LEXINGTON, KY -- WhatTheyThink, the leading news and information source for the graphic communications industry, announces the immediate availability of its new July 2010 Business Conditions Report: The WhatTheyThink Overview of the Current Economic State of the Industry. This 73-page report provides the results of the Economics and Research Center’s June 2010 survey of print business owners, and compares these results to past quarterly surveys to provide an accurate gauge of how print businesses professionals perceive the economic landscape, how those perceptions are changing, and what actions they are likely to take in response to challenging economic times. In addition to our own survey results, we provide the most current data available on printing industry shipments and profits, employment, and other economic indicators.

To put the printing industry data in context, the report also provides a wealth of other economic data, such as GDP, unemployment, inflation, consumer confidence, and more, as well as our own commentary on what trends in these data tell us about prevailing economic conditions—and the market for print. The report also includes the ERC’s own hand-picked set of economic indicators that we feel will provide a “recovery roadmap” to let us know when the economy is on the upswing. The report suggests what industry businesspeople can look forward to for the rest of 2010 and perhaps beyond.

The July 2010 Quarterly Business Conditions Report also looks at other trends affecting the industry, provides a quick primer on some new media and technologies, and offers a feature called “Dark Clouds and Silver Linings,” a list of both immediate threats to the industry as well as opportunities for industry businesspeople.

Some of the topics covered in this report include:

• How commercial printers’ business conditions for the first half of 2010 have compared to those of 2009.
• How commercial printers expect business for the rest of 2010 to compare to business in 2009.
• Do printing companies’ plan to buy another company’s “book of business,” or do they plan to sell their own?
• Are printing companies involved in developing content for the Apple iPad?
• What are printing executives’ plans regarding Graph Expo in October?
• What are location-based social media applications and is anyone using them?
• What is the general outlook for the economy—and for the printing industry—for the rest of 2010?
• According to the report:
• Almost one-half (46%) of respondents to the ERC’s June 2010 survey said that revenues had increased in the first half of 2010 compared to 2009, up from the 34% who said this in March 2010.
• 11% of respondents said that business decreased more than 10%, down from the 22% who said this in March.
• Optimism is up a little amount from March, as 17% of June respondents expect 2010 revenues to increase by more than 10%, up from 10%.
• 38% of respondents said they plan to attend Graph Expo by sending owners or top executives.

The Report also provides WhatTheyThink’s outlook, conclusions, and recommendations.

Researcher’s Comments

“The stubborn economy refuses to recover as swiftly as everyone hopes, and we’re quickly running out of ways to say that smart, resourceful companies and individuals can find ways to prosper regardless of the macroeconomic climate. As ever, the hot action is in new and social media, and this report offers a quick look ‘around the corner’ at some emerging new platforms, and how print can fit into that mix.”

Availability

The WhatTheyThink special report, July 2010 Quarterly Business Conditions Report: The WhatTheyThink Overview of the Current Economic State of the Industry is available for purchase by visiting the secure WhatTheyThink eStore online at http://members.whattheythink.com. The price for the 73-page report is $250. WhatTheyThink eStore customers can download this report in PDF Acrobat format immediately after purchase. Readers can purchase all four quarterly reports for a total of $750. Enterprise site licenses are also available for $1,250 for any single quarterly report, or $3,750 for the set of four.

Editor’s Note

Additional information pertaining to each report is available for editorial purposes. Please make inquiries directly to Cary Sherburne at 603-430-5463 or [email protected],  or visit www.whattheythink.com).

About WhatTheyThink

WhatTheyThink is the printing and publishing industry's leading media organization; offering a wide range of publications delivering unbiased, real-time market intelligence, industry news, economic and trend analysis, peer-to-peer communication, and special reports on emerging technology and critical events. WhatTheyThink also hosts webinars and live events that are timely and relevant o today's busy industry executives along with consulting and speaker services that leverage a talented pool of writers and industry analysts.

WhatTheyThink consists of flagship site WhatTheyThink.com, discussion forum site PrintPlanet.com, and industry blog PrintCEO.com.