Fold out
in
stock Vol. 2 • Issue 2
GO
WIDE
Explore your current vertical markets. Wide-format printing opportunities are likely closer than you think. p. 5
DEATH OF A SALES METHOD
POP-OUT, FOLD-UP
DESIGNING A SMARTER DUMMY
Taking orders is out. Selling value in a commodity-based world is in. p. 13
A miniature astronaut comes to life with paper. p. 16
When a customer asks for improved mock-ups, Millcraft’s “Just Ask” team delivers. p. 4
IT’S HARD TO OVERLOOK SOMETHING THIS
BIG.
The enormous impact and growth of wide-format printing can’t be ignored.
50% “ Increase in consumer demand because of a sale sign
30%
Source: http://h20195.www2.hp.com /v2/GetPDF.aspx/4AA5-1662EEW.pdf
Increase in consumer interest when businesses show strong attention to packaging
Any size you can imagine is the standard now, and the material choices—for any surface— are endless.” ~ Mike Barrett, large-format specialist, Millcraft
Source: http://blog.drupa.com/howproduct-packaging-affects-buyingdecisions
50%
$24
Projected growth of North American large-format printer shipments from 2015 to 2017
BILLION
Forecasted growth for wide-format digital inkjet market through 2018 Source: http://bigpicture.net/ content/10-percent-growthforecast-wide-format-inkjetprinting
Source: http://bigpicture.net/ content/beyond-aqueousprinting-alternative-inksrise?page=0%2C1
68%
Consumers who reported buying a product because of signage Source: http://dualprintandmail.com /2015/02/19/go-big-or-go-home/
(800) 860-2482
www.millcraft.com
JustAsk@Millcraft.com
Publisher’s Note Table of Contents
Making Connections. Making an Impact. It’s not all about price. We get it. And so do our customers. At Millcraft we spend a lot of time listening to and learning about our customers. We truly want to understand what you do and how you do it so we can make meaningful connections—connections that make an impact. Sometimes it’s as simple as introducing one customer to another. Other times it’s developing online tools to help you streamline print procurement and reporting—tools that make it easy to track your annual print spending and diversity spending, as well as progress toward your sustainability goals by keeping tabs on the recycled paper you’ve used.
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Case Study Streamlining packaging strategies makes for a ship-shape distribution experience for an additives manufacturer.
Feature Death of a sales method: Taking orders is out. Selling value in a commodity-based world is in.
When it comes down to it, connecting customers to new markets that align with their strengths is what we do best. Whether it’s diving deep into digital printing or exploring wide-format opportunities, we’ve got the experience and resources to assist you every step of the way. In this issue of InStock, we want to help you build your business. Tapping into the growing demand for wide-format print jobs (think vehicle wraps, banners, tradeshow displays, etc.) is one way our printing customers are finding success. In “Go Wide” (page 5), we take a look at this potential growth market and whether it’s the right fit for your company.
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“Just Ask” in Action When a customer wants to present improved mock-ups to its clients, Millcraft’s Cincinnati Design and Solutions Center delivers.
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And let’s not forget our sales teams and the vital role they play— day in and day out—to bring in new business. “Death of a Sales Method” (page 13) sheds light on the changing landscape of sales and sales strategy in our industry. It calls for a different approach to selling (think “selling value”) without losing sight of timehonored sales techniques. Ready to make an impact? Let’s connect. Respectfully,
Travis Mlakar President mlakart@millcraft.com
5
Feature Explore your current vertical markets. Wide-format printing opportunities are likely closer than you think.
Great Uses Popping-out and foldingup, a miniature astronaut comes to life with paper.
THIS ISSUE IS PRINTED ON:
Cover: Domtar Cougar 100# Super Smooth Cover | Text: Domtar Cougar 100# Super Smooth Text PUBLISHER: Travis Mlakar | SENIOR PUBLICATIONS ADVISOR: Courtney Enser EDITOR: Mimi Bell | CONTRIBUTORS: Lorrie Bryan, Laurie Hileman, Liberty Kontranowski, Jen W. O'Deay, and Kathryn Will PROOFREADER: Stacey Tetloff | ART DIRECTOR: Chad Hussle | DESIGNER: Carol Quade | PHOTOGRAPHERS: Doug Julian and Jeremy Slagle InStock, Volume 2, Issue 2, September 2016, is published by The F.P. Horak Company. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The F.P. Horak Company, 1311 Straits Dr, Bay City MI 48706. Copyright© 2016 at The F.P. Horak Company. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.
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Case Study
ALL BOXED UP Streamlining packaging strategies makes for a ship-shape distribution experience. By Liberty Kontranowski
When you’re a national additives manufacturer*, you ship a lot of product. Efficiency and cost-effectiveness is a must, as is ensuring that shipments are sent in a timely manner. But when your staff members are already stretched to their maximum, partnering with a packaging distributor that can build an innovative, process-oriented packaging strategy based on your company’s current needs and future goals is key. Shipping, after all, is not a one-size-fits-all business. Box materials, tape, postage—they are all often-overlooked components of packaging and can result in the shipper incurring extra expenditures. Millcraft, a 96-year-old independent distributor of paper and packaging, worked with the additives manufacturer to understand all of the costs—and inefficiencies—that factored into the company’s shipping process. From there, a true partnership was born.
Additionally, the manufacturer was handling inventory management tasks (such as the ordering and storing of corrugated packaging materials) in-house, which required time, careful monitoring, and another layer of labor resources. The manufacturer concluded that consolidating packaging vendors would be the best approach to managing such an important aspect of its business. That way, it would have fewer points of vendor contact and could redirect its manpower toward its core business competencies. THE PROBLEM The additives manufacturer has a robust business and an extensive product line. Managing its own corrugated packaging inventory was taking time away from employees who didn’t have time to spare. In fact, sometimes staff members would get so busy with core tasks that packaging inventory would dip to critical levels that would go unnoticed until it was too late. Product buyers were not notified of possible shipping interruptions in a timely manner, and shipping materials were not on hand when needed. Further, the corrugated packaging materials took up valuable space on the manufacturer’s warehouse floor and became susceptible to damage and mishandling. Sourcing from multiple vendors meant multiple ordering schedules, multiple deliveries, and multiple contacts.
THE BACKGROUND The national additives manufacturer had been using multiple vendors to handle its corrugated shipping supply needs. Because some of the materials vendors had difficulty keeping up with demand—occasionally prompting trickle-down plant closures for the customer—partnering with reliable corrugated packaging vendors was vitally important to the manufacturer.
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THE SOLUTION Millcraft was able to offer the additives manufacturer an inventory management program that removes the manufacturer from day-to-day inventory operations but still allows it to have complete authority over its packaging decisions. Through this program, Millcraft ensures that the manufacturer has a 30- to 90day supply of corrugated inventory on hand, using the minimum/ maximum threshold rule to keep inventory replenished. This means that when Millcraft-monitored inventory levels dip to the manufacturer’s minimum, Millcraft orders enough to return the levels to the manufacturer’s preferred maximum. The program also features a singular point of contact, an expert who takes care of all corrugated packaging matters. The program manager tracks buying habits and reports to the manufacturer’s purchasing department when there are opportunities for additional savings through vendor sourcing or size changes.
competencies, assured that its corrugated packaging materials are being monitored and properly allocated. In addition, process simplification is a huge win. And because Millcraft is able to supply various products to the manufacturer with one delivery and one invoice, efficiency reigns. “Where once the client had to order from three separate vendors, schedule three deliveries, cut three POs, unload three trucks, and issue three checks, now they only need to handle one,” says Millcraft’s Midwest Corrugated Specialist Tony D’Amico. Indeed, Millcraft’s process-oriented inventory management approach—versus a simply transactional approach—led to a greater understanding of the client’s needs and challenges. The result? A program that can grow with the customer, allowing for a cleaned-up cash flow, fewer layers of manpower resources, and tremendous opportunities for continued savings.
THE RESULTS With the new inventory management program in place, the additives manufacturer can now redirect its manpower to core
*In this case study, Millcraft’s client’s name has been removed due to the sensitive nature of its business.
3
“Just Ask” in Action
DESIGNING A SMARTER DUMMY When a customer wants to present improved mock-ups to its clients, Millcraft’s Cincinnati Design and Solutions Center delivers. By Laurie Hileman
ideas on how to elevate the look of mockups created for automotive booklet samples. After thoughtful consideration, the team decided to invest in a thermal binder and labeling system that gives the look of a perfect-bound book and allows the name of the specific paper sample to be seamlessly integrated into the design—much to the delight of their customer. This, plus Greene’s creativity and access to two other fully staffed regional design centers, has proven to be a great asset for the design and print communities, turning project ideas into proven profit for customers. Now, whether a customer needs a perfect-bound piece or a handcrafted saddle-stitched book, a folder, envelope, or other custom piece, Greene and team deliver the right look, on the right paper, at the right time. Just ask. Bennie Greene is no dummy, although he works with them all day. In his samples sales support role at the Cincinnati Design and Solutions Center of Millcraft, a 96-year-old independent distributor of paper and packaging, Greene spends much of his day creating dummies—also known as mock-ups— of potential print jobs for printers and creative agencies across multiple states. Each dummy is designed to the exact specifications of a job, including size and paper type, and often can be delivered the next day. “It gives the client a good sense of the weight, the feel, and how the pages
will look when they are bound, stitched, or folded together,” says Greene. And, quite often, Greene says, it’s the dummy at the beginning of a project that can win a job for clients. The samples also help printers figure out logistics on the production side. They can assist in determining how best to fold, insert, score, or die cut the piece. In addition, printers are able weigh the piece in order to estimate postage or decide the size and durability of the box needed to ship 100 books. Recently, a large commercial printer customer reached out to Greene, asking for
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BENNIE GREENE, idea guru and one of three design center specialists for Millcraft, knows how to take projects from idea to reality. He blends creativity and logic, identifying the ideal papers and materials that will best fold, score, and bind for the end use in mind. To have an idea expert involved right from the beginning, contact Bennie at 513-598-7024, or send an email to SamplesCincinnati@millcraft.com.
Feature
GO
WIDE
Explore your current vertical markets. You’ll gain insight into whether you have prospects for wide-format printing. By Lorrie Bryan
5
Feature
A
pitch, shot, or field goal that goes wide is a miss. But in the print industry, some savvy printers are finding that their choice to go wide—enter the wide-format market—was spot on. Firehouse Image Center, a 45-year-old company that started out as a small photo lab, survived a flood, a fire, and the onset of digital photography; evolved into a wide-format printer more than a decade ago; and emerged as a leading supplier of in-store graphics for numerous national and global clients. In 2015, the company doubled its production space. “We stayed focused on quality and productivity rather than growing for the sake of growth,” explains longtime Firehouse CEO Terry Corman. Continuing rapid advances in digital technology accompanied by the ongoing evolution of print heads, inks, and substrates are creating more efficient end-to-end workflows and, subsequently, more new opportunities in the wide-format market. In an industry that has experienced tremendous contraction in recent years, the prospect of double-digit growth in this market has many small-format printing company executives seriously running the numbers and kicking the tires on the newest wideformat machines. If you are one of the printers pacing the sidelines and thinking of entering the wide-format field, here are a few considerations besides roll-fed, hybrid, or flat-bed to ponder.
GO DEEP
In the print industry, the “build it, and they will come” business model is becoming as outdated as a dial-up modem or floppy disk. Instead, companies are basing their business strategies on solid value propositions that are centered on providing their customers with solutions. While you are perusing the features offered by the leading wide-format printers, also explore your existing vertical markets in depth. “Chances are your current customers are using wide-format products—tradeshow graphics, training posters, signage—and are possibly buying it from someone else now. Find out what they are doing, what they would like to do more of, and how you can help them do it for less,” suggests Mike Barrett, a large-format specialist at Millcraft. Perhaps you are printing brochures for a retail client who also needs point-of-purchase signage and exterior signage to announce new product lines or other special promotions. Or
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WIDE-FORMAT EQUIPMENT IS AVAILABLE TODAY WITH MEASURABLE DIFFERENCES IN VERSATILITY, QUALITY, SPEED, EASE OF USE, AND, ACCORDINGLY, PRICE.
maybe one of your clients is in the process of rebranding or redesigning his business, and he needs new interior and exterior signage along with new marketing collateral. You may have customers who want to create an outdoor advertising campaign, but they just don’t know what their options are and don’t know you can now print directly on a wide range of surfaces besides paper. If you can offer them wideformat options in addition to the products you are already providing, you can potentially make it more cost-effective and efficient for them. “You are no longer selling products—you are selling a service. You are using your knowledge, tools, and materials to help your customers succeed in their respective businesses by creating engaging print graphics, small and large,” Barrett explains.
GO BIG?
A wide range of wide-format equipment is available today with measurable differences in versatility, quality, speed, ease of use, and, accordingly, price. But is newer-faster-easier the better choice for your business? How do you figure out what equipment you should invest in to ensure that every order is finished on time, meets the quality of output required, and is completed at an acceptable price? Barrett suggests that assessing your current customers’ needs before you invest in equipment will help you determine what wide-format applications you have a ready market for so that you are buying the right equipment to meet that demand. “You don’t want to invest small if you already have the clients to go big,” explains Barrett. “It would be a mistake to go in with entrylevel equipment if you or your clients are currently outsourcing $300,000 to $400,000 in wide-format printing already. If you buy the next level up, you can increase your output and get a bigger return on investment,” he says. “Wide format is not going away; it’s only going to get bigger.”
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Feature
“YOU DON’T WANT TO INVEST SMALL IF YOU ALREADY HAVE THE CLIENTS TO GO BIG.” ~ Mike Barrett, large-format specialist, Millcraft
“Blox-Lite has saved us considerable time and money since we no longer have to run these types of signs on a vinyl product that would then be mounted on a PVC substrate.”
GO OUTSIDE
Outside the box, that is. Users of digital wide-format can enjoy experimenting with a variety of new inks and substrates because of fast setup and changeover, the ease of the pre-press process, and the ability to produce one-offs or low volumes that were not feasible before. “The new technology allows you to do so much more with what you have. It used to be an ink-on-paper mindset, but these days, it’s ink-on-anything,” says Barrett, a 23-year-veteran of wide-format printing. “It’s like arts and crafts day every day; it’s creative outside-the-box thinking. From tissue-paper-thin substrates to two-inch- thick doors, ceramics to wood, glass to metal—just about anything you can imagine can be done.” One of Barrett’s wide-format clients, Chris Frogale, is the pre-press coordinator for Ohio University Printing Centers, which provides the signage for the main campus in Athens as well as all the regional campuses. “We have fun all the time, especially when we get the difficult or out-of-the ordinary job and we have to figure out the best way to do it. We do a lot of projects now that we could not do before: indoor signs, temporary displays, wall murals, canvas prints, floor graphics, and various other signage using a variety of products such as Blox-Lite®, Mac-Tac, and Sihl,” he says. Barrett introduced him to the new Blox-Lite two-side print, blockout banner material, and Frogale says it has allowed the university to expand on its temporary signs, posters, and pointof-sale displays. “We primarily use it for menu boards and daily special displays for our dining services division,” says Frogale.
GO AROUND
If you want to find out more about wide-format products that can help your customers save time and money, then go around to the trade shows and explore the new equipment, inks, and substrates that have recently been developed, urges Corman, who is on the board of directors of Specialty Graphics International Association, one of the largest print trade associations in North America. “I encourage printers to go to the trade shows, see the offerings, talk with the experts, ask questions—put your finger on the pulse of the industry. There’s a lot of energy, a lot of dynamic stuff happening, and there is no greater resource than trade shows,” he says. “There’s nothing like collaborating with your colleagues around the world who are all dealing with the same challenges.” MIKE BARRETT is Millcraft’s large-format specialist. He has worked more than 20 years in the wide-format arena, helping clients select paper, board, plastic, ink, or machine that’s the best match for their projects. Want some ideas? Just ask Mike by calling 614-715-2680, or by emailing barrettm@millcraft.com.
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GO BIG WITHOUT GOING FAR Wide-format printing opportunities are likely closer than you think. By Lorrie Bryan Instead of looking for a new wide-formatbased niche such as vehicle wraps, perhaps you should look closer to home: Explore the opportunities within your existing vertical markets. Chances are your customers are already using several common applications like tradeshow banners and training posters. The most popular applications are signage (indoor and outdoor), POP displays, window graphics, decals, backlit displays, vehicle graphics and wraps, packaging samples, banners, billboards, building wraps, free-standing displays, and presentation posters. But wide-format technology offers numerous other engaging ways for your customers to reinforce their brand and share their message. Here are just a couple you may not have considered: LIFE-SIZED CUTOUTS OR STANDEES. In the selfie age, companies are enhancing their social media presence and creating some fun with life-sized cutouts of the company mascot, CEO, or associated celebrity. Large-format printers are capable of printing in such detail that your customers and followers will do a double take. These are a great way to promote your company at shows or special events. POSTER-SIZED PHOTOS. Your clients can adorn their office walls or retail spaces with big, bold images of people enjoying their products or services. If the company is active on social media, then you could even use real-life customer action shots shared by the business’ followers. Because wide-format printers can print on a variety of materials, you can offer your customers products such as cloth flags featuring their company logo, floor coverings, or custom wallcoverings created from fabric or latex. Today’s wideformat printers can print on just about any surface, so there’s no limit to the creative products you can offer your customers.
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Blueline by Domtar® is an omni-channel campaign
created to build a community around everyone involved with the creation of a printed piece. Featuring a website, blog, social media outlets, online gallery, video, augmented reality and a quarterly printed publication, Blueline by Domtar is an industry-leading resource for fresh content, innovative ideas, perspectives and possibilities. Print and paper have a great story to tell, and an omni-channel strategy that combines online and offline experiences is the best way to get the full range of everything the design and printing process has to offer.
Domtarblueline.com
Domtarblueline.com is the online hub of Blueline by Domtar. This robust website offers a variety of not-to-be missed features including: • The Blueline Gallery is an online gallery featuring spectacular work created on Cougar®, Lynx®, Husky® and EarthChoice® brands submitted by our customers. • The Blueline Blog is a fresh and insightful window into the world of Domtar paper, the creative process, design trends, printing techniques and the decidedly non-linear journey to producing a finished piece. • Print Works! is a series of informational brochures for printers and end users that address the many challenges and opportunities facing the print and paper industry. • Our promotions put great design and impactful printing techniques on display. Check out our latest or browse the archives at domtarblueline.com
The Blueline Magazine
For any true paper lover, nothing compares to the tangible experience of an actual printed piece. Enter our new Blueline Magazine, a quarterly publication designed to bring printers and creatives together. Each issue follows a theme relevant to today’s creative industry and provides a range of insights that shed light on compelling topics. The Blueline Magazine is a supplement to our blog and website. A printed piece gave Blueline by Domtar the perfect canvas to feature insight from leaders and innovators in the creative and commercial print space. The incorporation of modern technology, such as augmented reality and video, give the audience a more holistic experience and deeper connection to the individuals featured.
Visit DomtarBlueline.com for inspiration, insight and to sign up for a complimentary subscription to the Blueline Magazine.
The water cooler has
gone digital.
Get the latest: (800) 860-2482
www.millcraft.com
JustAsk@Millcraft.com
Feature
D
E
A
T
H s a l e s T E M of
a
H
Taking orders is out. Selling value in a commodity-based world is in. By Laurie Hileman
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O
D
Feature
B
ack in the day when Lisa Pryor worked for a printer, she bought lots of paper. She made sure to purchase from a few different distributors, always trying to spread the orders around equitably. After all, paper was paper. Fast forward 20 years and it’s a whole new world. Pryor now works as a division manager for Millcraft. Paper is still paper. But in today’s digital world, the orders are smaller, the margins are tighter, and the sales are harder for everyone— printers, paper distributors, and paper mills—alike. The changing industry landscape calls for a drastically different approach to selling (without abandoning certain classic sales techniques). Here, two long-time paper industry sales professionals share their secrets to selling value and creating strong relationships in this brave, new world.
Trust, she says, earns you the first call. “They know we’re going to follow through, that we’re going to do what we say we’re going to do, and that we’ll have a solution,” says Pryor. Meanwhile, value is what keeps a customer coming back. According to Alan Pohl, an account manager in the corporate solutions group at Millcraft who has roots in the paper industry dating back to 1978, value may be quality, performance, on-time delivery, or a host of other added benefits. “You provide value to the customer to the point where they’ll agree that the price is not the primary focus,” he says. It requires a keen understanding of a client’s or prospect’s business. “Our challenge is to analyze the whole process and look to add value to that process, viewing it through a different set of lenses, providing ideas and suggestions perhaps in an area the client hasn’t even thought about,” says Pohl. REDEFINING THE CUSTOMER-SALESPERSON RELATIONSHIP For salespeople to get in and really understand customers’ businesses, they need a healthy relationship [with those customers] built on mutual trust and confidence. Rather than the transactional relationships of years past, “I think customers are more open to building relationships where they can bundle their [paper and packaging] spend for timesavings on their end, which makes the process faster,” says Pryor. The relationship itself becomes part of the value proposition. According to Pohl and Pryor, healthy customer-salesperson relationships share many common characteristics. A salesperson can be most valuable to your business when:
LOOKING BEYOND COMMODITIES TO FIND VALUE Commodities, by their very definition, are indistinguishable. “All of our competition can do the same things that we can do,” says Pryor. “They have the same price, they have the same delivery platform, [and] they have the inventory. It comes down to whom the customer trusts.”
“
•
Analyze a client’s whole process and look to add
V
A
L
•
U
to that process.
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You look to them for new ideas. You recognize them as a subject matter expert who can bring you solutions to problems and opportunities to grow your business. You grant them access to you and your organization. You openly share information, and, in return, the salesperson respects your time and the sensitivities of your business.
E ~ Alan Pohl, corporate solutions group account manager, Millcraft
• • •
You involve them early. The sooner you get them involved, the more options the sales reps have to deliver exactly what you need. You trust each other. You can rely on each other to do the right thing. You both find it economically rewarding. You look to them for a fair deal and understand the value they bring to your relationship.
In the end, Pryor says, it comes down to both parties creating a partnership and offering ideas for growth and continued success. SOME THINGS NEVER CHANGE. Even when fortified by a strong relationship, sales must still be earned. And there are certain sales techniques that never lose their value. Pohl has a favorite saying: “Everybody has two eyes, two ears, and one mouth. And there’s a reason why you’ve only got one mouth and two of the others.”
CLOSE THE SALE WITH A GOOD CONVERSATION Try these 10 tips to make your prospect feel perfectly understood. By Laurie Hileman Engaging your prospects and customers in good conversation puts you on the fast track to a successful sale. So, how can you connect with them in a way that makes them feel respected, inspired, and ready to do business? In her 2015 Ted Talk, “10 Ways to Have a Better Conversation,” writer and NPR radio host Celeste Headlee shares what she learned from her years in the interviewer’s chair. Here’s what she has to say:
He underscores the importance of listening, observing, and learning—and most of all asking great questions. “If you only partially understand [a customer’s need] and then get down a road that’s wrong, eventually you’re going to have to start all over,” says Pohl. Pryor stresses the importance of prospecting and always having a plan. “You have to build your business; you can’t just sit on the bench,” she says. “With your current business, you always have to be asking for the next order, the next project. Increasing your wallet share with the customer…that hasn’t changed.” And sometimes the simple secret to the sale and strengthening relationships comes down to good manners— even when you get beat. Pryor consistently reminds her 18-person team of salespeople, customer service representatives, and delivery drivers of the power of manners in building and maintaining value-driven relationships with customers. “People always want to hear thank you,” she says.
1. Don’t multitask. Be present. Be in the moment. Don’t be half in and half out.
6. Don’t equate your experience with theirs. All experiences are individual.
2. Don’t pontificate. Assume every conversation presents the opportunity to learn.
7. Try not to repeat yourself. It’s condescending, and it’s boring.
3. Use open-ended questions. Consider the difference between “were you terrified?” and “what was that like?” Let them describe their experience in their own words.
8. Stay out of the weeds. People don’t care about the years, names, and dates you’re struggling to remember. They care about you, what you are like, and what you have in common.
4. Go with the flow. Stop trying to think 9. L-i-s-t-e-n. It’s the most important of the next thing you’re going to say. It thing you can do. keeps you from listening (see #9). 10. Be brief. “A good conversation 5. If you don’t know, say that you is like a mini skirt,” quotes Headlee. don’t know. Always err on the side of “Short enough to retain interest, long caution. enough to cover the subject.”
You can watch Headlee’s entire 12-minute talk at https://www.ted.com/talks/celeste_headlee_10_ways_to_have_a_better_conversation#t-692254
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Great Uses
THE ADVENTURES OF COMMANDER CARL A little paper astronaut inspires one company to shoot for the stars. By Kathryn Will
Paper is not flat. It’s not one-dimensional. Sometimes, paper even has a life of its own. Such is the case with Commander Carl—a miniature astronaut that’s anything but flat and lifeless. While he may start out flat, Commander Carl quickly transforms into an adorable three-dimensional character that has all the charm and whimsy of a vintage sci-fi toy. A flat Commander could hardly zip through space or hold onto a pencil while sitting on a desk, now could he? Created by Jeremy Slagle, owner of Columbus-based Slagle Design, Commander Carl (named in honor of
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renowned astronomer Carl Sagan) has become the ever-amusing mascot for Spacejunk Media, another Columbusbased company, which specializes in live action and motion graphics work. “(Commander Carl) has been integrated into a lot of their (Spacejunk Media) marketing,” says Slagle. “They use him to tell the story of their business, and it has been very successful for them.” Spacejunk Media—where the office backdrop is a mix of sci-fi and space themes—has sent Carl around the country as a promotional ambassador of sorts. They’ve also featured him in a number of 3D-rendered videos where he can be seen doing things like trying on Halloween costumes à la Batman and Edward Scissorhands. Spacejunk’s original plan was to fashion Carl out of vinyl, but the upfront costs were high. Slagle’s solution of crafting Carl out of paper not only saved money, but Carl’s paper state allows him to be flat-packed and slipped into an envelope for easy shipping, even with his hefty 100-pound cover-stock frame. At first contact, Commander Carl arrives packaged like a toy with a set of assembly instructions, which Slagle says adds even more life and interactivity to the whole Carl persona. “Rather than pull a toy out of a box, this requires the person to pull the parts out and assemble it,” says Slagle. “It added another level of fun to it.”
]Outside[ the Box Will your packaging shine on the shelf and help skyrocket sales, or will it devalue your product and be easily forgotten by your customers?
4
seconds:
the maximum time average consumers will dedicate to any particular product on a shelf.
“
https://99designs.com/blog/tips/6-rules-of-great-packaging-design/
Businesses that
show strong attention
to packaging have reported a
30% increase in consumer interest.
http://blog.drupa.com/how-product-packaging-affects-buying-decisions/
Word
of
Mouth
40%
Works
of online consumers said they would share a photo of packaging if it is interesting or gift-like. http://blog.drupa.com/how-product-packaging-affects-buying-decisions/, based on an infographic by The Paper Maker.
(800) 860-2482
www.millcraft.com
JustAsk@Millcraft.com
…the product packaging is one of the best marketing tools companies can use to sell products. — Kevin L. Keller, Strategic Brand Management
Virtually
“Just ask.� Visit the new Millcraft.com
Visit Millcraft.com to request custom mock-ups and schedule learning workshops and project consultations from our Design and Solutions Centers. Also find events and industry insights through our Resource Center.
(800) 860-2482
www.millcraft.com
JustAsk@Millcraft.com