Lauren Lawder has been in the graphics/advertising industry for 16 years. She started out taking the first job she could get as an office manager just to get in. She has been a Production Manager for 11 years with various local agencies and also Procter & Gamble. Lauren says she has been fortunate to perform from different perspectives - looking out for external clients and those times when your own company is the client.

Beacon & Fey is a full-service communications firm and a strategic marketing partner with more than twenty years of marketing and communications expertise. Beacon & Fey offers a scientific approach to marketing with their trademarked system that makes advertising and communications predictable, accountable, and actionable. Translation: They take the guesswork out of marketing, which garners results faster. Says Lauren, “You’ll be righter, faster!"




Lauren, besides managing print for Beacon & Fey, what are your other duties?

Besides ordering print, I am the production artist - fixing creative files for size, color, scanning and final prepress. I investigate and interview new vendors to expand our capabilities to meet our clients needs. I manage the computer equipment for the office and am the first line of action if we have an equipment problem. I also manage our email accounts and internet service.

I love what I do! I work for a great company that enables me to keep that all important balance between family and work. And I remember to give positive feedback when it's warranted. I do it on a regular basis. When the print delivery guys drop off samples and they are pleasant and professional, I make sure that someone knows what a good job he's doing representing his company. I've written letters to Press Room Managers about great pressmen. I make a point to tell someone they've done an over the top job. It makes a difference.

It may be too early to tell, but do you think the recent events in DC and New York will impact your business?

In light of what happened on 9/11 I'm not sure how to answer that right now. For the moment, it seems like business as usual and we've been on an upswing for the past 6 months. I'm hoping it continues.

Tell us about your printers. What service expectations do you have?

I have what I deem my inner circle of vendors. The ones I go to on a regular basis. Ones that have been with me for quite some time. Aside from good printing which is a given and a fair pricing structure, they are all excellent at service. I am a huge service fanatic. I want phone calls. I want e-mails. I want up to the minute information about my print projects. If they can't give me that, then I'll find someone who can. 99% of my projects are success stories.

How does Beacon & Fey transfer files to be printed?

The internet has been beneficial as far as speed of transferring files. I don't have to fedex and can just quickly upload to someone’s ftp site. I still like to hand something over to my rep but in a pinch I'll do a transfer to get things in the system quicker.

How do you find and track print vendors in your area?

I meet with new print vendors on a regular basis. I generally get calls asking if they can come out and meet with me for 15 minutes. The last meeting I had went well. The rep was knowledgeable and I told her to give me a call every month just to remind me that she's out there.

Tell us about one of your more challenging jobs.

It was a catalog for a well known educational software company. It was a product catalog with a lot of crossovers, last minute editorial changes, tons of color, order forms, BRCs and had to be in the mail by a specific date. I had inherited the print vendor from the client and was completely impressed by their systems and procedures, their organization, their facility and most of all by their account teams and press operators. The job was running simultaneously on 3 presses. The press check only took 2-1/2 days round the clock. The job turned out great. There were small sacrifices that had to made on press with the cross overs, but only me and the pressmen would ever notice.

On paper brand and type, do you leave it up to the printer?

Paper type and quality is important to me especially with our direct mail and corporate report business. More times than not I'm finding that paper selection is left up to me.