Business Objectives:   DoubleTree by Hilton has more than 250 hotel properties around the world. DoubleTree wanted to simplify procedures to make it easier for properties to order the things they need. They needed a solution that would provide: A single sign-on, brand-controlled, content management site to share information

• An easy-to-use, real-time, template-driven web-to-print and ad building site
• A best practices forum for properties to share ideas and promotions
• One place where all promotional materials can be ordered & reordered
• Stricter policing of the newly launched DoubleTree by Hilton™ brand
• Comprehensive reporting to track usage and expenses
• The ability to expand beyond the US to support international properties
• Faster turn-times, small on-demand quantities, no pricey transaction fees

Results:They hired the strategic partnership of Tray and MSP, and with programming assistance from eIntegrity, they were able to build and deliver a robust toolkit solution in less than four months: “One-stop-shop” for all  brand information and materials 100% adoption rate by DoubleTree properties in the U.S. Turnaround decreased from 14 to 2 business days More than 5,000 orders have been placed

• All DoubleTree graphic standards are met 100% of the time
• Large minimum orders abolished; transaction fees eliminated

Read more about how this campaign was structured and why it succeeded.

PODi members can download the full case study here

Nonmembers: Get a complimentary copy for a limited time

PODi members can access over 500 case studies 24/7 – JOIN NOW

There is a very real opportunity for forward-thinking in-plant managers to position their operations as visionary leaders within their companies, universities or agencies.

It’s happening all the time in the commercial printing world. No longer defining themselves simply as print service providers, commercial printers are working hard to transition into marketing service providers. It’s a difficult journey, but they see this as one of the few viable ways to grow from a price-driven, commodity operation with shrinking volumes and margins into a lucrative business with high profit potential.

Such a transition is not easy for commercial printers, though, because it requires them to reposition themselves. They need to target different prospects with different sales approaches while adding new capabilities and expertise.

Here’s where in-plants have the advantage. They share the strategic objectives of their parent organizations and can securely leverage the data, skills and expertise, of their marketing, IT and sales teammates without crossing the firewall. Yet few seem to be grabbing the opportunity. Only about 3 percent of PODi’s members are from in-plants even though those same larger profits eyed by commercial printers represent bigger savings for in-plants to bring home.

Finding and Building the Business

Personalized, targeted direct marketing campaigns (both in print and digital) are much more effective than widespread mass mailings or e-mailings. Numerous studies and most of PODi’s 500+ end-user case studies prove this beyond any doubt. Yet, while many marketing departments are experimenting with social media, numerous others still rely upon traditional bulk mailings (with mediocre results). Often this is done because it’s easier, they don’t know how to personalize, or because a previous personalization attempt did not deliver improved results.

These are the departments and jobs that the commercial sector is targeting with promises of better response rates and increased business. Savvy service providers are calling on these departments to try different approaches rather than just encouraging them to submit the same bulk jobs. There are no compelling reasons why in-plants couldn’t employ the same approach and position themselves as visionaries and deliverers of ways to grow business rather than as commodity printers. In fact, in-plants often have significant advantages over their commercial counterparts with this type of work.

The In-plant Advantage

Offering personalized, digital marketing services requires some different skills and focus than traditional printing and it can be rather daunting. However, in-plants have the potential for being more effective in this than their commercial counterparts for several reasons:

• Production, mailing and e-mailing are your forte and thus probably the easiest part of the equation for any contemporary printing operation. High-quality, production color printers are available from a variety of vendors at affordable prices. Color management, digital storefronts and software geared to delivering personalized communications are all available and straightforward to use. This part of the playing field is level for both in-plants and commercial printers.

• Design services may be something you do, or you may rely upon a creative services department. Either way, personalized communication requires design and printing to be very closely related. Designers need to know how to design for both digital printing and online channels and how to effectively blend together personalized messages, offers, links and images. In-plants can leverage their sibling organizations to do this rather than having to invest in these capabilities. This is far easier to do from within an organization than from outside.

• Segmentation and messaging are critical with these campaigns and must be tied closely with design. Again, rather than investing in these capabilities, an in-plant can work closely with its marketing department client, creative services and the production team to get it right.

• Landing pages are essential with these campaigns to deliver the message presented in the mailings and to capture prospect interest. You don’t want to send people to your corporate Web page but instead drive them to a page designed for the campaign. Commercial printers need to invest in the ability to implement these pages while in-plants can leverage the expertise of their IT departments.

• Databases are the lifeblood of these campaigns. Address cleansing, segmentation, interpreting meta-data and compiling the results into usable mailing lists are all challenging activities that demand specific knowledge and abilities. Again, unlike commercial printers, in-plants can leverage their companies’ IT departments to do this and, as an added advantage, keep sensitive data securely behind corporate firewalls.

• Response tracking and follow-up are what drive results and determine success for personalized marketing campaigns. Handing off this data is the area most commonly missed because it is it so difficult. Feeding tracking reports and leads back to marketing or sales for follow-up, or sending returned mail, e-mail bounces and opt-outs directly to marketing or IT for database cleanup is something that in-plants can manage. These critical tasks are, however, incredibly difficult for an outside services provider to manage.

A Unique Role for In-plants

Obviously both in-plants and commercial printers can handle the production and mailing components of a marketing services operation. A great advantage that in-plants have is that they can also leverage the expertise of other internal organizations (marketing, creative design, IT) for many of the needs of these types of services. The hardest part—and the roles that have the greatest potential for defining in-plants as strategic operations—are the roles of visionary and project manager.

Someone needs to have and communicate (or sell) the overall vision and value of personalized communications. They need to be the expert on how to apply personalization and design for variable content digital communications in both print and electronic forms. They have to step up to managing these projects from conception through implementation across organizational boundaries, and finally to reporting responses to really drive business.

In-plants are prime candidates for shouldering this responsibility. Marketing departments don’t want to manage an operational project like this. IT departments will have to be cajoled into just delivering their elements. In-plants are the organizations where it all comes together and are the ones that will benefit most from the responsibility. Taking this on not only expands an in-plant’s work, it redefines that in-plant’s role from fulfilling orders to setting and managing strategic initiatives.

The primary advantage that commercial marketing services providers currently have is that they recognize the opportunity and are engaging their sales teams to sell it. I’ve heard numerous in-plant managers explain that, while they can handle personalized printing, their clients haven’t asked for much of it. While I have no doubt that this is true, forward-thinking commercial print and marketing services providers aren’t waiting for the work to come in—they’re educating their clients and selling the vision needed to drive these clients to utilize personalized campaigns and to create the jobs.

Making It Happen

Trying to do this alone would be difficult. Fortunately, there are numerous resources out there to help.

• You can, and should, leverage your (printer and software) vendors’ expertise wherever possible. Many of them offer business-building programs, Webinars, seminars and other materials.
• The not-for-profit digital printing initiative PODi has more than 700 members and a wealth of case studies, white papers and reports on the topic, not to mention an annual AppForum conference.
• The In-Plant Printing and Mailing Association provides a range of in-plant resources and experience year round and holds an annual conference in June.

It is easy to ignore these resources and save some money in the short term—but you risk not learning how to evolve your operation into the strategic leader it could become.

Business Objectives:   Good Sports Outdoor Outfitters is a family owned specialty retail store operating in San Antonio, Texas for over 25 years. During 2010, Good Sports expanded its business by opening an outlet store and was developing plans for an online shopping website.

To be successful in the expansion and to build its business, Good Sports needed a direct marketing campaign that would:

• Increase sales
• Attract new customers
• Build relationships with existing customers
• Grow their customer database for future marketing
• Build awareness through consistent branding and messaging

Results:

A multi-channel direct marketing campaign drove new business for Good Sports Outdoor Outfitters. Results for the campaign period June 2010 – April 2011 were:

Redemptions of personalized direct mail coupons and seasonal promotions resulted in new sales of $61,364 QR codes placed in magazine ads extended the reach of Good Sports’ brand and messaging 335 unique hits on campaign landing page 202 individuals provided their email address to receive a QR code coupon promotion.These addresses were used to build a data list for weekly email marketing messages

• 62% of the responders were new clients
• 37 QR code coupon responders made purchases at the store totaling over $4,800
• Good Sports’ goal in attracting new customers was to go beyond the client who makes one coupon purchase and attract long-term clients with a high lifetime value. 10% of the new clients have made repeat purchases

Read more about how this campaign was structured and why it succeeded.

PODi members can download the full case study here

Nonmembers: Get a complimentary copy for a limited time

PODi members can access 500 case studies 24/7 – JOIN NOW

Congratulations to all of the 2012 winners for their outstanding results with digital printing and 1:1 direct marketing campaigns. We’re looking forward to hearing the details of their programs, which they will present at the AppForum in less than 2 weeks!

Best Practices Winner : Direct Marketing Category

ScottishPower and Eclipse “ScottishPowerWelcomeProgramme”   Scottish Power is a major gas and electricity supplier in the UK. Eclipse implemented a multi-touchpoint program that included a

personalized welcome pack and interactive PURL. This award-winning program reduced cancellations in the first two weeks by over 80%.

Marie McShane at ScottishPower, says “To win this award alongside the other national awards the campaign has so far received is a fantastic recognition of the genuine ongoing success and outstanding results of this campaign and to the partnership between ScottishPower and Eclipse.”

Honorable Mentions (tie): Rosemont College, Pacesetter Enterprises, and Digital Innovations Group – “Rosemont College Boosts Donor Participation with Data Analytics and Cross-Channel Relevant Marketing” / Miami University, b+p+t Communication Solutions“Miami University Proves Value of Relevant Marketing for Student Recruitment”

Best Practices Winner : Marketing Resource Center Category

DoubleTree by Hilton, MSP, Tray and eIntegrity   “DoubleTree by Hilton Supports Properties with Marketing Resource Center” Strategic partners Tray and MSP built a comprehensive web-to-print toolkit for DoubleTree’s international brand.

With programming assistance from eIntegrity, the robust solution allows users to order over 250 printed items.

“Building an integrated, single-source, global toolkit … prior to a complete re-brand in 2011 was absolutely critical to the success of the rollout,” says Evanthia Aldrich, DoubleTree by Hilton. “Our properties needed new everything – from business cards and menus to signage and apparel. Providing General Managers’ and Director of Sales’ a tool that allowed them to easily customize templates, and order everything they need all in one place, was huge.”

”Honorable Mention: Ten Thousand Villages, The Standard Group– “Ten Thousand Villages Supports Stores with Web-to-Print”

Best Practices Winner : Self-Promotion Category

AlphaGraphics in the Cultural District “AlphaGraphics Thinks Outside of the Box to Generate Leads”AlphaGraphics in the Cultural District developed a multi-channel self-promotion campaign to educate clients about the power of integrated direct mail. They took “thinking outside the box” to a whole new level with their “Use Your Coconut” theme.

Prospects were mailed an actual coconut in nylon netting with a printed hangtag. The theme was carried through multiple channels including email, Personalized URLs, social media, direct mail and at an onsite marketing workshop.

“Pittsburgh is still buzzing! The Campaign was a huge success, and many customer campaigns and conversations have followed. It is an honor to be recognized by a prestigious organization like PODi,” said Clare Meehan, President and CEO, AlphaGraphics in the Cultural District.

Honorable Mention: Boelte-Hall– “Boelte-Hall “Moooves” Audience to Action with Cross Channel Marketing”

See all the award-winning case studies

The digital printing industry looks to Caslon and PODi for insights into what’s next and what will be profitable in the future. Here are a few of the exciting opportunities we see emerging plus some red flags to watch out for.

In the direct marketing arena, the buzz is all around cross media marketing. We’ll see integration of direct mail, email, landing pages, mobile and social media. Each media will have its place. For direct mail the large mailers will continue to focus on more targeted personalized direct mail and postal

savings. The new wide web color inkjet presses will enable companies to comingle mailings on the press and gain even more mailing efficiencies.

• We’ll be hearing more about automating workflow and marketing operations. Service providers who offer processes and systems to increase efficiency and reduce cycle time will have the advantage.

• The use of collateral management systems continues to grow as they become more flexible and begin providing expanded functionality.

• Personalization, although it’s been around for a long time is just starting to be adopted in significant volumes by marketers.

• Statements are shifting to color, but at the same time they are also going electronic. Transactional print volumes will decline significantly in the next 5 years.

• Printing for packaging is complex & challenging, but as high speed digital printing improves and Brand Managers continue to see a proliferation of SKU’s we’ll see the market for  digital printing for packaging grow.  Print on demand, customization, personalization, reduced cycle time are all key factors. And it can’t be replaced by electronic media.

• Printers who cannot take an order over the internet will be at a severe disadvantage.  Web to print systems continue to be adopted and drive short run print.

• Book publishers will adopt digital printing, it’s just starting. First it will be for short run color books, but eventually a very large portion of the book market will be produced on inkjet presses.

• e-books and tablets are having an impact on print volumes, especially books.  In the educational market we’ll see a large shift to electronic versions.  The big issue is will kids have access?  The total effect on magazine print volume is not clear yet, but it’s not looking good for print.

• The role of catalogs is changing from an order vehicle to a way to drive traffic to an online store.

• There’s a ton of overcapacity in the print market which needs to go away to prevent price erosion and protect profits.  Unfortunately this will take time.

• Digital inkjet technology will make good inroads into offset print volumes for direct mail and books.

Marketing for the AppForum conference gives us the chance to actually try out some of the very exciting technology and new cross media strategies we feature at the event. Last year it was QR codes and augmented reality with our tie-in to the award-winning Tissot Watches campaign. This year it’s integrated cross media and XMPie’s cool new personalized video.

We’ve partnered with creative agency, DME Studios, who have created a quirky character named Herman. Herman works for a company that has not embraced the opportunities enabled by digital printing and personalization. In a series of video blogs, he shares his frustration at not being able to move his company and career forward by attending the AppForum.

Each video includes personalized imagery specific to the individual viewer.

The campaign includes direct mail postcards which lead users to a personalized landing page and their first encounter with Herman. They also get a series of follow-up emails in a coordinated DRIP campaign inviting viewers to see the next installments of Herman’s video blog. Additional viewers are added to the program through social media, viral referrals and communications by AppForum media sponsors. Check it out yourself at www.SparkNewIdeas.com

Ben Dyon, our pal and CEO at DME Studios, says they have seen significant increases in response/conversion rates when adding personalization in video, print and web. He adds, “The PODi AppForum campaign is a showcase of how to integrate different media channels into one complete personalized campaign”.

“XMPie is very excited to work with PODi and our great customer DME Studios on this exceptional, highly engaging campaign, which shows the power of 1:1 cross media marketing with video personalization,” says Larry Zusman of XMPie. “And as will be demonstrated at the AppForum 2012 in Las Vegas, this is a game-changer for us all.”

If you check out Herman’s blog we think you’ll agree that he could really use a good game-changer. If you could too, be sure to join us at AppForum. www.AppForum.org

(DME Studios and XMPie will be detailing the Herman campaign & personalized video in a preconference intensive session, On the Cutting Edge of Cross Media. The session will also include the latest on augmented reality and personalized designer QR codes. )

Come on, come to AppForum – you know you want to. It’s the first & the best digital print conference You’ll meet the industry’s winners & innovators You’ll takeaway tips & ideas to use NOW to build business You’ll talk to vendors who can

make your business better

• You’ll have a blast in Vegas!

If you need more persuading, take a few minutes on December 15 at 2pm EST for a FREE online look at why AppForum can make a huge difference in your success in 2012. We’ve got AppForum Keynotes Ken Schmidt and Rab Govil, along with Track Chair and speaker Kate Dunn for a fun discussion of what you can expect at the conference.

FREE Inside AppForum 2012 Webinar: December 15, 2pmEST

• Ken Schmidt helped Harley-Davidson make one of the most celebrated turnarounds in corporate history. Ken is passionate in his view that businesses must differentiate themselves from the competition or fall prey to being simply forgettable
• Rab Govil, President of Caslon, previews upcoming trends in direct marketing and what new media options to watch for in 2012. Rab sorts through the media landscape to get down to what matters in direct marketing – ROI
• Kate Dunn, President of Digital Innovations Group and a Caslon Strategic Solution Sales Trainer, shares insights on sales and business strategies critical to service provider’s growth that will be explored at AppForum

Hey – and we’ll be giving away a FREE ticket (value $1295) at the end of the presentation to one lucky attendee! Another reason not to miss it.