Canvas Magazine | Web Works | June 2017

IN THIS ISSUE

EMPOWERING MARKETING SERVICE PROVIDERS

5 keys to brilliant account management The art of two-way relationships

The ROI on design

JUNE 2017

WEB WORKS WHY MANAGING YOUR NETWORK IS CRITICAL

JUNE VOLUME 11 • ISSUE 3

24 CANVAS P1

Inside this issue| Publisher’s Note

BOILERPLATE

28 ALSO INSIDE

22 32 38 CREATIVE CORNER

Maurice Thompson on why communication matters

04

Happy Birthiversary

STAT PACK

06

Truthiness matters

CORNER OFFICE

08 10 P2

The ROI on Design 7 characteristics of highly successful leaders

CANVAS JUNE 2017

MATCHMAKER

The business analogy of dating sites

BEHIND THE CURTAIN

12

Industry news & awards

Makers’ Corner

14

Paper as the fifth color

CANVAS Buyer’s Guide

16

Advantageously speaking

SCALING NEW HEIGHTS Your five-step plan to brilliant account management

17 18 19 20

The real McCoy

Going paperless may not be greener Getting the job done Not your everyday paper

From unmatched Digi-ClearŽ high-temperature windows and color-popping Digi-M™ inkjet envelopes to Integrated Labels and Order Form envelopes, our Digital Products Catalog gives you 60+ reasons to be productive, progressive and profitable.

Get your complimentary copy at www.wsel.com/digitalcatalog/c and discover how digital printing does wonders for your business.

888.887.6485 | wsel.com

BOILERPLATE

HAPPY BIRTHIVERSARY

I wanted to say thank you. June 1 marks 10 years since I stepped out of the corporate world and ventured out on my own. Afraid and unsure, I launched CANVAS because I wanted to do something impactful for the industry.

To be honest, I never really considered how I was going to make a living.

A decade later, I’m still afraid and unsure. But I have been blessed by this industry, our wonderful community of readers and clients that I consider friends. And, trust me, that’s not a crock. We have a list of custom clients that we feel extremely close to. That’s the thing that makes me the most proud.

Without any kind of intricate plan, I just started telling stories. I didn’t try to push product. I was adamantly against creating sponsor-driven content. I wanted a sincerity to our work that didn’t seem to exist in the majority of the business world. I wanted to uplift and make people think a bit differently.

After all of this time, I have even more stories to tell. And I’m more convinced that we must be transparent, sincere and humble. I believe that enrichment is a derivative of trust and likability. In fact, I believe that all the technological noise that we have had to endure over the last several years is just that – noise. The irony is on the other side of the complexity of technology exists the simplicity of personal relationships.

Ten years ago, I would have told you that print is alive and well. I’d have talked about the intimacy that it creates and that when people touch something, they take ownership of it. And today, I still love print. But it seems that single run print ads don’t open doors, build trust and close sales in one viewing.

And while our industry’s success is a direct result of print advertising, cheaper vehicles like 144 character tweets, self promoting videos and antiseptic websites are easy to validate.

P4

CANVAS JUNE 2017

June 2017 simultaneously marks an anniversary and a birthday. We celebrate the fact we have had 10 beautiful years serving this remarkable tribe.

Inside this issue| Publisher’s Note

CONTRIBUTORS June 2017 simultaneously marks an anniversary and a birthday. We celebrate the fact we have had 10 beautiful years serving this remarkable tribe. In addition, we have used this time to rethink our model and launch new mechanisms to serve.

Subscription – We must be vigilant in sending printed versions of CANVAS to those who have taken the time to subscribe. So, the first step is that you must validate your interest by updating your subscription online at www.thecanvasmag.com.

CANVAS Buyer’s Guide – The popular app now is online at CANVASbuyersguide.com. This puts all of the latest products in one place, and allows you to connect directly with sponsors and learn more.

It also dramatically lowers the price for sponsors to engage with you.

CFO – We have redesigned the way we deliver our content digitally.

No longer do we have a magazine in-page turning format. CFO (CANVAS Features Online) delivers content every other week in a form that’s skimable, shareable and digestible.

Brushstrokes – While I still maintain the right to write a CANVAS Notes every once in awhile, I’m so proud of our new podcast – Brushstrokes. It allows me to catch up with some fun and thoughtful personalities, which might give you an idea or two in the midst of our complex world. I sure hope you’ll give it a listen.

And a quick thank you to our team. It has been an amazing run, with more than 100 issues published. And while times change and models adjust, our dedication to serve our community and have a lot of fun along the way will never change.

Happy Birthiversary and Be the Buffalo!

All the best,

Mark Potter, Publisher @MarkRicePotter

Linda Bishop, President, Thought Transformation @Linda_Bishop Eliakim Thorpe Founder, T.H.R.I.V.I.N.G. Organization @Eliakim_Thorpe Deb Gabor Founder, Sol Marketing @deb_sol Justin Ahrens Founder & Principal Rule29 @justinahrens

GET IN TOUCH WITH US @THECANVASMAG

2180 Satellite Blvd., Suite 400 Duluth, GA 30097 WWW.THECANVASMAG.COM

THE CANVAS TEAM MANAGING EDITOR michael j. pallerino CREATIVE DIRECTOR brandon clark SALES/MARKETING mark potter

EDITORIAL BOARD lisa arsenault McArdle Solutions gina danner NextPage tom moe Daily Printing dean petrulakis Rider Dickerson david bennett Bennett Graphics

PUBLISHED BY CANVAS, Volume 11, Issue 3. copyright 2017 CANVAS, All rights reserved. CANVAS is published bi-monthly for $39.00 per year by Conduit, Inc., 2180 Satellite Blvd., Suite 400, Duluth, GA 30097 Periodicals postage pending at Duluth, GA and additional mailings offices. Periodical Publication 25493. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to CANVAS, 2180 Satellite Blvd., Suite 400, Duluth, GA 30097. Please note: The acceptance of advertising or products mentioned by contributing authors does not constitute endorsement by the publisher. Publisher cannot accept responsibility for the correctness of an opinion expressed by contributing authors.

CANVAS magazine is dedicated to environmentally and socially responsible operations. We are proud to print this magazine on Opus® Dull Cover 80lb/216gsm and Opus Dull Text 80lb/118gsm, an industry-leading, environmentally responsible paper. Opus contains 10% post consumer waste and SFI and FSC chain of custody certification.

CANVAS P5

STAT PACK

TRUTHINESS MATTERS

B2B buyers say they’re now paying more attention to the trustworthiness of content sources when evaluating products/services, according to “The 2017 Content Preferences Survey Report” by Demand Gen Report and Uberflip.

When it comes to the facts, 75 percent say that factors into their decision.

The report was based on a survey of 189 buyers of B2B products and services.

Here’s a look at how their content consumption patterns are changing:

75%

46% Prefer shorter format pieces

Place a higher emphasis on the trustworthiness of content sources

46%

Overwhelmed by amount of content available

41%

Prefer interactive/ visual content

P6

CANVAS JUNE 2017

52%

Prefer mobileoptimized content to access smartphones and tablets

Insights

THE PLAN IS THE PLAN

How to track the pulse of today’s marketing landscape

When it comes to marketing success, we’re in the “show me” part of the program. And with data everywhere, channels exploding and technology changing by the minute, intuition alone is not enough.

So, what’s a marketer to do? Scott Gruher, partner and VP of Client Success at Sales Benchmark Index, says you need a marketing operations plan. To successfully track today’s marketing landscape, quantitative and qualitative measurements must work together.

Here are the top 10 ways Gruher says you can leverage technology to improve productivity: 1. Marketing automation 2. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) 3. Email marketing 4. Website optimization/ analytics/recommendations 5. Content Management System (CMS) 6. Social media management 7. Marketing analytics 8. Predictive analytics 9. Sales enablement 10. Mobile play books

BEFORE YOU HIT SEND

Thirteen-percent of business emails are deleted by their recipients without being read, according to Return Path’s “The Hidden Metrics of Email Deliverability” report. Overall, 22 percent of emails are read (opened, even if all images don’t load). The remainder are deleted immediately, filtered into spam folders, ignored or never reached their intended recipients.

THE NUMBERS GAME

78% 62% 33%

The percent of B2B marketers who cite boosting lead quality as a critical aim, while 51 percent say it’s an obstacle to success. Respondents said email, content marketing and social were the most effective marketing tactics. (“The State of Lead Generation – Benchmarks for the Complex Sale” by Ascend2)

The percent of B2B content marketers who say their content strategies are more successful. As for the most popular content channels, email still tops the list, followed by LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. (“2016 Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends — North America” report by Content Marketing Institute and MarketingProfs)

The percent of marketers who say they’re prepared for the challenge of evolving roles of digital and traditional media today, while 27 percent admit to not being ready. When it comes to Big Data, 27 percent say they’re up to the challenge, while 37 percent are not. (“The Marketer’s Manifesto” by OC&C Strategy Consultants and Experian)

CANVAS P7

CORNER OFFICE

Perspective | Leadership | Insights

BY JUSTIN AHRENS

The ROI of Design Investing is putting time or money into something you believe in and hoping for a potential return. This sentence contains a few key terms that are paramount when thinking about the factors that can affect your business.

Design is an investment. It should be a part of your business plan in the earliest stages. We have talked to many clients who have a great idea, but have given little thought to the part strategic design plays.

Occasionally, they enjoy early success, but then they reach a point that requires a sizable investment to retool or remessage. The vast majority of the time the client will say, “I wish I would have done this sooner.”

Take your time to find the creative firm that best fits your culture, but then trust them.

If they’re worth their salt, they’ll help you reach your potential.

This brings us to the next important term: belief.

We’ve had all kinds of clients who have “believed” in the design process. Belief has the element of truth – and truth leads to trust. If you don’t have belief in the value of design – or in the design firm you choose to work with – you’ll get a diminished return on your investment.

By all means, take your time to find the creative firm that best fits your culture, but then trust them. If they’re worth their salt, they’ll help you reach your potential.

P8

CANVAS JUNE 2017

And that’s my last point: potential. It’s proven that companies that pay attention to, utilize and incorporate design into their process far outperform those who don’t. The proof is in the pudding, as they say. The Design Council, a design advocacy group in the United Kingdom, reported the following findings: • Shares in companies where design plays a critical role consistently outperform key stock market indicators by 200 percent (specific to the Financial Times and Stock Exchange), thus establishing a connection between design and market value.

• Design-alert businesses were able to increase their market share by an average 6.5 percent. Some companies reported that design impacted their market share by 100 percent, and was essential in their ability to identify new opportunities or create new markets.

• For every $130 spent on design, design-alert businesses realized a $298 return.

The numbers don’t lie, nor do the perceptions and cultures that result. Design raises the level of perceived value both internally and externally. So, if you truly want to invest in your business and/or idea, make design a part of your investment equation.

For a great resource on the concept of design currency, pick up the book (aptly titled), “Design Currency,” and dig into the facts.

Justin Ahrens is founder and principal of Rule29, an award winning suburban Chicagobased strategic creative firm. He is a frequent guest blogger, national speaker and author of “Life Kerning: Creative Ways to Fine Tune Your Perspective on Career and Life” (Wiley).

Follow him and Rule29 on Twitter ­– @justinahrens and @rule29.

I y t t y t g

Instead of focusing on your weaknesses and how to improve on those all the time, why not challenge yourself to build on some things that you’re already good at?

5,800 NFL football fields per day!

many wood for making paper and e vid pro ich wh ts, es for S. U. Did you know that y between 2007 and 2012! da r pe s eld fi ll tba foo L NF 00 other products, grew by 5,8 Love magazines? You’ll love them even more knowing they’re made from natural and renewable wood.

Source: USDA Forest Service, 2014 Two Sides is a global initiative promoting the responsible use of print and paper which, when sourced from certified or sustainably managed forests, is a uniquely powerful and natural communications medium.

Discover more great #PaperFacts at twosidesna.org

Perspective | Leadership | Insights

CORNER OFFICE

BY ELIAKIM THORPE

7 characteristics of highly successful leaders Matthew and Janice are entrepreneurs who’ve been in business for nearly two years. They recently decided to attend a leadership conference to help them remain competitive leaders/entrepreneurs in a global economy.

What began as a conversation about the occupational role of a leader turned quickly into an exchange over the most important traits of a leader, and how the most successful leaders are not simply measured by their knowledge, but more importantly, by their character.

Matthew and Janice concluded that successful organizations have leaders who are not only functionally proficient, but, more importantly, are leaders who have developed necessary characteristics to empower people and develop sustainable organizations.

When you embark on your leadership journey, it’s critically important to acknowledge that success is not simply about your rank or income level, but a well-developed character to ensure continued organizational growth and long-term success. There are seven characteristics leaders must consider taking on the ‘F.O.R.T.U.N.E.’ leadership path:

1. Fearless

The great tragedy of any organization is a leader who’s paralyzed by fear. Fear is being unfamiliar with the unknown or simply being unwilling to take risks.

Often, the greatest challenge of any organization is not the current market conditions or revenue projections, but a leader’s ability to confront self-imposed limitations rooted in fear.

For every leader, there will be a single defining event that will require a decisive moment of fearlessness to propel the organization forward. It may be unpopular, but necessary to catapult the organization forward. It is in this moment that courage is formed within the heart and mind of the leader which will position the organization to be on the cutting edge of its field.

2. Original

Many leaders have been educated to embrace the norm and the similar (hold onto tightly held paradigms) which creates a very linear view of growth and sustainability. A leader must be mindful that while it is essential to learn from other successful leaders, no two are alike.

An original leader defies labels and is keenly aware of their value to their organization; unwilling to lead simply

P10 CANVAS JUNE 2017

for the approval of others, but is fully committed to expressing their authentic leadership identity. It’s living outside the ordinary leadership constructs that propels the leader to achieve the extraordinary.

this turmoil that a leader must demonstrate a level of conviction to properly navigate the enterprise. A leader must be willing to take a stand and act according to organizational values and guiding principles.

3. Resilient

6. Noble

Every leader will experience peaks and valleys while managing an organization.

It’s during these periods of personal and economic volatility that a resilient leader is required to properly lead the organization. In addition, a core competency of the executive must be the ability to identify sources of resistance which require the leader to captain the organization during this period of instability.

Resistance often is seen as a negative force in the lifecycle of a leader and organization. But if properly understood, it is a positive force to be leveraged if guided by a resilient executive.

A leader must be willing to take a stand and act according to organizational values and guiding principles.

4. Trustworthy

A leader’s “hard” skills are often valued over “soft” skills. Successful leaders recognize the critical importance of trust as a necessary soft skill. Trust is the ability to cultivate and demonstrate integrity, honesty, and transparency within an organization. A successful leader is fully aware that trust is the foundation of every good relationship and a key commodity to building solid connections within the company.

Trust is not only constructed at the top of an organization, but built at the bottom, creating multi-directional relationships throughout the team. When a leader fosters trust, the team forms a powerful bond that helps people communicate more effectively and produce more efficiently.

5. Uncompromising

Leadership requires a delicate balance between rigidity and flexibility. Organizations should be agile and flexible as a matter of survival because companies today face an unprecedented level of change and volatility in the marketplace.

While it may be tempting to take shortcuts to traverse the volatility, it’s during

Nobility is defined as a quality of being honorable, excellent, and of high regard; having or showing fine personal qualities or high moral principles and ideals. A noble leader provides direction and purpose in any corporation.

When there is a sense of nobility within a leader, he or she will determine the conduct of the organization. When it’s anchored within the heart, mind, and soul of a leader, it will become embedded into the cultural DNA of the organization. Selfless service to the customer becomes the priority over a self-centered approach to conducting business in today’s economy.

7. Ethical

True leaders can achieve greatness without compromising their character or code of conduct. Ethical business leaders live according to their own philosophy which has been developed, sharpened, and perfected through leadership experiences. Before a person can lead the many, he or she must first learn to master him- or herself. If the leader stands for nothing, the organization will fall for anything.

Eliakim Thorpe is a highly sought-after speaker, consultant, thought leader and entrepreneur.

He is the creator of the T.H.R.I.V.I.N.G. Organization: A New Philosophy to Transform Organizations, which is both a philosophy and a systematic process to help businesses create frameworks to become transformational – internally and externally.

Perspective | Technology | Insights

CORNER OFFICE

Now that consumers are in charge, we have to shift to not talking about ourselves. But what does that consumer want? How do I entertain them? How do I solve their problems? How do I build a relationship with them and provide value? Then, they’re more likely to pay attention to what I’m actually trying to sell.”

– David Beebe, VP global and creative content marketing for Marriott International, on the neverending storytelling process of content marketing

THE BUSINESS (ADVANTAGE) OF GOOD DESIGN

Investing in strong creative matters. Businesses that invest in creative are more likely to drive customer preference, loyalty and a willingness to pay a premium, according to inMotionNow’s “The Business Impact of Creative Infographic.”

The challenge? Some 77 percent of teams say there is increased pressure to be more productive rather than more creative at work.

Here’s a look at what brands say when they invest in more creative:

89% 88% 85%

are more likely to have satisfied customers are more likely to be more competitive are more likely to be financially successful

Going all visual A picture is worth.... If you can't finish that statement, you really don't get it. According to research conducted by IBM's THINK Marketing, an infographic is 30 times more likely to be read than an all-text article.

And if you're doing the social media thing, they are viewed three times more than any other content you share. If you're still not taking full advantage of this technique, IBM offers the following key tips:

Choose your format

Timelines help tell the perfect story, while data visualizations can help clarify a complex story. Find the infographic format that fits your objective.

Think snapshots

Condense your copy, and use short headlines and bullets.

Cluttered graphics are not your friend. Make it clear and easy to follow.

Say what you mean

Remember to provide a call to action. If not, you're going to lose folks.

CANVAS P11

BEHIND THE CURTAIN



Around the industry

G7 Master Printer Hudson Printing has formed Hudson Digital, a new division created to meet customer demand for jobs of less than 2,000 printed pieces (short-run), faster delivery times, and the use of variable print data. The company’s Salt Lake City plant also added $10 million in three state-of-the-art presses to bolster Hudson’s position as the region’s leading printer with the greatest printing capability. Part of its ongoing investment into digital print includes adding an HP Indigo 10000 digital press and an HP Indigo W7250 digital press, which creates a unique suite of capabilities for the official launch of its new business unit.

FUJIFILM North America Corporation, Graphic Systems Division, has joined forces with alfa CTP Systems Inc. The partnership was inspired by a collective desire for more efficient and environmentally safe options to produce high quality offset printing plates for newspaper printers throughout the Americas. Under the relationship, Fujifilm and alfa CTP have agreed to a sales and support cooperation, combining Fujifilm plate technology, such as Fujifilm’s Superia Ecomaxx-T with alfa CTP’s range of Accelero thermal Computer to Plate machines.

For printers transitioning from a traditional “wet” violet, UV or thermal process, the Fujifilm no process plate and alfa CTP eliminate the need for plate processors and all of the attendant costs of ownership, operation, and maintenance.

To meet the needs of the growing display graphics market, Mohawk has expanded its wide format inkjet portfolio with the launch of a new line of Mohawk Printable Textiles and Canvas. The items within the new line are manufactured in the United States

by Aurora Specialty Textiles Group, a North American-based, global leader in the manufacturing of high quality textile substrates for printing. With this launch, Mohawk becomes the exclusive distributor through the North American merchant channel for Aurora Specialty with 12 new product additions, including: • Mohawk Printable Canvas Expressions (Five new products/finishes available: Cotton Natural, Gloss, Matte, Satin, Semi-gloss) • Mohawk Printable Textiles Linen FR • Mohawk Printable Textiles Premium Poplin LX with ColorPRO Technology • Mohawk Printable Textiles Sticky Stuff 8 ounce • Mohawk Printable Textiles Poly Banner Plus • Mohawk Printable Textiles Poly Woven 8 ounce • Mohawk Printable Textiles Triple White FR • Mohawk Printable Textiles Decoprint Pearl from SENFA

P12 CANVAS JUNE 2017

Mergers & Acquisitons Ripon Printers, a leading provider of catalogs, publications, manuals, soft-cover educational products, and digital communications, recently acquired certain business interests and assets of Maquoketa Web Printing, Maquoketa, Iowa. The move further increases Ripon Printers’ presence in the non-heatset market while providing Maquoketa’s customers with access to higher technology and a broader range of print and electronic services. The name of the combined companies will be “Ripon Printers”, with all production occurring in the Ripon, Wis., printing facility. The acquisition is part of Ripon Printers’ strategy to build for the future.

Express Image, a St. Paul, Minn.-based print and digital solutions provider, has acquired SourceOne Graphics. SourceOne Graphics is expected to conduct business as Express Image.

Awards & Recognition The Printing Industry Midwest (PIM) has named Al Hillmann, president of Standard Dynamics Inc. in Burnsville, Minn., as its “2017 Graphic Arts Industry Leader of the Year.” Hillmann was selected to receive the award by past recipients based on his knowledge and of print products and services that he offers the industry. He also served on the PIM Board of Directors. Acquiring Standard Dynamics in 1983, Hillmann has grown the business to include finishing and print production equipment and solutions.

Mohawk CEO Tom O’Connor Jr., and senior VP and GM of Envelopes Ted O’Connor, have been named “2017 Peyton Shaner Awards” recipients by the Association of Independent Printing Paper Merchants (AIPPM). The award was established to commemorate the founder of AIPPM. The recipients are recognized as someone who has shared Shaner’s passion for the industry.

Printing Industries of America (PIA) has awarded Penny Ann Dolin, Associate Professor of Practice, Arizona State University, and William Dirzulaitis, Trustee of the Graphic Communication Scholarship Foundation, its “2016 Education Award of Excellence.” This award is given annually to one academic representative and one industry representative in recognition for leadership that has directly resulted in a distinguished education service, program, project or other accomplishment in graphic communications.

Industry news & more

Personnel Moves Fineline Printing Group has hired Nicole Weathers as manager of Technical Solutions, part of its continuing strategy to develop and position its Finelink 2.0 as a leading marketing resource and print on demand solution. Weathers will oversee the development of Finelink 2.0, manage the product and technology team, and support Fineline’s sales team by leading demos and managing implementations. Weathers has managed accounts and large contracts in both federal and state governments, including the U.S. Mint, USPS Marketing & Advertising, the State of Indiana and the NCAA. Idealliance has added Michael Grady, Global Commercial Integration Manager at sgsco, and Marissa Pinkowski, Account Representative for EDWARDS, to its Board of Directors as ex-officio representatives of its Young Professionals Group. The Idealliance Young Professionals Group consists of Idealliance members and students ages 35 and under. Its purpose is to foster the next generation of industry employees and leaders by delivering relevant educational content, professional development, mentorship, collaboration to nurture growth both personally and professionally, and to help its members shape the future of our industry.

International Paper has named Thomas J. Plath as its senior VP, Human Resources and Global Citizenship. He is replacing Thomas G. Kadien, who recently retired from that position.

The Specialty Graphic Imaging Association (SGIA) has added five new positions to help extend its outreach to the industry.

Community Development Managers Joyia Marshall and Sarah Perkins were added to serve as liaisons to SGIA committees by fostering conversation and supporting surrounding initiatives.

Also joining the SGIA team are Kate Achelpohl, Sr. Manager of Public Relations, and Sidney Davis, Social Media Associate.

In addition, Research Coordinator Olga Dorokhina will be responsible for market research, benchmarking analysis, survey design and performance metrics development. Also, Jessica Maimon has been named a meeting planner for its Convention Department, handling customer service for exhibitors and attendees, Expo sponsor benefits and other SGIA Expo-related tasks.

WHAT’S GOING ON? LET US KNOW! GET YOUR NEWS HERE.

People news. New products. Trends shaping the way our industry does business. If you have a news item, CANVAS wants to hear about it.

All you have to do is email us the information and a photograph, and we’ll do the rest.

Send your information to michael@thecanvasmag.com.

CANVAS P13

Makers’ Corner

Paper as the fifth color From densitometers to draw-downs, imagesetters to ink sets, and scanners to screen angles, every printer has a crazy range of tools they work with in the practice of their craft.

But have you ever thought of paper as another tool in your kit? Often overlooked but ever-present, paper is the base layer of any print job and a tool you can use to your advantage – or ignore and miss an opportunity to wow your client.

We know paper has texture and weight, which, used thoughtfully, can make a big impression. But what about paper’s color? When is the last time you encouraged a client to use a colored paper? Or discouraged using a color because it would require more pre-press?

Have you ever printed white ink on a dark paper? A 4-color image on a light color?

I would like to propose flipping the script, stepping away from the default white paper and propose you look at colored paper as a bonus.

I recently had the pleasure of discussing some incredible printed samples from the 1960s and 1970s with a group of young designers. These samples had three things in common: 1. They were created by famous graphic designers 2. They all used colored paper and 1 or 2-color printing 3. My audience was blown away and wanted to know “how can I do work like this!?”

The answer is really simple – consider colored paper.

If you think of the color of paper as your starting point, and add it as an integral part of the job, it becomes a powerful tool to take your job from ordinary to extraordinary. It might require some added upfront pre-press work, a little research and some collaboration with your client, but trust me, the payoff is huge.

By not defaulting to white paper and introducing this simple, but powerful new approach, you can create a cult following and become a go-to source for designers hungry for print partners daring enough to try new things.

P14 CANVAS JUNE 2017

Here are a few ways you can think about using colored paper as a base color: Start light and bright – If you’re doing a traditional 4-color process job use lighter paper colors which will impact the printed result in a subtle, but powerful way. Be aware of pre-press and prepare files taking the base paper color into account.

Draw-downs are your friend – Think about the ways in which ink color and base paper color mix. Choose a paper color based on the way a non-opaque ink will look with some paper color mixed in.

Trust me, the results can be stunning and will help your reputation as the printer who works magic on a printing press.

Don’t fear the dark – Deep, rich colored papers can be super high impact. Whether you’re printing with a white base and color on top or simply a blind emboss, colored paper delivers big results for relatively small effort.

Flex your digital muscles – Think about using a colored paper in your digital press and show your client how 4-color or even a simple one color halftone takes on a new level of interest by using something other than smooth white paper.

Find your true colors and become a materials expert. Colored paper opens up new possibilities for design and print. By thinking beyond the white-paper-default, you might just surprise yourself and your clients with some pretty spectacular results.

Next up: Unify with Texture

>> Visit Mohawk Connects.com

By Chris Harrold VP, Business Development & Creative Director Mohawk Fine Papers

WHAT WILL YOU MAKE TODAY? Introducing A Maker’s Field Guide to Texture and Color, featuring easily applied strategies to elevate your work through the considered use of textured and colored paper. Get yours today at: Mohawkconnects.com/makersfieldguide

CANVAS BUYER’S GUIDE

VARIABLE DATA & DIGITAL IMAGING

Advantageously speaking

Inside the Océ VarioPrint i300 Inkjet Color Digital Press

Combining the reduced costs of inkjet with the media and application flexibility of sheet-fed production, the Océ VarioPrint i300 inkjet color digital press provides an advantageous proposition to print providers looking to grow their business by: • Cost effectively running monochrome and color print jobs on one engine • Moving mono applications to higher-value/higher-margin color products • Extending the crossover point for digital print versus offset, helping more pages migrate to digital print

With the Océ VarioPrint i300, printers get: Peak productivity The Océ VarioPrint i300 digital color press prints up to 294 letter images per minute or more than 8,500 duplex letter sheets per hour. It targets heavy production volumes of 1-10 million pages per month and supports a large variety of paper sizes up to 13.9 inches x 19.7 inches (B3) format. Up to 8 paper trays feed a broad range of standard offset and inkjet substrates from 16 lb. bond to 110 lb. cover.

Proven Océ VarioPrint 6000-plus input and output technologies help enable a white-sheet-in, finished-application-out workflow required to meet the demands of today’s shorter run, fast turnaround print marketplace. Reliable high-speed sheetfed inkjet production printing is powered by Océ iQuarius technologies, a range of innovations that allow for robust, high quality prints on sheets of paper, at high speed.

Superb quality Leveraging print head technology from the proven Océ ColorStream inkjet web presses, the VarioPrint i300 color inkjet printer provides 600 x 600 dpi output with drop size modulation to deliver 1,200 dpi perceived image quality. Automated inline quality control detects nozzle failure and automatically applies compensation to help maintain quality.

P16 CANVAS JUNE 2017

For Océ VarioPrint i300 color inkjet presses, uptime is enhanced by automated maintenance routines that help secure uninterrupted production.

Maximized uptime Uptime is crucial to meet today’s demanding SLAs. For Océ VarioPrint i300 color inkjet presses, uptime is enhanced by automated maintenance routines that help secure uninterrupted production; simultaneously helping maintain print quality, productivity and uptime. Engineered with “Sense and Support” maintenance, the Océ VarioPrint i300 printer helps minimize unplanned service activities and optimize planned maintenance.

DrivePress efficiency The scalable, high performance PRISMAsync controller allows users to plan jobs ahead of time and provide adequate information to help keep the machine running without unplanned stops.

Learn more at: http://csa.canon.com

Download the CANVAS Buyer’s Guide app Products and resources just a tap away

The Real McCoy Why Sappi’s silk surface paper is unbeatable

McCoy provides superior print contrast and an expanded range of vivid color.

Carefully crafted. The perfect ultra-bright blue white shade. An ultimate tactile experience. And, as one printer put it, “unbeatable.” It might not be surprising that Sappi’s McCoy paper, introduced to the print world in 1997, is still helping designers and printers who incorporate it into their messaging make bold statements. With its proprietary Silk finish, the Premium sheet continues to set the standard for the entire industry.

Not only does McCoy provide superior print contrast and an expanded gamut of vivid color, it enables printers to create elegant, rich tones, while maintaining even the most subtle detail. And, with an abundance of high-quality fiber, McCoy is perfect for applying special effects such as soft touch, rubber, sandpaper, reticulating, liquid foil and color shifting effects.

“Sappi McCoy Silk Surface is unbeatable,” says Jeff Hernandez, VP at Classic Color in Broadview, Ill. “I’ve run many of the most demanding jobs on McCoy and you just can’t beat the durability, surface and consistency.”

In a time when costs, design and printing options are important, McCoy offers today’s designers and printers excellent benefits. And, sure, while you might think premium means expensive, get this – a premium smooth uncoated sheet may cost as much as 170 percent more than a comparable coated sheet such as Sappi’s McCoy.

PAPER & SUBSTRATES

Extremely narrow tolerances ensure McCoy provides a consistent, bright-white printing surface —every time.

Manufactured from only the best fibers, everything put into McCoy is top-shelf.

Here’s your walk away point – Print reps can present McCoy as a luxurious feel with a cost savings compared to other premium uncoated papers.

You can say that again.

“Sappi McCoy Silk Surface is unbeatable.

I’ve run many of the most demanding jobs on McCoy and you just can’t beat the durability, surface and consistency.”

– Jeff Hernandez, VP, Classic Color

In today’s here-today-gone-tomorrow trend dynamic, the enduring success of Sappi’s McCoy is no surprise. Its performance on press is only matched by its continued ability to set the bar by which all other papers are still judged.

To see how you can get in on giving your customers a “Real McCoy” experience, contact us today at 800-882-4332 and visit us at www.sappi.com.

CANVAS P17

CANVAS BUYER’S GUIDE

EDUCATIONAL MATERIAL

Going Paperless May Not Be Greener New Two Sides campaign takes closer look at corporate greenwashing

Is going paperless really making a dent in the sustainability movement? It’s a question Two Sides North America is taking a closer look at with a recently produced engaging infographic aimed at exposing corporate greenwashing.

The piece explores misleading environmental slogans such as, “Go green – Go paperless” and works to bust key myths about switching from paper to digital. The infographic spotlights key facts, including: • U.S. forests grew by 5,800 NFL football fields per day between 2007 and 2012 due to sustainable forestry practices • 91 percent of U.S. consumers surveyed agree that print and paper can be a sustainable way to communicate when responsibly produced, used and recycled • Paper is one of the most recycled products in North America with recovery rates of 66 percent and higher • Electronic communications have a significant and growing environmental footprint that cannot be ignored by corporations • 85 percent of U.S. consumers surveyed agree that “go green – go paperless” claims are designed to save costs

The infographic, which is available to Two Sides members, can be downloaded at www.twosidesna.org/Two-Sides-Infographics “The objective of the infographic is to make people realize that most environmental claims related to going paperless are based on marketing and cost reduction tactics, rather than verifiable and specific scientific facts – a requirement of the Green Guides published by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission,” says Phil Riebel, president of Two Sides.

“As a result, over 170 leading corporations across the globe, including many of the Fortune 100, have removed such claims due to our anti-greenwash campaign which has been running since early 2012.”

For more information, call 855-896-7433 or email info@twosidesna.org.

You also can visit www.twosidesna.org.

P18 CANVAS JUNE 2017

Download the CANVAS Buyer’s Guide app Products and resources just a tap away

Getting the job done

PRESSROOM SUPPLIES

Why Fujifilm’s LED Retrofit System can boost productivity and reduce cost on any flexo press with UV-LED curing technology

Productivity and cost-saving. These are benefits that every printer looks for in the equipment and processes they use.

Enter Fujifilm’s Illumina, an LED-UV retrofit system for converting any traditional UV or waterbase flexo press to LED-UV curing. Illumina represents the most powerful LED-UV curing system on the market – new or retrofit.

The UV energy emitted at Illumina’s 20 percent power setting is the same as the 100 percent power setting of other UV-LED curing systems. In addition, patented LED technology delivers up to 44 percent more energy toward the substrate, resulting in faster curing.

The more efficient design of Illumina is proven to take full advantage of the latest LED ink technology, including the breakthrough Fujifilm 300 Series flexo ink system that performs equally well under LED-UV or conventional UV-arc curing.

Illumina employs additional patented and patent-pending technology to achieve even greater savings.

The UV-LED cure is an instant on/off process, dramatically lowering the energy usage and stress on lamp bulbs experienced in conventional “always-on” UV mercury lamp curing.

UV-LED also eliminates the costs generated by cooling air blowers, ozone extraction and heat makeup systems.

Illumina employs additional patented and patent-pending technology to achieve even greater savings, resulting in nearly $30,000 in savings per retrofitted press per year: •

•

•

•

The patented design produces less heat than competitive LED technologies and heat dissipation is also more effective. The small number of insulating layers used, and a unique domed lens design enables cooling with room temperature distilled water. This eliminates condensation issues as well as increases the lifetime of the water circulation system.

The single piece extrusion design allows large cooling water channels to be located directly behind each LED module. This lengthens the cooling time from several seconds to several minutes if the chiller were to stop running.

The UV LED curing system is proven to work on heatsensitive film applications, including high percent shrink film without the use of chill rollers.

Packaging it with Fujifilm’s own 300 Series inks offers a comprehensive and worry-free LED transition for printers.

To find out how the FUJIFILM North America Corporation, Graphic Systems Division can help you meet your future challenges, improve quality and reduce costs, visit: www.FujifilmInkjet.com.

CANVAS P19

CANVAS BUYER’S GUIDE

PAPER & SUBSTRATES

Not your everyday paper

Why you need GPA’s Ultra Digital® Pearlescent Papers They are not your T-shirt-and-jeans kind of substrates. No, this collection of specialty papers transcends the everyday. Substrate equivalents of a glittering gown, a well-tailored suit, a necklace adorned with glimmering gems – pieces that make a statement while making a lasting impression.

GPA’s Ultra Digital® Pearlescent Papers offer a luxurious look and feel that you need to experience for yourself. These luminescent papers shimmer and sparkle to make any design radiate with brilliance. They create a stunning visual effect that glows through the printed image, adding instant glitz and glam to projects that call for an aura of something special.

They’re not just pretty papers either…they boast a whole host of benefits: exceptional image reproduction, FSC and RIT certification, are acid-free and pH neutral for long life, contain no metals, and offer superior versatility for post-press finishing.

They can be folded, scored, glued, die cut, blind embossed, laminated and hot foil stamped to make the most daring visions a reality.

Ultra Digital® Pearlescent Papers enable you take a printed image beyond the limits, elevating the everyday to the extraordinary. They’re most popular for invitations and announcements, brochures, postcards, business cards, greeting cards, hang tags, annual reports, promotions and other distinguished projects. With a variety of colors and basis weights to choose from, GPA offers endless options to help you make that special message shine.

P20 CANVAS JUNE 2017

Ultra Digital® Pearlescent Papers enable you take a printed image beyond the limits, elevating the everyday to the extraordinary.

If you want to change your game, get in touch with GPA today. To request samples, and witness how dazzling these papers are, visit www.askgpa.com.

FEATURES ONLINE

EXCLUSIVE CONTENT FROM THE INDUSTRY'S MOST READ MAGAZINE. Empowering marketing service providers

WWW.THECANVASMAG.COM

CREATIVE CORNER

Design manager

Maurice Thompson on why communication matters

Bright and colorful. Loud and screaming. This is the world Maurice Thompson lives in. When it comes to the “pick-me-a-winner” world of lottery ticket creative, the design manager at Alchemy3 knows what his clients want.

Alchemy 3 (www.alchemy3.com), one of the few companies that holds exclusive licensing rights for the North American lottery industry, pays licensors to use their brands on instant tickets. Some of the brands it works with include Royal Caribbean, The Home Depot, I Love Lucy, and Bass Pro Shops, among many others. Once a brand is secured, Thompson is called on to work closely with the licensee to nail down the specifics of the campaign. For example, on a recent Royal Caribbean campaign, he had to customize the design for a number of state lotteries.

After 17 years in the magazine design world, Thompson joined Alchemy3 a year after it was founded, helping the firm forge the boutique-type attention of integrity, honesty and thoughtfulness it gives to every customer. We sat down with Thompson to get his thoughts on what makes the creative process work and how today’s designer can succeed.

What are the best ways for artists to filter their ideas with their clients?

As a designer, it’s important to run your ideas by clients before getting too far along in the design process. Getting on the same page from the start is crucial. First, you have to ask questions and listen.

Getting as much info on the project as possible can determine how smoothly it will go.

Sure, there will always be projects that are difficult. Sometimes a client, upon seeing exactly what he asked for decides to completely change directions. But as a designer, putting yourself in the best possible position to ace a project is a matter of communication. Clients can rarely see what we designers can see in their heads.

So, while the communication between the two parties starts out mostly verbal, giving a client something they can physically see before you present your final design is important. You can actually get them to play a big role in this. Most clients don’t think to present a design vendor with examples of what they like creatively, but if you ask them to, they typically will oblige. You can also round up some design examples

P22 CANVAS JUNE 2017

Getting on the same page from the start is crucial.

You have to ask questions and listen. Getting as much info on the project as possible can determine how smoothly it will go. based on what you know about the client and the project and ask if they like anything in the collection. Ask specific questions about why they like what they like. Is it the style? Is it the colors? Is it the layout? Is it the fonts or tone?

What are your three biggest best practices when working with a client?

The first thing I do is get as much information as possible about a project. I accomplish this by asking a lot of questions when meeting with a client. The second thing is to let the client know where I’m headed once I begin the design stage. This could be as simple as a conversation about what I’m thinking. It’s a good practice to touch base with the client to make sure you’re on the right track creatively. The third is to deliver on time. Finishing a project after deadline can shake a client’s confidence in your ability to meet deadlines.

Creative corner

What are your clients looking for in the creative process?

Some unwittingly want you to read their minds.

Others know what they want and simply want what was discussed. Some of them expect designers to see solutions to creative tasks that they can’t imagine themselves. Sometimes, they want to be wowed, but other times a conservative design approach is appropriate. It depends on the project. In the end, they all want you to deliver a product that meets a specific need and they expect you to be professional, knowledgeable and creative.

What’s the best piece of advice you can offer today’s designers?

Do great work. That sounds obvious, and it should be, but that’s not always the case. I am a client myself, as I sometimes have to employ the services of freelance designers. It can be nearly impossible to do great work on a project if you have overbooked yourself. Every designer who works for himself has bills to pay and is eager to secure as many projects as possible. This can sometimes lead to a workload that simply can’t be completed without cutting some creative corners and rushing through projects just to get them out the door.

So, my advice is specifically for freelance designers.

Sometimes, turning down a project could be a good thing. If your schedule is slammed, you’d be doing yourself a disservice to accept a job and not have the time to give it your best. As a result, it could end up taking longer. At worst, you may have an unhappy client who has to accept something that they are not totally happy with.

For me, if a freelancer is too busy for my project, I think, well, if he’s so busy he must be doing something right. I’ll call on him again.

What is the biggest thing on your to-do list in 2017?

I will be neck deep in a huge project, which will bring a brand that has been around for ages into the instant ticket market. I can’t divulge much at this time, but it’s a brand that is well respected and everyone knows. So, it’s a big deal for our company and for the lottery industry. For me, it will involve multiple instant ticket designs covering a couple of different themes.

CANVAS P23

COMMUNICATION

WEB WORKS WHY MANAGING YOUR NETWORK IS CRITICAL

P24 CANVAS JUNE 2017

Cover Story

I

By Ray Glier

n that era of marketing before computers were personal and jeans were designer, there was a one-way relationship between brands and consumers. The consumer saw an advertisement on TV, in the newspaper, on a billboard or heard it on the radio, and they bought the product – or they didn’t.

Now, the relationship is two-way. Digital platforms have made it a more personal relationship because dialogue between consumer and business is immediate.

Business owners should know this. But do they know how to manage the two-way relationship, or just how valuable it is?

Do you?

Brands should encourage customers to talk back to them, not just because “feedback” can help make the product better, but also because it can create an emotional connection, which has the potential to make a customer more than a good customer.

It can make a customer a devoted customer, who will not only keep coming back, but will buy more product.

Today, the relationship between a brand and a consumer has gone from transactional to relational. “We understand connected customers will pay more money, but that is the output of connection,” says Alok R. Saboo, assistant professor of marketing at the J. Mack Robinson College of Business at Georgia

“When we say customizing print, it is truly understanding your audience and leveraging what data you have to drive the creative, to drive the message.”

– Amanda Bass, Head of Creative Services, Aflac Does that mean the era of billboards and glossy brochures is long gone? Of course not. For one thing, those means of reaching customers never went away. Print is still valuable in

State University. “There is something more fundamental than

the life cycle of business-to-customer.

that going on. Humans inherently want to connect and these

IN BRANDS WE TRUST

social networks are a means to that.

Believe it or not, before these things like email, Twitter and Facebook came along, customers found ways to connect with brands. “It’s an art now,” Saboo says. “Firms realized they needed to explore these two-way connections and how to use them.

The basis of this “personal relationship” between the consumer and company is similar to the relationship between family and friends. Think about that. You can make the parallel that it’s like a marriage or the dating environment.

Saboo says there are a few basic attributes you want from the other person to connect with them on an emotional level: • Being accessible when and where they want you • Being responsive • Being engaged That sounds like a family, which is what the end game is for businesses locking down devoted customers in this digital era.

They want you in the family, and that means you trust them and will do business more frequently.

The running dialogue is made much easier by social media platforms.

Amanda Bass heads the creative studio inside Aflac, the largest provider of supplemental insurance in the United States.

Sure, print marketing leverages data collected by digital sources, but the experts in print product, like Aflac, can make an emotional connection with consumers.

Print is very much still a driver in taking a mere “customer” to a “fully connected customer” who trusts the brand.

“A lot of brands may have the data, but they are not putting the strategies in play to convert higher numbers of their audience because it does take some work,” Bass says. “Yes, you have to have the data, but you have to be able to test how those different images make your audience react. Just like in a digital world where you would do A/B testing on a banner on a website, you have the same power to do that in print; it’s just having the strategy in place and the right resources to make it happen.”

Print is valuable because it breaks through the clutter of a digital marketing world. Under Bass’s direction, Communicorp, a wholly owned subsidiary of Aflac, has received numerous awards in print, design, and innovation from American Advertising Awards (ADDY) and Premier Print Awards.

CANVAS P25

Web work

ways to stay connected to your network

“Digital sometimes fails because there are so many communications going out through digital means that we’re distracted and not always paying attention,” Bass says. “Print disrupts that environment in a really personal way that we almost dismiss digital and almost don’t feel as personally connected to a message because it is just another email, it’s just another web banner and it doesn’t mean anything.”

Whereas if you receive a hand-written note or a direct mail piece that is customized to your needs, it may disrupt what you’re used to and make you pay attention a little bit more.

Aflac is skillful in customizing print to create a fully-connected customer because of the “look and feel” of its marketing material. “The importance of customization is that you have a message and you are trying to drive a different audience to act in a certain way than you should be able to leverage the data to customize the ‘creative’ that will be relevant and interesting to that audience,” Bass says.

“When we say customizing print, it is truly understanding your audience and leveraging what data you have to drive the creative, to drive the message,” Bass says. “You wouldn’t necessarily talk to a Millennial the same way you would talk to a Boomer.”

Is your emotional relationship with your family that much different than your emotional relationship with your customers? Think about that. If you want to have a fully-connected relationship with customers where they engage with your business over and over, and buy from you, it’s wise to treat them with the same respect as your family.

1

relevant. Aflac turned that notion on its head when it turned its

says in “Peaceful Mind Peaceful Life,” your

unconditional love and compassion for yourself.

2

consumer messaging to print.

IT IS AN ART

It’s the best place to start. As Michelle Maros

relationships outside will flounder if you don’t have

The advent of digital media caused a disruption in marketing several years ago making the assertion that print was no longer

Be happy with yourself

Learn to listen and understand Throughout your life you’ve probably dealt with

this problem. Nobody listens, right? In “Pick The Brain,” George P.H. says we can connect with people simply by

Marketers like Bass say that mass marketing is a totally different

listening to them, hearing them out without interruption, and

tactic than customizing your print to talk to your audience in a

doing our best to understand where they’re coming from.

way that makes them connect.

“It’s a very different strategy,” she said. “With our policy holders we found that it is really important for them to have something tangible to serve as their product. We are delivering a promise to our policy holders that we will be there in their time of need.”

Aflac’s “Promise Packet” is a very important touchpoint in the life cycle of its customer’s journey. The Promise Packet has benefit details, but more than that, it’s an opportunity to make that connection after the initial purchase is made and to nurture that relationship over time with other touchpoints.

When the brand connects solidly with the customer, something special happens. The brand actually can make a mistake and not drive off the customer, Saboo says. The relationship is deep enough

3

“Family gives us some extra buffer in the sense one or two mistakes in the relationship can be forgiven,” Saboo says. “The

You can’t always take things personally. We all have bad days. There are few things in life more

selfless than taking a punch every now and then from people who are having a bad day. Sometimes they just need to vent.

4

Follow-up If you feel like you’ve hit it off with someone, professionally or personally, don’t wait for them

to get in touch with you. If you believe there’s potential for a new relationship, make sure you follow up within 48 hours of the first meeting.

to survive a hiccup, a strain. That is what businesses mean when they “fully connect” and not just sell. Transactional to relational.

Take the punch

5

Be positive Would you rather spend time with someone who’s a downer or someone who’s upbeat?

family is strong enough to withstand any temporary ups and

Barbara Fredrickson, a psychologist at the University of

downs. If the relationship is transactional and they don’t care

North Carolina, says positive emotions help us “broaden

about us in a more emotional way, then they will leave us.

and build” relationships.

“If you have a fight with family, they come back. To be able to establish this buffer is phenomenal for a firm.”

Just look at Apple.

“It’s amazing; people wait months for the new iPhone, and then they are happy standing in line even the next time around waiting for the newer iPhone,” Saboo says.

Here is the drawback. There is enough supply out there that firms have to constantly bring the charm. “This charm will go away if you don’t continue at it,” Saboo says. “It’s just like dating.”

P26 CANVAS JUNE 2017

Source: Entrepreneur, investor and online marketing guru John Rampton (Entrepreneur magazine)

MARKETING

P28 CANVAS JUNE 2017

Feature Story

How finding your unicorn customer can help save your brand

By Deb Gabor

store is a place you go to buy stuff, usually out of convenience or habit.

In contrast, brands inspire irrational loyalty and yes, even love.

How does a company build itself into a brand that people can fall deeply, madly in love with?

Without a clear brand identity, segment marketing is like driving around without a clear destination in mind.

The old model says segmentation is the key to business success. This involves strategically dividing your potential customers into groups based on who they are and why/ how they’re buying. Segmentation is a fine marketing tactic, but it won’t help build a brand people can wholeheartedly rally behind.

In fact, segmentation can even work against a brand by diluting its identity. In order to build the type of brand that customers can fall in love with, you must first create a detailed picture of your ideal “unicorn” customer.

Let me start with a real-world example of a brand I personally worked with. This company is one of the world’s largest retailers of hookahs and hookah supplies. When I asked them who they thought their ideal customer was, they described an older Middle-Eastern man.

In fact, their ideal customer – the person most likely to bring in the most amount of revenue over time – was a young guy between the ages of 18-28. This consumer wants to bring people together around the hookah.

He is a discerning, curious, fun-loving hookah enthusiast who knows that the most memorable and fun hookah experiences start with the right equipment, accessories and shisha tobacco.

CANVAS P29

Of truth or myth He wants to be the life of the hookah party. You can see why he’s the ideal customer.

This example clearly demonstrates how to define this ideal customer. First, start by asking yourself these three questions: 1. Who is the customer who will be worth the most over the long haul?

2. Who will be the customer who is the most profitable and delightful to serve?

3. Who will not only keep buying from you again and again

If you can clearly define who your biggest brand champion is, you will open more doors than previously imagined.

but will recommend you to others?

Then, create an in-depth profile of this customer. Who is the person most highly predictive of your brand’s success? Imagine the ideal customer in excruciating detail: What kind of car does he drive?

What clothing does he wear? Every last detail must be worked out in your mind so this person becomes as real as possible.

To help you fill in the details, consider doing the opposite of segmentation. Think about what unites your customers. What creates a singular brand that is for a singular customer archetype?

Benefits of the unicorn customer

So, what are the benefits of identifying your unicorn customer?

There a several examples of this – several ways to chart a course to creating opportunities that open the door for your unicorn to step in.

Build a stronger brand identity If you can clearly define who your biggest brand champion is, you will open more doors than previously imagined. The creative process will become easier, and everything your brand does will be more thoroughly informed by this one anchoring concept. Your brand purpose becomes unified and less fragmented, making it stronger and more appealing to your customers.

Create a brand your team can rally behind and be passionate about it When you build a brand with a strong identity and purpose, you can recruit people to be part of the team who also feel strongly about the brand purpose. It’s much easier to inspire the team to put in extra work when they feel like the brand is something worth working for. In fact, it starts to feel less like work and more like plain old fun.

Help to better inform segmentation Without a clear brand identity, segment marketing is like driving around without a clear destination in mind. You might find some interesting things along the way, but you’ll waste time and gas, and you’ll probably find yourself getting a bit lost. Build a brand first, and then use segmentation to help spread your awesome brand identity far and wide.

Is segmentation dead?

Segment marketing has its place, and identifying the ideal customer archetype shouldn’t replace segmentation practices. But if your boss has asked you to go out and segment the market, you’re probably putting the cart before the horse.

First, you have to identify your ideal customer. Then you can think about segmentation. Remember, you’re building a brand for one, and segmenting the market to get your actual product or service in front of many.

If you want to make yourself more attractive to the person of your dreams, you don’t start by researching all the people in the world who might find you attractive. You focus on that one person – your ideal mate – and learn everything you can about her.

What’s her favorite flower? What TV shows does she like? What does she like to do on Friday nights?

In order to build a brand, you have to approach your customers in a similar way. Learn more about the ideal customer and let those insights inform the brand identity. Segmentation can help in marketing, but it’s not going to help build a brand that customers can fall in love with.

But finding your “unicorn” customer will.

Make your brand more human Thinking about the ideal customer as an actual person will help you think about the brand in more emotional terms. The result is a brand that people can relate to on an emotional level.

Inspire irrational customer loyalty A strong brand identity makes for a strong company that instills customers with confidence. This means people come back even if they’re dissatisfied simply because they love the brand and they know it will redeem itself.

Deb Gabor is the author of “Branding is Sex: Get Your Customers Laid and Sell the Hell Out of Anything.” She also is founder of Sol Marketing, which has led brand strategy engagements for brands such as Dell, Microsoft and NBC Universal. For more information, visit www.solmarketing.com and connect with her on Twitter @deb_sol.

P30 CANVAS JUNE 2017

BEYOND OPPORTUNITY

LIVES ESSENTIAL Au t

g workflow atin st m o

s ep

NOW IS THE TIME TO TRANSITION YOUR BUSINESS TO INKJET

”

Canon Solutions America offers three insightful books to make your inkjet transition successful, your work flow efficiently, and tips to help your customers reap the benefits of inkjet technology.

Discover them at: PPS.CSA.CANON.COM/INKJETBOOKS

in g

rs

at

gr

The market for production inkjet printer output continues to grow at rates that make most other print sectors envious. Inkjet’s flexibility in productivity, rapid turnaround times, and ability to print variable data — while providing attractive profit margins — is making inkjet a tool that print services providers and in-plant printing operations can’t live without. — Marco Boer, I.T. Strategies

Inte

“

hop

Inkjet page volume in the U.S. is forecast to grow 20% per year between 2015 and 2020, resulting in 60% of all digital impressions.*

in kjet into y

ou

INKJET WORKFLOW

The latest publication in our series of three inkjet books!

877-623-4969 CSA.CANON.COM

Canon is a registered trademark of Canon Inc. in the United States and elsewhere. All other referenced product names and marks are trademarks of their respective owners and are hereby acknowledged. © 2017 Canon Solutions America, Inc. All rights reserved. *InfoTrends, “U.S. Production Printing & Copying Market Forecast” 2016 “Global Production Printing & Copying Market Forecast: 2015 – 2020,” 2016

COMMUNICATION

The business analogy of dating sites

P32 CANVAS JUNE 2017

Feature Story

MATCHMAKER I

By Michael J. Pallerino

t’s a relationship that Bill Schiemann thinks about a lot. After giving a speech at a human resources-related function, he was introduced to a couple of executives who were taken by his presentation. A little while down the road, they called him to pick his brain about an issue they were dealing with.

Never shy to give his input, Schiemann, CEO and principal of the strategic performance and talent optimization firm, Metrus Group, offered his insights and support. A few months later, they called him again, this time asking if they could visit his offices. They didn’t have a lot of money to spend, so Schiemann discounted his costs for the first engagement. Over dinner, the relationship blossomed, with both sides not only finding a high level of synergy, but also taking the first steps toward a lasting friendship.

At first glance, the forging of this relationship has all the trappings of an awkward high school dance. You make eye contact.

You find a reason to talk. You look to schedule a meeting or two.

You seek out commonalities. And, if things go well (pick a base, any base), you form a relationship that you hope lasts for the ages.

“That first meeting was really a date,” Schiemann recalls.

“After they found my work valuable, and I found our interaction

“Some business relationships thrive and spark immediately, while others need a bit more attention and patience.”

– Candice Simons, Owner, Brooklyn Outdoor

valuable, we re-engaged over and over again. I invited them to special events that my company or other affiliations were hosting and, in turn, they referred work to me or allowed me to speak at programs they were involved in. There is not a month that goes by where we don’t communicate in some way.”

You’ve heard the analogy before – building relationships with potential clients is like dating. It is all there – the attraction, the uncertainty, the exclusivity. In the beginning, the relationship is new and fresh. It makes you daydream about the future and long for the time when it grows into bigger and better things.

Swipe right CANVAS P33

Matchmaker

“At a certain point, there are deeper conversations,” says Schiemann, who also wrote the book, “Fulfilled! Critical Choices – Work, Home, Life.” “For a firm trying to sell a client a new service, it might include demonstrations, referrals from other mutually respected third parties, doing a pilot project. These are all forms of dating in business.”

And then there’s that business-related marriage – forming a partnership based on mutual trust and expectations. Just as with dating, there has to be trust and wooing and keeping true to all those things that the relationship was built on. “In business, just as you would in a personal relationship, you have to keep things vibrant,” Schiemann says.

Engage me, why don’t you...

So, you’ve made the connection. You’ve established the boundaries of the playing field. And, as time goes on, you begin to learn more and more about your shiny new relationships – what they like, what they like to do, what and why they buy what they do.

You also know where your new friends hang out. The industry groups and associations. The LinkedIn forums. Their social media of choice.

But how much do you really engage with them? In a world that’s more connected than ever before, how often are you the initiator? These are important questions to ask – and they must be asked often.

P34 CANVAS JUNE 2017

“It’s always sexier to go find a new customer and boring to take care of the ones you have.

The wooing is a lot more fun.”

– Author Mike Campion

Mike Campion certainly thinks so. The highly sought after speaker, entrepreneur and author of “I’m a Freaking Genius, Why is This Business So Hard?” says too many businesses don’t value their current customers highly enough.

“It’s always sexier to go find a new customer and boring to take care of the ones you have,” Campion says. “The wooing is a lot more fun. But, as we know, there are three ways to grow your business: get more customers, get them to buy more often and get them to spend more when they do buy. Taking the time to woo them is a prime example of how to get more of all three.”

The engagement is in the wooing – a practice that Campion says should be more quality over quantity.

“The SGIA Expo is hands-down the best graphics convention in the world. A must-attend for anyone related to this industry.”

GET JAZZED. The next chapter in your imaging success story starts at the 2017 SGIA Expo.

Join us for three days exploring aisles filled with the industry’s major suppliers, connecting with the top names in imaging and learning new ways to make your business better.

The SGIA Expo is North America’s largest imaging event, with 500 exhibitors and a complement of top-notch education led by the biggest names in graphics, signs, installation, printed electronics, industrial and functional printing.

Miss it and you’ll be singing the blues.

Get the details at

SGIAExpo.org.

500 exhibitors

30+

education sessions

3

days of opportunity

COUNTLESS possibilities

Matchmaker

“People are desperate to be a part of a real community, but aren’t equipped to create it or engage in it,” he says. “We play on our phone while we watch TV, ignoring the people we love most in the same room. We sit at dinner with friends and family and scroll through social media, seeing what other people are doing. When the food comes, instead of eating it, we take a picture to share it with people who aren’t there. Instead of engaging and enjoying the moment, we are attempting to share it with strangers.”

The solution is easy – “Be present. Value the people and experience you are currently in,” Campion says.

Easier said than done? That depends on your perspective. Engaging with the community you are part of should be an essential pillar of any company’s values and vision. Done effectively, and everybody wins.

The easiest and best way to start is by interacting on a human level. As the owner of Brooklyn Outdoor, a company that specializes in relationship building with out-of-home agencies and media buyers, Candice Simons takes this challenge personally.

“It’s part of who we are,” she says. “Meet your business prospect for coffee to discuss anything but business. Engage. Follow up, and

“In business, just as you would in a personal relationship, you have to keep things vibrant.”

– Bill Schiemann, CEO, Metrus Group

then talk business. The final step is critical – continue to engage and meet regularly to help each other where needed.”

The key is to remember that there is no perfect formula. Start by following the basic networking guidelines, and work from there. If something has worked well in the past, continue with that method.

“Our company vision embraces uniqueness because we value and understand that individuals are each wired a bit differently,” Simons says. “Some business relationships thrive and spark immediately, while others need a bit more attention and patience. Mastering the art of the follow-up is essential to prevent things from slowing down.”

5 ways to keep your connections connected 1 2

3

Stay aligned

Keep in sync with your relationships.

Make sure you have similar goals, values, interests and needs.

4

Be compatible

New relationships are a wealth of new opportunities. Make sure you are sharing knowledge, emotional support and new skills.

Stay engaged

Create synergy with your interaction by making sure it's more than just a transactional relationship. Share stories, posts, industry group affiliations, etc. Meet in person instead of through technology.

P36 CANVAS JUNE 2017

5

Add value

Talk is cheap, so talking up a storm doesn't always translate into trust (or sales). Ask the hard question, "How am I adding value to this relationship?"

Keep it real

Connecting on a human (think emotional) level matters. Have regular face-to-face meetings. Follow up with intent. Don't always make it about business. Letting your clients see your human side has its advantages.

h s u r B rokes t S L I ST E N TO

A PODCAST FOR THE PRINTING & MARKETING SERVICE INDUSTRIES

L I ST E N & SUBSCRIBE THECANVASMAG.COM iTunes & GooglePlay

SALES

S T H G I E H G N I L A CS EW N p e t t -s n e u iv o f r o cc nt u t Yo lan nt a me p rillia age b an m

P38 CANVAS JUNE 2017

Feature Story

By Linda Bishop

very sales professional knows it is challenging to find new clients.

That’s why we want to keep our current customers and build strong relationships with them. Relationship building begins when you sell the first job and officially become a vendor.

By working hard, performing well and showing customers you

Print production requires custom manufacturing, and prob-

value their business, you can rise up a level and become the

lems occasionally happen. To do the basics well when there’s

buyer’s preferred vendor. At the preferred stage, buyers pre-

an issue, you have to offer answers, not excuses. Customers

fer you over your competitors. If buyers come to rely on your

don’t expect you to be perfect, but they expect you to fix

advice and expertise, you take another step up and become a

problems when something goes wrong.

trusted partner.

At the pinnacle of success, you achieve the lofty position of the sole supplier. The buyer stops shopping around and purchases everything he can from your company. To get here, you and your company must perform brilliantly.

What defines brilliance? For your company, it is producing products and services that consistently meet and exceed the customer’s quality and delivery expectations. For you, it means excellence in five areas of account management: 1. Get the basics right 2. Be responsive 3. Watch the customer’s back

Brilliant sales professionals who are also brilliant account managers have a plan to build strong relationships with customers.

No. 2 – responsive

To be labeled as responsive, clients must be able to reach you

4. Make people feel good about doing business with you

when they need information to move forward. Being respon-

5. Continually look for ways to bring new value

sive is different from being instantly available every time a

No. 1 – The basics

To excel at the basics, you must understand your business

customer calls, emails or texts.

To manage time effectively, you must set boundaries. To keep customers happy, you must set expectations.

Alina Tugend wrote an interesting article on why expec-

well enough to help your customer. It’s impossible to be an

tations are important for The New York Times. The article,

expert at everything, but you need a baseline of knowledge

“What Did You Expect? It Makes a Difference,” referred to

that facilitates effective communication when selling.

research done by David Rock, director of the NeuroLeader-

Effective communicators are confident enough to say, “I don’t know, but I will get you an answer.” They also know how to listen.

Buyers quickly lose patience with reps who miss details,

ship Institute.

People like predictability. Research shows that when expectations are met, our brains release dopamine, resulting in a feeling of well-being. When expectations are not met, nega-

ask repetitive questions and don’t follow through. Brilliant

tive feelings result. Negative feelings related to disappoint-

account managers know how to organize and implement

ment tend to be stronger than the positive feelings that come

systems for efficient follow-up.

from met expectations.

CANVAS P39

Scaling new heights Your takeaway: Set expectations, so you don’t disappoint customers.

For example, tell clients you’ll get back to them within three hours, which the majority of sales professionals can do 99 percent of the time. When clients agree this is reasonable (and most are fine with the standard), you’ve set yourself up for success.

Here are the Thought Transformation best practices to provide responsive service to clients:

Have you ever given a customer a small gift that reflects their personal interests, like a book on design for the graphic designer at your biggest account? Or sent a Starbucks gift card to a coffee-loving client who gave you a referral or a testimonial?

People buy from people, and we all buy more from people we genuinely like. Brilliant account managers understand this.

They never stop building rapport, and continually make an effort and invest time to show customers they care.

This week, here’s an exercise. Keep a log of all the feel-good

• Set expectations for how quickly customers can expect a response from you.

• Acknowledge their request within the pre-set window of

selling actions you take this week. How many times did you thank clients for their business or a specific action?

Did you take someone to lunch, or drop off doughnuts or

time and let your clients know what to expect next. Tell

bagels at the office of a good customer? Did you write any

them when they will get a price, more information or an

personal notes, or take the time to respond to a birthday an-

update on a project.

nouncement on Facebook or LinkedIn?

• Use an external memory tool to remember what you

The actions are simple. The hard part is making time for these

have promised, so you can keep your commitments.

activities, but the time you invest in feel-good selling will pay off.

• Provide updates as needed. If expectations need to be reset, do this as soon as possible.

No. 3 - Watch your customer’s back

Customers expect you to look out for them. You don’t have to micromanage every project, but there are times when you must take charge of the customer’s experience to ensure a happy outcome for all.

It’s time to take charge when: •

You’re doing something extremely complicated for your customer for the first time.

•

The risks of nonperformance are significant and your customer won’t tolerate failure.

•

The project you’re working on has a high profile within the customer’s organization or has a critical component, such as a drop-dead delivery date.

•

You are battling to save a customer relationship after a string of small quality problems or a major issue that made the buyer look bad to their boss.

•

It is the first project for a new customer, and you need it to go flawlessly.

While it’s important to delegate tasks to manage time, brilliant account management also requires an understanding of when it’s time to step in to create a positive outcome.

No. 4 - the feel-good factor

Do you have lunch with customers at least once a week? Do you send them occasional thank you notes, to show appreciation for their business? When they email you the news they’ve selected you to produce a new project, what do you do first in your return email? Do you ask when you’ll get the files or thank

To identify the best ways to bring value, ask questions and listen to the customer’s answers.

No. 5 – bring value

When you bring value, you bring something useful to customers such as: •

Information that educates

•

Knowledge to prepare customers for the future

•

Solutions for problems

•

Sharing stories of what other customers are doing to succeed

•

New ways to reach goals

•

Presenting better ways to get tasks done

To identify the best ways to bring value, ask questions and listen to the customer’s answers. Determine what’s relevant and important.

Don’t wait for your customers to tell you what they need. Be proactive, because your best accounts are your competitor’s best prospects.

Account management is an important part of selling. Brilliant sales professionals who are also brilliant account managers have a plan to build strong relationships with customers. They grow because they know how to maintain business and earn referrals.

Think about your account management skills. What do you need to improve? And how would that help you progress from vendor to preferred vendor to trusted advisor to the single source in the accounts you serve?

Good selling.

them for the project?

Linda Bishop, a longtime veteran of the commercial printing industry, is the founder of Thought Transformation Inc. (www.thoughttransformation.com), which trains and consults companies and sales professionals on how to sell more and reach their full potential. You can reach her at lindabishop@thoughttransformation.com.

P40 CANVAS JUNE 2017

Keep it real with McCoy. In a world of fleeting fads, our paper endures. ÂŽ

For 20 years, McCoy has never pretended to be anything but what it is: premium paper with superior surface quality and a one-of-a-kind silk finish that continues to set the standard.

Learn more at Sappi.com/McCoy.

2180 SATELLITE BLVD., SUITE 400 DULUTH, GEORGIA 30097 THECANVASMAG.COM

J Press Redefines the Eye Test

When it comes to high resolution print quality and color consistency, close is not enough. Discerning brand managers expect to see offset quality and repeatable color on every printed piece. Job after job. Reprint after reprint.

J Press 720S delivers a wider color gamut than 4-color offset and exceeds the Idealliance organization’s stringent tolerances for color and quality consistency. In fact, it’s the only high speed production inkjet press platform certified by Idealliance and the only digital press certified to Gracol 2013 standards.

So if you’re being challenged by brand managers and print buyers to deliver faster job turnaround without compromising on quality or color consistency, then look no further.

Take the J Press Eye Test yourself. Request a side-by-side comparison with offset at Fujifilminkjet.com/JPress.