Print Shops add value by suggesting Upsells

You can boost your bottom line dramatically by adding value to your printed products and selling your customers on post-press & print finishing services like laminating, inserting, bursting, decollating, binding and even shrink wrapping. All of these processes not only improve the look of the final product, they increase the profits for you, the printer. Why It Works Valued added products like binding, corner rounding, or even simple laminating work because:

Winning: A guide to competing with the Big Box

Focus on Business-to-Business Opportunities

You may not be able to beat the big box stores like Office Depot or Staples when it comes to advertising, promoting and marketing yourself to the mass public, but you can pin them to the mat on networking with other local businesses in your area. Business to Business Will Save Your Business By developing strong, personal relationships with other business owners in your area, you’re setting the foundation for future sales. For example, when my friend first started out in the print shop business, I told him to join his local business networking group and to do it quickly. He attended meetings, he joined golf clubs and he even bought tickets to breakfast lectures and do you know what he got? Direct, face-to-face contact with all of his current best customers. The big box stores can’t compete with you on that, so you have to capitalize on it. Make it Personal A big-box printer may be able to charge a few cents less per copy, but they generally have an untrained kid behind the counter and

Yeah, the Legend 72 HUV Printer can do Cornhole Boards

Not all of our print jobs are trade show signage or banner prints. Because the Legend 72 HUV printer can print on almost any surface, we’ve been able to try some cool things and make some pretty neat stuff. In fact, one surprise market has been the popularity of printing on plywood for customized corn hole games (also known as tailgate tosses). It’s great, clients come in with a design or a request and we can make a custom 2×4 plywood panel for as little as $150. We used to play this game for fun at family events, but it turns out people are actually pretty serious about corn hole. Did you know the American Cornhole Association sanctions Cornhole tournaments across the country? They’re everywhere. Corn hole may be a little silly, but it’s fun and it’s also a great example of how

Indianapolis ID Badge Solutions

Last year, we got a call from a local Indianapolis company that needed help with their ID card system. Because they had a number of locations across the greater Indianapolis area, they were dealing with multiple users across their HR department and wanted an employee access card system that was not only simple to use, but also easy to troubleshoot. We directed them to the Fargo DTC 550. Why? Because we knew we could deliver the needed supplies (ink cartridges, blank cards) on demand and Fargo had the support and customer education to back up their product. So, instead of spending days training their HR staff on a new system, they were up and running in hours. Lloyds of Indiana has been selling Fargo ID Badge Printers and supplies for years and one of the first things that attracted me to the product was their high level of customer and product education. On top of making high-quality ID card printers, Fargo has some of the best

Copyrights and Trademarks for print shops

Too many print shops shy away from printing logos or trademarked images because they’re worried about copyright infringement laws. The thing is, it’s easier to get the clearance licenses to print these things than you think. Consider this; sports franchises make most of their money through licensing deals. They want you or your clients to license their images and pay their royalty fees. It’s a business. So, the next time a client comes in and

New Media Changes The Way We Interact

A few weeks ago, I went down and did a hands-on install at a trade show. We were working with a partner putting up an interactive surface and I just had to get down there and see this new technology for myself. Interactive surfaces, or digital signage, can turn almost any surface into a touch screen. Basically, it’s a sensor-equipped foil and film that’s applied to a glass, Plexiglas or vinyl surface. Then, a basic overhead projector projects an image on to that surface, transforming the surface into a massive interactive surface. They’re really popular with retail outlets that want 24-hour customer interaction or trade show exhibitors looking for that added edge. I was absolutely fascinated by the technology and the implications it could have for the print business, which is why I went down there. I wanted to see this new product in an up close and personal environment and get really hands on with it. It was absolutely incredible

A Timeless Story about Book Binding

Today as I sat down to blog, I really wanted to talk about this certain product I find myself recommending a lot. But rather than slapping down the typical feature & benefit schpeel, I thought you’d like a story instead… So sit back and imagine this: [Curtain opens: Laura is wrestling with a coil binding machine. Narrator speaks.]

“Laura used to bind the old fashioned way –with a standard, coil binding machine. Her reports and proposals came out looking like middle-school assignments. The covers were hastily printed and the plastic coil binding never seemed to be centered correctly. Every time she’d open one of her old reports, the pages would get stuck on tangled, thick, black coils.”

[Laura pauses, touches her forehead with

Keys To Success for the Print Shop Owner

Often when I’m asked to speak at a convention or attend a trade conference, I’m asked what advice I would give to a new print or sign shop owner. Almost always, I stress the importance of marketing and building your client base. Why? Because without customers your business isn’t going to grow. That’s why I was so excited to find this new print shop discussion on the Marketing Profs’ website. It’s a couple of years old, but the ideas in this comments’ thread are perfect for a burgeoning print shop, whether you’re big or small. In the discussion, a sales rep for a print company asks how he can score bigger print jobs and market his company – the first two questions any new print shop owner should be asking themselves. The best part? He gets some great answers from

The Best Customer Service – Use What You Sell

When Lloyds of Indiana first started over twenty years ago, we were a print-service-only business. Today, we’re both a service provider and a product seller. By adapting our business model, we’ve become the premiere sign and print shop provider for both equipment and consulting advice in the Midwest. Why? Because, we USE the equipment that we SELL!

We Love The Trenches

Lloyds of Indiana may sell high-end printing equipment, but we still have a print shop and we still take on print jobs – that means we’re in the trenches using the equipment every day and passing that experience on to you. And, because printing and printing equipment is our business

FD 6100 inserter & Unibind XU-138

I remember a customer that came to us last year after investing thousands into a “do it all” mega printer and copier. It was a school in Indianapolis who quickly realized that their “do it all” printer and copier couldn’t bind, laminate, cut paper down, create mail outs, shred or really do much of anything other than copy and collate. This school had close to a thousand students, so when information went home that meant a thousand mailing packages had to be put together – that’s a thousand sheets of paper to fold, a thousand reply cards to insert and a thousand envelopes to assemble and seal. And though their super printer could do a simple tri-fold, it couldn’t