Flying with Printing --DeWese

Read this entire column and you could score $1,000 or a great Mañana Man golf shirt. Come on now. It's only 1,381 words.

Our industry gets a bad rap.

I know. It depresses some of you who are embarrassed and lie. You tell your friends and family that you're in IRS audit and collections, or in the sludge reclamation business, or you are involved in swamp- land real estate sales. Your mama can handle your brother being sent to the big house for 15 to 20, but would go into cardiac arrest if she knew you work for a printer.

Print buyers take us for granted and trivialize our importance. Wall Street hot shots look down their aquiline Ivy League noses at us.

Mean-spirited bankers make us personally guarantee the loans we need for new equipment and, if we default paying three minutes late, then they can indenture our women (or men) and children.

Shallow soul television personalities laugh at us as they scoop up advertising dollars predicated on some highly suspect rating system.

The Internet intellectuals think we're in the Dark Ages and that we are headed for the Great Obsolescence Junk Heap.

Beat the Printing Drum

I want the rest of you positive and proud print communications salespeople to arm yourselves and become soldiers for print.

I'm talkin' about Minutemen, er, Minutepersons for Print Media.

Let's just compare our great industry, presently hidden under a big bushel basket, to two industries that get a lot of press—petroleum and airlines.

Okay, airlines have had 10 major bankruptcies (Northwest and Delta in September 2005 alone) totaling more than $100 billion in total assets. The print communications industry has had only two major bankruptcies (Master Graphics and Printing Arts America) totaling less than $100 million in total assets (Marvelle, that's million not billion, you dummy). In case you're counting, our bankruptcies are a mere pittance or 0.001 percent of those of the airlines.

What's more, we have never lost a single piece of luggage. We have never lost control of a single 40˝, six-color press and slid off a runway narrowly missing the passenger terminal. There was the time that Marvelle Stump Litho told its customer it lost an important job when Marvelle lost control of the truck in an ice storm and crashed into a fat turpentine pine tree. Well, at least that's Marvelle's story and he's stickin' to it.

So where would you put your money? Airlines or printing, Mr. Big Shot Bankers? Now keep in mind we employ more people than the airlines and our workers have never gone on strike and stranded thousands of travelers in airports.

The airlines employ a paltry 581,088 people to our 1,003,567 co-workers, and the airlines lost ($9.071) billions on revenues of only $131.5 billion versus our revenues of $170 billion and profits of $3.4 billion. This, of course, means our unglamorous wallflower printing industry pays taxes of about $1.4 billion. Not only did the sexy airlines lose money, they paid no taxes and probably got all kinds of federal supplements.

Look at Other Industries

Why should we hang our heads?

Okay, next. I'm on a roll now!

Petroleum, heh, heh, heh.

Here is an industry that raises prices whenever the gas station across the street raises price. Or, whenever some sheik needs another Lamborghini.

Of course, petroleum has generated fabulous profits. The industry has made net income of $89 billion since 2001.

But, we still employ way more people in the printing industry. Petroleum can make tons of money because they've got a legal price fixing thing going on and the Arab oil cartel, OPEC, fixes the price of the raw material.

But petroleum has given me a great idea. Follow along with me.

1. The prices posted at gas stations are tantamount to price fixing.

2. The stations' prices are always exactly the same as other ones for regular, plus and super (give or take a penny).

3. So, drivers generally don't pick a station based on price.

4. The choice is made based on service. Clean bathrooms, friendly employees who clean your windshield and check your oil.

I bet some of you are starting to get the picture.

Yep, I'm proposing that you all post your prices outside the plant. Then, quick, drive around town to check your competitors' prices. Use your cell phones to network until you all have raised prices to, say, a level that is at least 25 percent more than now. The signs will be a little complicated since you have to price out quantities, one through four colors (or way more), UV, bleeds, finishing requirements, etc., etc.

5. Oh, here's one more. A gas station in my neighborhood is now giving discounts for cash. You can do that too. Your customers will love getting a 3 percent discount for paying cash money up front.

Come on now troops! Stick out those chests. Shoulders back. Well, maybe not you Nadine; some of the guys can't concentrate. Heads held high. We're proud and purposeful print communications salespeople on a mission to kick some, er, ankles.

Now, that you are full of Print Pride, here is something you can do to promote print.

There's a new organization in our industry called The Print Council. The Print Council is a business development alliance dedicated to promoting the greater use of print media. You can learn about this great selling tool by going to www.theprintcouncil.org.

Through education, awareness, market development, advocacy and research, The Print Council will serve the industry to develop, maintain and increase the market for printed goods. In addition, the council will work closely with industry associations, ongoing initiatives and relevant user groups that share common goals.

Initially, The Print Council will focus on the following objectives:

* Raise awareness for print as a preferred communications medium.

* Educate media specifiers on innovations in printing and the advantages of printing as complementing other mediums.

* Maintain or increase the level of print buying in North America.

* Support printers, vendors and media specifiers on opinions and trends.

* Conduct and disseminate timely research.

How you can help: An alliance and undertaking of this magnitude must have support. Leadership in the council comes from those companies that are willing to do the majority of funding. In addition, members can support The Print Council through annual memberships, as well as sponsoring ongoing projects.

For more information, call Marty Maloney at (203) 622-1333, or e-mail him at m.maloney@bmcorp.com.

My new partner, Paul Reilly, is chairman of The Print Council's executive committee. The members and associate members comprise an impressive list. This is serious. You can also get a great DVD promoting print by e-mailing PIA's Ben Cooper at bcooper@piagatf.org, by calling my office at (800) 215-0165 or by e-mailing Kathy Shoenfelt in my office at shoenfeltk@comcapltd.com. If you request the DVD, I will send you a Mañana Man Golf shirt when we send the DVD. Be sure to send us your shirt size.

Get ready for this. Write a plan to promote the printing industry in your market(s), implement it, send me a one-page description of what you did AND you may win $1,000 in cold hard cash for First Place, $500 for Second Place and $250 for Third Place. Deadline for your entries will be March 30, 2006.

While you are out there promoting print you will also be out there selling something!

—Harris DeWese

About the Author

Harris DeWese is the author of Now Get Out There and Sell Something, available through NAPL or PIA/GATF. He is chairman and CEO at Compass Capital Partners and is an author of the annual "Compass Report," the definitive source of information regarding printing industry M&A activity. DeWese has completed more than 100 printing company transactions and is viewed as the preeminent deal maker in the printing industry. He specializes in investment banking, mergers and acquisitions, sales, marketing, planning and management services to printing companies. He can be reached via e-mail at DeWeseH@ComCapLtd.com.