Automated Applications Rise to the Top of 2013 Best-of-the-Best Competition

Written by Mary Roddy
Global Marketing Manager, Premier Partners Global Network, Xerox Corporation
Workflow automation can deliver significant process improvements, increasing speed and productivity while reducing costs, errors, waste and process steps. But it can also reach beyond process, to expand capabilities and increase revenues.

A case in point: the 2013 Xerox Premier Partners Best of the Best Awards. Automated solutions won a number of the top awards, including the coveted Digital Trailblazer Award, won by K-Print for personalized smart phone covers, and the equally distinguished Printers’ Choice Award, voted on by the Premier Partners members and won by APIX for personalized wine-bottle labels.
The Best-of-the-Best Awards are open to Xerox Premier Partners recognizing top work in seven application categories—books, collateral, digital and offset solutions, digital packaging, direct marketing, photo publishing and transpromo—in addition to Best Overall Solution, Digital Trailblazer and the Printers’ Choice. Winners are selected based upon business results, image quality, and use of Xerox technology.
Both K-Print and APIX won for personalized printed products that consumers order through automated Web-to-Print systems.
Profiting from Mobile
While many graphic communications providers are finding growth opportunities by incorporating mobile communications into their service offerings, Japanese firm K-Print sought mobile growth by offering a smart phone accessory. They developed Synchroskin, a personalized skin sticker for smart phones and LCDs, which they produce with specialized stock on a Xerox Color 800 Press.
Customers—both B2B and B2C—can choose from K-Print’s designs or upload their own images to create truly personalized smartphone skins. In addition, K-Print’s system provides desktop wallpaper and packaging using the same personalized design. The business has grown every month since its introduction and brings a “cool” factor that resonates not only with smart phone skin customers, but with B2B customers and prospects as well.
Personalizing Wine Labels
APIX, also of Japan, established the personalized wine bottle label application on behalf of TAMBA WINE and Kotobuke Brewing, allowing customers to create a personal gift of wine or sake with an original label from among 116 design templates. The system also provides packaging, cards and personalized wrapping paper that coordinate with the label design and incorporate personal messages and images. Printing is on the Xerox 700 Digital Color Press.
APIX has marketed the personalized labels, known as “Sense 121,” through its Facebook page and a press release, and they’ve succeeded by several measures.  One in four first-time buyers have repurchased their custom bottles, overall sales have increased, and customer feedback has been excellent.
Read more on these and all the other 2013 Best-of-the-Best winners!