Mail and fulfilment services are an obvious next step for print providers looking to diversify, and one that anyone can make, according to mailroom technology supplier Neopost.
Neopost and the BPIF recently carried out a survey of UK printing industry professionals for theUK Printing Industry – Future Focusreport. In this research, almost half of respondents (44%) expected turnover to fall over the next three years, as the industry grapples with three major challenges – overcapacity, cited by 54%; competition from other media (53%); and technological changes (41%)
Print service providers (PSPs) undoubtedly face major challenges, but what the survey also makes clear is that they are determined to develop new skills to overcome them. Three quarters of respondents have recently diversified, or are in the process of diversifying, and two-thirds are currently in discussion with clients about widening their product offering.
Diversification can have multiple benefits: it opens up new revenue streams; it increases customer retention; and it helps differentiate yourself from the competition.
One of the best and most obvious areas for printers to expand into is mailing and fulfilment. Offering a one-stop shop where mail can be printed, inserted into envelopes and posted, provides clear benefits to the customer; gives scope to develop additional services in the future, such as multi-channel marketing and communications; and, crucially, enables print providers to see off the growing commercial threat from mailing houses that have started to offer print services, as they too diversify.
Key benefits of diversifying in this direction include:
* Access to a large market: Transactional and marketing mail is still a huge market. In 2012-13, Royal Mail handled 58 million items of addressed mail every day.
* Evolution not revolution: Supplementing printing with mailing services is a natural extension of your business that can easily be assimilated by employees and customers. It is also an important first step on the road to multi-channel marketing services encompassing digital and paper-based communications.
* Customer benefits: Economies of scale from more productive equipment and greater purchasing power enable savings on print and stationery; postal discounts through Royal Mail or alternative postal providers; shorter lead times; and more sophisticated mailings with personalisation and one-to-one marketing.
Attractive as it is, mailing and fulfilment is a completely new world for many print companies. According to theFuture Focusreport, currently fewer than four in 10 (39%) PSPs offer both mailing and fulfilment services, and the figure is likely to be even lower for copy shops and smaller PSPs.
One of the main barriers to wider adoption, cited by more than half of survey respondents, is lack of knowledge about the mailing industry. This is where equipment suppliers such as Neopost can help companies to exploit this potentially lucrative new source of revenue. The company says that its consultants can provide expert advice and supply all the equipment needed to become a one-stop-shop for mail printing, insertion and despatch.
Three product categories that really stand out are envelope printers, folder-inserters and output management software. Together, or on their own, they can speed up mail processing, eliminate errors and provide the personalisation that customers crave.
Envelope Printers: envelope and address printers enable you to print addresses, logos, colour graphics and PPI codes onto blank or pre-printed envelopes (and postcards and other media) at high speed. With variable data printing, you can personalise the outside of each envelope to achieve higher response rates.
Folder-inserters: these enable users to fold letters and insert them into envelopes, along with other items such as business reply envelopes, leaflets and postcards, and then seal the envelopes ready for despatch. Insertions can be varied on-the-fly, enabling you to customise the content of mailings for individual customers.
Output management software: this can streamline mailing production, sorting and despatch. From pre-sorting to maximise Royal Mail discounts, to the application of optical marks that tell a folder-inserter what inserts to include, it automates the whole mailing process. The software even supports multi-channel communications by automatically sending messages by email or post depending on an individual customer’s preference.
Diversification into a new business area can seem daunting, especially for smaller firms. But it need not be so, and calling on expert advice from companies such as Neopost is a good place to start.
