By Cassandra Balentine
Marketing and retail providers rely on print as part of an integrated communications strategy that often involves personalized and consistent content across several touchpoint. Customer communication management (CCM) systems support these omni-channel campaigns.
“CCM is about more than just sending messages—it’s a strategic tool for driving tangible results,” shares Ernie Crawford, president/CEO, Crawford Technologies.
In retail and marketing sectors, CCM delivers its greatest value by enabling personalized, engaging, and efficient customer experiences. Top benefits include enhanced customer engagement, improved brand consistency, data-driven personalization, increased efficiency and cost savings, faster time to market, preference management, and better regulatory compliance.
Annemarie Pucher, CEO, Papyrus Software, adds that “green” benefits and accessibility features are also valuable, but they are often secondary to the core business drivers in the retail and marketing context.
Meeting Expectations
A robust enterprise communication platform is key to maximizing the full potential of CCM, which Crawford says enables businesses to centralize content, streamline workflows, and personalize customer interactions.
“Consumers today expect to choose their preferred communication channels, from print communications and direct mail to email, text messages, media and mobile in-application (app) notifications, and receive real-time information about promotions, new products, and status changes,” comments Crawford.
Personalization is essential. “Customers want tailored offers, product recommendations, and loyalty program updates that meet their individual needs and preferences. Consistent branding and messaging across all channels—both online and offline—are essential for a positive and cohesive brand experience,” notes Crawford.
Building a CCM Strategy
An integrated digital and print marketing environment requires a robust data foundation. Crawford says the first step is data management, which involves consolidating customer data from various sources, which may include CRM systems, point of sale transactions, website analytics, marketing automation systems, and consent and preference management platforms.
This data is then cleaned to eliminate errors and inconsistencies, standardized through normalization, and enriched with relevant metadata for targeted customer communications. “Data validation ensures accuracy and completeness, providing a reliable foundation for personalized messaging and targeted print and digital customer communications,” offers Crawford.
The next step focuses on creating impactful, personalized communications. This involves managing a library of print and digital templates for various customer communications like brochures, postcards, account statements, notifications, and social media promotions. “Dynamic content insertion allows for personalized messaging, product recommendations, and targeted offers based on customer data. Business rules ensure consistent branding and messaging across all communication channels while supporting multiple output formats—PDF for print and email, HTML for web and mobile apps, as well as various image formats for social media. This ensures each communication is tailored to its specific purpose, target audience, and chosen channel,” offers Crawford.
Post-composition processing, known as enterprise communications processing or ECP, bridges the gap between design and delivery for both print and digital. Crawford explains that this involves standardizing output from various design and composition software, ensuring compatibility across different print devices and digital platforms. Print streams are normalized by converting PCL, PS, Metacode, or LCDS to a standard format like AFP, PDF, or HTML for efficient production. AI-powered tools can be used for document indexing, classification, and even dynamic template creation for variable data printing (VDP). Preference management integrates print and digital workflows, enabling automated routing of communications to the appropriate channels based on customer preferences. For example, a customer might prefer an account statement delivered via mail, but a notification sent to a mobile app.
Effective distribution management ensures seamless delivery across all channels. This includes selecting the most appropriate delivery methods for each communication format. Print production is optimized through batching and efficient routing to print vendors. “Digital delivery is integrated with email service providers, SMS gateways, web portals, and mobile apps. Delivery schedules are optimized for each channel to maximize impact and engagement, including real time and on demand communications. Effective output management ensures that every communication is delivered to the right recipient, in the right format, at the right time, and with the correct message,” says Crawford.
The final step is to track and report on the entire process, notes Crawford. This includes using dashboard reporting tools for real-time job monitoring via a web portal, as well as complete tracking of every page and document through the printer, inserter, and postal stream. Detailed audit trails are maintained to log actions at the file, document, and page levels, while performance analytics measure system efficiency and quality control for critical communications. Compliance reporting is generated to demonstrate adherence to regulations. These features deliver valuable insights into the customer communications production process, enabling continuous improvement and ensuring accountability.
The Role of Print
Print has undergone a significant transformation through its integration with digital technologies, creating powerful hybrid communication strategies. Techniques like VDP enable highly personalized print pieces tailored to individual customer preferences or behaviors, increasing relevance and engagement. “Incorporating interactive elements such as quick response (QR) codes and personalized URLs (PURLs) seamlessly bridges the gap between print and digital, driving customers to online experiences that complement and enhance physical communication. This synergy allows organizations to leverage the tangible impact of print while offering the interactivity and data-driven insights of digital channels,” says Crawford.
While print remains a valuable channel, Crawford admits that many organizations, particularly in sectors like retail financial services, are strategically shifting toward digital-first communication models to reduce costs and enhance customer experience. “This often involves replacing traditional document-based communications with real-time alerts and notifications delivered through preferred digital channels such as web portals, mobile apps, and SMS. This approach empowers customers with instant access to information while minimizing print production and distribution expenses. Furthermore, omni-channel strategies enable seamless digital experiences across multiple touchpoints, including web sites, mobile apps, call centers, and even physical branches. While some organizations encourage self-service printing for customers who require physical copies, the emphasis is on providing convenient and efficient digital alternatives.”
Pucher feels that while digital channels are undeniably dominant in retail and marketing CCM strategies, print’s role is not disappearing. Studies confirm a strong preference for digital and many businesses aim to significantly increase digital adoption. Retailers and marketers have seen the higher engagement and profitability of digital channels like online portals, mobile, and email. However, print remains relevant for specific purposes and customer segments.
“We believe that in a good CCM strategy it’s all about the mix of print and digital that gives the target audience a choice to use the channel they want, when they want it, in an easy and most convenient way. Companies that create exceptional customer engagement and experience across the entire spectrum of available communication channels and customer contacts will set themselves apart from their competitors,” says Pucher.
Crawford expects the role of print in CCM strategies to continue to evolve; however, it will remain a key component in the retail and marketing sectors. He says that while there has been a shift to digital-first strategies, customers still value physical, personalized mailers that offer a tactile experience and retailers use these to foster deeper engagement, particularly in targeted campaigns.
However, Crawford sees a shift where print is integrated with digital channels to create seamless omni-channel experiences. Technologies such as QR codes, augmented reality (AR), and personalized URLs are being used to connect physical print and digital communications, driving customers from physical materials to online interactions. This convergence allows retailers to capture and analyze customer engagement across delivery channels and gain insights into behavior and preferences.
In the future, Crawford expects the use of print to become more targeted and data driven, with brands focusing on personalized campaigns that leverage detailed customer data to enhance relevance and return on investment. While digital adoption will likely grow, print will remain an essential tool, especially for marketing efforts that emphasize brand visibility and customer retention.
Managing Data
Because creating data-driven communication is a core part of CCM, it is essential to obtain and maintain it properly.
Pucher admits that CCM users in retail and marketing do struggle with obtaining and managing data, but it’s not a simple problem of availability. While data is abundant, the challenges are multifaceted
For instance, retailers often have customer data spread across multiple systems —CRM, ecommerce, loyalty programs, point of sale, etc.—creating silos that make it difficult to get a unified view of the customer. “This lack of a single customer view hinders personalized communication and targeted marketing efforts,” says Pucher.
“This fragmentation prevents CCM users from understanding the customer journey, limiting their ability to deliver seamless, personalized experiences,” agrees Crawford.
Compounding this issue is the reliance on legacy systems, which are often ill-equipped to handle modern data management and customer communications needs. “These outdated systems often lack compatibility with advanced tools, complicating data governance, and hindering the adoption of digital transformation strategies. Data quality issues are also pervasive because information from diverse sources often comes in inconsistent formats, with varying definitions and standards. Poor data quality leads to errors, inefficiencies, and missed opportunities for actionable insights,” says Crawford.
Even when data is available, quality can be an issue, notes Pucher. “Inaccurate, incomplete, or outdated data can lead to ineffective marketing campaigns and damage customer relationships.”
The integration of multiple data sources is also challenge as each channel generates distinct datasets that are often disconnected, making it difficult to consolidate and extract meaningful insights. “The sheer volume and variety of data, ranging from structured to unstructured formats, further complicates integration and analysis efforts,” explains Crawford.
CCM users often need IT support to connect to different systems and ensure data flows smoothly. “This can slow down marketing campaigns and make it difficult to react quickly to changing customer needs,” comments Pucher.
Simply having data is not enough, CCM users need tools and expertise to analyze the data and extract actionable insights. “Understanding customer behavior, preferences, and needs is crucial for effective marketing, but this requires data analysis skills and appropriate analytics tools,” notes Pucher.
Protecting customer data from breaches and unauthorized access is paramount. “CCM users must ensure that data is stored securely and accessed only by authorized personnel, says Pucher.
Regulations like GDPR and CCPA impose strict requirements on handling customer data. “Many legacy systems lack the tools and controls to meet these standards, leaving organizations vulnerable to violations and hefty penalties,” explains Crawford.
These challenges illustrate the difficulty CCM users face in effectively managing and leveraging their data. “Overcoming these obstacles requires a combination of modern tools, strategic planning and investment in advanced technologies to unlock the full potential of data-driven decision-making,” adds Crawford.
Optimal Communications
For retail and marketing sectors, CCM enabling personalized, engaging, and efficient customer experiences leading to enhanced customer engagement, improved brand consistency, data-driven personalization, increased efficiency and cost savings, faster time to market, preference management, and better regulatory compliance.
