Gröbenzell, Germany, – The PrintCity Alliance announces a full day PRINTplusX Workshop in London on September 9th, in partnership with PrintWeek.
 
Focused on Value Added Printing (VAP), this event will be of interest to brand owners, designers and publishers, plus to all UK sheetfed & web printers. Under the headline PRINTplusX – The Secrets of Value Added Printing, the workshop will show how Value Added Printing increases the competitiveness of a brand, e.g. at point-of-sale.
 
Brand owners can differentiate their products, gain improved consumer recognition and hence increased sales, by using value added printing techniques as part of their integrated print & electronic media marketing campaigns. Designers can offer creative new ideas with additional capabilities utilising value added print media. Publishers can achieve strong brand recognition & differentiation when launching new magazines or refreshing existing ones, in their highly competitive markets.
 
Wayne Manning, Publishing Director, Haymarket Print & Packaging Group confirms, "Brand owners, designers and publishers need to know what the benefits of value added printing techniques are and what they can achieve in terms of future business growth. This is a 'must see' event for them, as well as for everyone else in this industry. PrintWeek and the PrintCity Alliance are proud to jointly support this London event."
 
Established brand owners, creatives and other industry specialists will discuss their experiences with VAP, while PrintCity Alliance members' manroland, Merck, Sappi, UPM, Weilburger Graphics and Kurz show the latest value added printing & packaging techniques, materials and possibilities. In addition, workshop attendees are invited to learn in interactive break-out sessions more about the possibilities of Value Added Printing.
 
The PRINTplusX project was launched together with the f:mp. and includes additional contributions from Hammesfahr, Marbach, Reproflex and HdM.
 
Jo Francis, Associate Editor, Print Group, Haymarket Business Media will moderate a series of thought provoking presentations, discussions and interactive hands-on workshops on these subject areas:
 
·  Motivation, impact and market opportunity for Value Added Printing techniques
·  How will creative ideas be stimulated by Value Added Printing possibilities
·  Benefits of different Value Added Printing methods & materials
·  How can we evaluate these creative techniques
·  Business growth possibilities and the role of Value Added Printing
 
Date and Times:      
Wednesday September 9th from 10.00 - 16.30
Location:                  
Radisson Edwardian Kenilworth Hotel
Great Russell Street, London WC1B 3LB
How to Attend:          
Register online at:
www.printplusx.com/en/workshops/london
 
Or contact the organisers at:
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: +49 8142 65233-11
 
General Information about PRINTplusX
www.printplusx.com
 
 
A detailed agenda and speaker programme for the September London PRINTplusX event will be available in August.
 
Rainer Kuhn, PrintCity Managing Director comments, "Value Added Printing becomes even more important during difficult market conditions. Competition from electronic media increases, at the same time that brand marketing budgets are under pressure.
 
"PrintCity Alliance members promote the value of print and we have been communicating the opportunities available through Value Added Printing for over 5 years. We believe that such techniques can help brand owners and printers differentiate, gain attention and grow business, so that they emerge from the current economic conditions even stronger."
 
What is PRINTplusX?
 
PrintCity has been a leader in Value Added Printing since 2003 and has defined it as a product that is:
 
·  Visibly (also other senses!) Different to standard printing
 
·  Recognised by consumers, advertisers and brand owners
 
·  Capable of attracting Higher Revenues and/or adds to Differentiation
 
There is no one-size-fits-all solution; rather, there is a large menu of options from which to define the right solution for a specific product and target market. Compared to standard printing this creates an almost endless variety of effects to maximise attention. Research shows that consumers almost immediately notice the presence of an additional quality attribute - this may be consciously or unconsciously.
 
A successful combination of special effects will generate emotions that are positively projected onto the product itself. If the printed product is perceived as being classy, sophisticated and interesting, this value is also positively projected on to the product or brand. A direct impact on sales can be hard to measure, but it is nevertheless possible to quantify image enhancement and increased attention.
 
For this reason, the framework of the PRINTplusX project is to analyse and document Value Added Printing options and their worth as a marketing instrument.
 
This includes the preparation and evaluation of extensive market research and discussions with brand owners, agencies, manufacturers, wholesalers, retailers and consumers. The objective is to achieve greater transparency, overview opportunities and impact, and to create guidelines for successful use. The goal is to give brand owners and their agencies facts and figures to help them evaluate their current situation and potential alternative marketing strategies.
 
The project is powered by an enthusiasm for print in the media value chain. Its participants include leading specialists, research and educational institutions, associations and media partners, customers and brand owners to provide different points of view and experience to ensure the widest range of competencies.
Several PRINTplusX virtual products have been developed to show the optical, haptic and emotional differences between conventional and value added print products, to help spark new ideas. These will assist academic research to provide scientific evidence on how Value Added Printing works.