With the economy the way it is today, it’s probably no surprise that the printing industry is facing one of the toughest markets it has ever seen. What may be surprising, however, is that despite these tough times, Kopytek was able to grow its revenue 9% between 2007 and 2008. And it’s most likely the reason we moved up on Quick Printing Magazine’s Top 100 list of quick printers this year. We moved up seven places to No. 53 this year from No. 60 in 2008. (http://magazine-directory.com/Quick-Printing.htm)

Unfortunately, not everyone in our industry was so lucky. According to the revenue reports of the Top 100, nearly half of the companies on the list (40%) reported revenue declines between 2007 and 2008. Total sales for the collection of the Top 100 companies was estimated at more than $607 million in 2008, a 6.3% decline from 2007 sales of $648 million.

Industry experts are hoping advances in technology will come to printing’s rescue and enhance our competitive advantage in a recovering economy. I would agree with that. Part of our continued growth at Kopytek is due to our investments in the state-of-the-art printing technologies. With newer, faster, smaller machines, we have been able to significantly increase our capacity and production rates. I’d also credit our success to an operations improvement strategy we set out to accomplish three years ago. Before we built our headquarters, which we moved into a year ago this month, we designed a beginning-to-end floor plan that shortened walking distances, sped workflow and enabled faster turnaround times.

While the latest technology in printing equipment could move the industry to the next level, the industry continues to be weighted down with high costs. We believe besides a commitment to the latest technology, our improved workflow, staff training and a flexible working style has given us a leg up in this recession.

Doing your homework pays off……

For a second year in a row, Kopytek Inc. has been named one of the Top 25 Printing Companies in the St. Louis area by the St. Louis Business Journal. We moved to No. 22 this year from No. 23 last year. And I truly believe that doing our homework was responsible for a great deal of that success.

I’m a numbers kind of guy. And that helped a great deal during the years of research we invested into improving our production workflow. We figured our biggest costs — besides paper and labor – was materials handling. 17 cents of every dollar was spent on materials handling. Our new workflow design was able to reduce that to 3.5 cents per dollar.

It started with kinetics. If you can take 25 steps and make those 8 steps by changing the layout, then you’ve done your homework. So we put in place things like a good staging area, more space for materials storage and a natural production floor layout in the building. The savings in workflow allowed us to invest in top-of-the-line equipment and expand our versatility and capacity. 

In order to improve efficiencies, it’s important to do your homework and who knows, it just might pay off in the long run. It did for us.

We recently had a client trim a budget on a fundraiser.  For the last several years, they consistently sold 47-50 tables for a “trivia night” at $500 per table.  The client produced 2 mailings and a newsletter to promote the trivia night, which routinely brought in over $40,000.

This year, because of budget constraints, the client sold 26 tables.  The client produced one mailing and made an email announcement.  6 of the tables had to be discounted to sell, and one was ‘comped’.  Total take this year? Less than $20,000.  Money saved on printing? $3,100.

You do the math.  Would the client have sold out this year? Probably not.  But if they’d sold 3 more tables, they’d broken even.  If they’d sold 10 more (still a reduction of over 20%) they would have earned at least $10,000 more.

There’s a lesson here:  You can spend your printing money wisely - and you can also not spend it, unwisely.

In tougher economic times, you don’t necessarily need to trim your printing budget

Too often, our clients hear the dreaded “budget cut” phrase.  We hear it in our industry every January 1, despite whether it is boom or bust.  In reality, what a business is trying to do is get within budget, because so often printing is ‘over budget’.

Why is a printing budget so often breaking the bank?  The reasons may surprise you.  Actual printing costs don’t rise much from year to year.  The reasons  generally rest solely with a small proportion of the work that is:

1.    Behind schedule
2.    Time sensitive
3.    Re-worded/edited to accommodate last minute legal changes/additions/deletions
4.    Design issues that were debated too long in a marketing department.
5.    Poor inventory planning (ran low/ran out).
6.    Product became out-of-date and client didn’t know (incorrect address/phone/pricing/contact information
7.    Catastrophe beyond client control (flood/fire/theft, loss, or inventory shrinkage)

The key?  Eliminate the small percentage of jobs that cost the most money, by turning them into standard orders.  Very few printing orders actually have to be ‘rushed’.  Too often, a job is pushed through to cover for someone who should have completed the job sooner.  Try to create a corporate culture where every job isn’t a rush job.

By turning the rush job into a standard order, you will save money, conserve your budget, and in the end, preserve your sanity.  You will also greatly reduce the risk of a costly mistake.  And, you’ll be able to print everything you need!

The holiday season has always been a time to get together with loved ones, offer thanks for the blessings of the year, and offer well wishes to friends and neighbors as we begin a New Year. 2008 has been one of change and growth for Kopytek - a year in which we moved into a new facility, added equipment for enhanced quality and service, and continued down our path of educating businesses about meeting their printing goals while staying in budget and on time. We are most thankful, and offer sincere thanks to our clients, business partners, and friends who give their unyielding support throughout the year.

We at Kopytek would like to extend to you our warmest wishes for this holiday season. We hope you find joy and peace this season and have a safe and happy New Year.

John M. Peterson
CEO
Kopytek

At Kopytek, we work with companies of all sizes to fulfill their printing needs. That being said, it’s always exciting to work with a small business and help them realize that they can, in fact, create the printed pieces they need and stay within budget. Here are some tips to help small businesses do just that:

1. Logo design — when designing your logo, consider that the number of colors used in the design will directly affect your printing cost. A really cool, 4-color image is great … but remember that a 4-color logo means that you will ALWAYS have to print your pieces in 4-color which costs more money. Instead, opt for a 2-color logo if possible, or, ask your designer to give you a 2-color or 1-color variation of the logo.
2. Group your print runs — in printing, always remember that there is a set-up cost each time you go on press. The cost is for just that … setting up the press, getting the colors and images right, etc. Grouping your print runs can help save on the setup cost in the longrun. Be strategic about when and how you plan your printing.
3. Consistent Identity — your letterhead, business cards, brochures and direct mail pieces should follow a consistent identity pattern, or even a “template”. Again, this can help with grouping print runs since the same colors, etc can be used. And … it’s just good marketing sense.
4. Planning — always ask yourself what the purpose of the piece is, and how you intend to use it. As you have read in a previous post, there are many ways we suggest saving money on direct mail.
5. File setup — if you are preparing your own files, it’s always a good idea to have Kopytek pre-flight your files to make sure everything is set up correctly. This will help save money and time, and eliminates the stress of finding problems when we’re down to the wire and needing to go on press.
6. Uploading files — many commercial printers make it easy to upload your files to an FTP site. Kopytek’s file upload command is easy to find and easy to use straight from the home page of our website at www.kopytek.com. Follow the step-by-step instructions and you’re on your way to printing.
7. Proofing — commercial quick printers like Kopytek make the proofing process easy for small businesses. Many proofs can be faxed, emailed, or couriered to your location so that you can focus on your business.

These are just a few of the items that can help make your job a success. Kopytek is always available to walk you through your specific project.

Last month, I was interviewed by DM News, a publication focusing on the Direct Marketing industry, about ways to reduce the cost of direct mail pieces. As a printer, I’ve seen many projects that were relatively inexpensive, but have packed a great punch and produced results for the client. Here were the tips that I gave to the magazine:

“It pays to remember the four elements of design: size, shape, stock, and selling features. By breaking down a design piece in this format, you can simplify your project and greatly reduce the cost.

Let’s start with size. Odd sizes cost more, not only to print, but to mail. The number of outs you get out of a full-size sheet will greatly affect the finished price. That’s why it’s always better to do a five by seven inch postcard with bleeds rather than a 5.5 x 8.5 inch or a six by nine inch - you’ll get more on a sheet. Remember, more on a sheet is directly linked to a lower price.

Shape matters as well - not necessarily just with the printer, but also with the post office. The USPS now adds a postage surcharge for square items, and anything over the maximum letter size carries a surchage as well. In addition, if your piece exceeds one ounce, you may want to reduce the size and shape to get a lower price.

Stock is always a factor in the cost, and the best way to choose a stock is to think of the end use. Too often, designers choose more stock than they need. Be conscious of mill orders, too. Extra freight is expensive. You often don’t need to ship in special stock when a comparable product is available locally.

And finally, don’t forget to eliminate ’selling features.’ These are the fancy things you show your client when ‘closing the deal,’ such as film laminating, aqueous coating, or fancy die cuts. Most of the time, these are pie-in-the-sky features that will be eliminated in the end, so try to sell the piece without it. Rely on your talent - that’s why you were hired in the first place.”

As you can see, there are many ways to reduce your costs just by getting creative and by knowing the little secrets and tips that I shared with the readers of DM News. So the next time you’re planning a project for direct mail, keep these things in mind. You, too, can save money on your next project.

The world’s largest printing press manufacturer, Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG, has seen economic downturns before, but probably none quite like the current cycle.  Consolidation, a high Euro, and Japanese competition are among the many obstacles facing one of the great companies of the printing industry.

As the number of printing companies continues to decline, Heidelberg finds itself selling to fewer customers.  To compound the problem, those fewer clients are evaluating high-quality Japanese presses, like Ryobi, Komori, and Sakurai.  To the dismay of Heidelberg, these presses provide comparable quality, at a much lower cost.  The low dollar, combined with aggressive pricing by the Japanese manufacturers, has put Heidelberg in a disadvantageous position.  No longer can Heidelberg count on their good name and high quality to sell their equipment.  The global marketplace has found the printing press market, and Heidelberg is calculating how it will respond to the large issues it currently faces.

Will Heidelberg survive?  This is a question no one would have asked 10 years ago.  Heidelberg is the biggest name in offset printing; of course, GM was the biggest name in automobiles, right?  There is one huge difference, however.  Heidelberg has never suffered from quality issues, and they continue to produce the best printing equipment in the world in many respects.  They will survive, in my opinion, but they will need to compete directly with the Japanese manufacturers in three areas:  price, features and space.

In addition to benefiting from a lower exchange rate, the Japanese are continuing to increase quality and in most respects have reached the German manufacturer’s standard, even while producing equipment for less money.  The Japanese presses tend to be more ‘feature rich’ than Heidelberg, in terms of electronics, and ‘whistles and bells’.  And one area where Heidelberg isn’t competing at all?  Space- the valuable square footage swallowed by a 20-100 ton press. Japan, not being a spacious country, has figured out how consolidate equipment size, producing products at 20-30% smaller sizes that do the same job.

As the global economy continues to sputter downward, it will be the ‘smart’ manufacturers who survive:  those who first and foremost can weather the financial storm of the ensuing recession, and those who can produce a product everyone wants when the recession ends.  This recession won’t determine the success or failure of Heidelberg;  they’ll make it through this one.  It will be the next recession that will determine their long-term viability as a flexible manufacturer in a global economy.

Proofing a job for print is one of the last, and most critical, steps in your project. It’s your final chance to take a look at what’s going to be produced, make sure it’s right, and send it to the presses. It’s also your final chance to make sure everything is correct, and appears as you’d expect it to on the final printed pieces. As such, special care and attention should be taken at this stage. Here’s a guide of what to look for as you proof your printing project:

Final Check All Spelling and Grammar: We always suggest that at least two sets of eyes on all of the copy - and that means headlines too! Believe it or not, many spelling errors occur in the headlines. For some reason, they tend to be the most overlooked pieces of copy on your piece. If possible, enlist the help of someone who has not been involved with the project to do a review of spelling. Chances are, you and your team are so familiar with the project that you may overlook something that a fresh set of eyes could catch.

Check Against the Last Round of Revisions: This ensures that you’ve sent us the final version of your file to be printed. Mistakes can happen, and it’s always possible that an old version makes it to the printer.

Bleeds: Review the entire piece, and make sure that bleeds are where they are supposed to be, and that you’ve provided enough of a bleed to print properly.

Text, photos, colors: Look closely at all components of the piece for solid coverage to ensure there are no broken up areas or unusual shading or blocking.

Positioning: Does everything look to be in place? Are images, effects, etc. appearing as you intend them to, and as they appear in your original file?

Size: Is the size correct? Are the trim marks where they should be?

In general, be sure to look at the proof as a whole to make sure it looks the way you intend it to look. When in doubt, circle your area of concern on the proof and ASK! It’s much better to ask what you may consider to be a stupid question on the front end, as opposed to assuming that it’s OK and ending up with mistakes on the finished product.

Back in August, Printing Impressions Magazine wrote an article about the differences between small commercial printers versus franchise printers.  Kopytek was interviewed for this article because of the unique perspective we have on this situation.  You see, we started the business back in 1986 as a franchise of a well-known quick service printing and copy company.  In 2001, we found ourselves as one of the largest franchisees, and made the decision to break from the mother ship to transform our business into a true commercial printer as opposed to a retail operation.

I was asked to describe the primary difference between a small commercial printer and a franichsed quick-copy type of operation.  Having been on both sides of the table, we see the real overlap occuring only with short run digital print jobs, and for printing jobs that come from a home based business.  Now that we’ve been a full service commercial printer for the last several years, we also see that the range of products and services we can offer now is much greater than what we could  offer as a franchisee.  We are able to invest in the equipment needed to expand into new areas.  In addition, the retail focus of many quick-print shops limits what they can provide because of the high cost of equipment needed in relation to the low average job size.

Kopytek sets itself apart from quick print, retail type of operations by offering a large quantity of printing with very quick turnaround.  Our new commercial printing facility in St. Louis was designed with workflow and material handling issues in mind, which allows us to turn jobs very quickly and handle large volumes of both printing and mailing projects because there is no backtracking at any point in the process, and all materials & supplies are stored right in the applicable work area.

It is true, that the printing industry has changed since we got into the business over 20 years ago - and we know that it will continue to change.  Our commitment is to being at the forefront of those changes, offering better service, more services, and quick turnaround at competitive prices.