Make Your Marketing Campaign a Success with a Color Brochure

3 Steps to keep in mind; the message, the design and the printing process.

STEP 1 Are you PRINTING the right Message?

A buyer-centric marketing model is an essential strategy in B2B direct mail marketing. Spending your time and money targeting your audience has always been the number one rule of marketing. Today, most buyers are shopping online and the paradigm shift is to a buyer driven market. Providing answers to difficult questions is made easy with market intelligence analytics. Where are my visitors coming from? What keywords did they use to get there? Are you creating efficient content? Where are my visitors abandoning my site? Why? How can I improve site interaction? Collecting website analytics information and mapping your message in your brochures and point of sale signage will help you convert missed opportunities.

STEP 2 It all starts with pictures and words: your brochure-printing layout.

Your brochures should have an effective headline that captures your reader’s attention and nothing replaces the attraction of pictures. Include images to support your brochure printing copy. Your brochure-printing elements should illuminate your message. Adding color to your promotional brochure will help your message POP. Although black ink on your brochure-printing project is neat and professional it lacks the pop you need to grab attention. There is an overwhelming response by people to print materials with color to emphasize their message, be it brochure printing, flyer printing, postcard printing, and even business card printing projects. That is why more and more business owners go for full color brochure printing. You also need to consider the paper for your brochure project, as well as the folding method to use. We would suggest a heavyweight, glossy stock text to create vibrant colors and a professional and upbeat appearance to your brochure-printing project. Card stock makes for a clumsy fold.

STEP 3 There are two choices for your brochure printing project: offset printing or digital printing.

Although both printing methods have the capacity to reproduce excellent quality brochures, offset printing is reserved for larger runs. The set up costs for offset brochure printing is more expensive, and are ideal for long runs.

Now that we have digital printing short run, full color brochure printing is affordable. Digital brochure printing allows you to reproduce print brochures in small volumes without the set up cost of offset printing. Digital printing is more suitable to test your message with your market or adapt your message with frequency.

About the Author: Thomas Miner is the founder of Bartleby Press, a printing service.

The efficiency of digital printing

So you think you can save money by printing your own flyers from home or on your business color copier? Are you spending your time wisely by printing business cards yourself? Are you the guy that gets free business cards online that has that advertisement on the back of your card that tells everyone you are so cheap that you get your business card printed free? And do you really expect people to spend money for your product after you hand them a free a card?

There is only one chance for a first impression. And we all should put our best impression forward.

Think about it. It probably costs you more money to do it your self than having a professional digital printing service do it for you. Just add up all the time you invest and the ink cartridge replacements and you will find you are better off finding a reliable printing firm to do it for you. At minimum it will look good and come out right the first time.

Most local printing services have digital printing as wells as off set printing. The short run quick turn-around color printing flyers, business cards or brochures of 2000 impressions or less is ideally suited for digital printing. It is more affordable than you can imagine. In most cases you can email a pdf and pick it up within hours or on your way to the tradeshow or presentation.

If you are looking for cost savings and your message is perfect for your market then I would suggest a long run of offset printing. The longer the run the less expensive color printing becomes with offset printing.

Whatever your needs are the old-fashioned customer service of an established printing service cannot be beat. At Bartleby Press we have customers that visit us once or twice a quarter and others many times during a month depending on their marketing needs. Save yourself time, money and the headache of producing your color printing by using a local printing service.

About the Author: Thomas Miner is president of Bartleby Press an Austin printing Service.

Improving the Way You Print Marketing Material

Ideas that help you with flexibility and convenience of a printing service.

The designing process. In most cases a team of experienced graphic designers can save you money and time so you can do what you do best—sell your product or service! On the other hand, mapping your message and targeting your brand may require extensive research.

If you do know your audience and have your message there are three approaches; Do it yourself, hire a graphic designer or ask your printing service. Today, most printing services have positioned themselves with designers to help customers who have small budgets to assemble flyers, post cards or a direct mail piece. It may be as simple as sending your document and ideas and a proof will be returned.

Getting price quotes or uploading files are offered 24/7. You can easily manage your project anytime and from anywhere. Whether you want to get brochures printed for your event in another state, or want some thing printed while you are on vacation, with a local printing services, distance is not an issue.

As much as you would like to think most of the communication regarding the design and printing takes place electronically online, verbal communication remains the ultimate confirmation that the job is on track and reduces costs due to miscommunication.

To learn more about how we can help you improve the way you print your marketing material through our Austin printing service visit Bartleby Press or call (we still answer the phone) 512/452-3413

About the Author: Thomas Miner is president of Bartleby Press an Austin printing Service.

Is Online Printing All what it is cracked up to be?

The so-called experts said Television would mark the decline of radio and Cable TV would topple broadcast TV, and desktop publishing would eliminate typesetting, the Internet would end print publications and digital printing replacing offset printing. Nonsense. If we listened to the “experts” the world would still be flat. All this chatter is demagoguery at its best.

As in each of those industries they have adapted to technological advancements. Not abandoning their industry but enhancing it as is the case with online printing service.

What is online printing? It is the instant price calculator with shipping prices.  In most cases it is an Internet service that brokers print. Most are not printing services but print brokers capitalizing on automation. Nothing more than a middle man. Sure there is a convenience of instant gratification but little difference between online printing and using your Austin Printing service like Bartleby press. It is all about customer service, a value less appreciated. Depending on your turnaround time pricing can double in print cost and shipping can range from $10 to $65 on a small order. Making most print project comparable to a local Austin printing service.

Simple economics are dictating that business’ downsize and out-source their printing service, whether digital printing or offset color printing. Many organizations and businesses are still waking up to the convenience of online printing services but they should not abandon their Austin printing service partnership. If your current printing service is not supporting online requests or stepping up their customer service then finding another partner like Bartleby Press is in order. Austin printing services that remain have adapted and learned that online service is part of the new wave of doing business.

These days, surviving printing services like Bartleby Press thrive and deliver your printed products as you sit in the convenience of your office or home. They understand the need for customer service for those times when you are in a real pickle.

As convenient and easy as the online printing service may be consider the alternative and continue to support your local Austin Printing service. It will benefit everyone in the long run.

About the Author: Thomas Miner is president of Bartleby Press an Austin printing Service.

How do we spend our time in the Media

There is no doubt that people are spending increasing amounts of time with digital media(the web and mobile devices) and decreasing amounts with traditional media ( newspapers, magazines, printing services and radio). The numbers prove it.

Media companies are doing the best job extracting and define this paradigm shift in communication. A digital media company is a business that is making money directly from the sale of online content or online advertising. Firms that mine their metrics are finding that there is a growing number in the way that people receive their message. Although all statistics are not publicly available and others sometimes skewed to demonstrate a point of view there is little doubt that digital ad sales are up and traditional media is decreasing.

Media companies are using a variety of sources, including comments executives have made to the press, research reports, and conversations with industry analysts. Most sources are first to admit that the list contains a fair amount of guesswork—informed guesswork but guesswork nonetheless.

It is meant to help re-think and initiate a deeper conversation about digital media and how you deliver your message to the public.

More traditional printed media, such as newspapers, phone books or TV are converting to a substantial presence online. That would suggest more people are using digital media to get their information.

Finally, Google is the most successful digital media company in the U.S. Supporting your printed message with an online presence is in your future.

About the Author: Thomas Miner is president of Bartleby Press an Austin printing Service. Source for this article is paidcontent.org

Digital Printing Services For Custom Pocket Folders

Sending out white papers and product information is a common practice for account executives and sales representatives. As a person on the receiving end of printed documentation from vendors my conundrum is how to store this information for easy access and reference. The answer—Pocket Folders.

Digital printing services can provide custom folders for an inexpensive price. It is not necessary to have that “tab“ because the pocket folder fits nicely in hanging folders and is large enough to access and hold all information neatly.

It is a great tool to create the best impression to your business partners. Future estimates and hard copies of contracts or formal letters are conveniently stored. Contact your favorite Austin printing service so you can design a customized printed folder that complements your message.

Folder printing can be done via digital printing, which is fast, easy to customize and inexpensive to produce. You can order as few as one or two folders on demand.

The advantage of digital printing is speed. Turn-around time, depending on your Austin printing service, can be in 24 hours or less as long as the file is ready to print. In-house graphic designers of print management services can do the layout for you—Thus, the importance of having a local printing service partner. If a partnership exists, call or email your request and a proof is sent shortly thereafter.

Did I mention digital printing is not expensive? You can print short runs of folders for much less than traditional methods. 

About the Author: Thomas Miner is president of Bartleby Press an Austin Printing Service.

Where do all the books go?

Where ever I travel I can’t help myself to look at printed products. My usual motivation is to search out a bookstore. Not the common chain like Barnes and Noble but the mom and pop variety. Believe it or not you can still find a jewel of the written word if you look hard enough. I stumble upon them many times. Usually they are located off the beaten path. If you enter and there is a musty smell in the air you hit jack pot. Dark walls  that dim any light is a special treat. A tiny cluttered bowel of printed pages. Books and magazines that someone found appealing with some long forgotten importance—a guide to building a bomb shelter comes to mind. How many volumes sold I wonder, and if they double as storm shelters.  

Most times I see rack cards in hotel lobbies for shows, brochures for museums, business cards for 2 for one special a kaleidoscope of color for entertaining activities. I reach out and grab a map for the double-decker city tour and browse the legend for points of interest.  Was it digitally printed? Offset printed? 

Post cards from 50 years ago of buildings still standing and others fallen in the march of time. I like buying and sending the old ones. Yellowed on the edges and out dated they send the same message; Thinking of you, wish you were here. A ragged edge of skyscrapers where there once was horizon. There is permanence in the printed word and picture. 

 

Oh that reminds me I better back up my digital pictures and journal.