Quick Printing

InfoTrends’ annual U.S. Production Printing & Copying Market Forecast doesn’t contain any real earth-shattering new information. It does, however, confirm the direction in which the printing industry is headed.

Not surprisingly, color continues to erode the black & white market and will account for 77% of revenue from equipment, supplies, and services by 2014. We often think of color printing as full coverage color printing, but in areas such as transactional printing color is light coverage. Somewhat surprising is that what InfoTrends calls “a significant number” of monochrome pages are being printed on color machines.

Overall, InfoTrends expects continued declines in the printing industry through 2014 with one exception. It forecasts growth in digital color printing because of shorter runs, personalization, and fast turnaround requirements. All in all, nothing much new, but another signpost on the way to the future of printing.

If vendors had their way, there would be one—and only one—giant printing trade show. Drayage would be free, unions non-existent, attendance astronomical, and costs negligible. Well, good luck with that. However, they will be getting part of their wish next year with the combined AlphaGraphics/Allegra technology expo in Las Vegas.

The two franchise systems will wrap their annual conferences around the trade show with one before and one after the two-day event at Caesar’s Palace. The show is expected to attract some 150 vendors and around 600 attendees—double what was usually found at the individual trade shows in the past. Add to that the fact that Minuteman is having its own conference a week later at the same hotel and you should have a bunch of happy vendors.

It will be interesting to see how this all works out. I doubt if there will be fisticuffs should a franchisee from one system run into a franchise from the other system at the show, but there probably will be some grumbling. If this all pans out, look for continued pressure from vendors to get other systems to go the joint-venture route.

Larry Hunt’s July Color Copy News and High Speed Copy News report the results of two surveys—one on color copy prices and one on self-service copying. Not surprisingly, the price of color copies has fallen as speeds have increased and equipment has become more efficient and affordable. Also, it is no surprise that self-serve copying is rapidly disappearing in today’s print shops.

Back in 1990, printers were charging $2.61 for one copy of one original and $1.14 each for 500 copies of one original. Five years ago, that had dropped to $1.07 and 51 cents, respectively. Today, the average price of one copy of one original is 72 cents and the price of 500 copies of one original is 39 cents. The average cost per copy of all color copy jobs has fallen from $1.64 in 1990 to 41 cents today. That said, most printers report being relatively satisfied about their color copy business, perhaps because they are no longer depending on the one-offs and are concentrating on larger jobs that are suited for today’s more sophisticated equipment.

On the self-serve copy side, it appears that this small but once ubiquitous profit center has all but disappeared. For one thing, yesterday’s customers now have their own basic copying capabilities. Also, the annoyance and lost time associated with walk-in convenience copy customers has prompted printers to deemphasize the service or drop it all together. Some have kept it as a community service, but its days as a standard offering in modern print shops are certainly over.

NAPL’S Strategic Perspective 2010 contains some interesting findings on the adoption of social media in the printing industry. Some 60% of printers are not using social media at all. Of those, a little over 24% plan to get social within the next three years, while nearly 18% of those who aren’t using social media have no intention of doing so in the next three years. Another 17% don’t know enough about the subject to even respond.

Of those who are using social media, only 1.1% say it is already an important part of their marketing and communications practices, while 37.8% say social media are somewhat important now and will become more important over the next three years.

What are the most used social media choices by those printers who are getting social? LinkedIn is by far the tops at 44.7%. That is followed by 29.8% using Facebook, 14.4% using Twitter, and 10.1% using You Tube or other video. Another 10.1% are using blogs, while 8% rely on online forums.

There is no question that social media are becoming more a part of printers’ marketing and communications toolbox, but it’s clear that there remains a reluctance to get involved and a lack of knowledge about how social media can be used effectively. It will be interesting to see how all this shakes out over the next year or so.

It’s less than three months until the NAQP Owners Conference and the preliminary session topics are already available.

• See how printing and other services are valued by print buyers.
• Learn about social media in a three-track program for the novice, the knowledgeable, and the expert.
• Find out how marketing is done right.
• Learn how to price integrated services.
• Discover how to communicate your green initiatives, be they large or small.
• Find the secrets to getting you best customers to buy more and buy more often.

This is only a partial roster of highlights that also include the annual Supplier Showcase featuring vendors who specifically market to this segment of the printing industry. The NAQP Owners Conference is the only industry event specifically for owners or general managers of quick, small commercial, or digital printing operations with 25 or fewer employees. Don’t miss this opportunity to fine tune your business and learn from both industry experts and your peers.

July is shaping up to be a particularly busy month. This week I will be in Tucson, AZ, at the AlphaGraphics annual convention. The following week I will be in New York City to preview a new offering from Epson. The next week, Karen and I will be in San Antonio, TX, at the annual Franchise Services conference for owners of Sir Speedy, PIP Printing, and Signal Graphics franchise operations.

In looking at my travel schedule, it dawned on me that these events–and others like them–are proof that despite all the doom and gloom there are many signs that our industry segment is still alive and kicking.

At the AlphaGraphics event, I’ll be presenting awards to a group of franchisees being singled out for their contributions to the system and to fellow AlphaGraphics printers. That is only one of many awards scheduled to honor franchisee success.

At the Epson meeting, I’ll get a sneak preview of a new offering aimed at our market. To me, this indicates a confidence in the quick and small commercial printing industry on the part of a major manufacturer.

Finally, I’ll be presenting awards to the PIP and Sir Speedy top sales volume franchisees, along with awards to all of the franchisees who made this year’s Quick Printing Top 100 roster. Again, these awards show that success is possible under almost any economic circumstance.

I’m reminded of a quote I once ran across in a sales training book: “Success in life comes not from holding a good hand, but from playing a poor hand well.”

The Graph Expo Show Daily is the attendee bible for Graph Expo. It has information about products on display, educational sessions, booth locations, show events, “Must See ‘Em” awards, and much, much more. The much, much more part is what I want to ask you about. What sorts of things would you like to see in the premier publication for this once a year event?

This year, the Show Daily will also be available in a digital eBook version that will have embedded video. This will offer show information in digital form and is a reflection of the digital developments reshaping our industry. I certainly hope that you will be attending Graph Expo, simply because it is the premier event for the printing industry in North America. And I also hope you will send along your thoughts on what you would like to see in the 2010 Graph Expo Show Daily.

Thanks!

Okay, maybe I oversold this a little, but this morning I was looking at all the good stuff posted here by our columnists and editors and noted that the comments in response were few and far between. Does that mean folks aren’t clicking through to get to the blogs? Or does it mean that those who read them don’t have any comments to make? Is the link to the blogs too small or hidden? What’s the deal?

If you’ve read this far, I’d appreciate it if you would take the time to tell us what you think about our Print Talk blogs. We’re always open to suggestions and value your feedback. I look forward to hearing from you.

Last week I got a heads-up email from an old college buddy who is involved with the graphics industry on the sign side. It read: “See attached from a recent issue of the Federal Register. Go to Page 7 to review proposed changes to NAICS classifications. Quick Printing is to be lumped into an ‘Other Commercial Printing’ category. So too is Digital Printing, Also litho. Also flexo.”

I took a look and found out that this was indeed the case. I also found the rationale for the move:
“Recommendation: While less than optimal from a production function standpoint, the ECPC recommends combining the national industries for lithographic, gravure, flexographic, quick, digital, manifold business forms, blankbook and other commercial printing into a new national industry. In recent years, the printing industry as a whole has undergone significant consolidation and a move towards establishments that cross current NAICS industry definitions. The expansion of digital printing by establishments that also print using other methods is significantly re-shaping this industry. The increasing overlap of printing processes within a single establishment is expected to continue throughout the next decade.”

No doubt there is an increasing overlap, but lumping litho, gravure, flexo, business forms, blankbook, and quick into one big blob makes little sense. Quick/small commercial printing is a definite category unto itself and should be recognized as such. The final date for comment or objection is July 12, which is fast approaching. I don’t know if this is really a big deal or not, but it just doesn’t seem logical, and the move itself is admittedly described as “less than optimal from a production function standpoint.”

I don’t know if it has been officially announced yet, but Steve Johnson’s last day as executive director of NAQP will be this Friday, June 15. Steve took over the association’s reins in some troubled times and has held things together through years of turmoil and transition. He was there when the association reversed its shortsighted name change to PrintImage International and helped reclaim the NAQP moniker. He was also there during the transition from an independent association to an affiliate of NAPL.

Unlike many departures, Steve isn’t leaving “to pursue other interests” but is moving directly to a new position as head of a Chicago-based trade association. As I understand it, Christina Ciurej will remain as VP of membership development and the association will continue along the same track it has been on since joining with NAPL.

I’ve been working with NAQP for more than 20 years and have seen several association leaders come and go. If I am not mistaken, Steve’s tenure is the second longest, if not the longest, in NAQP’s history. Despite the bouts of “Sturm und Drang” the association has experienced during Steve’s time at the helm, it has always been a pleasure working with him—both as NAQP’s publishing partner and as a friend. He will be missed.