Direct mail has been around for many years and is a proven and effective way for companies to relay their message to a targeted group of potential customers. From paper and ink selection to mailing and printing requirements, direct mail campaigns can be quite complex. Production printers are a fantastic resource for direct mail houses, helping them to deliver products on time and under budget. Commonwealth leases quality production printers to help our clients win customers in a competitive marketplace. And with print marketing on the rise, now is the perfect time to invest in the business.
Why is It Time to Invest in the Direct Mail Business?
With the onset of wildly popular social media marketing, for a while it seemed like print might be dead. The direct mail industry is actually on the rise, though, thanks in part due to social media’s success. When companies ditched their direct mail campaigns to advertise on social media, consumers stopped seeing their mailboxes full of postcards, letters, and flyers. Receiving something in the mail is a novelty now – which is precisely why the direct mail industry is in the midst of a fierce comeback.
Another reason to invest in your direct mail business is that online giants like Vistaprint and DirectMail.com are trying to corner the market. Without the need for brick-and-mortar locations, they can keep overhead low and pass the savings onto their customers. To battle this kind of business model, direct mail houses with physical locations need to be more nimble than their competitors – and offer unparalleled customer service. Many business owners want to support small businesses in their community and work with someone face to face. The work is out there; direct mail houses just need to prove that they can handle it just as well – if not better – than the big guys.
What is a Production Printer?
Production printers are high-speed computer printers used for high-volume printing jobs. To produce a direct mail campaign, fast, flexible, and affordable print production is a must. Having a state-of-the-art production printer in-house allows for all of these things, as well as other benefits.
Production printers:
- Produce a minimum of 60 pages per minute (PPM), with some offering speeds of over 100 PPM
- Can be black and white or color
- Have excellent print quality that rivals offset printers
- Offer intuitive touch screens for simple operation and job setup
- Include a wide variety of finishing options, like binding and saddle stitching
What are the Benefits of Having a Production Printer In-House?
In order to please clients, direct mail houses must provide solutions that deliver both speed and flexibility. It may seem like outsourcing large jobs works well, but leasing a production printer is the best way to increase profits and save time. An in-house production printer gives you the ability to provide quicker turnaround times and respond to unique customer requirements. Additionally, by eliminating the middleman, businesses have greater control over production and become more profitable.
In-house production printers allow:
- The ability to schedule and prioritize production
- Greater control over output from start to finish
- The personalization of marketing materials through digital color matching
- High-volume printing at high speeds – with more efficiency and less waste
- Cost control by avoiding outsourcing fees
- The convenience and flexibility to print jobs on your schedule and not someone else’s
The Commonwealth Difference: Leasing a Production Printer with Commonwealth
Commonwealth offers nine different Konica Minolta BizHub production printers for lease. These printers offer clients like direct mail houses the ability to create customized, high-quality printed materials economically and efficiently, with robust workflow controls. The Konica Minolta BizHub line offers a wide range of output speeds – from 60 to 100 pages per minute – and special features such as simplified touchscreen controls for setup and print management. Konica Minolta printers provide superior print quality and customization, which is why we offer them and stand behind them completely.
We don’t just lease printers at Commonwealth; we go one step further for our clients. When we lease one of our production printers, we also train the employees who are going to be using it. This specialized training ensures that your staff will be comfortable in troubleshooting techniques and be technically savvy on how to operate all of the features provided.
Because of this training, it’s not often that our clients require our services on site; but when they do, Commonwealth is there to help. Our skilled technicians have received extensive training in production printers, making us an industry leader in the Northern Virginia area. Furthermore, our “Production Print Guarantee” assures that you will never be down for more than four hours. If we can’t fix your machine within that time, you can give your jobs to us, and we’ll print them for you – completely free of charge. You’ll never miss a deadline or disappoint a client with Commonwealth by your side.
Investing in the Future
Print has become a luxury item to consumers, and businesses are beginning to realize it. By equipping your direct mail house with a Konica Minolta production printer from Commonwealth, you can compete with online printers and offer exceptional customer service. Increase profits and gain agility in 2017 by giving Commonwealth a call today!