The Top 10 “Must Do” List —Sherburne

AS WE skate into the fourth quarter of what has been a  very difficult year, it is none too soon to be thinking about strategies for 2010. With that in mind, I have put together a Top 10 "must do" list for 2010. Perhaps you have already done some or all of these things. Good for you! You are ahead of the game, or at least staying even. If you are at the other end of the spectrum and have done none of them, you will find 2010 to be even more difficult than 2009, regardless of what the economy does.

The votes are in, and the experts agree: While we may have been able to wait out previous economic downturns, this one is different. We are being lambasted by the ongoing effects that digital media, driven by use of the Internet and mobile media, are having on the way people—including marketers—communicate. This is only being accelerated by the sad state of the economy as marketers turn to what they perceive as less expensive, faster and more effective alternative means of communication in lieu of print.

To stay in the game, printing firms need to ensure that their operations are as efficient as possible, ferreting out and removing every single scrap of waste, whether it is paper, materials, energy, labor or time. At the same time, they need to carefully examine how they interact with their customers and what services they are providing them. What are the unmet needs? What else are your customers buying and from whom? How can you meet a broader range of those needs?

So here we go.

10|Make sure your environment is color managed from start to finish. This will improve overall quality and eliminate waste and rework. At PRINT 09, there were several new and innovative technologies on display that make delivering consistent color easier than ever before, including FineEye ICEsaver marketed by Chromaticity and EasyTrax from X-Rite. Take advantage of them. P.S.: The Must See 'ems committee still rates color management as the number 6 critical core technology for survival.

9|Analyze your customer base. Do you know how profitable each customer is, and which customers cost you money? Use this information to find more clients like the profitable ones you already have. Tackle the customers that are low-profit or are costing you money to find out why and fix the problem.

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