September 2008 U.S. Commercial Printing Shipments Down Nearly 4%; Media Shifts in 2008 Holiday Retailing Underway

November 4, 2008 - Lexington, KY - WhatTheyThink, the leading online media organization serving the printing and publishing industry, today announced the availability of their most current report titled “Monthly U.S. Printing Shipments, Issue #36.” Authored by Dr. Joe Webb, director of WhatTheyThink's Economics and Research Center, the report is available for immediate purchase at:

http://www.wttstore.com/monthly-us-printing-shipments.html

“September commercial printing shipments were $8.4 billion, down -$335 million (-3.8%) compared to September 2007,” said Dr. Webb, director of WhatTheyThink's Economics and Research Center. “September is the month the industry has counted on for the printing of holiday retail catalogs and promotions. The economic slowdown and the shift to other media have reduced the demand for print.” Dr. Webb noted that the shift to direct mail in the form of post cards and pamphlets rather than larger catalogs “emphasizes the need for print, but obviously in smaller, more focused formats that encourage use of e-commerce.” He noted that declines in newspaper circulation affect the volume of newspaper inserts that are printed by commercial printers, and that magazine ad pages are down as well. “There are still print businesses that are defying the odds with new technology offerings and emphasis on total communications management.”

The media mix shifts that are justified by cutbacks to cope with the recession can affect the use of print, even when the eventual upturn occurs, explained Dr. Webb. “Communicators still must deal with audiences of mixed ages, education, media preferences and media habits. Any singular use of a medium is counterproductive in the long run from a communications strategy perspective for most companies. Not all communications lend themselves well to current digital formats, and all messages have to be adjusted graphically or in content to get the most out of each medium. Many printing companies are developing skills to assist their clients in this transition.”

The Monthly U.S. Printing Shipments Report contains both current and inflation-adjusted analysis of commercial printing and print services shipments, and forecasts of 2008 through 2013. It is comprised of Adobe PDF, Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint files, and an MP3 file of audio commentary from Dr. Webb. The cost of the report is $50.00. Those purchasing the it can easily repurpose the charts and data in presentations, and reports.

The report contains significant and proprietary analysis and by Dr. Webb and WhatTheyThink's Economics and Research Center. It is a top-level analysis of the U.S. commercial printing and trade services markets such as commercial offset, digital, and other printing processes, as well as prepress and postpress contained in the standard business classification NAICS 323.

http://www.wttstore.com/monthly-us-printing-shipments.html

WhatTheyThink's Economics and Research Center contains a blend of free and premium content for graphic arts and publishing executives. It offers an online library of primary research reports, executive summaries of economic trends, and related industry columns, videos, podcasts and webinars.

The Economics and Research Center is exclusively sponsored by MindFireInc, a provider of software technologies that leverage direct marketing and the Internet.

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WhatTheyThink is the printing and publishing industry's leading online 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. Serving a membership base of more than 50,000, WhatTheyThink also hosts webinars and live events as well as providing content through a syndication program, which delivers content directly to related websites and through RSS. The organization also provides consulting and speakers bureau services to the industry.

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