Has Your Business Made One of These Print Management Mistakes?
In today’s ultra-competitive environment, most business people understand that they have to perform their core functions efficiently. But many businesses have yet to apply the same diligence to the area of print management. And that typically leads to the mistakes I’d like to discuss today.
If you are unfamiliar with the term “print management” that’s already a sign you are missing important opportunities. It suggests you haven’t adopted an integrated approach designed to save money on all your print and promotional product efforts and maximize the business results they deliver.
Easy Print Management Mistakes to Make … and Fix
But lets’ look at some of those specific mistakes your company could be making. You may pay too much, getting too little, or doing unintended damage to your company’s reputation and sales potential.
1. Too Many Cooks in the Kitchen
Chances are your company has multiple departments and several offices. Perhaps even facilities in multiple states. If you do not have a centralized ordering system across all those locations for print and promotional product needs, you are asking for trouble. At best, you may encounter large variations in price, quality, and consistency. Not to mention the time wasted by many people in many places doing essentially the same thing—and not always well.
Print management standardizes that process and helps ensure controlled costs, reliable delivery, and consistent quality. With our Corporate Kiosk™ technology, people whom you designate can order as needed through an online portal from a list of items you have approved in advance.
2. Random Branding
When different people are empowered to order printing or promotional products, they aren’t always diligent about treating your logo and other branding elements as carefully as you would. That’s more than a minor annoyance. It can cause confusion and diminish your image in the minds of key prospects, who may think “if they can’t even maintain their own image consistently…”
Print management helps prevent those inconsistencies. When print projects travel through an experienced and knowledgeable print partner, your image is not only protected from mishaps but enhanced with exceptional quality.
3. “Leftover” Literature
If you still follow “old school” practices, you might suffer from this problem. It takes a while to gather momentum and content for a brochure or other piece of literature. Then you print it in large quantities to “reduce unit cost.” As a result, you may have boxes and boxes of outdated materials that don’t quite fit with your new initiatives. But hey, “we’ve got a ton left, so let’s use them up.”
Print management can prevent this. Our print-on-demand technology, for example, means you don’t have to print huge quantities. And revisions and updates are simply part of the process, so the materials you have will deliver a timely and accurate message to your prospects.
4. Going “Local”
Sounds like a simple (and maybe even noble) approach, in theory. But your first obligation is to your employees and your customers. And the quality and capabilities of “local” printers can vary widely. The same zip code doesn’t help much if you’re not on the same page in terms of quality, price, reliability and more.
The right print partner, like Superior, can deliver the best results on all fronts. We have nearly 2,000 tested vendors we can choose from to match your project in terms of cost, timing and quality needs. When the results are terrific, no one will question where you got it. If the results fall short, the fact that your source was “local” won’t help you a bit.
5. Using the “Fire Drill” Formula
Actually, that means no formula at all. Companies that make this mistake have no real organized plan relating to their print and promotional product activities. When they decide they need a catalog, brochure, or promotional item it’s a sudden and imposing effort, starting from scratch. When the annual trade show is looming, they convene emergency meetings to “come up with something” to hand out to passing prospects.
A strategic print management program with a qualified print partner can keep you on track. You will make smart decisions and implement projects in plenty of time. No hurried ideas and no “rush delivery” up-charges. And best of all, because it is all part of an overall planned effort, the resulting sales are likely to be far more rewarding.
“Bonus” Mistake: Not Calling Superior
There’s an easy way to put an end to these mistakes. We’ve been helping businesses add efficiency for nearly 100 years. We’ve achieved ISO certification for our customer-focused processes. And we’ve also earned three consecutive Best of Print and Digital awards from our customers.
Contact Superior today. Stop making print management mistakes. And start making more money.
