and music. So powerful, yet so simple. That's
what convergence is all about."
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