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Print Tip of the Week

6.29.09

Margie Dana

Margie Dana

Our 4th Annual Print Buyers Conference kicks off with two NEW boot camps on November 3rd: Advanced Print Buyer Boot Camp!™ from 9 - 5 pm. BPB members pay $199; others pay $299. Certification is optional; there's an additional fee ($300 members; $350 nonmembers). This Boot Camp is designed for those who have several years of buying experience. Expert educators Frank Romano and Joe Suffoletto are the instructors.

Boot Camp for Print Reps!™ runs from 1 - 4 pm. It costs $299 and was created to share print buyer trends and challenges with printers and other service providers. I will be leading this boot camp along with Frank Romano.

Registration starts next month!

Next week, in honor of July 4th, there will be no Print Tip.

Are you reading this because it was forwarded to you? Click here to get your own copy!

Margie Dana

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When Loyalty Leads to Laziness

By Margie Dana

For at least six years, I've taken the same step class at my gym each Sunday morning. I like my teacher as a person and respect her skills. Occasionally, I've even socialized with her and a few other classmates.

I'm used to her routine. I can do her steps in my sleep and know her music by heart.

But I don't even break a sweat. Four weeks ago, I got so bored that I couldn't stand it any longer.

So I found a new class and a new teacher who challenges me and makes me work hard. It's an hour much better spent.

This other woman's been teaching there for years - but I never checked her out! I didn't want to be disloyal.

The same is true for print buying. There's a danger in becoming too comfortable with your current print provider/s. If you don't challenge them (and yourself) by checking out other printers, maybe those offering new technologies, you could be coasting along with no improvement to your print campaigns year after year.

How do you know that another service provider can't offer you better solutions, or faster delivery times, or better pricing?

How do you know that your work can't be ratcheted up a few notches to create a bigger buzz for your company? I don't know a soul who doesn’t want more bang for their buck.

Back in my days as a buyer, I grew attached to many of my print reps. I enjoyed working with them. I didn't have to explain myself, or my company's idiosyncrasies, job after job and year after year. You could say I bought printing on autopilot (don't tell my former boss, Phyllis).

I'm not suggesting you dart from firm to firm, like a serial print buyer. There's value in sticking with your printers for the long term. You reward those who provide great products/service. You have more clout as a long-term customer. You might get better pricing. You might get unbelievable service in every nuance of this weak word.

Then again, your favorite printer might be like my gym instructor: fun to work with, but offering no measurable value.

You will never know unless you look around from time to time. Check out other printers and service providers. Even just meeting with them and learning what new options are out there is a valuable exercise. You may find out that your current printers offer everything you need - and more. At least you've done your homework.

Loyalty, generally speaking, is a virtue. But the same-old, same-old print sourcing routine can lead to laziness if you refuse to break a sweat and put some effort into researching your alternatives.

Post or view comments to this Tip.

©2009 Margie Dana. All rights reserved. Your comments are encouraged. You're free to forward this email to friends and colleagues. However, no part of this column may be reprinted without permission from the author.

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Post or view the comments to last week's Tip, "Color Me Conflicted"
Just click on the comments link.

Relevance through Reinvention

4th Annual Print Buyers Conference
November 3rd - 5th, 2009
Westford Regency Inn & Conference Center
Westford, MA

November 3rd Advanced Print Buyer Boot Camp 9 - 5
November 3rd Boot Camp for Print Reps 1 - 4

Conference Proper

November 4th Conference Sessions & Sponsor Displays 8 - 5
November 5th Conference Sessions & Sponsor Displays 8 - 1

Sweet Deal for Print Customers Who Register by August 1st

This year, we have the best deal in town for buyers who register by August 1st:

EXTRA Early Bird Special: Register by August 1st and you will get the Member rates (knocking $80 off your Conference fee) AND get six FREE months of BPB Membership ($100 value).

Current BPB members who register by August 1st get an additional six FREE months of BPB Membership, too.

We will open our Conference registration very soon. Expect an email blast announcing it.

Sorry, this offer is restricted to print customers, not service providers.

Conference Program: Best in Class!

Our 2009 Conference sessions and speakers are as follows:

  1. Secrets to Staying Relevant as Print Production Professionals (Margie Dana, PBI)

  2. TweetStuff: A Hands-On Introduction to Social Media Success (Dianna Huff, DH Communications)

  3. Driving Value for Your Company (4 print buyers share insights)

  4. The Characteristics of a Sustainable Printer (Gary Jones, PIA)

  5. Critical Trends for Printers and Print Buyers (Frank Romano)

  6. Critical Trends in the Paper Industry (Sabine Lenz, Paperspecs)

  7. Break It to Me Gently, Dr. Joe! Print & the Economy (Dr. Joe Webb)

  8. 8. Integrating Print in Your Social Media Campaign (TBA)

  9. Buyer Roundtables: Multiple Discussions on Timely Topics.

  10. The Recession Solution: Why This Economy Is Your Career's Best Friend (Dr. Paul Powers, Ph.D.; dinner keynote)

  11. Professional Social Networking: How to Leverage Facebook and Other Social Networking Tools (Peter Muir, Bizucate)

  12. Megatrends in Digital Printing (Gavin Jordan-Smith, Xerox)

  13. Dissecting the Perfect Production Partnership: Buyer, Creative & Printer take the stage

  14. Bridging Between the Technical and the Creative: Dazzling Varnish Techniques (Daniel Dejan, Sappi)

  15. Changing Dynamic of In-House Ad Agencies (Bill Fox, Fidelity Investments)

  16. Virtual Tour of the Museum of Printing (Frank Romano)

NB: We reserve the right to change the program.

Reserve Your Space at PBI's Print Buyers Conference and Save $300!

You are cordially invited to reserve exhibit space at our 4th Annual Print Buyers Conference this November is suburban Westford, MA.

There are only 30 spaces available. We have already sold 9 of them.

The cost is $2200 before September 15th and $2500 after that date.

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Spotlight on Sponsors!

We couldn't have a Conference without our Sponsors. New this year: we are honoring different Sponsors weekly in our Tips. Please support them!

MicroPRINT
www.mprint.com

Table #18
MicroPRINT is a provider of Premium On-Demand Print and Marketing Solutions. From personalized direct mail and fulfillment to short-run books & manuals, we combine technology with over-the-top service. Everything is a rush? You never have to apologize for that. It's what we do!
Ripon Printers
www.riponprinters.com

Table #12
Ripon Printers provides environmentally responsible print solutions to direct marketers and publishers. We feature fully integrated services from premedia through printing, binding, fulfillment and distribution. Whether you want to reduce cycle time with a soft-proofing solution, increase response with personalized print or lower your postage costs with CoDistribution, you'll find the tools and collaborative approach you need at Ripon Printers.

Want to be honored in this way? Reserve your space today! Please visit www.printbuyersconference.com to sign up. An Exhibitor Prospectus is there as well.

If you have more questions about our Conference, please write to info@printbuyersinternational.com.

Job Searchers

We have a few new resumes posted on our web site this week at www.bostonprintbuyers.com/jobbanklistings.html. Don't forget: if you're a print buying professional looking for a job, feel free to upload your resume to this page. Instructions are on the site. There is no charge. We want to help.

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LinkedIn

Join Us on LinkedIn

If you are a print customer, we invite you to join our Print Buyers International Group on LinkedIn. We have nearly 300 members already, growing daily! It's a great group where you can share your ideas and post questions. Go to www.linkedin.com and search on the Group name.

Unfortunately, this is a Group for buyers only at this time. Thanks for understanding.

Weekly Print Buyer Poll

Has your firm's print production staff been reduced this year?

  • No.

  • Yes.

  • We've added staff!

Cast your vote on our home page at www.bostonprintbuyers.com.

Last Week's Poll

Our last poll asked buyers this: How often should prospective printers contact you?

Poll Results:

4%    Weekly
13%    Monthly
41%    Quarterly
13%    Annually
29%    If I say I'm not interested, I prefer they don't call back.

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Margie's Upcoming Speaking Gigs

  • On September 14th, Margie will co-present a Print Buyer Boot Camp!™ from 9 to 5 at PRINT 09 in Chicago with Frank Romano.

  • On September 15th-16th, Margie will Chair a Two-Day Print Buyers Forum at PRINT 09.

    Register for PRINT 09 sessions at www.print09.com/Attending/Register-Now.aspx.

  • On October 14th, Margie will present a two-part "Understanding the Print Buyer" session (8 - 9 am and 9:15 - 10:15 am) at the Print Solutions 2009 Conference & Expo at the Navy Pier Convention Center in Chicago. Details at www.printsolutionsshow.com/conference_education.cfm.

Print Tips Archives!

Our Print Tips archives are public. Access them from the home page of our site
under Print Tips at www.bostonprintbuyers.com.

Sponsor Directory

BPB Sponsor Directory

Take a look! The BPB Directory offers firms a unique online presence for their prospective customers. Interested? Visit our sponsor information page for details.

Become a Site Sponsor and "Travel with the Tips"

Have your logo appear on our site and emailed out to thousands of people worldwide each week at a very reasonable rate. Email us at info@bostonprintbuyers.com for details!

We do not sell or rent our email list. From time to time, we send notices of other organizations' events in which we participate and which we feel are relevant to our audience. Be assured these emails are NOT from any outside sources. Our name
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