What is print management?

And, what can a print management company do for you?

In essence they manage the purchasing of any print, mail and marketing item you generate.

Print management companies can help you save time and money on all print related activities.

Outsourcing your print and mailing such as invoicing, statements, cheques or corporate stationery items will ensure continuity of brand management, cost reduction and give you unlimited access to expertise.

What are the 5 benefits of working with a print management company?

It’s not expensive

Print management does cost money because there will be set up costs at the outset of the contract or project but what you need to remember is that a print management company will be managing many procurement activities for different organisations and companies this gives them leverage because they are purchasing on volume which in turn is passed down to you the customer in cost savings.

These savings would not be be achieved if the buying is done by many different departments and is managed locally rather than centrally.

Outsourcing will increase efficiencies and eliminate random purchasing.

Guaranteed cost savings

Organisations with in-house sourcing will never achieve the level of savings a print manager can offer, the function is not core to their business and there is likely to be a lack of print knowledge making sourcing the right product at the best price difficult.

Investment in print management software

Print management companies take advantage of the latest print management software solutions.

Print procurement technology enhances the business process by streamlining quoting, improving the print job process and using digital asset management as a central repository for marketing assets and documents.

Organisations do not have the budget nor the infrastructure to implement a print management procurement program but print management companies specifically aim to improve and invest in the technology to ensure customers can place orders online and all print jobs are managed accurately and delivered on time.

Accountability

Outsourcing to a print manager ensures that they are accountable by being able to show cost savings through metrics and reports that include KPI’s and SLA’s  to demonstrate effectiveness.

Innovation

All organisations want to make sure that their printed communications and marketing collateral is at the forefront of their competition.

Print management companies provide innovation and creativity because of their expertise in design and print and because of their knowledge of the market place.

They keep up to date with advancements in the print industry and pass these developments on to you the customer.

Above all else, a print management company is impartial they are not tied to anyone manufacturer or supplier.

They will have cultivated an extensive network of supplier relationships developed over many years, based on trust, excellence and expertise, which cannot be achieved in-house.

The next time you are reviewing your print strategy and want to know how your company can make savings think print management! 

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What does print management mean for companies now?

The evolution of the internet has made finding a printer that much easier, so why use a print management consultant?

Simple. We have years of knowledge working in printing, finishing, mailing and fulfilment we have established working relationships with trade printers, who offer different types of print services.

We are the print buyer for organisations who haven’t a clue about print or print buying and we fill that missing part very nicely.

And because we know exactly which supplier is best suited for your job, we ensure that the customer gets a great job at a fair price.

There’s also an increasing need for multi-channel distribution of documents including a print and electronic version of the same document.

While the print management umbrella incorporates a little of what we do it doesn’t tell the whole story.

Print is part of the whole, but, one of the key elements is how documents are distributed.

A traditional print management company provides total management of a company’s print inventory – from business print, marketing print, direct mail, financial print, to promotional gifts and clothing.

Each component is project managed carefully with its suppliers.

Historically this is where print management companies come into their own by being able to provide expert advice and consultancy on a whole genre of print projects.

Good print management companies will provide clients with the expertise to take a print project from an idea and make it a reality.

With access to an array of suppliers, customers can be sure they are getting the best products at the best price.

Why should I pay for your services when I can buy direct?

All companies spend money on ‘print’. I use the term loosely to cover all aspects of ‘print’.

The purchasing might be assigned to the procurement department or a designated individual in-house. With increasingly limited resources – lack of people and budget restrictions, print buying is commonly split between a number of departments, with more than one person or department buying their print.

Print management companies offer expertise and skill to manufacture any type of print management project under one roof.

They learn their craft by being able to sell a variety of different products and services either as a manufacturer or as a print broker.

Print management companies aren’t tied to one specific supplier or manufacture which is great news for the customer, because you are partnering with a print company that is impartial and unbiased and buys on quality and price.

Print management companies deliver as part of their service offering print consultancy – understanding how what and why you print in-house, the production and project management process so your project is delivered on time.

The overriding factor for partnering with a print management company is their access to a supplier network that they’ve developed and nurtured over many years and this is determined by:-

• What the customer wants
• What market forces are driving new products and services which determines the suppliers print management companies choose to work with and up-sell their unique products/services.

Not all print management companies are made equal. Some are niche and specialist others more generalist able to deliver a plethora of different print projects.

Digital Print Management is a specialist offering print, mailing and electronic services for transpromo – invoices, cheques, bills, subscriptions, remittances, payslips and HR ancillary documents.

Great importance is placed on nurturing and developing long term supplier relationships, the print management company is the sales element of the partnership acting as the reseller, and the supplier delivering/manufacturing the product/service for the end customer.

Their sole aim is to ensure customer satisfaction which in turn means a returning customer.

The most experienced print management companies come from print backgrounds either having worked for a manufacturer or gained experience as a print broker.

Market forces coupled with knowledgable and innovative suppliers have enabled print management companies to diversify and specialise in specific areas of business print and fulfilment like payroll and multi-channel services.

Being able to carve out a niche often sets them above the parapet.

Organisations don’t have the time to find a company to print/distribute their annual P60s or weekly/monthly payslips. or sort out a marketing mailer.

And that is where print management comes in, we fill that void with knowledge and guidance.

Print management companies care about print and work closely with their suppliers to achieve a common goal the delivery of the project and customer satisfaction plus absolute assurance that we are looking after you, the customer.

As well as identifying savings in print and distribution costs, the customer benefits from expert advice and knowledge from a trusted print management partner.

And that is where print management really is NOW.

The post What is print management and why companies need our skills now? appeared first on Digital Print Management.

When it comes to marketing material, print arouses the senses notably sight and touch unlike its digital counterpart, print gives customers something physical to hold, to browse through and is easier to refer back to when needed.

The print industry embraced the digital world back in the early 90’s.

Think digital printing – short run in any number of variations and types, highly personalised and customised.

Print was the leader in optimising personalisation and customisation in the online world.

Where do you think the big brands got their ideas to drive customer engagement with personalized messages and customised landing pages?

Print of course!

Does print management still fit into our social media and digital world?

I believe it does.

In the past, companies had no idea what their print spend was, senior executives had no idea about the number of print devices in use, the cost of paper and supplies, let alone the cost of the overall print bill, excluding corporate stationery and items.

Times have changed and although social media marketing has in some respects taken the lead, print is now one very important part of the content marketing process.

Print marketing has benefited from changes in our industry making it more cost effective for organisations to send out highly personalised marketing information and then following this up with social media campaigns so the customer can follow the brand, company or purchase.

Some may think that print management is finished and that print based marketing is no longer needed in an ever changing social and digital world.

But they are wrong. Think business cards, leaflets, brochures, packaging, posters and invitations.

With the rise of cross media marketing which includes but is not limited to variable data print, personalised URLs (PURL), podcasts/webinars, email and social media, physical print marketing plays an active role.

For example variable data print which includes direct mail, posters, brochures and giveaways – anything that can be printed with the customer’s name, company or a content specific message.

In my last post I talked about how to add value to your print through the use of AR and QR codes.

Similarly adding a PURL enables you to capture a prospect at the point of interest.

Optimising a personalised web address means that you now have a way of measuring their interest and the technology to evaluate where they are in the buying journey using analytics which can report the landing pages they have arrived at.

Cross media communications are designed to move the prospect across the different media using “calls to action” with each touch point teasing the buyer to take further action and move onto the next platform.

Where does print management fit in?

Simple. Print management companies are experts in the total management of a company’s print marketing requirements – marketing print, financial print and more.

Print management means accessibility to the latest innovations not just in print but in design, new technologies like AR that can all add value to your marketing initiatives.

Being able to work with an outsourcing partner that can manage and integrate the various channels of communication makes it a very effective way of maximising business efficiencies and savings.

The marketing officer gains expertise, consultation, access to a variety of multi-channel distribution networks, brand consistency and major cost benefits

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