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Print in the Mix
Marketing Trends Survey: Positive Economic Outlook for Global Budget Expenditures in 2011
According to StrongMail's “2011 Marketing Trends” survey that provides insight into global plans to budget and prioritize marketing dollars in 2011, half of the businesses plan to increase their marketing budgets this year and another 43 percent plan to maintain current levels.
E-mail marketing (65 percent) and social media (57 percent) will be the top areas of investment in 2011, followed by Search (41 percent).
Direct mail (36 percent) and trade shows/events (33 percent) are the top targets for decreased spend—an improvement over the prior survey, which found marketers reducing spend by 42 percent and 44 percent, respectively.
Social Media Initiatives
Among social media initiatives, Facebook is the biggest priority (35 percent), followed by viral/referral marketing programs (22 percent). Marketing via Twitter and implementing social media management technology tied for third place (21 percent).
Awareness building (63 percent) is the primary goal for social media marketing initiatives, followed by loyalty acquisition (54 percent) and reaching new audiences (42 percent). Social media marketing is seen by respondents as least effective at generating leads and revenue.
E-Mail Marketing Initiatives
The top e-mail marketing initiatives for 2011 are increasing subscriber engagement (52 percent), improving segmentation and targeting (49 percent), and integrating social media and e-mail marketing (43 percent). Seven out of 10 (71 percent) of respondents state their organizations have already integrated e-mail and social media, or plan to in 2011.
To read this Print in the Mix Fast Fact and other print market research studies, go to www.printinthemix.rit.edu. Print in the Mix is a free and easily accessible clearinghouse of research on print media effectiveness, published by the Printing Industry Center at RIT and made possible by a grant from The Print Council (www.theprintcouncil.org).
At Menomonee Falls, WI-based Burton & Mayer, Bill Gibson, who recently completed his term as chairman of Printing Industries of America, has been tapped as the company's new regional manager of sales for the metropolitan Chicago area.
James Fetherston is the new president and CEO at Stevens Point, WI-based Worzalla Publishing. He succeeds Charles Nason, who will retire in June but continue to serve as chairman of the company's board of directors. Fetherston previously served at Walsworth Print Group as vice president of sales and marketing.
Print buyer satisfaction ratings for Q4 2010 have been released by Survey Advantage. The results were based on feedback from more than 7,000 print buyers. The following group of printers achieved more than 90 percent print buyer satisfaction: Farley Printing, Wilmington, DE (independent commercial category); Allegra Print & Imaging, Spartanburg, SC (Allegra network); Sir Speedy, Havertown, PA (Franchise Services network); and the AlphaGraphics in Dallas (AlphaGraphics network).
Jeffrey Patterson is the new CFO at A.F.L. Web Printing, Voorhees, NJ. He most recently served as a finance executive with API Foils.
President Barack Obama has appointed Bill Boarman as the nation's 26th Public Printer for the U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO). Boarman, who will also serve as CEO, succeeds Bob Tapella who served as Public Printer since 2007. Boarman started his career nearly 40 years ago at GPO.
Beth Scherer has been appointed director of sustainability—a newly created position—at Sandy Hook, CT-based Curtis Packaging.
Vancouver, BC-based Metropolitan Fine Printers has made several new appointments. Nikos Kallas has been tapped as president, succeeding George Kallas, founder and former president, who has assumed the role of chairman. The management board now includes: Paul Riches, general manager; Mike Winteringham, vice president of manufacturing; Bob Faulkner, vice president of sales and marketing; and Scott Gray, senior account representative/director of brand.
Mandy Olstad has been promoted to account executive for Brooklyn Park, MN-based GLS Cos. She started out as a project manager at then-Litho Inc., which was purchased by GLS in 2006. PI
