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March 31, 2004 Webinar Q&A

Below, we have posted Dr. Joe's answers to questions that came from the audience. We would like to thank all who made this event possible and look forward to conducting more webinars in the future.

Question: I have seen industry projections of print increasing approx. 4% per year for the rest of the decade due to the huge increase of all of the information that is now out there, even though print may be a smaller percentage of all of the information available. Do you agree?

Dr. Joe's Answer: If you mean commercial printing, definitely not. If you mean printing as a process of putting some chemical on a substrate, not 4%, but more like 1-2%. I've never understood what “all information” means. I transmit most of my information by voice. Much information is old, stored and later discarded, like records of a retail transaction. Yet I suspect that many estimates assume all details of that retail transaction will be stored forever. Storing the transaction in a data base and never printing it is becoming far more common. So I guess I don't agree.

Question: What kind of growth do you see for variable printing applications and one-to-one marketing via digital printing?

Dr. Joe's Answer: In the commercial printing business, it will stay small and niche-oriented. In the financial/computer service bureau and corporate IT functions, it has been big (statement printing and enhancements of that) for decades. The Internet is far more customizable and can be done real-time.

Question: If printers capitalize on the outsourcing of marketing departments as you suggest, does that make them in the communications business? I would argue that printers are indeed in the communications business as those firms who integrate themselves into the marketing decisions of their clients have radically altered their relationship from reactive manufacturer to a proactive strategic partner that happens to utilize print.

Dr. Joe's Answer: You've got the biggest issue down pat: “…those firms who integrate themselves into the marketing decisions of their clients…” Not many printers can do that. I recommend my column of April 11 of last year and my GraphExpo presentation which led to my report.

Question: Book Printing Outlook for traditional (non-digital press)?

Dr. Joe's Answer: Books have not been doing all that well, but there are niches that are. I don't have a specific economic outlook for that, but here are my impressions (no pun intended). Books are not about to disappear; but their market is not likely to grow significantly. There is no compelling case for technological displacement, because e-books will remain a niche product for the foreseeable future. Technology has delivered tools that have reduced the costs of creating content for books (such as word processing and desktop publishing) and distributing them (such as e-stores amazon.com and bn.com). High-volume retail outlets are putting pressure on publishers to focus on big sellers, and fewer short- to medium-run niche books are being published. You would think this phenomenon would help electronic books (e-books), but the big costs in publishing are marketing, not production. E-books have to be marketed just like traditional books. E-books have not yet significantly impacted the book market yet, because traditional books offer greater convenience than their cyber-based competitors. That does not mean that books don't have competition. E-books aimed at the right audience can do quite well. You're reading something like one (a Web page) right now! Growth will mirror GDP, but specialty titles will grow at rates higher than GDP.

Question: Where should printing companies invest technology-wise?

Dr. Joe's Answer: This depends on a lot of things. I think the first step is to divest what they don't need in equipment first, and root out workflow and administrative inefficiencies. While they're doing that, they have to decide what business they are in, and want to be in, from a customer need and problem solution perspective, and create their investment agenda accordingly, which, of course, includes their staffing agenda, foremost. The kinds of technologies they need to have will become evident after that.

Question: What are your thoughts about marketers using the Internet for data collection and learning how to apply variable digital color printing systems to target market needs for improved business growth to companies mailing the custom printed brochures.

Dr. Joe's Answer: This has always made sense to me. I don't see enough of it. Some of that is due to misplaced or misguided efforts, but some may be due to people being able to get what they want from other sources, not just the Internet, but from personal interaction with sales people. But this is yet another case crying out for ROI analysis. If it were proven to work, more people would be doing it. Until then it's just a novelty. It's got to get out from under that perception.

Question: How will the industry manufacturers help printers in 2004 / 05?

Dr. Joe's Answer: This is an industry and the vendors are in it, too. I've had a lot of questions today about variable printing , and what I have always found interesting is that if the vendors used it for their own marketing in other divisions, that would be a sign that it is working. I remember years ago (when I had a real job) vendors would hide their literature at trade shows and “save it” for the best prospects because printing brochures was so expensive. Yes, that was a printing equipment vendor who told me that (you especially did not want to leave brochures out on student day, I was told). Eating your own cooking is really important for credibility. Every company has had to restructure and change to deal with new levels of demand. It's nothing to be embarrassed about, it's good management. Even dealing with those kinds of management issues and sharing techniques and evaluative methods about how to restructure and manage is something that vendors and printers can find value in.

Most of all, the discomfort that many print business owners have with vendors is a sense from many vendor executives of a lack of respect for small business. This is what they tell me, I'm not making it up. When they say “lack of respect” they are usually referring to a lack of appreciation for all the hats that small business people have to wear and how difficult it is to balance them.

The biggest issue now for many printers is getting their financial houses in order, to be in harmony with changes in print demand, and the creation and execution of realistic business plans that create more business upside for them. To the extent vendors can help printers in this regard, the overall industry will benefit.

This free event was made possible by EFI.

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