Imagination, Ink’s Changing Profit Centers Seminar, how to complement traditional offset with digital and variable data printing, scheduled for May 26th at the Printing Industries of New England offices has been expanded two include two one half day sessions. The morning session will concentrate on marketing digital printing and variable data printing. The afternoon session will include “designing for digital”, how to sell digital and variable data printing, and inter-active brainstorming excercises in which attendees actually develop new-to-the-world VDP projects. The change has been made because of the extrememly positive response the half day event has received at PIA affiliates in D.C., Baltimore, San Diego and Los Angeles. Many a printer recognizes that the digital wave is upon them, but don’t quite know how to take advantage of the new print technologies. Especially if they are struggling under the burden of capital equipment debt. Changing Profit Centers is designed to give them insight as to how to successfully cope with this dilemma. The seminars’ primary message is how to intelligently and strategically introduce digital printing and an array of new services into a traditional offset environment. The concept of “marketing services provides” will be discussed including the results of the TrendWatch Graphic Arts report on the key attributes required to be a successful digital services provider. Also discussed will be how to sell digital printing and variable data printing, and the knowledge required by sales reps. Jim Olsen, President, Imagination, Ink., a marketing firm specializing in variable data printing and electronic communications for one-to-one marketing, is the seminar facilitator. After decades of running printing, publishing and trade association organizations, Olsen is keenly aware of the price pressures on printing services. He sees adding value added services as the opportunity to break away from commodity pricing and begin pricing on value to the customer and not on the traditional per-piece basis. One of the primary topics is using partnering as a way of entering the digital print arena in a prudent and successful manner. A live case study! Your Only From a Pot of Gold! Imagination, Ink. is sending to all the members of Printing Industries of New England a four-page variable data promotion brochure designed as a newsletter with a unique use of variable data. The headline of the first article states, “Advantage Press is Only 19 miles a Pot of Gold!” Another article is headed “Driving to the Pot of Gold Will Only Take 34 minutes!” The use of a “pot of gold” refers to one’s ability to use value added pricing for value added services. This, along with using personalized messages and versioned text makes the seminar promotion brochure a case study exemplifying the effective use of variable data printing. To see how a brochure like this is developed in InDesign, just click on Boston. Of special interest will be the topic of precisely how Jim and, Richard Romano of Rich Text worked through the production of the seminar promotion brochure. Attendees will learn: • The advantage of becoming part of a customer’s marketing team; • How to “morph” from traditional offset to digital printing; • The attributes of a successful digital printer; • How to “design for digital” • The requirements of a sales rep; • And the steps for implementing a successful customer VDP campaign. Attendees in the afternoon session will participate in a live brainstorming exercise in which they will develop new and unique uses of variable data printing themselves. Olsen, editor of this year’s edition of the PrintOnDemand Initiative Best Practices is an evangelist of variable data printing and one-to-one communications to the corporate marketing community. In addition, he will share his practical experience of actually selling and producing VDP projects. To register for the seminars, either call the participating local PIA affiliates or, to register now, just click the city below: May 26th, Boston Corporate sponsors: Finch Paper www.finchpaper.com DocuGlobal www.docuglobal.com I-Way/Cohesion www.cohesion.com SalesPrint www.salesprint.com NexPress www.nexpress.com Information sponsor: www.trendwatchgraphicarts.com Marketing sponsor: www.ondemandjournal.com Design sponsor: www.richtext.com Jim Olsen Jim Olsen is an evangelist of one to one marketing using variable data printing as a communications channel. He has extensive knowledge of industry best practices and techniques to implement effective one to one marketing campaigns. Jim makes presentations to both the marketing and printing communities. He uses his experience and knowledge to assist firms in creating new-to-the-world products and services based on innovative digital technology. More importantly, Jim walks the talk since he acts as an integrator for VDP projects. A nationally known speaker, Jim’s experience runs the gamut of commercial, magazine, directory, legislative, and legal printing. He has managed a legal publishing business, a large commercial printing operation, and has founded independent telephone directory and newsletter businesses. His experience also includes directing the marketing efforts of an on-line legal information service and acting as the industry relations director for a print dot.com organization. In 1982, Jim joined Printing Industries of America as Vice President of Management Services, and, was President of Pacific Printing & Imaging Association in Seattle, Honolulu, and Portland for over twelve years. In 1999, Jim founded Imagination, Ink., a firm specializing in one-to-one marketing. He is also well known for conducting and facilitating idea-generation workshops for the graphic communications industry. Jim’s presentations are designed to educate and inspire attendees to use variable digital printing as one of the effective media channels in one-to-one marketing campaigns. If you have any questions about the seminar, Jim can be contacted in Saratoga Springs, New York at 518-587-9635 or at [email protected].