At a conference last week, I put forth the apparently heretical proposition that commercial printers might be well served if they educated their customers about making responsible paper choices, about reducing mailing list waste through culling and other means, and about giving intended recipients of each mailing a simple, no-cost way to opt-out of future mailings (this could be accomplished by including one line of text with a toll-free phone number or web URL). I say that my musings must have been heretical because they evoked from my printing industry co-panelist a very rapid and sharp reaction, culminating in a statement that it was not the printer’s place to tell a client what to do and not to do. Did I hear that correctly? Printers shouldn't provide guidance to their customers? Printers are merely order takers? If my ears weren't playing tricks on me, what I heard is shocking -- and symptomatic of why this business is such a struggle in today’s economy. Quality and on-time delivery being equal, customers make print purchasing decision based on price. As we have heard from multiple gurus, including Kodak’s departing CMO Jeff Hayzlett (on the very morning of my panel discussion), expecting to succeed by competing on price is a fools hope. If price is out, what's in? Value. In other words, “giving good weight.”
I learned the concept of “giving good weight” from an essay of the same name by Pulitzer Prize winner John McPhee, who wrote a story about produce sellers at the greenmarkets in New York City. It’s really very simple. Say a shopper presents three tomatoes to be weighed and purchased, and they tip the scale at a pound and a quarter. Some vendors will charge for each ounce of those tomatoes. But others – the ones giving “good weight” – charge only for a pound. Sure they loose a few cents on the sale, but they have made customers who will come back for more week after week.
I’m not saying you should give away the store. What I am saying is that to outcompete the other guys in your space, you need to deliver added value. And being a trusted source information, insights, and guidance for your print-buying customers is the kind of value that is remembered. It’s good weight.
So let's look at “good weight” in light of your relationship with a high-profile direct-mail customer. They're cost-conscious, and probably want the cheapest stock that performs to their designer’s specification.
You could easily get that stock for them, but you know that it is produced offshore, and you know that the area from which the paper comes has been singled out by environmentalists as having some very poor forest practices. (You know this because you read the environmental groups websites from time to time.) You also are aware that some of the more “rabid” environmental groups have held public protests against brands that use paper from this offshore country. (You read that in the morning newspaper.)
Why wouldn’t you take the time to find alternatives to the cheap sheet, and discuss both the issues and alternative papers with your customer? Yes, it is ultimately the customer’s decision. But if you are committed to giving good weight, it’s your role to inform and advise.
You also might use your knowledge of high post-consumer-recycled and certified papers to recommend stocks that deliver “something extra” to those in the know environmentally. And you would advise your client to mention the environmental properties of the paper being used right on the mailer itself. You also might advise on the design of the mailer, to minimize waste by getting the most out of every press sheet. And you’d talk about reducing waste and improving potential response rates by culling mailing lists for bad and duplicate addresses, persons who have requested to opt out, and even recipients of previous mailers who didn’t purchase or redeem offers. Some of your customers may know these things already, but it does not hurt to demonstrate leadership by showing what you know.
Guess what? The majority of printers, probably most of your competition included, don't know the issues, haven't found the solutions, and haven’t made a commitment to giving good weight. That being the case, your demonstration of leadership through the provision of knowledge, insight, and advice gives you an edge in landing and holding customers who appreciate that kind of added value.
And if your advice keeps your customer out of the cross-hairs of a campaign action, its worth its weight in greenmarket tomatoes.
Give good weight. Leadership is the new green.
