How do you think about your printed documents? Design them, contact a printer, figure out how many you can afford to print in order to keep the price down, then hope you didn’t order too many? Balance the quality and run length requirements against your turnaround? It’s the way designers, agencies and marketers have done it for decades. But today’s Web-to-print (W2P) technology enables you to do much more.
We’re not just talking about printing in shorter runs, on demand, although that’s part of it. We’re talking about revamping the way you think about and manage your marketing collateral, forms and documents, and print marketing projects. We’re talking about changing the way you approach branding, personalization and multi-channel marketing.
These aren’t yesterday’s Web-to-print solutions. This is a new crop of solutions that is increasingly flexible, increasingly open and designed to handle the wide range of workflows and design and marketing needs that marketers, creatives, and printers face in today’s complex, multi-channel world.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Are You Fully Utilizing Web-to-Print?
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Printer in Transition: AlphaGraphics of Paramus Embraces Change
“We have to embrace the concept to not be a traditional printer: Now we’re more of a consultant,” said Bernie Wilker, owner of AlphaGraphics of Paramus, N.J. He was speaking of the ever-changing printing industry, as things have certainly transitioned since he and his wife Simone purchased the company in 1996.
AlphaGraphics of Paramus is a full-service printing company with capabilities of design, copy, digital printing, bindery, CD and DVD duplicating, mailing services, and signs, posters and banners. Its business center offers one-stop printing solutions dedicated to serving customers. AlphaGraphics of Paramus’ staff also includes Eric Perrotta, Nick Lombardi, Johan Rojas, Mujahid Khan,Tim Stahl, and Arsenio Zapata.
“(Before I got into printing) I used to be in sheet metal fabrication for 20 years. I started looking for something else because clients were going overseas and to Mexico. I’m a mechanical engineer and was looking for something involving manufacturing and sales. I wanted to do everything myself, and when I walked into franchises like AlphaGraphics and Kinko’s, I thought, ‘I can do this.’ I then went to the AlphaGraphics seminar and training in Tucson, and it turned out that a family in Paramus (who owned one) was looking to retire. The advantage of it was immediate cash flow, but the disadvantage was everyone else in the company knew more than me (about printing) so I had to learn fast,” he remembered.
The Wilkers started their business in a 1,500-sq-ft building in Paramus and moved to a larger building next door after one year of growth. Two years ago, they moved their facility to a 4,000-sq-ft standalone building. “We grow as the industry is changing,” he commented. “When we started the business, everything was done by hard copy: The most important person was the pressman doing his own color separations.”
AlphaGraphics is “ahead of the curve in so many ways,” he said. About nine years ago, the company went direct to plate and eliminated cameras. The Wilkers made their printing transition from analog black and white to digital black and white to digital color. Although offset printing has slowly declined to make up 7 or 8 percent of the business, AlphaGraphics still uses it for master billing for physicians and letterheads.
“This year we’ve gone into online marketing. We do a lot of pURLs and we expanded our mailing capabilities,” explained Wilker. “I’m also on the board of the Greater New Jersey Postal Council. Our company does outdoor signage work and uses eco inks. We’re environmentally conscious and do UV coating and laminating. We’ve also expanded beyond the core of traditional offset printing and do ancillary and promotional items. We’re greatly expanded our services during the last nine years. You have to keep moving,” Wilker noted.
AlphaGraphics has digital presses including Xerox DocuColors, a Xerox Workcentre Pro 40 digital color laser printer, a Xerox Nuvera 120 black-and-white digital laser printer, a Canon ImageRunner and ImageClass, a bookletmaker, and a saddle stitcher.
His definition of a modern day printer in transition is being able to keep business and make money. He stated that during the first quarter of 2009, his AlphaGraphics franchise was ahead of last year’s revenue. He said that hiring their first outside salesperson in December 2008 contributed to the success. “There’s business out there, but it doesn’t come to you—you have to go out on the road to get it,” he pointed out.
AlphaGraphics of Paramus is a full-service printing company with capabilities of design, copy, digital printing, bindery, CD and DVD duplicating, mailing services, and signs, posters and banners. Its business center offers one-stop printing solutions dedicated to serving customers. AlphaGraphics of Paramus’ staff also includes Eric Perrotta, Nick Lombardi, Johan Rojas, Mujahid Khan,Tim Stahl, and Arsenio Zapata.
“(Before I got into printing) I used to be in sheet metal fabrication for 20 years. I started looking for something else because clients were going overseas and to Mexico. I’m a mechanical engineer and was looking for something involving manufacturing and sales. I wanted to do everything myself, and when I walked into franchises like AlphaGraphics and Kinko’s, I thought, ‘I can do this.’ I then went to the AlphaGraphics seminar and training in Tucson, and it turned out that a family in Paramus (who owned one) was looking to retire. The advantage of it was immediate cash flow, but the disadvantage was everyone else in the company knew more than me (about printing) so I had to learn fast,” he remembered.
The Wilkers started their business in a 1,500-sq-ft building in Paramus and moved to a larger building next door after one year of growth. Two years ago, they moved their facility to a 4,000-sq-ft standalone building. “We grow as the industry is changing,” he commented. “When we started the business, everything was done by hard copy: The most important person was the pressman doing his own color separations.”
AlphaGraphics is “ahead of the curve in so many ways,” he said. About nine years ago, the company went direct to plate and eliminated cameras. The Wilkers made their printing transition from analog black and white to digital black and white to digital color. Although offset printing has slowly declined to make up 7 or 8 percent of the business, AlphaGraphics still uses it for master billing for physicians and letterheads.
“This year we’ve gone into online marketing. We do a lot of pURLs and we expanded our mailing capabilities,” explained Wilker. “I’m also on the board of the Greater New Jersey Postal Council. Our company does outdoor signage work and uses eco inks. We’re environmentally conscious and do UV coating and laminating. We’ve also expanded beyond the core of traditional offset printing and do ancillary and promotional items. We’re greatly expanded our services during the last nine years. You have to keep moving,” Wilker noted.
AlphaGraphics has digital presses including Xerox DocuColors, a Xerox Workcentre Pro 40 digital color laser printer, a Xerox Nuvera 120 black-and-white digital laser printer, a Canon ImageRunner and ImageClass, a bookletmaker, and a saddle stitcher.
His definition of a modern day printer in transition is being able to keep business and make money. He stated that during the first quarter of 2009, his AlphaGraphics franchise was ahead of last year’s revenue. He said that hiring their first outside salesperson in December 2008 contributed to the success. “There’s business out there, but it doesn’t come to you—you have to go out on the road to get it,” he pointed out.
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
New Kodak and Xeikon Alliance Brings Web-Based Solutions in the United States and Canada
A new alliance between Kodak and Xeikon enables label printers to extend their web-based businesses with branded online ordering of tags, labels, and other print products. It also simplifies and streamlines production, from order origination on the web, via Kodak Web to Print Solutions, to final output on the Xeikon 3300 Digital Color Label Press. The agreement is effective in the United States and Canada.
“The adoption of digital printing within the packaging market is growing, and Kodak is excited to work with Xeikon to bring web-to-print solutions to the tag and label market. Kodak’s e-commerce solutions—as well as our web-based tools for content creation, collaboration and approval—connect seamlessly into the production workflow and through to the digital label press,” said Steve Miller, Product Manager, Packaging Workflow, Kodak. “Integrating Kodak’s web-based systems with the Xeikon Press will give label printers the ability to provide new services to existing customers while also attracting new business opportunities.”
Read Full Article Article
“The adoption of digital printing within the packaging market is growing, and Kodak is excited to work with Xeikon to bring web-to-print solutions to the tag and label market. Kodak’s e-commerce solutions—as well as our web-based tools for content creation, collaboration and approval—connect seamlessly into the production workflow and through to the digital label press,” said Steve Miller, Product Manager, Packaging Workflow, Kodak. “Integrating Kodak’s web-based systems with the Xeikon Press will give label printers the ability to provide new services to existing customers while also attracting new business opportunities.”
Read Full Article Article
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