Service providers of all sizes are constantly talking about the need to transform their businesses from commodity-oriented organizations to marketing and communication service specialists. In March 2015, McKinsey & Company published an article entitled Six Steps to Transform Your Marketing and Sales Capabilities authored by Homayoun Hatami, Kevin McLellan, Candace Lun Plotkin, and Patrick Schulze. This article stated, “More than two-thirds of the traditional commercial transformations fail. Consistently beating the market takes superior internal capabilities, most notably commercial capabilities in marketing and sales.” The article detailed six steps for upgrading marketing, sales, and pricing to drive revenue and margin improvements. These recommendations are the result of more than 100 commercial transformations that the McKinsey team worked on as well as a survey of 2,300 executives.

While other firms have made comparable investments in digital technologies and may be making the move into marketing services, the people and processes driving these solutions into the market can quickly become a competitive advantage. McKinsey recommends six steps to build this competitive sales and marketing advantage.

The printing industry is undergoing a variety of transformations, and the six steps that McKinsey outlines are a great way to start the journey toward change within your own organization. Making a commitment to change involves developing a strategic vision, building a team that is committed to following through, identifying some quick wins, activating the organization, coaching, and measuring/monitoring performance. Printers of all sizes are attempting to migrate from commodity providers to service businesses. Where are you on your journey, and are you taking the right steps to ensure a successful change?