New Report Details Growth Of Variable Data Print / 1:1 Print Personalization In Graphic Arts, Creative, And Publishing Markets NEW YORK -- January 31, 2007 -- The Industry Measure has released an update to its Variable Data Printing / 1:1 Print Personalization report, “Variable Data Printing / 1:1 Print Personalization: 2007,” detailing the growth and increasing sophistication in this extraordinary market. In addition to The Industry Measure’s regularly asked questions about VDP / 1:1 print personalization as a sales opportunity, this very data-heavy report includes: Commercial Printers and Trade Shops: · Percentage who have produced VDP in-house in the last 12 months; · Level of sophistication of those jobs (from simple mail merges to b&w or full-color variable-image, variable text jobs); · Mean and median percentages of VDP jobs that are commercial vs. transactional; · Primary production technology used to output these jobs; · Changes in production volumes of VDP jobs; · Percentage of overall revenues represented by VDP jobs; Creatives (agencies, designers, corporate designers, commercial photographers): · Percentage who have produced VDP in-house in the last 12 months; · Level of sophistication of those jobs (from simple mail merges to b&w or full-color variable-image, variable text jobs); · Primary production technology used to output these jobs; · Whether VDP jobs are increasing, decreasing, or staying the same; · Attitudes towards digital print (quality, color matching, color consistency, durability, gloss); · Perceived benefits and drawbacks of VDP jobs; Publishers (magazine, book, catalog): · Percentage who have produced VDP in-house in the last 12 months; · Level of sophistication of those jobs (from simple mail merges to b&w or full-color variable-image, variable text jobs); · Type of products for which VDP is used (covers, interiors, promotional materials); · Primary production technology used to output these jobs; · Whether VDP jobs are increasing, decreasing, or staying the same; · Perceived benefits and drawbacks of VDP jobs. Notes About the Data For the recurring sales opportunities and business challenges, the data is provided on a historical basis. For VDP-specific non-recurring, specialty questions, the Printing and Design & Production data is compared year to year or to the most recent time the question was asked. This is the first time these questions have been asked in our Publishing surveys. Survey Results Full-Color Variable-Image: One of the most telling pieces of data comes from Printing respondents’ mix of 1:1 personalized jobs. While the percentage of graphic arts firms overall who produce VDP jobs in-house is nearly identical to 18 months earlier, the percentage doing full-color variable-image, variable-text jobs with 1–12 fields has more than doubled over three survey periods. The percentage of digital print shops (defined as shops with full-color digital production presses or DI presses) doing these applications has rocketed to 71%. Business Segments: We see strong volume increases (on a percentage basis) within business segments, as well. When asked about how their volumes of various types of VDP jobs are changing, print providers, for example, were strikingly more likely to indicate that their volumes of “full-color, variable-image, variable-text jobs w/1-12 variable fields” were growing “a little” (1–25%) or “a lot” (25% or more) than other applications – faster than hybrid jobs (1:1 personalization printed onto offset shells), b&w variable-text, variable-image jobs, and simple mail merges. Digital Printers: Among digital printers, which are focusing almost exclusively on full-color marketing applications, the trends are even more striking. In this category, there is almost no stasis in the data—only 4% of digital printers saw no change in their volumes at all. Overwhelmingly, digital printers saw their volumes of full-color VDP jobs with 1-12 variable fields growing, and while some shops did see their volumes declining, this is because those jobs are becoming more complex—moving into the 13+ variable field category, where more than one-third of digital print shops saw their volumes increasing. Creatives: When it comes to creatives’ attitudes toward variable data print, The Industry Measure found even more pleasant surprises. While the percentage of creatives indicating that they had produced a VDP job in the last 12 months is down, this may be an issue of quality over quantity. Creatives are showing dramatically more acceptance of this process, not simply for increased response rates, but for improving things like corporate image and customer satisfaction. They are also looking at VDP for its ability to lower overall total costs, rather than focusing only on cost per piece. Publishers: VDP / 1:1 print personalization is making significant inroads into the publishing community, as well. One in five publishers now says it has implemented “personalized, customized, variable-data, or other types of targeted printing” for magazine or catalog covers (aside from mailing label), interior magazine content, customized book content, or promotional/marketing materials. And while the publishers doing VDP are in the minority, of those who are producing these applications, the percentage saying that their use of these applications is overwhelming on the side of future growth. Creative Attitudes: While many of the trends are continuations of those The Industry Measure has been tracking for a long time, there are some real surprises in here. From stronger-than-expected growth in certain segments of the graphic arts industry, to dramatic shifts in creatives’ attitude toward digital print, to the publishing segment most likely to see its use of VDP “increasing” (it is not catalog publishers!), there are some pleasant surprises that reinforce the true value of industry research. Availability The Industry Measure “Variable Data Printing / 1:1 Print Personalization: 2007” is available for purchase by visiting the secure The Industry Measure eStore online at www.theindustrymeasure.com or by phone at 866-873-6310. The price for the report is $995. The Industry Measure eStore customers can download this report in PDF Acrobat format immediately after purchase.