Key findings from a survey of professional print buyers are shared in this recent presentation by expert Margie Dana. Who ARE the print buyers? Where do they work? What do they want from commercial printers? What are they buying?

1. The Print Buyers of Today
& Tomorrow
Margie Dana
Margiedana.com
March 6, 2014
Graphic Arts Association

2. @margiedana

3. @margiedana
ARE YOU READY?
IMPORTANT
INFORMATION
COMING YOUR WAY
PRINT BUYER
INTELLIGENCE 2014!

4. @margiedana
Latest Research Is Why I’m “Here”
o Surveyed 315 print buyers in July 2013
Why? To identify changes to role of print buyers &
develop a current, reliable profile of typical buyer
o Partnered with consultant John Zarwan
J Zarwan Partners, independent consultancy. Dr.
Zarwan is internationally known for his knowledge &
independent perspective. www.johnzarwan.com
o No one else is studying this community
o Research benefits buyers, print providers,
suppliers

5. @margiedana
What to Expect This Morning
o 60-75 minute presentation
o Q & A
o Our key findings in this research
o A peek at what today’s “New Print
Buyers” look like
o Implications for print service providers
o My predictions

6. @margiedana

7. @margiedana
Steeped in “print buyer-hood”
o Former print buyer 15+ years
o Founder of Print Buyers International (2006-2012)
o Produced 9 PBI Print & Media Conferences
o Write weekly Print Tips (since 1999)
o Manage buyers-only PBI LinkedIn Group
o Wrote 3 books about print buying & print selling
o New business: content provider
o Conduct market research on print buyers

8. @margiedana
What I Can Do for You
1 Content marketing strategy – determine where
you need more or better content
2 Social media jumpstart plan – 3 months
3 Develop excellent blogs – inbound marketing
4 Develop spot-on email newsletters – a specialty
5 Audit & improve your web site
6 Consult with you on print customer issues
7 Public speaking – for sales teams, print CEOs

9. @margiedana
The New Print Buyers Report
315 print buyers
Across all industries
90% US, 10%
Canada
Anonymous. They
trusted us with the
data.

10. @margiedana
Key Demographics
o Work in 1 of 3 types of businesses:
companies that buy print (59%);
creatives, agencies (29%); brokers,
independent buyers, print managers
(12%).
o For most, print buying still important part
of their job. Only 20% said not a core
responsibility.
o Printers were not eligible.

11. @margiedana
How much print do they buy?
In aggregate? $1 billion - $1.5 billion.
Half spend over $1 million annually.

12. @margiedana
What are they buying? You name it.
 Brochures, collat. 80%
 Direct mail 56%
 Flyers 51%
 Posters 50%
 Sign/display 49%
 P-cards/rack cards 46%
 Stationery 38%
 Ad inserts 31%
 Packaging, labels 30%
 POP 27%
 Publications 26%
 Catalogs 25%
 Manuals, doc 22%
 Forms 20%

13. @margiedana
Gender? Age? Experience?
The interesting stuff no
one bothers to find out.
We did.

14. @margiedana
63% were
women
Women are
more
experienced
Women more likely
to be in corporate
environments

15. @margiedana
Most
respondents
over 45
25% are
younger than
that
So…typical print
buyer today is a
woman over 45

16. @margiedana
How experienced are they?
39% had over 20 years
18% had 16 – 20 years
20% had 11 – 15 years
16% had 6 – 10 years
5% had 1 – 5 years
Only 2% had under 1 year
Their print buying roles differed.

17. @margiedana
Where do you think they work?
- Corporate communications?
- Marketing?
- Creative/graphic design?
- Purchasing?

18. @margiedana
Take a look…

19. @margiedana
March marketing. Echoes 1st
study

20. @margiedana
Implications?
Job titles moving away from Print Buyer &
Production Manager.
Movement towards Marketing
In January study, only 18% had titles of Print
Buyer
30% were Production Managers
Roughly 50% had other titles

21. @margiedana
This study’s
findings are
representative
of the print
buying
universe.

22. @margiedana
What other
roles do print
buyers have?

23. @margiedana
Print buying “Plus”
97% of buyers do something
in addition to buying print
 56% buy other things
 43% do marketing-related functions
 29% do production/manufacturing

24. @margiedana
In this sense,
buyers
shadowing
print industry
evolution.

25. @margiedana
Print buying becoming more diffuse
Others in organizations are ALSO
involved in buying print, like these:
30% purchasing/procurement
21% marketing communications
23% general administrative groups
Implications?

26. @margiedana
Buyers seek
help
internally.
Who’s #1?
Graphic
designers.

27. @margiedana
What value-
add services
do buyers
REALLY want
from
printers?

28. @margiedana
76% - ideas about new
print concepts, innovation
67% - mailing/fulfillment
44% - personalization
26% - web-to-print
24% - multichannel
support

29. @margiedana
Pure Printers or MSPs?
Just 13% of survey respondents said,
“I only want my printers to
print.”
Implications?

30. @margiedana
From Jan 2013:
How important
is a printer’s
expertise in
color
management?

31. @margiedana
I consider expertise in color
management from my printers…

32. @margiedana
So, do these buyers
choose printers
based on color
certification/s?

33. @margiedana
o 61% said NO
o 27% look for G7 certification
o 21% look for GRACoL certification
How do they decide? Subjective criteria:
o Experience of supervisor/pressmen
o Experience working with the printer
o “I trust my own eye for color”
Implications?

34. @margiedana
Print volumes in 2013… Up? Down?
39%: about the same
27%: down more than -5%
16%: up more than 5%
10%: down less than -5%
8%: up less than 5%

35. @margiedana
Related findings
Largest increase from agencies
Companies that spend a lot now
will likely increase print
Buyers of $1 - $5 million annually
most likely to show large
increases

36. @margiedana
Does equipment really matter?
Yes, indeed!
73% YES
23% SOMETIMES
4% NO
Implications?

37. @margiedana
How to feature your equipment
- Easy to find on your site. Current
& complete.
- Featured in banners on your site.
Be creative. Infographic?
- Build a postcard campaign with
your best, most versatile presses.
Think “What YOU can use this
for,” not “Its bells & whistles.”

38. @margiedana
My predictions for print buying

39. @margiedana
March towards marketing continues
o Buyers as communication or media
specialists – more likely to work in a
marketing environment
o Buyers handling more types of
products: commercial print,
mail/fulfillment, digital ad purchases.
Common thread? Brand color control.
o Buyers’ roles will continue to evolve.

40. @margiedana
Pure buying roles
will fade away

41. @margiedana
The
Savvy
The
Newbies
Widening knowledge gap

42. @margiedana
Ramifications of this?
MAJOR effect for printers: need to
reach & teach all customer groups
Opportunities growing for printers to
reach youngest workforce members
Likely that print sourcing will move
online in a significant way

43. @margiedana
New workforce
will do their
sourcing online

44. @margiedana
How will they interact?

45. @margiedana
Relevant traits of Gen Y & Gen C
Relationship-oriented purchasing.
Friends’/peers’ recommendations
highly valued.
Instant communication.
Crave innovation.
Playful mentality.
Visuals matter more.

46. @margiedana
What do I make of all this?

47. @margiedana
How should printers prepare?
o Know your customers: seniors as well as
freshman class
o Focus business development on Marketing &
Purchasing units in companies
o Enhance your online presence especially for
the next wave of customers (Gen Y & C)
o Join marketing/direct marketing associations
o Tout your value-added services
o Engage with customers/prospects via
conversational content (blogs, posts, videos)

48. @margiedana
How should buyers prepare?
o Expand their skills & expertise, maybe
marketing
o Avoid print-centricity on resume, in job hunt
o Quantify their accomplishments in biz terms
that managers identify with
o Get comfortable with social media & digital
marketing disciplines
o Build a peer group to network with
o Know that their print expertise is valuable to
future employers

49. @margiedana
Future of print buying?
o 100% online engagement?
o No more door-to-door sales reps?
o Mobile devices preferred tools?
o Virtual events & videos for
education?
o Peer reviews matter to you, a la
Amazon, TripAdvisor, Facebook

50. @margiedana
“The challenge for the
communication &
technology industries will
be to abandon successful
but outlived business
models & refocus on what
it takes to thrive in the Gen
C environment.”
The Rise of Generation C:
Implications for the World of 2020
Booz & Company, 2010

51. @margiedana
The New Print Buyers Report
40-page PDF
Filled with data
Authors’ conclusions
$99
www.margiedana.com/store/report
Code: GAA for $15 off!

52. @margiedana
Questions? Thanks!
Margie Dana, Content Provider
margie@margiedana.com
617.730.5951
Visit
www.margiedana.com
Please sign up for my weekly email column.