SPECIAL REPORT VARIABLE DATA PRINTING -- Methods May Vary

"The sales cycle and how to approach it is challenging for a traditional printer," Taylor explains. Many conventional printers and salespeople can best relate to digital printing as a short run four-color or black-and-white process, he says.

MSBV's strategy is to listen for what the customer's real pain is, rather than simply taking what they say at face value, notes its president. "That is just the symptom. You need to understand what the customer's business problem is and offer them a solution."