--- Special Feature - Sitting In Things We Need to Do by Sean Doherty March 1, 2007 -- The last few years have brought many changes in the digital printing world. With short run high-end printing, variable data printing and print on demand, digital printers have much more to offer. Our products have changed and our clients have more choices not only from us as print providers but from our competitors. So how do we stand out and make our services known? How do we convey to our clients that conventional printing, while still necessary, can be combined with short run, high quality digital printing? Be First First, we need to be the first. We need to be the first thought for their digital needs. We have to be the first choice in our area or region, we need to be the most knowledgeable and execute all of our promises. If we are the first choice of the local companies that need digital printing then we should receive a higher share of all the digital print jobs. This means doing all we can to raise awareness of our capabilities and services. Advertise, market, promote, and blow our own horn! Educate Second, we need to educate our clients on our products and how they can benefit by using them. Most of our clients don’t even know they are digital clients or could be. As we all know, old and reliable is safe. Yet customers need to learn how short-run digital printing can really supplement conventional printing and how and when to take advantage of it. By sending out smaller print runs, asking for some feedback and getting more interest for something that will be sent out on a large run can greatly reduce the overall cost per customer. Talk. To the right people Third, print buyers are no longer the only people we need to talk to about digital printing. Directors of Marketing are a great resource for getting our product more widely known throughout companies. Campaigns begin with marketing and printing is usually just part of the process. But if we can show a Director of Marketing how digital printing with variable data, for example, can bring higher response rates and a stronger ROI, they can become a great ally in that company. Digital printing shouldn’t be thought of only as part of the marketing process, but as the center of customer response and sell through. Our job as digital printers has given us more choices for our clients. It has given us more ammunition for maintaining a great working relationship for our clients. With shorter runs and great quality, we have an ideal product to assist our clients and also companies that are not currently using digital printing at all. The digital print world has changed and we as digital printers need to show how this change will be a great benefit to those companies who are reluctant to change. The days of printing 100,000 brochures, stocking them and updating them as needed are going the way of film. Short runs, variable data printing and print on demand are the future and we as digital printers need to show the last few years have brought many changes in the digital printing world--and that change is good. Sean Doherty is an Account Manager for Pacific+ in Carlsbad California. His goal it to educate customers and companies the importance of digital printing and how it can improve their ROI. Any feed back to this article can be emailed to [email protected]