INSPIRED

Are you inspired by your company? Have you ever asked yourself that question? If you have, chances are that most of you out there, are not inspired and yearn to be inspired!

I just got back from Houston, Texas, where I attended the National Associates Meeting with Consolidated Graphics. Now, if you aren't sure what this meeting is...see my previous post and it'll give you a 30,000 foot view....

Now, most companies when they have a national event...it becomes sort a happy hour of sorts for an entire weekend. Well, Consolidated Graphics has found a happy medium.

This weekend was not only fun, but ABSOLUTELY INSPIRATIONAL! I have seen what's about to enter our market place in the way of talent and tools. The printing industry is about to be turned up-side down and sideways and for the better!

I met over 300 young people who have not just a passion for print and all things printed, but a passion to lead and a passion to share it with the world. These young people are full of great ideas, industry knowledge and a passion I haven't seen in years.

The entire weekend there were discussions about bringing more to our clients and prospects; giving value first and expecting nothing in return. What a great concept! Give value first, expect nothing in return! Isn't that the basis for what we as people are to strive for? I think so. And using that basis as a business concept is powerful.

Over the weekend I listed to industry leaders like Daniel Dejan from Sappi, speak about best practices and ways to engage and build business for our clients like I've never heard before.

If you don't know who Consolidated Graphics is...you'll soon find out. Keep your eyes open everyone...there are some great things on the horizon!

For more information...click the below links. And as always, I welcome your feedback!

http://www.cgx.com
http://www.cgxemergedc09.com
http://www.cgxsolutions.com
http://www.sappi.com
http://www.wentworthprinting.com
http://www.wetzelbrothers.com
http://www.andersonprinting.com

National Associates Meeting

I'm attending Consolidated Graphics' National Associates Meeting this weekend!

If you don't know what this is...let me give you a brief summary. Consolidated Graphics recruits and hires only the Best and Brightest college graduates to train and become the printing industry's next leaders. This meeting is a time for all of these up and coming leaders to discover best practices in the print industry and maybe even devise some of their own...that just might change the industry for the better.

I'll be speaking on Saturday at the event. Myself and another consultant for Consolidated Graphics will be sharing some tips that we've picked up along the way. Tips from networking to researching prospects and determining the best approach to their industry.

Below are some links that I'll be sharing with the group. Maybe these links would be helpful for you guys.

For all of you bloggers, try these sites for inspiration/help!
-www.dailyblogtips.com
-www.problogger.com

For all of you sales reps or soon to be reps, try these ezines:
-www.gitomer.com
-www.businessbyphone.com

Ps...link with me on Twitter and find out the latest in technology that Consolidated Graphics is about to unleash! Watch out printworld...this is gonna shake things up! More details to come....

RGB COLOR VS. CMYK COLOR

Is it really a big deal if you send RGB images instead of CMYK images?

The answer is ABSOLUTELY!

Don't take my word for it though, see for yourself. The image on the left is a RGB image. The one on the right is a CMYK converted image. Can you tell a difference?

It's alwas best to convert your images from RGB to CMYK because you'll have more control over color when printing. When printers receive RGB images, we typcially use a standard conversion, which may not alter the color to your liking.

It's true that you can create certain colors in RGB that you can't in CMYK. However, when these colors are printed, it will be converted to a CMYK color scheme, which will most definitely alter the color combination you might have been going for.

The conversion is important becaus printing is based on a different set of colors: Cyan (blue), Magenta (red), Yellow and Black, which are the primary colors for inks and pigments.

The shift in color will be most noticeable in solid colors on backgrounds. See the different conversions that can occur below. And as always, call me with any questions.

To Coat or not to Coat...

There's a myriad of choices out there for those that want to be creative with their printed pieces. Many of you may be overwhelmed at the choices and some of you may not even know which way to turn.

Do I use Aqueous, Varnish or UV? How do I choose?

The first step is to sit down with your printer and discuss the effect that you are going for. Do you want a textured feel? Do you want it to shine so bright that it almost jumps off the page? Do you want a subtle, yet elegant feel? Or, are you simply wanting to protect the printed image from smudging and scratching?

Here's a quick performance comparison that you might find helpful.

• Conventional Varnishes-holds tight registration, but dries slower than other coatings and can yellow over time.
  


• UV Coatings-quick turn, great results, but expensive, will show finger prints, but resists scratching.
  


• Pearlescent-can cause undesirable changes in color.
  


• Gloss vs. Dull-gloss coating can make blacks appear more dense than dull coating.

Contact me if you have a particular look and feel that you are going for, but not quite sure how to get there.

You can also learn more about this subject by going to the below link and checking out The Standard. http://www.na.sappi.com/education/designforprint

What does it mean to be a partner with your printer?

Is your sales rep a "slick rick" or does he really have your best interests at heart? How many of you out there have had a printer come to you and say, "I want to be a partner to you"? Do you turn around and ask them what that means to them? Or, how they could provide a so-called "partnership" to you?

You should. Isn't the term parnter played out? I mean isn't that what your vendor should be doing already? Or any one that wants your business, for that matter?

Shouldn't those people be looking for ways to help you? I do. How you ask?

Well instead of selling you on printing, I learn about your business first. How do you get product to your end consumer? Who is your most valuable customer, what are their demographics? Why is it that particular demographic is your best client? What are the complications you face on a daily basis? How will your margins and bottom line be affected by the next project you put out, or the next product you put on the shelf? How can you communicate to your employees and consumers better?

Aren't those questions that should be asked? Not only asked, but listened to and heard. How many of you out there have a sales rep that just sees you as a commission? How many of you are just a quota for the next rep?

If that's how you feel about your current rep; if he/she isn't going the extra mile for you day in and day out, maybe it's time for you to find one that does. Maybe it's time to find a rep that listens and hears your day to day challenges. One that will educate you, one that goes to bat for you, one that brings solutions to the table that make you look good.

SAVE MUCHO DINERO...WHILE PRINTING?

If you are like most companies, you're looking for ways to save money. If you buy printing on a regular basis you may already have a handle on the things to look for. But, if not, here are a few tips to help you in your print buying excursions....

1. Stick to multiples of 8.5x11. Most press sheets are sheeted with the final size of 8.5x11 in mind. If you stray too much from that, you aren't using the majority of the paper and end up having a lot of waste. Keeping your job in multiples of 8.5x11 sheet sizes could help you save a great deal of money.

2. Bleeds..Bleeds..Bleeds? If you must have bleeds (and I think having bleeds can make a printed piece look better) then you could undersize your print job to 8 3/8x10 7/8. This can allow the printer to have the extra space needed for trim and keep you on a smaller press sheet.

3. House Sheets. Ask your vendor what they use for their house paper. It may be that it's just as nice as the stock you wanted to spec. The reason printers have a house sheet is typically because they purchase that stock in bulk and can pass along a huge savings to you!

4. Gang Run. If you are able to plan ahead (who can do that these days?), then you may be able to print multiple jobs at the same time. If so, your vendor could potentially save you money by running those jobs on the same paper or at least right behind the other.

5. Print-on-Demand. If your company struggles with the obsolescence of material then printing just in time is right up your alley. Instead of printing in bulk, which brings your per piece pricing down, you can print on demand digitally and save money. It may cost you a little more per piece, but you save overall by not printing as much and not wasting as much!

Just a few tips I thought might be helpful. Feel free to call me if you like more tips!

Call me at 803-461-1905.

Beyond Printing...A Recipe for Marketing Genius

What?! You say! Beyond printing?!

Yes, there are other avenues to express your marketing genius! And by the way, if you couple them with print...you just might get amazing results!

Take your typical direct mail piece, you're probably getting a 1-2% response. How's that workin' out for ya? Well, instead of doing the same thing...sort of a status quo...why don't you change that? Take your same old direct mail and spice it up with some cross media action and PURL's!

Combine your typical direct mail with personalized text, graphics and Personalized URL's or PURL's and you have a recipe to entice your clients to keep coming back.

For example we've conducted about a dozen campaigns and typically they have yeilded more than 5% response rates! Some have even yeilded as high as 13% response rates!

What's even better is that you can track the results real time and know exactly who has responded and be able to collect more data on that lead.

I challenge you to go outside of the standard boxed in practices you've been doing!