One-to-One Marketing with Digital Printing
Advanced software is allowing variable data communication entry into more environments.
By Cheryl Dangel Cullen
Perhaps you pride yourself on being on the leading edge of technology. You've abandoned direct mail in favor of broadcast emails and cold calling. However, suddenly your emails are ignored as spam and cold calling isnšt as productive. With anti-spam legislation on the rise and Do Not Call lists, how can a compnay reach prospective customers? In this second part of our series on one-to-one marketing with
digital printing, we explore the software solutions on the market for printing with variable data.
While there are plenty of companies who would welcome your one-to-one marketing business, an option for print-for-pay companies and the corporate enterprise is bringing the capabilities in-house. Financial and health care institutions are among those leading the way with one-to-one marketing, but it isnšt limited to these entities. It's for everyone. The trick is finding the right software to make it work with your digital printer.
Royal Impressions licenses a variety of software packages for variable data printing (VDP). "We just launched a new solution for AIG SunAmerica that allows independent financial advisors to place orders for direct mail programs that include personalized and customized newsletters. The system have an average order size of 300 pieces. Users upload their mailing list through the system during the order process," says Christopher DeSantis, president Royal Impressions. Another Royal Impressions client is Prudential Retirement, which was recognized and honored in PODi's 2003 Best Practices Report for its 401(k) retirement planning guides. The job is high-volume; approximately 600,000 40- to 90-page books are expected to be printed in 2004.
Weighing the Results
"When used as part of a CRM marketing or other customer-focused marketing initiative, response rates are very high, well above industry norms," DeSantis says. "Success rates are high for retention-based programs and for win-back campaigns, a bit lower for customer acquisition programs. If a customer has a preexisting relationship with a company, the response will be much higher. We've seen response rates as high as 40 percent for certain types of programs. Static, same-to-all direct mail marketing will usually pull a one percent response."
Canon U.S.A., Inc., which makes printers and distributes software for variable printing, has seen its healthcare customers won over to its benefits. They use one-to-one marketing to personalize messages and occasionally use color for graphs and charts or just to add impact to a message.
"Variable data printing can seem like an intimidating, even overwhelming, technology to implement. It requires a whole new learning curve the printers, but for the solutions vendors and sales persons as well. Through our Sales Training Division courseware and the entry-level VDP offerings that Canon provides, we are seeing an increased amount of interest in this technology. Our successes for VDP have been with small and mid-sized commercial printers who are looking to differentiate themselves but hesitant to make large capital investments. The Canon solutions fit their entry-level production needs, giving them an easy way to get started in VDP to increase their product offerings and revenues," says Forrest Leighton, assistant product manager at Canon U.S.A., Inc.
One-to-One Software
Obviously, getting the right equipment on board is half the battle, and your choice depends on expected volume, the type of jobs routinely printed, and the budget.
Canon distributes Atlas' Print Shop Mail Fiery version. This is an easy to use drag and drop tool that allows users the ability to utilize any PDF and comes with a suggested retail price (SRP) of $1,500. Pageflex Persona Fiery Version is a more robust solution ideal for the more advanced user and is pricier. It has a SRP of $6,990. Planet Press, created by Objectif Lune, one of Canonšs alliance partners, is a solution for transactional printing.
"Within the ever-changing production marketplace the customers we serve are faced with some tough challenges," says Leighton. "In order to remain competitive and profitable, they are looking for ways to differentiate themselves. Variable data represents an effective way of accomplishing this. Our solutions range from the entry-level customers looking to take their first steps into VDP to the more advanced users."
"The end result is their customers are receiving a relevant piece of mail that speaks to their wants and needs," says Leighton, who points to studies from organizations like PODi that have shown response rate increases from the usual one percent of mass marketing to seven percent, and as much as 30 percent.
Another software option is DesignMerge Pro, which is a sophisticated mail merge and VDP software package for QuarkXPress that costs about $3,500. DesignMerge works with QuarkXPress documents by allowing the user to create pre-defined slots, which are designated to receive variable data. DesignMerge can accept text, picture, or article information taken from almost any data source. The database information is merged into Quark layouts to produce personalized output. Some of the other DesignMerge features include a menu-driven user interface, on-the-fly copy fitting of overset, and AppleScript support. DesignMerge can output to any PostScript printer, as well to most major variable printing formats.
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Hot Ideas for One-to-One Marketing Moves Dealership into High Gear
Consolidated Graphics Group, of Cleveland Ohio, is one company that has seen the rewards of one-to-one marketing. Hotideas.com developed a marketing program for Jay Pontiac, a local auto dealer that required very involved data management and variable digital print. "Consolidated Graphics Group had a Xerox 6060 that produced the pieces but their understanding of variable print was limited. Our process forced them to learn the tools to produce the finished product and has opened their eyes to the potential of digital print," says Jeff Scott, chief information officer, Hotideas.com.
The marketing campaign Hotideas.com developed was a service reminder program using variable printed brochures at its core. First, Hotideas.com used dealership-polled customer information and a set of data tables to control dealership-defined information specifications. Using tables allows the dealership ultimate control so that they can easily tweak information when necessary.
Hotideas.com partnered with Consolidated Graphics Group and Hain Design to put the brochure together. The brochure was created as an 11" x 17" tri-fold piece. On the cover is an image of the customeršs vehicle, the customeršs name, and vehicle model name. "This is the OWow!š as in OWow! That's my car on the cover!" says Scott.
Inside is the vehiclešs estimated current mileage at the time of the mailing. The customeršs name, vehicle make, model, and year are all referenced. Recommended services for that vehicle based on the estimated mileage are listed. Detailed service information is listed in the service history section. If space permits, another image of the customeršs vehicle is shown and Hotideas.com will also control the color of the vehicle image to match the customeršs.
Four coupons are included that directly relate to the service recommendations and the type of vehicle. Hotideas.com also created a second layer of logic to control coupon appearance and order of importance when positioned from top to bottom in the four coupon slots.
The back panel of the brochure was reserved for dealership messages, in this case, a message about exterior car care or something educational that the customer would find helpful.
The template was created by Hain Design and executed by consolidated Graphics Groupšs Print-On-Demand department using Darwin on a Xerox Docucolor 6060. "The results are a beautifully colored brochure with a clear, concise message, individual to each customer," says Scott.
All totaled, there are as many as 80 variable fields in this brochure, which resulted in a 21.2 percent response rate from 1,000 service reminders printed and mailed within the first 30 days of the campaign. Two hundred and six customers responded, 234 repair orders were generated, and 28 pieces were returned for bad addresses. Six weeks later, 380 more customers responded, generating 332 repair orders for another 28.81 percent response rate. When it was over, 43.44 percent of the services recommended were sold.
For their work, Hotideas.com took first place in PODišs Best Practices Award in Digital Print for the direct marketing category. So successful was the program that Hotideas.com has implemented the program at 35 additional auto dealerships in the Midwest.
"Each dealer that uses our service has seen considerable savings by having us target specific customers rather than mass mailings," says Scott. "We manage returned mail and track promotion for ROI." |
Its advantages include the ability to customize brochures, direct mail pieces, business cards, name badges, and other marketing collateral. "Last of all, DesignMerge is extremely user friendly," says John Kriho, president, Meadows Publishing Solutions.
Another variable information authoring tool comes from Creo, which makes Darwin 6.0 for designers, creative shops, service bureaus, and any printer needing graphically-rich variable information (VI) jobs. It promises to provide full design freedom that can unleash the power of one-to-one marketing. It includes everything required to design, author, and manage variable information documents.
Darwin converts QuarkXPress documents into variable information documents, making all elements and entire pages which keeps spooled file size minimal, speeding up file creation especially on B&W printers. Moreover, it is capable of handling extremely large databases. Darwin is now available in the industry recognized Darwin Desktop version and a new, more powerful Darwin Pro with an enhanced feature set for more complex jobs.
Exstream Software, Inc. offers its Exstream Dialogue, Dialogue WebVerse, and Exstream AFP Studio. Dialogue combines document creation, campaign management and tracking, multi- channel delivery, and Web application development in one fully integrated software suite. "It's the only solution available today that allows businesses to create any kind of personalized document in any volume and deliver it through multiple print and electronic channels," says Kelley Sloane, VP, marketing, Exstream Software, Inc.
According to Exstream, these programs can improve time to market by up to 50 percent for getting fully personalized communications to customers on demand, interactively, or through high-volume batch production; reduce operations, development, and marketing costs by up to 80 percent; increase customer retention through more relevant, timely, and quality communications; and increase customer response to offers by as much as 80 percent through personalization and variable color.
Sloane tells us Exstream products can cut time to market in half; substantially reduce inventories of generic communications such as provider directories and brochures substantially reduce costs response rates from two percent to 18, to 40 percent, according to an APT Digital case study. In one example, W.A. Wilde helped a grocery chain get an 80 percent response on personalized coupons they mailed out.
Exstream prices its software based on how it will be used, how many computers it will run on, number of users, required functionality, and, in some cases, by production volumes. Subscription licenses, monthly rentals, pay-per-click and perpetual licensing are available. "On average, cost for large companies is in the neighborhood of $200K, while small businesses may pay a couple thousand a month or pay by the number of pages they produce," says Sloane.
GMC Software Technology is known for its PrintNet T Triple Suite, an integrated solution for business process automation and integrated marketing that encompasses the transactional, promotional, and one-to-one marketing for print-on-demand environments. It has modules for data processing, design, and a full range of output including data file, statistical, and complete print stream support.
PrintNet T is scalable, enabling implementation for low-end environments extending into complex enterprise environments that require business process automation solutions that integrate with enterprise customer relationship, digital asset management, content management and other enterprise applications. "In these applications, PrintNet T offers significant cost/ benefit and competitive advantages for implementing real time target marketing as well as the capability to rapidly convert existing business applications to the new platform," says Hal Morrow, director of marketing, GMC Software Technology.
"Our software is most appropriate for users who are printing one million pages a month or more. Our top ten customers are each printing about ten billion pages a year," says Morrow.
To get started with PrintNet T, expect to spend at least $25,000 for smaller installations, but costs typically range from $75,000 and up. Enterprise licensing by seat and output-based usage licensing are other payment options.
Royal Impressions, licenses Exstream Dialogue for high-volume, Datalogics' DL Formatter for server-based automation of document composition, and Creo's Darwin. The company also offers a Web-based system called MCOM (Marketing Collateral Order Management) that was designed in-house to create, manage, and deliver personalized documents.
"It allows Oanytime, anywhereš access to create personalized and customized postcards, newsletters, direct mail packages, proposals, presentations, and other marketing collateral documents," says DeSantis. "It helps clients maintain corporate branding standards and allows for rights and permissions to be set for each user, approval processes to be implemented, and reporting that helps the client better manage their marketing spend."
Royal Impressions offers two types of client engagements for MCOM- standard deployments and custom integration projects. A standard deployment can cost $5,000 to $10,000 and custom projects can be more than $100,000 if very complex.
Solimar Systems, Inc. makes TUKANDA, a powerful Windows-based variable information document creation software solution. TUKANDA provides a way to design, compose, and create print-ready highly personalized full color or B&W one-to-one communications for virtually any application, within any industry segment. System costs will vary depending on the specific environment and volume requirements, however, pricing for a single seat system starts at $9,950.
"TUKANDA is a database driven document composition and printing software solution that offers an uncomplicated and cost-effective way to create print-ready and targeted customized documents designed to attract new customers, while retaining existing ones. Especially well suited for producing variable information full color documents, TUKANDA is optimized for todayšs modern full color printers," says Mike Tyler, marketing communications manager, Solimar Systems, Inc.
The size of organizations that use TUKANDA range from small service bureaus of less than ten employees to large Fortune 500 organizations of over 40,000. TUKANDA is a horizontal application that benefits many vertical industry segments, organizations within insurance, financial services, banking, pharmaceutical, healthcare, telecommunications, government, retail, education, manufacturing, utilities, distribution, and print service bureaus. Service bureaus find TUKANDA appealing because its well-architected GUI facilitates rapid application development. They also benefit from TUKANDAšs built-in Data Source Wizards that support the wide variety of variable data input sources they receive from their customers.
Not to be outdone, Xerox Corporation also offers a software solution. Xerox easy-vi Customized Fulfillment Solution featuring iWay by Press-sense provides the tools for Xerox customers to offer Web and other electronic print services to their customers. The product includes software, server, training, sales samples, and support.
It's, "an entry level, easy to use solution, enabling Web-based end-to-end information and workflow management, facilitating easy and short productive variable information and short run documents for both the printer and document requester,˛ says Jean Ellefson, solution marketing manager, Xerox.
"On the customer side, easy-vi is a template-based ordering system that supplies various innovative means for placing orders as well as for approving and tracking jobs and monitoring delivery schedules. On the printer-side, easy-vi is a full production management tool, as well as an information management system," Ellefson adds.
Return on Investment
Anyone making an investment in VDP equipment or pay for someone else to do it payback will be realized. Kriho says, "Many clients purchase DesignMerge for their first variable data job, and recoup the investment within the first three to six months."
"For a web-based MCOM system, the ROI could be measured in time-savings minutes to create a customized proposal vs. several hours, or reduced waste and obsolescence from using digital printing instead of using traditional offset lithography," says DeSantis. "Successful programs generate ROI that justifies the expansion of programs. Each client of ours has started with one application, but when ROI has been measured, additional programs are launched because using VDP successfully produces ROI that is so much greater than that for traditional, static, same-to-all marketing."
"(ROI) will vary depending on the volume of use and the type of applications produced," echoes Tyler. "However, it is expected that most users can expect a ROI between two to four months," using TUKANDA.
Return varies depending on the primary objectives of the customer, according to Morrow. Variables that are important but can vary from customer to customer include being able to implement multiple one-off jobs quickly and with minimal manual intervention; cost-effectively converting legacy applications to a new platform; cutting programming time or reducing the need for it; providing an efficient, streamlined way to integrate various data sources; the ability to enter new markets with new applications; supporting mixed platform technology environments; integrating document collaborators such as design, compliance, IT, and production; and streamlining workflow for increased productivity and less time to market.
"ROI is dramatically increased with these types of solutions," says Leighton. "The higher response rates lead to a shorter ROI. This answer is affected by the solution developed and the end-user applications. An example might be VDP's ability to utilize database information to create less voluminous/more relevant mailings with greater response rates decrease, and although cost per print might have slightly increased, the response rate and decreased mailing volume offset these costs."
Jul2004, Digital Publishing Solutions
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