Mailbag February 2007

Customer Is King
Our sales team came back from their holiday break, and I noticed many reading the December issue of Print Solutions magazine, dedicated to customer interaction from cold calling to cultivating. Having read the issue in its entirety, I found it well researched and written. A sale cannot be made without first developing a relationship. The insights from print buyers in “What Your Clients Are Thinking” are right on. When I started selling business forms, a two-hour lunch was the norm and often without an order to go with it. Today, major commitments are consummated by email. It’s true that time is precious, and what we feel best serves the client is “no hassle” consistency. The story is correct in concluding that “they will remain loyal if you treat them well.”

In 2000, Source4 was asked to go through a rigorous vendor evaluation by a large Fortune 1000 client. The client was integral to our success. The evaluation was conducted by a global consulting firm. It was obvious that the intention was to drill into our business model and expose any weakness. Another objective was to eliminate the “relationship” and pare down to price! This technique is now current practice in businesses of all sizes. “The Rise of the Anti-Sales Seminar” explained how even the smallest companies can talk their reps out of decent margins. The story touches on the importance of being the go-to person when a job is complicated and needs to be done right. That is how to protect margins.

The story featuring Dave Rothfeld of Creative Sales + Management gets it. Relationship Asset Management is the basis of a print and marketing service company. Customer relationships are the ASSETS of a distributor. When an exit strategy is implemented, that is what the new owner will value. Creating more “add on selling” enhances the value of a print distributorship.
The article on cold calling was a reminder that you have to get up early to initiate the contact (before the switchboard or secretary intercepts the phone call) and that most executives read emails first thing in the morning. The end of the day is also a good time to attempt contact. A key message is that you are lucky to get one shot, so be sure your gun is loaded. Know your prospect and be ready with your value proposition.

The New Direct Mail
Our staff read with great interest your section on Variable Data Printing (VDP) in the November 2006 issue. While we certainly recognize the challenges, we see golden opportunities for distributors—especially with VDP-enhanced direct mail.
Direct mail marketers need to transition from static, non-focused pieces to attention-grabbing, customized direct mail. The relatively poor response rates of one or two percent for static mail are no longer acceptable; higher returns are demanded. But as Managing Editor Andy Brown noted in his introduction, most direct mailers are not taking full advantage of today’s best technologies and practices.

The opportunities are realized when distributors work with their clients to design direct mail campaigns that increase revenue. Instead of just selling print jobs, take the time to solve business problems and develop full marketing campaigns. Effective cross-selling of graphic design, database and mailing services leads to successful campaigns and increased profits for distributors. A VDP-enhanced mail campaign will deliver better results for the client and a loyal customer for the distributor.

Making the transition to selling “the new direct mail” doesn’t have to be difficult. First, take the time to educate yourself on the available technologies. Take the necessary time to determine your client’s goals and determine the best way to achieve them. Finally, lean on your partners and suppliers for expertise in their respective fields: marketing service providers for new ways to increase customer acquisition and retention, and mail houses for cost effective design that meets the regulations of the U.S. Postal Service.

The key—as DMIA has committed to doing in ’07—is to stay relevant. And as we see it, choosing to think and act more like a marketing agency account exec is the way to do that.

Are you Missing Important Email from DMIA?
As spam proliferates, email providers get more aggressive in the way they combat it. Some have turned to the use of Realtime Black-hole Lists (RBLs), which are lists of mail servers suspected of sending spam. Occasionally, innocent senders like DMIA get placed on an RBL accidentally and this can cause important messages to be deleted before they ever reach you. The best way to prevent this from happening is to “whitelist” all incoming mail from www.DMIA.org and www.printsolutionsmag.com. Your IT staff or tech support can do this, and some systems will allow you to do it yourself. For more information, contact Mike White at mwhite@PSDA.org.

Corrections
In the December 2006 story, “Appealing to Clients with a ‘Greener’ State of Mind” (page 42), Paul Gutkowski’s title should have been listed as director of Safety and Environmental Services of Printing Industry of Minnesota Inc.

A news item on page 66 of the December 2006 issue should have read: “Ultra Forms Plus offers laser checks and forms in quantities of up to 100,000. For details, call Robin Gannon at (800) 531-2101.”