Tag Archives: digital printing

Cross Media Marketing: Are You Tapped into the Right Channels?

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Marketing is always changing and being able to communicate and meet consumer’s needs through multiple channels is a must when it comes to developing an effective campaign. With people being exposed to over 5,000 messages a day, engaging your audience and having them recognize your brand is getting harder and harder to do. Recent trends have been to incorporate all individual marketing efforts into a single cross media marketing campaign and the development of new technology whether it is with digital printing or the advancement of cell phones has brought new opportunities allowing companies to do exactly this. A company’s campaign whether it’s their direct mail, their mobile marketing, or their social media marketing, must be consistent and engaging in order to make an impact on their target audience. Most companies today are focusing on integrating four different areas: social media marketing, email marketing, mobile marketing and print marketing.

Marketing through social media
Many companies are hesitant to dip into social media marketing and understandably so. Most are use to communication to customers being one way, but with this new development, customers have direct access to your company and communication has evolved from one way to two way discussions. Having direct conversations with customers may be concerning, but it brings great opportunities. In fact, 41% of B2B companies have acquired a new customer through a social media site such as Facebook. Two way communications is one of the best ways for businesses to be building credibility and brand loyalty. Having total access to customer thoughts, concerns and opinions is a huge advantage when it comes to figuring out how to reach your audience. Whether you are a small business or large corporation, many opportunities lie in social media marketing and it shouldn’t be left out of your cross media campaign.

Email and mobile marketing
It’s been said that by 2015 mobile internet usage will surpass desktop usage. Currently over 50 percent of U.S. mobile phone users now use smart phones and that number is on the rise. When talking about giving customers what they need, a mobile optimized website should not be a long discussion; it’s imperative for success. Having the most important information front and center whether it’s the company phone number, hours of operation, or directions is most important. Engaging customers needs to be easy so when wanting customer to sign up for things make it simple and pain free.

When it comes to email marketing, simple things like adding share buttons to your email message so readers can share your message through Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn is a great way to integrate your social media marketing with your email marketing. Using both channels together can expand your audience and multiply the impact your message can have with very little effort.

Integrating through direct mail campaigns
With the world going digital many companies are debating whether or not to opt out of direct mail campaigns but it is important that you don’t. Direct mail has the advantage of being tangible and with people being bombarded with digital advertising it provides an opportunity to stand out. When producing your direct mail campaigns engage your customer by personalizing information through digital printing. Let you customer interact with you instantly by using tools such as QR codes and personalized URLs. If consumers can connect with you instantly to learn more about your products or promotions, chances are your conversion rate will increase drastically.

In today’s environment ensuring that every channel of the campaign complements the other, and allowing ways for consumers to connect instantly is what it takes for a successful marketing campaigns. Contact Cerqa today and let us help you move your cross media marketing towards success.

Digital Printing vs. Offset Printing: An Inside Look

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digital printing vs. offset printingThe past couple of weeks we have covered digital printing and offset printing and the basic advantages of each when it comes to commercial printing. This week we are going to take an in depth look at each technology in efforts to help you determine which one is best for you and when you should use what. Consumers not familiar with commercial printing often think of the technologies as competing with one another, but when used together both technologies can provide a complete solution for all of your printing needs.

Understanding the Process
Understanding the process of offset printing and how it varies from digital printing is important when understanding the costs associated with each.

Offset Printing:
In commercial printing, offset printing is thought of as the traditional printing method. When using offset printing, there is an extensive set up that is required. The process begins by creating plates that portray the images that will be printed. Once the plates are created and the press is set up, the plates make an inked impression on a rubber blanket cylinder which then transfers the image to the printing surface. At first, the press will run at a slow rate to make sure that what is being printed is matching up with the specs of the specific project. If what the press is producing is incorrect, the press will be tweaked until the output is correct. Once everything is aligned and looks good, the press will run at a much faster speed to produce the job. The set up involved with offset printing is a onetime cost that often times goes unnoticed when printing very high quantities. When using offset printing the cost per unit decreases as quantities increase.

Digital Printing:
The digital printing process is much simpler and has had a significant impact on the comemrcial printing industry. Unlike offset printing, running a job digitally requires very little set up. The process involves an image that is sent directly to the printer using a digital file such as a PDF. The cost per unit stays fairly consistent regardless of quantity.

Quality Expectations
Digital printing is continually improving with regards to quality. However, when compared to the more traditional offset printing, offset is still known for producing the best quality when it comes to color and sharp images. When wanting specific PMS colors, offset uses actual Pantone inks where digital printing uses a color matching system that is not nearly as precise.

Flexibility
Both digital printing and offset printing are flexible in their own ways. Because digital printing does not have all of the mechanical steps that offset printing has, changing the information that is being printed is not difficult. As a result, it is much more cost effective to print digitally when personalizing marketing materials through variable data printing. Offset printing is flexible when it comes to the type of material the information can be printed on. Chances are when using specialty papers, finishes, or various printing surfaces, a project will most likely run offset.

Advantages
Digital Printing:
Cost effective for small runs
Quick turnaround times
Allows for personalization through variable data printing

Offset Printing:
High quality
Cost effective for high volume
Various printing mediums

How to Choose
When deciding whether to use digital printing or offset printing it is important to consider your quantity, the quality you are looking for, the turnaround time, and the amount of creativity involved in the project. As with most things there are advantages and disadvantages to each technology but having a general understanding of digital printing and offset printing helps you determine which technology you should use and helps you better understand commercial printing as a whole. Commercial printing technology has changed drastically over the years and when the new technology is combined with traditional methods, businesses are able to see a cost effective and effecient result.

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Advantages of Digital Printing

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With technology constantly improving in the printing industry the demand for digital printing continues to grow. Once looked at as low quality, digital printing is now comparable to the more traditional offset printing and in many cases just as good. Next time you need a top quality print job and are dreading the costs that offset may have, consider these advantages of digital printing:

Cost effective for small runs- Because there is very little set up costs associated with digital printing, running a small job through digital can be much more cost effective for shorter runs.

Quicker turnaround times- The lack of set up not only affects cost, but the turnaround time is much lower as well. Speed is extremely important in this competitive market and quick turnaround times help businesses get their marketing materials to the consumer first.

Variable data- Digital printing gives you the capability to do one to one marketing in a cost effective way. Being able to target individuals by providing specific offers, changing images, and personalizing information has proven to increase response rates and your return on investment.

High quality for low costs- With technology continuing to improve, the quality of digital printing is becoming better and better and in many cases just as good as offset printing.

Although traditional offset printing is what the printing industry was once known for, digital printing is continually meeting the high demands of businesses needs. Digital printing allows for more affordable runs, higher flexibility, and quicker turnaround times. Next time you’re considering running a small print job, consider these advantages in deciding how to run it.

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