Pittsburgh, PA, July 10, 2007 -- The S&ME Annual Conference attendees welcomed Paul Reilly, Partner, Compass Capital Partners, Ltd. who opened the conference in Snowbird, Utah. Reilly, a long-time printing veteran, addressed the state of the Industry. Reilly touched on areas such as the six-mega trends impacting the printing industry now, the implications ahead for those in the leadership ranks, what printers should be doing to differentiate themselves, the path forward for success, and the do’s and don’ts of a competitive strategic plan. According to Reilly, “The world is not over, it’s just changing—it’s a new world which requires different and new solutions.”
In addition to Reilly, industry notables such as Peter Muir, Linda Bishop, Julie Shaffer, Jerry Scher, Jim Taylor, Dennis Rourke, and Patrick Sweeney addressed issues such as web-to-print, unraveling CRM, value-added service selling, making multiple mediums work, growing market share, adding sales without adding sales people, transforming your sales team, memory magic, and succeeding on your own terms.
A frank dialogue was opened between attendees and print buyers. Suzanne Morgan of PrintBuyersOnline.com introduced a panel of print buyer representatives from Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide, Plymouth Rock Assurance Corporation, and PerkinsElmer, Inc. The print buyers discussed their needs and wants as well as their expectations of their print partners. The attendees asked questions and gained valuable insight into how to better cultivate their relationship with print buyers. Contrary to what is regularly advised about seeking the marketing communicator over the print buyer, the panel recommended working with the buyers and not going over their position. Morgan emphasized a message to printers to keep their contacts “high and wide.”  
Joseph Sequenzia, vice president of Sales, Omaha Print, and chairman, S&ME Council remarked that “Between the general session speakers, concurrent sessions, and opportunities to network, I am taking away a wealth of information. This was a great conference—best yet!”
Many conference attendees were excited to hear about next year’s conference at the Francis Marion Hotel, Charleston, SC, June 22–25, 2008. “Whether you’re a veteran print sales and marketing professional or new to the industry, the most cost effective way to gain knowledge, first-person practical advice, and national networking is by attending this conference. We will continue to bring forward the best in the industry and disseminate that information to you next year,” said Michael von Brendel, said Michael von Brendel, vice president of sales, Outlook Group Inc. and vice chairman, S&ME Council and next year’s conference co-chair.
For more information regarding our next conference, or to sign up for the new S&ME HTML email newsletter, please contact Laurie Reynolds at 412-259-1802 or email [email protected].