Buyers’ Great Expectations —Dana
This one's for all of you print sales reps out there. Consider it my kicking-off-2011 gift to you. Hopefully, you can make some of these suggestions your own and become a more valuable, more trusted resource for all of your customers.
If someone else were writing this column, they might write, "Print buyers expect you to give them perfect printing for free, overnight."
Sheer hyperbole! I don't like hearing that print buyers are demanding, unreasonable and focused solely on price. Says who? I've known hundreds of professional buyers since the late '80s. Most of them were—and are—reasonable, conscientious professionals with an eye for quality and value. They're no different from anyone else purchasing products and services. They do the best they can with the time and resources they have.
What Print Buyers Value
Let me tell you what print buyers expect.
Corporate and agency print customers have common expectations from the printing industry. Naturally, high-quality printing at a fair price is Number 1. I rarely see bad printing anymore. It's easy to get jobs done well. So, tuck that expectation in your breast pocket. It's a given, and if your printing stinks, you're in the wrong business.
Print buyers expect professionalism. This includes everything from how your company telephones are answered, to the quality of your e-mail messages, to the courtesy extended by your delivery staff. Plant tours should be conducted professionally, for example, with no offensive calendars or shoptalk assaulting customers. Employees should greet customers with a handshake and a smile. Sales reps should dress professionally (not to be confused with formally).
This will sound kind of weird, but print buyers expect honesty. It doesn't mean that they've been lied to. What it means is that they hold their printers to their word. Do you do what you say you'll do? If not, do you tell your customers and explain what happened and how you're handling it? Do you deliver on your promises? Can your clients count on you and, by extension, your company, to get the work done as expected? Through many surveys I've conducted with print customers over the years, honesty is the always the Number 1 quality they seek in a print rep.
Print buyers expect good communication from their printers. No, make that great communication. They want to be kept in the loop when jobs are in production. They don't want to have to chase you; they prefer that you share important information proactively—such as job status, date changes, etc. Be mindful of jobs in production and contact customers to fill them in. As your relationship with a buyer grows, you'll get used to what an individual wants from you, and how to deliver job status updates.
Your Role as Teachers
Printers are customers' Number 1 educational resource, so you're expected to keep them up to date with printing technology, especially if it relates or could relate to their work. All things being equal, I can think of no better way to keep your clients loyal than to be known as their best source of print manufacturing trends.
Although there are print customers, including designers, who don't want printers to offer ideas on how to produce something, such folks are in the minority. Most buyers expect printers to be creative. Make suggestions to their jobs in ways that will be more efficient, more exciting and more innovative. Please suggest ways to save them money.
It sounds counterproductive to you, a salesperson, but my thought is this: your competitors are doing this in hopes of getting your customers to "switch." It might work. Better to talk over ways to make customers' jobs more cost-effective. This will serve you in the long-term.
Print buyers expect to feel like they're your Number 1 customer. All of them. At any one time. Realistic? Of course not. But part of the dance that salespeople must do is to make each client feel special, and that each has your undivided attention. No other work is more important to you. Your role is to shepherd their job through to a safe, on-time delivery. Their trust is in your hands. Focus on each customer when you're talking to them.
Print buyers expect you to help steer them through this period of media turbulence. What stresses are they dealing with from their managers regarding print programs, budgets and the impact of e-media? How can you make them more successful in their roles? What insights can you bring them about communication trends in business, and in their own industries?
Knowing what most print buyers expect from printers—aside from great manufacturing at a fair, agreed-upon price—will help you retain their business. Don't underestimate their knowledge and print savvy. Meet their expectations and become a respected "printer confidante." It's an achievable goal. PI
—Margie Dana
About the Author
Margie Dana is the founder of Print Buyers International (www.printbuyersinternational.com), which offers educational and networking opportunities to those who work with the printing industry. She produces an annual print buyers conference (www.printbuyersconference.com) and has written her popular e-column, "Margie's Print Tips," since 1999. Dana speaks regularly at trade events and offers consulting services as a print buyer specialist. She can be reached at mdana@printbuyersinternational.com.
