What’s Fueling Inkjet Growth?
Production inkjet printing is well positioned to meet today’s print-related communication and business transformation strategies. Why? What’s fueling inkjet growth? Several things. Inkjet is ideal for a range of applications and opens the door to new ones. Inkjet delivers results that traditional digital Xerographic and offset technologies can’t by producing high volumes of variable content at lower cost.
Only inkjet can answer some needs profitably by:
- Incorporating customized full-color marketing content on high volumes of statements
- Creating large ROI-fueling, personalized direct mail campaigns
- Improving time-to-market for targeted publications
- Producing short-turn, high-volume jobs cost-effectively
- Transforming catalogues from static offset to personalized, revenue-driving tools
These advantages make inkjet an essential element when it comes to transforming print operations in a big way.
Why Your Balance Sheet Will Love Inkjet
Many print providers see production inkjet as a way to re-evaluate their businesses and optimize operations to drive out cost. For example, using blank rolls of paper for white paper-in printing saves money versus creating and warehousing offset preprinted shells for overprinting. In addition, inkjet has lower per-page costs compared with Xerography.
Other ways production inkjet transforms print operations by reducing overall costs include:
- Equipment consolidation
- Workflow automation
- Increased productivity
- Lower waste and inventory
- Optimized job mix
- Lower run costs
- Workflow efficiency
How Inkjet Grows Revenue
Another bottom line benefit of inkjet is revenue growth. Achieving this goal often requires re-engineering your offset jobs to inkjet to leverage variable data, thus adding relevance and value for your customers and theirs. Production inkjet transforms applications to create new revenue sources through:
- More effective personalized campaigns
- Improved revenue collection
- More production capacity
- Broader capabilities
The inkjet transformation opens the doors to new work and new growth, in other words, rocket fuel for your bottom line.
Production Inkjet Meets Marketers’ Needs
Outstanding image quality and ever-expanding media choices have positioned inkjet to handle customized communications for large audiences quickly, cost-effectively and with strong results. This aligns with what marketers are thinking:
- 92% of marketers expect the amount of direct mail to increase or stay flat.
- 39% of marketers want to provide more tailored offerings driven by data.
- 74% of marketers are adding targeted messages to transactional communications.
The inkjet opportunity lies in the applications. Production inkjet supports high-value marketing applications that help marketers activate effective, measurable strategies. With inkjet, the jobs you’re running today on other technologies could become more cost-effective. Inkjet can also help you transform that same work to make it more compelling and drive new levels of response and revenue.
Inkjet Production Serves Omni-channel Strategies
With continuous quality improvements and an ever-expanding media range, inkjet is capable of much more than simply delivering the jobs we associate it with today. As production inkjet technology has matured, it’s resulted in tremendous growth and broader appeal to more markets and programs. The operational efficiencies of inkjet align with trends like more sophisticated personalization. When marketers supplement inkjet print with email, web, mobile and other digital channels in omni-channel campaigns, consumers can interact with brands on their own terms. Relevant, attractive communications boost traffic, improve customer experience, and ultimately drive more revenue. Research has shown this can increase profits by up to 60%* over a print-only approach. No wonder inkjet gets the attention of marketers.
Prepare for Inkjet Technology Migration
Most print providers looking at inkjet for the first time face a technology migration involving either moving or consolidating volume from offset or cut-sheet Xerographic devices. But business transformation means more than just replacing a printer. In addition to the obvious differences between each technology in handling ink, media and color management, inkjet migration opportunities present unique operational considerations. Your technology advisories and vendor partners can help you work through the key questions. You’ll also find resources for your inkjet journey in this blog,
The inkjet opportunity comes down to this: Transform your operation to reduce costs and grow new revenue streams. This white paper looks at what to consider when comparing inkjet to offset and Xerographic technologies. It also goes into applications that benefit the most from inkjet capabilities, including transaction, direct mail, books and publications, and catalogs. What an opportunity!
* Gartner Group and Leading on the Edge of Chaos, Emmett C. Murphy and Mark A. Murphy
