Canvas Magazine | Disrupt! | October 2015

EMPOWERINGMARKETING

SERVICEPROVIDERS

OCTOBER 2015

Navigating threats and barriers

The importance of understanding culture

The best content strategies revealed

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CANVAS P1

16

OCTOBERVOLUME 9 • ISSUE 10 • PRINT EDITION • OCTOBER 2015

BOILERPLATE

Publisher’s Note: Without a net

STAT PACK

CORNER OFFICE


What kind of communicator are you?

Book rec:Humans areunderrated

BEHIND THE CURTAIN

Awards & Recognition

Mergers & Acquisitions

MSP SPOTLIGHTS

Ride Along: Neenah expands design collection

06

P2 CANVAS OCTOBER 2015

Inside this issue| Publisher’s Note

BOILERPLATE

081412

ALSO INSIDE

30THREATS & BARRIERS

A snapshot of the road ahead for the printing industry

34 NEVER SURRENDERThe sales pro’s guide

to self-motivation

40Q&A: JURJEN JACOBS

On what today’scustomers are thinking

24

10

151 1

04

Canon is a registered trademark of Canon Inc. in the United States and elsewhere. Océ and Océ VarioPrint are a registered trademarks of Océ-Technologies B.V. in the United States and elsewhere. Océ ImageStream is a trademark of Océ-Technologies B.V. in the United States. All other referenced product names and marks are trademarks of their respective owners and are hereby acknowledged.

© 2015 Canon Solutions America, Inc. All rights reserved.

CANON SOLUTIONS AMERICA VOTED THE NUMBER ONE “COMPANY TO WATCH” AT THE 2015 INKJET SUMMIT.Recognized as the top “Company to Watch” at the 2015 Inkjet Summit, we are committed to helping customers take their production print operations to the next level. That’s why we’re pleased to present our newest inkjet presses. The Océ ImageStream™ 3500 inkjet press is the fi rst full-color continuous feed Océ inkjet solution to print on standard offset paper providing offset productivity with the variable data print benefi ts of digital printing. The Océ VarioPrint® i300 inkjet press features innovative cutsheet inkjet technology at a savings of up to half the operating costs of traditional toner-based equipment. Discover how these production inkjet presses will revolutionize your inkjet print production workfl ow.

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Canon is a registered trademark of Canon Inc. in the United States and elsewhere. Océ and Océ VarioPrint are a registered trademarks of Océ-Technologies B.V. in the United States and elsewhere. Océ ImageStream is a trademark of Océ-Technologies B.V. in the United States. All other referenced product names and marks are trademarks of their respective owners and are hereby acknowledged.

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BOILERPLATE

Inside this issue| Publisher’s Note

CANVAS, Volume 9, Issue 10. copyright 2015 CANVAS, All rights reserved. CANVAS is published bi-monthly for $39.00 per year by Conduit, Inc., 2180 Satellite Blvd., Suite 400, Duluth, GA 30097 Periodicals postage pending at Duluth, GA and additional mailings offices. Periodical Publication 25493. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to CANVAS, 2180 Satellite Blvd., Suite 400, Duluth, GA 30097. Please note: The acceptance of advertising or products mentioned by contributing authors does not constitute endorsement by the publisher. Publisher cannot accept responsibility for the correctness of an opinion expressed by contributing authors.

CANVAS magazine is dedicated to environmen-tally and socially responsible operations. We are proud to print this magazine on Opus® Dull Cover 80lb/216gsm and Opus Dull Text 80lb/118gsm, an industry-leading, environmentally responsible paper. Opus contains 10% post consumer waste and SFI and FSC chain of custody certification.

Change deserves your respect. I’ve done a lot of preaching about adapting to change and embracing new ideas. But when change is thrust upon me, I’m as sensitive as the next guy. Wanted or not, it really doesn’t matter how much you think you’ve prepared for change – it still hurts.

Mike Tyson’s famous quote, “Everyone has a plan ‘til they get punched in the mouth,” is dead on. Change is inevitable. And it’s going to sting. Whether you choose to change or not, nothing can be done to simply absorb it, accept it and immediately extract joy from it.

Change comes to all of us – personally and profession-ally. Oftentimes, we don’t seek change. It comes out of no-where. Ironically, that kind of disruption does not have a mo-nopoly on pain. The changes we seek can be just as difficult – maybe more so – because we thought we were prepared.

In many ways, when we seek change because we believe it will provide growth, it is much harder. We believe we’re armored up properly and that we’re strong enough to push through. But that type of mindset as-sumes there is a process or time limit to the pain.

While certainly not easy, unexpected chang-es offer an advantage. When we’re not so prepared, instinct can take over. We adapt because there is no other choice. On the oth-er hand, planned changes seem to provide some idea that we can revert back to the way things were if things don’t go smoothly.

Maybe the key is to take away the prover-bial safety net and force the change you seek. Clearly, there is no plan that allows you to pro-cess change properly. There will be unexpect-ed situations and lots of frustration. But you can try to anchor yourself to an attitude that will treat all change with the respect it deserves.

We have two stories that exam-ine the role disruption plays in our lives. Our cover story, “Disrupt,” examines the steps every leader can take to make it an effective part of their company’s growth strat-egy, while “Disrupting the Print Shop” provides a closer look at how it impacts our market.

Also in this issue, the story “Threats and Barriers” provides a snapshot of the challenges facing today’s printers and what lies ahead.

We hope you enjoy this issue, and happy fall.

CONTRIBUTORS

@THECANVASMAG 2180 Satellite Blvd., Suite 400, Duluth, GA 30097WWW.THECANVASMAG.COM

MANAGING EDITORmichael j. pallerino

CREATIVE DIRECTORbrandon clark

SALES/MARKETINGmark potter

lisa arsenaultMcArdle Solutionsgina dannerNextPagetom moeDaily Printingdean petrulakisRider Dickersondavid bennettBennett Graphics

EDITORIAL BOARD

THE CANVAS TEAM

GET IN TOUCH WITH US

Linda Bishop, President,Thought Transformation

@Linda_Bishop

PUBLISHED BY

WITHOUT A NET

Wanted or not, it really doesn’t matter how much you think you’ve prepared for change – it still hurts.

Mark Potter, Publisher

@MarkRicePotter

Warmest regards,

Justin Ahrens Founder & PrincipalRule29

@JustinAhrens

Ted Gorski PresidentGet Your Edge

@GetYourEdge

Jurjen JacobsVP Global Marketing & InnovationVelcro Industries

@JurjenJacobs

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WHAT’S ON YOUR TO-DO LIST?Ask today’s chief marketing officers about

the most pressing items on their to-do lists,

and then stand back. According to the

Aberdeen Group’s “The CMO Dilemma:

Bridging the Gap Between Love and

Money” report, the lists are big on

customer retention, satisfaction and

profitability. The report was based on data

from a survey of 447 marketers at B2B, B2C

and B2B/B2C companies from around the

world, with 57 percent here in the States.

Here’s a look at what topped their lists:

– Christoph Becker, CEO and chief creative officer at B2B agency Gyro, on why there

needs to be more emotion and less data in marketing today

Your goal is to get

to the top of the mountain

and you’re riding your bike,

competing to get there first…

and you get passed

by a motorcycle.”

The percent of marketers who believe meaningful call-to-action offers are the key to increasing click-thru rates (CTRs), according to Ascend2’s “Marketing Technology Strategy Survey.” Other favorable strategies include list segmentation (47 percent), message personalization (42 percent) and testing and optimization (35 percent). The report was based on data from a survey of 303 marketing, sales and business professionals from around the world (68 percent B2B-focused, 32 percent B2C).


CANVAS P7

HOW DO YOU DO CONTENT?You know content is a great way to drive your brand, but what type should you use and

how do you promote it? According to Starfleet Media’s “2015 Benchmark Report on

B2B Content Marketing and Lead Generation” report, case studies and client success

top the list for today’s B2B companies. The report, based on data from a survey of 324

B2B marketers and salespeople from around the world, included responses from com-

panies such as technology, manufacturing and business services. Here’s a snapshot of

the most common types of content used over the past 12 months:

38%Researchreports

67% Case studies/ client success

stories 62%Whitepapers 58%

Webinars 52%E-books

42%Infographics

Perspective | Leadership | Insights CORNEROFFICE


Justin Ahrens is founder

and principal of Rule29,

an award winning

suburban Chicago-

based strategic creative

firm. He is a frequent

guest blogger, national

speaker and author of “Life Kerning: Creative

Ways to Fine Tune Your Perspective on Career

and Life” (Wiley). Follow him and Rule29 on

Twitter – @justinahrens and @rule29.

W e can get inspired. We can learn how to upgrade our skills, but if we’re not in the right culture or helping to create the right culture, we’re missing out on our best work opportunities. Culture is an important component of any

company. In fact, I would argue it may be the most important component.

Culture defined The first step to creating your company’s culture is to figure out what your organization stands for and making decisions based on those values. Workplace culture is the manifestation of a company’s beliefs and values. It ultimately becomes the definition of “How We Do Things Around Here.”

Culture has nothing to do with whether or not your company has a pool table or what kind of music you play in the office (if you play music at all). We often point to those things as examples of culture, but really those are the by-products – the expression – of a company’s culture.

To find out a company’s culture, you almost have to work backward and figure it out deductively. What does a company’s posture about a particular thing say about them and what they value?

As an example, at Rule29, you rarely (if ever) will encounter someone who says, “We can’t do that.” Our posture generally is one of possibil-ity and interest, even if a project seems insurmountable or completely foreign to use. We generally feel capable of figuring anything out and, if history serves to prove itself, usually are successful.

If you take a look at this example, there are a few inferences that you can make:

• Rule29 probably attracts and hires employees who have a “can do” mentality (true).

• Rule29 probably attracts and wins clients or projects that present different, new challenges (true).

So, what led us to seek those kinds of employees and work with those kinds of clients? I would argue it’s because we implicitly value continual learning and growth. We like to constantly figure things out creatively and expand beyond our best capabilities. That’s our company culture. Because of this value, we implic-itly seek people and projects that will lead us more in that direction.

A company’s culture is much more than just the fun atmosphere in the office. Sure, there’s a fun atmosphere when you enter Rule29, but if you dig deeper, you’ll see the implicit values and desires that drives our creative, our employees and our clients.

At Rule29, the company culture simply is the result of the conversa-tion that constantly is occurring among your employees, your clients and your creatives, based on a set of values that underlie it all. These three groups inform and influence each other every day, and take place within a structure and leader-ship that allows them to function out of abundance, not deficit.

BY JUSTIN AHRENS

To find out a company’s culture, you almost have to work backward and figure it out deductively.

What does a company’s posture about a particular thing say about them and what they value?

Editor’s note: The first in a three-part series by CANVAS columnist Justin Ahrens on the importance of understanding culture.


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CORNER OFFICE

Perspective | Leadership | Insights

What kind of communicator are you? No. 3 – The MediatorThese individuals are calm, level-headed, great listeners, team-oriented, introverted and loyal. They make decisions in a con-sensus manner. Mediators like to mari-nate on questions. They dislike conflict, so they’ll internalize and tolerate it. Mediators do not pat themselves on the back. They make great teachers/trainers and mentors. As a result, this internalization builds until they explode.

Their biggest fear is loss of stability. They ask the “how” questions. Team and project managers typically fall into this style. Weak-nesses include being slow to make decisions.

To effectively connect with a Mediator, you must:

• Be patient and logical • Use a steady, low-keyed approach • Involve them in the planning process • Praise them privately • Allow time for “marination of ideas” • Start conversation with a warm and

friendly greeting • Keep your tone of voice at

discussion level

No. 4 – The AnalyzerThese individuals are meticulous, detail-ori-ented, introverted and task-oriented. They can be considered perfectionists and are sus-picious of others. They may answer a ques-tion with a question. Their biggest fear is criticism. They ask the “why” questions.

Key strengths include being detailed-oriented, superb problem solvers and pro-viding the team’s reality check. Weaknesses include having tunnel vision and looking for the perfect solution.

To effectively communicate with the Analyzer, you must:

• Be organized and logical • Support your position using facts • Make sure each point is understood

before moving to the next • Don’t use the phrase, “Let me give you

some constructive advice.”• Use words such as process, data

and procedure• Motivate them by quality and data

Ted Gorski is a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) and president of Get Your Edge. For more information, visit www.GetYourEdge.com, call 603-472-3821 or email [email protected].

hat kind of communications style do you have? Are you approachable? Aggressive? Social? Today, leaders need excellent communication skills, regardless of their own communication type. Understanding the style of the per-son you’re communicating with is the difference between

getting your message across and getting it across well.Here are four communication styles and how to effectively communicate

with them:

No. 1 – The Aggressor-Asserter They are competitive, goal-oriented, demanding, task-oriented and fast-paced. Time is money and money is time. Because they are direct, you know where you stand. Their biggest fear is losing control. They ask the “what” questions.

These leaders have key strengths that include providing momentum, pro-viding focus and making quick decisions. Their “on top of it” approach can keep everybody on target or even get things done early.

But there must be balance, as their weaknesses include overstepping their assignments and taking over tasks – not necessarily because they can do them better, but because they want to get them done.

To effectively connect with the Aggressor-Asserter, you must:

• Be brief, direct and concise • Provide options• Use a fast, quick pace • Focus on results and return-on-investment • Avoid providing lots of details• Provide short answers• Look them straight in their eyes • Be truthful

No. 2 – The SocializerThese individuals are charismatic, enthusiastic, persuasive, lively, loud, talkative, friendly, people-oriented and very social. They also are visual and creative. Their biggest fear is social rejection and they ask the “who” questions. The Socializer is a great motivator. In most organizations, they are on sales teams. They’re very creative and enjoy brainstorming. They don’t keep track of time well and some-times work tight to deadlines. They enjoy being the center of attention.

To effectively communicate with a Socializer, you must:

• Allow time for social interaction • Put details in writing or email • Have a fast-paced, positive approach• Use a whiteboard in your discussions • Use phrases like “Picture this” or “Do you see” • Avoid a harsh, aggressive tone

Understanding the style of the person you’re communicating with is the difference between getting your message across and getting it across well.

BY TED GORSKI


CANVAS P11

Perspective | Technology | Insights CORNEROFFICE

ALL EYES ON YOUThis much we know – through 2018 the use of

behavioral marketing data will increase. That’s the takeaway from Millward Brown Digital’s “Getting

Digital Right 2015” study, which says that nearly 70 percent of marketers currently are using

behavioral data to make marketing decisions. Interestingly, only 14 percent of marketers say they

are “confident” in their use of data, the study found. The study was based on input from more than 400

marketers spanning brands, media companies and agencies.

BOOK REC

Computers are taking over the world. How many times have you heard that over the course of your professional career? The nightmare sce-nario for some still is playing out as the power of technology continues to dominate our everyday lives.

Bestselling author Geoff Colvin explains how the skills the economy values are changing in historic ways. As Colvin writes in “Humans are Underrated,” the abilities that will prove most essential to our success are no longer the technical, classroom-taught left-brain skills that eco-nomic advances have demanded from workers in the past.

Instead, Colvin says our greatest advantage lies in what humans are most powerfully driven to do for and with one another – empathy, cre-ativity, social sensitivity, storytelling, humor, building relationships and expressing ourselves with greater power than logic can ever achieve.

As technology advances, the key is not to try and beat computers at what they do, but to develop our most essential human abilities. Humans Are Underrated is the book that will show you just how valuable you are and what it takes to be great.

Humans Are Underrated:What High Achievers Know That Brilliant Machines Never Will

THE TAO OF THE TWEETWait, before you send that tweet, check the clock. That’s right, according to Buffer’s “Twitter Timing” report, the highest volume of tweets occurs on average between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., local time. Translation: The highest volume hour for tweeting varies significantly by location; for example, 9 a.m. is the most popular tweet time in San Francisco, whereas noon is the most popular tweet time in New York, the study found. The report was based on an analysis of more than 4.8 million tweets sent by 10,000 Twitter accounts from around the world. Other survey nuggets include:

• The highest number of clicks per tweet on average occurs late at night, between 2 a.m. and 4 a.m., local time

• The fewest clicks per tweet on average occur in the mornings when tweet volume is particularly high, between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m., local time.

• The best time for clicks tends to be evening and late night across time zones, with variations – for example, 7 p.m. is the peak time in Denver for clicks, whereas it is 2 a.m. in Paris.


Awards & Around the industry | Mergers & AcquisitionsBEHINDTHE CURTAIN

Awards & Recognition

Fineline Printing Group has been

recognized as one of 20 companies

on the “2015 Indiana Companies to

Watch” list. The awards program was

presented by the State of Indiana

and the Office of Small Business and Entrepreneurship (OSBE)

and endorsed by the Edward Lowe Foundation. Companies to

Watch celebrates Indiana’s privately-held second-stage com-

panies – businesses that are past the startup phase and consid-

ered to be established, and face issues of growth, not survival.

Fineline was selected based on its innovation in the marketplace,

including excellence in process management, managed print ser-

vices technology “Finelink,” strategic client and program support,

and resilience and growth during times of economic downturn.

FlexPrint Inc. again has

been named to the “2015

Inc. 500|5000 list” as one of

America’s fastest growing organizations. This year’s honor marks

the sixth consecutive year that FlexPrint has made the list, de-

buting at No. 423 in 2010. Each year, Inc. Magazine ranks the

5,000 fastest-growing privately held firms in the United States.

Printing Industries of America (PIA) has named its “2015 InterTechTechnol-

ogy Awards.” Judged by an independent

panel of judges, the awards recognize

innovative companies expected to ad-

vance the performance of the graphic

communications industry. Also honored

were solutions that facilitate cross-media

marketing campaigns, use a new standard to define and commu-

nicate brand colors, and simplify the integration of production

and business processes. The 10 technologies selected included

(listed alphabetically):

• Océ VarioPrint i300 (Canon U.S.A., Inc.)

• ORIS CxF (CGS Publishing Technologies International LLC)

• KODAK PROSPER 6000 Presses (Kodak)

• NX advantage, KODAK FLEXCEL NX System (Kodak)

• EFI DirectSmile Cross Media (EFI)

• Automation Engine Connect (Esko)

• Prinect Media Manager (Heidelberg)

• Highcon Euclid Digital Finishing Technology

(Highcon Systems Ltd.)

• MGI iFOIL (MGI)

• X-Rite eXact with Scan Option (X-Rite)

Xerox has donated a Xerox Color 800 Press with the Xerox EX

Print Server to Cal Poly’s Graphic Communication Department. The

Color 800, which can print 80 pages per minute, is being used to

produce output for student design projects, publishing endeavors,

papers and displays in the Graphic Communication Department.

The high-capacity press powered by Fiery, features a variety of fin-

ishing options, such as stacking, trimming, punching and booklet

making, and a fifth dry ink station, at which Cal Poly will use Xerox

Clear Dry Ink to add new dimensions to output using spot, flood

or textured effects.

The Electronic Document Scholarship Foudation (EDSF), the in-

ternational non-profit organization dedicated to developing and

providing programs to attract and support students worldwide

with their education plans, has added two members to its 2015

Board of Directors. The new additions include Barbara Stainbrook,

VP, business development for Ink Jet & Industrial Printing of Koni-

ca Minolta Business Solutions, and Mark J. Subers, president and

CRO for Printing & Packaging and Publishing at NAPCO Media.

BR Printers has added two

key players to its sales team,

including Derek Giulianelli as

VP of sales, and Todd Lam-

bert as an account executive. BR Printers, San Jose, Calif., is a lead-

ing provider of digital printing products and book manufacturing. It

also operates production facilities in Independence, Ky., and East

Windsor, N.J.

Around the industry

When we asked offset printers in 2007 to describe the perfect short run press solution, they didn’t mince words. The print quality needs to be as good as offset litho. Use standard coated and uncoated stocks, and load-up and off-load of sheets shouldn’t require an owners manual to figure out. The prints should be smooth, without any pile-height issues, and look and feel like an offset sheet. Prints need to be durable too, especially when using finishing equipment. And please…no more click charges.

Fujifilm’s J Press 720S technology delivers these benefits and J Press installations have produced millions of brand on demand impressions where it counts most - in the field. So why wait on the promises of new technology, when proven Fujifilm innovation can help you dominate the high-quality, short-run market today.

Seeing is believing. Visit fujifilminkjet.com today.

Ready to Deliver Brand on Demand

The J Press 720S provides offset quality inkjet printing for short run work that will pass the eye test of even the most discerning brand manager. Fujifilm proprietary technologies, combined with the presses’ superb registration accuracy, provide extraordinary fine text and line detail, stunning vibrant colors, and superb skin tones, resulting in a smooth high quality finish with the durability and finishing characteristics of an offset print.

Visit fujifilminkjet.com to: INFO Get a Print Sample DEMO Set up a Demo WEB View Videos

14-FUJI-0341_CanvasMag_Jpress_Ad_FullPg.indd 1 3/3/15 9:55 AM


BEHINDTHE CURTAIN

Awards & Around the industry | Mergers & Acquisitions

GETYOURNEWSHERE.

WHAT’SGOINGON?LET USKNOW!

People news. New products. Trends shaping the way our industry does business. If you have a news item, CANVAS wants to hear about it. All you have to do is email us the information and a photograph, and we’ll do the rest. Send your information to [email protected].

Mergers & Acquisitions

Neenah Paper has signed a definitive agree-

ment to purchase all of the outstanding eq-

uity of ASP FiberMark LLC (“FiberMark”)

from an affiliate of American Securities LLC

for $120 million. With annual sales of more

than $160 million, FiberMark is a specialty

coating and finishing company with a strong

presence in luxury packaging and overlapping technical prod-

uct categories. The company sells globally from six production

facilities in the United States and one in the United Kingdom.

Electronics For Imaging Inc. (EFI) has acquired privately-held

Matan Digital Printers, an award-winning provider of innovative

technologies for superwide-format display graphics and other

industrial printing applications. Based in Rosh Ha’Ayin, Israel,

the company’s digital industrial inkjet printers are designed to

offer high productivity, quality and durability, while ensuring a

low cost of ownership. Matan’s work force of approximately 70

employees has joined EFI, giving EFI a significant presence in

Israel, a center for innovation in the printing industry. Yosefi has

joined EFI as VP and GM, EFI Inkjet Israel.

In other EFI news, the company acquired Bergamo, Italy-

based Reggiani Macchine, a leading technology provider with

an extensive lineup of industrial inkjet printers utilizing water-

based inks in printing on fabric. Reggiani’s inkjet technolo-

gies, which will be rebranded as EFI Reggiani, address the full

scope of advanced textile printing, with versatile printers suit-

able for water-based dispersed, acid, pigment and reactive

dye printing inks. Reggiani has customers in more than 120

countries served by a wide distribution network and agents in

over 40 countries.

CANVAS P15

MSP PRODUCTSPOTLIGHTS

Download the MSP Resource Guide app

Products and resources just a tap away

Ride alongNeenah expands design collection, unveils companion swatchbook

Four new premium paper grades. That just happened

at Neenah Paper. The world-class selection of colored,

pearlized and textured papers, The Design Collection,

has been expanded to include four premium paper

grades from Italian papermaker Gruppo Cordenons.

And if that wasn’t enough, Neenah also expanded its

popular STARDREAM® and WILD® Papers lines, which

are available in a new companion swatchbook to the

original Design Collection swatchbook.

“The demand for The Design Collection has sur-

passed our every expectation,” says Ellen Bliske, senior

brand manager at Neenah. “We can’t wait to see what

designers will do with all the new items.”

With these additions, The Design Collection now

offers 15 paper brands, blending six iconic paper lines

from North America and nine on-trend Italian brands.

The new collection now offers more unique options

for designers to set their work apart with premium

packaging, look books, high-end brochures, gift card

holders, greeting cards, identity materials and other

print collateral.

The new collection includes NATURAL EVOLUTIONS

Papers (colors: White, Frost and Ivory). MONNALISA®

Papers (colors: Premium White), Slide (colors: Black and

White) and Astroprint (color: White).

Neenah has also expanded these popular lines, in-

cluding the STARDREAM Papers (added C1S text

weights for box wrap in the most popular colors) and

WILD Papers (now includes four new colors in popular

111 pound. Cover: Sand, Clay, Brown and Black.

EDUCATIONALMATERIALS

>> For samples and to read more about the line, visit www.neenahpaper.com/finepaper/designcollection. To see The Design Collection, go to www.neenahpaper.com/designcollection.


PERSPECTIVE

By Lorrie Bryan

CANVAS P17 CANVAS P17

Cover Story

riverless cars. Biometric trackers. 3D-printed drones

and bones. Iris-scan identifiers. Sounds like a list of the gadgetry used in a James Bond movie. But in fact, all of these technologies are on the path to becoming commonplace. You soon may be unlocking your iPhone via an iris scan, and sporting body parts made with 3D printers.

Is this disruption? Many are quick to label these newfangled gad-

gets as big bang, game-changing disrupters, but academic experts

have more rigid criteria for determining what constitutes disruption.

“People throw around the word disruption fairly cavalierly

these days, however, not all innovation is disruptive,” says Yael

Hochberg, an associate professor at Rice University and one of

the foremost experts on accelerator programs. “Print industry

leaders need to understand that disruption is a process that hap-

pens when new startups come into a space to address the needs

of customer segments that are not core customers for incumbent

players and whose needs are not addressed by current products.”

“Typically, these startups offer a product that is cheaper than

that offered by incumbents, but also stripped of certain elements

that the core customers of incumbents require,” says Hochberg,

who serves on the advisory board and board of directors for a

number of startup companies.

Although disruption often seems to happen abruptly, it usually

takes time. The new entrants climb the technology S-curve and cre-

ate a product that does serve the incumbents’ core customers and

often it is cheaper/better/faster due to new technological advances.

D

“In the knowledge age,corporate battlesare won through creative thinking and fresh human innovation,not by bending steelor cutting costs.” – Josh Linkner, Author, The Road to Reinvention


Disrupt!

“Typically companies can’t address every

customer segment out there, so they focus on their core customers,

which leaves a segment of customers for

newcomers to serve with new technologies.”

– Yael Hochberg, Associate Professor, Rice University

THE NATURE OF DISRUPTIONLike volcanoes, earthquakes, tsunamis and other potentially

catastrophic occurrences, disruption is a natural insuppressible

element of an ever-changing cycle of life. “Typically companies

can’t address every customer segment out there, so they focus

on their core customers, which leaves a segment of customers

for newcomers to serve with new technologies,” Hochberg says.

This is the fertile ground from which disruption springs into

being. And it usually is the playground where light-footed new-

comers frolic, rather than heavily laden corporations.

“Once large corporations are invested in a certain way of doing

things, it is often difficult for them to jump onto a new technology

S-curve and take a new approach for fear of upsetting core cus-

tomers, or because the new technology at its outset can’t serve

their needs fully,” Hochberg says. “New entrants enter, and over

time can displace incumbents who don’t find a way to shift onto

the new curve.”

While this is the typical way new technologies and methods

are introduced to the market, it is not the only way innovation

happens. “Many companies figure out how to stay ahead of the

new technology shifts and survive and win by disrupting them-

selves,” Hochberg says.

COW OR BUFFALO?When cows sense a storm is coming, they try to outrun it. But

instead of getting ahead of it, they end up plodding right along

with the storm and the stampeding herd, prolonging their expo-

sure and discomfort. Conversely, buffalos charge right into the

same storm, and by running at it, they quickly run through it,

minimizing their discomfort.

Often in business, what appears to be the most conservative

option could be fatal. It turns out playing it safe has become

recklessly dangerous.

“Since the start of the 21st Century, the world has changed

dramatically,” says Josh Linkner, a highly successful tech en-

trepreneur and bestselling author of “The Road to Reinven-

tion: How to Drive Disruption and Accelerate Transformation.”

t


Disrupt!

“Global financial crisis, technological breakthroughs, geopolitical

turmoil and other tectonic shifts in our world should have shaken

our belief in the old-school ideology of success through risk aver-

sion. And yet, shockingly, most people still play by the old rules,

wondering why their results are plummeting as they faithfully fol-

low their old formula for success.”

CREEPY CRAWLERSSometimes to succeed you must diligently turn over rocks and see

what crawls out. Linkner urges business leaders to take a careful,

critical look at every aspect of their operation (products, services,

production, technology, processes, and systems) and explore ar-

eas for improving their models.

Reinvention is the necessary process of proactively crafting a

new future. The more effectively you drive ongoing innovation and

reinvention throughout your organization, the more routine these

examinations will become – and the more opportunity you’ll have

to make course correction before it’s too late.

“By making the choice to challenge even your most valuable

core concepts, you can help to ensure that your organization will

grow stronger as a result of innovation rather than being consumed

by it,” Linkner says.

CANVAS P21


Disrupt!

BULL’S EYESAs the old saying goes, “Every bull’s eye is the result of 100 misses.”

Likewise, failure is an essential element of success and of reinvention.

“When you study innovative breakthroughs in just about any area,

you find that some of the biggest advances are the result of someone

toying with the seed of an idea, then developing it through a series of

stumbles, missteps and failed experiments that eventually bear fruit,”

Linkner says.

The best organizations embrace failure as an element of the dis-

ruption process. They create a culture that encourages courage and

they focus on celebrating new ideas instead of ignoring them. They

instill the spirit of reinvention in their employees by fostering bold-

ness rather than complacency, and rewarding employees for chal-

lenging the status quo rather than suppressing them.

“In the knowledge age, corporate battles are won through creative

thinking and fresh human innovation, not by bending steel or cutting

costs,” Linkner says. Accordingly, business cultures that support, nur-

ture, and harness their team’s best creative ideas are the winners of

photo-finish victories. Creative ideas are rarely born as fully developed

and fully defensible. Rather, they are nascent sparks that must be re-

fined and shaped to bring their full power to life.”

And that is the genesis of disruption.

Although disruptionoften seems to happen abruptly, it usuallytakes time.

Graph Expo 2015 may be over but innovation never ends. Staying relevant in the

graphic communications industry requires leveraging technologies that create new business

opportunities, drive sales, maximize manufacturing efficiencies and decrease operating costs.

At Konica Minolta, we inspire business growth with an ecosystem that integrates:

• Award-winning Hardware and Software Solutions• Workflow Assessment and Automation Services• Integrated Marketing Services

• Color Management• Web-to-Print• IT Services

Get inspired by seeing how Konica Minolta can transform the way your business does business.

© 2015 KONICA MINOLTA BUSINESS SOLUTIONS U.S.A., INC. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. KONICA MINOLTA, the KONICA MINOLTA logo, bizhub, and Giving Shape to Ideas are registered trademarks or trademarks of KONICA MINOLTA, INC.

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KON-642-2M Graph Expo Canvas Magazine October Ad.indd 1 8/24/15 1:03 PM


PERSPECTIVE

By Michael J. Pallerino

DISRUPTINGTHE PRESSROOM

How change continues to impact today’s printers

CANVAS P25

Feature Story

n his bestselling book, “The Innovator’s Dilemma,” Harvard Business School professor Clay Christensen defined “disruption” as a disruptive product that

addresses a market that previously couldn’t be served – a new-market disruption. Christensen boldly proclaimed that leading companies can do everything right and still lose their market leadership or, worse yet, disappear altogether if they fail to recognize the new way of doing business.

I

Stand by the “traditional” way of doing business and you

could get pushed to the curb. Christensen’s book, published in

1997, still is a “must read” for business leaders wading through

industries where disruption is redirecting their market strategies.

Queue the music for the commercial printing industry,

where analysts such as Dr. Joe Webb, president of Strategies

for Management Inc. and head of the Economics & Research

Center at WhatTheyThink.com, keep a close eye on the ever-

changing face of the marketplace.

If you’ve been watching the numbers lately, printing ship-

ments are trending upward. Webb says that’s a positive sign

for an industry that experienced its share of disruption over the

past decade. “The old printing guard has either retired, been

fired, sold their businesses or gave up. The next generation has

taken over in many companies. This new generation of manag-

ers, mostly in their 40s, grew up with computers at home and

have been using technology their whole lives. They have also

lived in an industry that has never grown or declined.”

“Disruption will continue to force us to find new products and services to offset the declines or find better sales opportunities.”– Howie Fenton, Associate Director of Operations Consulting, InfoTrends


Disrupting the pressroom

The story is one everybody knows. In the throes of a wicked and

long lasting recession, the commercial printing business, like many

others, took its lumps. With the need to alter business strategies and

adapt to a new way of doing business, print shops found themselves in

new worlds – broadband, online video, podcasts, smartphones, social

media, tablets, content marketing, and other devices and formats. The

Printing Service Providers (PSPs) of yesterday became the Marketing

Service Providers (MSPs) of today.

“You couldn’t play the ‘wait-until-things-come-back’ game, you had

to make those interactions with your clients deeper and more proac-

tive,” Webb says. “You could not take print sales for granted anymore.

Those print businesses that adapted their offerings and tactics found

stability. If this history tells us anything, it’s to be wary and flexible,

and especially vigilant about communications technologies and social

changes that enable or thwart media use.”

These are new – and exceedingly positive – days in the printing

services industry. Take a quick glance at today’s marketplace, and you

will see that production inkjet technology is projected to account for

nearly one-third of all digital print by 2016. Inkjet solutions apply to

virtually every production print market – book production, direct mail,

transactional, commercial, and promotional.

In addition, sheetfed inkjet products promise to be the next wave of

products to revolutionize the arena. The new type of digital press will

help consolidate sheetfed black-and-white and color workflows on to

one production printing system.

With these evolving technologies and all their applications, it once

again is time for printers to evaluate how incorporating these changes

into their business models can benefit their businesses.

That’s where companies like Canon Solutions America enter the pic-

ture. The company, which continues to stay one step ahead of the

changing marketplace, recently launched its first high-volume sheet-

fed color inkjet digital press – the Océ VarioPrint i300 inkjet press.

While combining high-speed inkjet with sheets of paper is challeng-

ing for all players in the print industry, Océ iQuarius Technologies is a

constellation of innovations that facilitates high-speed inkjet on sheets

of paper. It’s the reason the Océ VarioPrint i300 is such a big player.

“We were an early pioneer of inkjet technology, accumulating broad

and deep expertise in inkjet heads, paper, and ink technologies,” says

Eric Hawkinson, Senior Director of Marketing, Production Print Solu-

tions division of Canon Solutions America. “The presses in our industry

leading inkjet portfolio are known for their robust design and con-

sistent, high-quality output. Coming to market with a high-volume,

sheetfed inkjet digital press is a natural extension of our industry lead-

ership and everything we’ve accomplished over the past few years.”

Inkjet technology has accelerated the printing industry’s transition from

offset to high-volume digital output. This technology offers the ability to

reduce overall operating costs, while maintaining personalization in high-

speed environments. Sheetfed inkjet devices have the added benefit of

allowing printers to leverage existing in-line finishing options.

Hawkinson says the technology is now better developed than it was

a decade ago and development will likely accelerate in the coming

years – again changing the face of today’s print shops.

“Now is the time to invest in inkjet – but invest smartly,” Hawkinson

says. “Find a partner who will evaluate your print operation and will work

with you to help you build a customized solution just right for you.”

PARTNERSHIPS ARE KEYIf there is one key to surviving and thriving in the world of disruption, it

is by building partnerships. In an ever-evolving landscape, printers and

vendors must continue to work together through mutual education.

“Find a partner who will evaluate

your print operation and will work with

you to help you build a customized

solution just right for you.”

– Eric Hawkinson, Senior Director of Marketing,

Production Print Solutions division of Canon Solutions America

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“Intelligent vendors listen to their customers to learn what pain

points they may have or what their needs are, and then develop

products based on that feedback,” Hawkinson says. “We rely on a

group of customer advisors to provide input critical to our product

development. The Océ VarioPrint i300 is a result of customers, in-

dustry experts, and Canon development teams working together

to shape development priorities and various aspects of product

concepts and processes.”

Vendors also can work to help educate customers and the

industry on developing technologies. That’s one reason Canon

Solutions America created thINK, an independent community of

Canon Solutions America production print customers, solution

partners, and print industry experts.

Designed to assist businesses in achieving accelerated growth

and productivity, the collaborative community provides a forum

to network with peers, share best practices, and learn from indus-

try leaders and solution partners. “We are looking forward to see-

ing how this group will grow in the future and empower printers to

take advantage of this technology,” Hawkinson says.

Howie Fenton believes that printers and suppliers working to-

gether is at the heart of succeeding in a disruptive marketplace,

especially today’s print shops. Fenton, an associate director of

operations consulting with InfoTrends, says the trend of declin-

ing volumes forced printers to seek new products and services to

offset losses.

“One of the challenges for today’s vendors is that it is getting

hard to differentiate themselves on equipment feeds and speeds

alone,” Fenton says. “They are being asked to do more. Do you

have software products that can help me reduce my production

and manufacturing costs? Do you have the training programs that

can help my team better understand these new opportunities and

be better at selling them?”

Fenton says business development programs are becoming

just as important as the services being offered. And while it is a

big change for some manufacturers, others have been doing it for

more than a decade.

One of the things that InfoTrends is tracking today is the dis-

tinguishing factors between the printing industry’s leading and

lagging companies. The leading companies are the ones invest-

ing more in sales and customer service – programs designed to

help printers shifting staffing from the operational and production

sides to marketing-type roles.

“This often is the result of the disruptive changes you see when

the economy gets better and more services are sold,” Fenton

says. “How can we continue to make money with decreasing vol-

umes and profitability? As much as we think this is new, this has

been going on in the industry for the past 25 years. Disruption will

continue to force us to find new products and services to offset

these declines or find better sales opportunities.”

Disrupting the pressroom

“If this history tells us anything, it’s to be wary and flexible, and especially vigilant about

communications technologies and social changes that enable or thwart media use.”

– Dr. Joe Webb, Head of Economics & Research Center, WhatTheyThink.com

CANVAS P29


PERSPECTIVE

By Michael J. Pallerino


Feature Story

You evolve – you have a chance at success. You don’t – well,

you know the rest.

Bill Barta will tell you straight up. There is no magic answer or

silver bullet. Barta and the scores of printing industry executives like

him agree that the most effective way to face threats and barriers is

to face them head on. Push ahead. Inspire forward thinking and out-

of-the-box ideas. Rally your team to get

things done bigger, faster and stronger.

It all comes down to your approach.

The companies that seek ways to add

value for their clients and understand

their challenges leave the door open to

success. But that means moving past a

“transaction selling” mindset and into

one of being a “solutions provider.”

“We all see the changes in social

media and technology,” says Barta,

president and CEO of Rider Dickerson.

“Our competition is much larger than

other printers. I believe the successful

companies in our industry will be those

that invest in solutions for their clients that are not directly print

related, but instead solve marketing and communication challenges

more effectively.”

Depending on your perspective, the prospects for the printing

industry’s long-term future remain relatively optimistic. The Printing

Industry Association’s (PIA) “Industry Briefing: Competing in Print’s

Dynamic Marketspace in 2015” shows that the industry has op-

portunities. For example, while aggregate U.S. printing shipments

are projected to decline gradually until 2021 (from $158.5 billion

to $143.6 billion), PIA projects that print’s economic footprint will

remain large – more than $143 billion.

This makes the commercial printing market one of the largest

U.S. manufacturing industries.

In addition, two out of three print functions are expected to

grow (print logistics and print marketing/promotion) over that

time frame, with total shipments of commercial printing and re-

lated support activities expected to increase at a modest pace

through 2021, the study shows.

As the senior VP of business development for Rider Dicker-

son, Dean Petrulakis continues to mine

the many opportunities available to

printers willing to take that next step

forward. Part of the process is not only

knowing what the printer down the

street is doing, but what the other com-

panies around you are doing as well.

“It doesn’t matter what industry you are

in or if you are B2B or B2C, our compe-

tition is everyone,” Petrulakis says. “We

aren’t just competing with other printers

anymore. We have to be aware that con-

sumers interact with and buy from brands

differently than they used to. We can bury

our heads in the sand and pretend it isn’t

happening or we can adapt and prosper.”

Riding the technology waveWithout question, technology has changed the way we do every-

thing. With the proliferation of mobile, tablets and other devices,

consumers are choosing when and where to engage with brands.

This has put the onus on brands to find a way to cut through

the clutter and digital noise to reach the right audience, with the

right message/offer, at the right time. It is incumbent on them to

leverage consumer data and insights, and to deliver content, in all

forms, to an audience that’s ready to make a purchase. Add to it

the ability to measure ROI in an ever-blurring omnichannel world,

and the job is a big one.

“We all see the changes in social

media and technology. Our competition is much larger than other printers.”

– Bill Barta, President & CEO,

Rider Dickerson

ame a challenge you face every day. Depending

on what space your company plays in, the scope

of the challenge (or challenges) may vary. Let’s

be realistic here – every industry, every marketplace,

has challenges – threats and/or barriers that force

companies to constantly reevaluate how and why they

do certain things.

“Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal.”

– Henry Ford


Threats & Barriers

The reality is that budgets allocated to printed materials

have been reduced amid this burgeoning revolution. But that

barrier means today’s printers must be able to read, react and

adapt with better precision.

Renee Badura, executive VP of sales for Quad/Graphics, be-

lieves that printers can continue to turn this into an advantage.

“We must leverage technology to help our clients create ex-

ceptional customer experiences in all media. Today’s marketing

programs include many facets and touchpoints, and it’s incum-

bent upon marketing service providers (MSPs) to help marketers

execute seamless campaigns – delivering value and relevance in

connected and consistent print and digital channels.”

Today, it’s all about mining for data, collecting and analyzing

that data, and targeting your findings. That’s where print has

become an ally. “Print is tactile,” Badura says. “It involves the

reader, and it often contains a call to action, i.e., a coupon, or-

der form, web and/or store address. It can create tactile emo-

tional connections with imagery and copy that doesn’t exist in

a digital environment.”

And that is the key. Print is everywhere. Digital technology has

changed where the printed word can travel in a matter of min-

utes, from Atlanta to Austin, Texas to San Francisco, to Japan

and Amsterdam, and around the world again.

Deidre Acord, sales manager for Capital Printing Co., says this

is where the beauty of print begins. “While you may be able to

read a book or brochure on your iPad, computer or smartphone,

people still want to feel something tactile in their hand. To visu-

ally see and feel the printed piece is still important.”

Acord loves when new customers visit their plant and see the

magic of how ink gets on paper. “It still is an amazing process

to watch. We also have online print customers that don’t care

to come to the plant and see how things gets printed. They

just fill out the online order form and get their printed piece in

a matter of days.”

The key is to have a smart management team that is willing to

invest in the growth. But that doesn’t mean you have to be the first

to jump into the new equipment game. “With generations of up-

grades to any device, computers, proofing, presses, bindery equip-

ment, it takes a lot of patience to not jump right in,” Acord says.

“It’s important to evaluate the equipment yearly based on what and

how much you’re printing. You have to know your market. That’s

what makes the relationship with your customers so important.”

Growing an aging industryWhen printing and marketing firms Nextpage and PrintBig, the

result of a merger between Mail Print, Graphic Services and L&L

Manufacturing, recently attracted some bindery talent from a

competitor, CEO Gina Danner saw it as an ominous sign

of things to come.

“Print is tactile. It can create tactile emotional connections with imagery and copy that doesn’t exist in a digital environment.”

– Renee Badura, Executive VP of Sales, Quad/Graphics


“The new hires were frustrated, because at their previous em-

ployer everyone was just putting in time waiting until retirement,”

Danner says. “The entire organization was ‘stale.’ While it’s good

for us, I see many owners that have given up on the prospects of

growth for their company and are now waiting to retire.”

It is the exact opposite at NextPage, which also recently ac-

quired Print Big Solutions, a company that specializes in banners,

wallpaper murals, vehicle graphics and other large-format print-

ing. Danner says it’s just the latest move for a company bent on

doing what it takes to continue to grow with the times.

Over the last 24 months, NextPage, owned by Danner, her

brother Eric and Larry Wittmeyer, Jr., has merged four compa-

nies, expanded its plant, consolidated operations in a single

state-of-the-art production facility, renamed the organization,

invested millions of dollars in new technology, and completed

an office and plant remodel.

Danner believes moves like this will attract top-tier talent. “Top-

tier talent does not think of the print industry when starting a career

search. It’s not a sexy growth career full of driven young people.”

Attracting Millennials is something every printer should have at

the top of their lists. It’s a threat too many printers are ignoring.

Smart printers are evolving by incorporating new and improved

systems or offering new services to meet their client needs. This

will help attract the next generation of printers.

“One of the largest barriers our industry faces is staffing,”

Rider Dickerson’s Barta says. “Right now, there are fewer and

fewer young, talented people joining the industry across all de-

partments – sales, customer service, offset pressroom, prepress,

bindery and mailing. As an industry, we do not do a good job

recruiting and promoting ourselves to the various talent pools.

Most printing companies have a continually aging work force.

Some of the digital technologies have helped lessen our needs

for certain positions, but we all have significant challenges find-

ing young, talented personnel.”

As marketers continue to seek that magic formula to en-

gage consumers and close a sale, printers must continue to

position themselves as a tactical weapon. It can (and must) be

done, Quad/Graphics’ Badura says. “Listen to the challenges,

start with the data, and work together in developing print and

digital solutions that deliver the desired results and improve

campaign performance.”

barriers today’s printers must navigate now

FIVEStaffing

As the printing industry continues to evolve, its ability

to attract top-tier Millennials must be a priority.

An aging industry

As many of today’s printing company executives reach

retirement age, the industry must compensate by

making sure the future generation is in place

(a move that piggybacks the need to attract

young talent).

Sales compensation with value

Many printing sales associates are paid as if they

are top-tier sales hunters, when in many cases they

are farmers, waiting for the client to call and place

an order. The industry must do a better job of

selling value.

Recognizing customer needs and value

Printers must do a better job at canvassing the

market and analyzing client needs across vertical

markets. In turn, they must be able to service those

needs. That means identifying new technology or

software platforms.

Avoiding the race to the bottom

Too much iron in the market has resulted in a race

to the bottom. Print service providers have taught

buyers they can pay what they want to pay for a

project. The key is to stop being lackadaisical when

trying to sell your services.


SALES

CANVAS P35

Feature Story

NEVERSURRENDER

By Linda Bishop

otivation. We all know what it feels like to have it, and it’s a wonderful thing to sell when you’re

completely focused, productive and driving toward completion of a task or goal.We all know what it feels like to have lost

it. Focus fades and attention wanders. Even small tasks, like making a single phone call to a promising lead, feel like boulder-sized burdens too heavy to carry to completion.


Never surrender

High motivation helps you sell. Low motivation holds you back. Both states are normal. Over your lifetime, you already have learned multiple strategies to motivate yourself, but if you’re like me, improving self-motivation skills is not a topic frequently visited.

Why? Because until recently I thought my skills were good enough.

After an epic episode of prolonged procrastination on an important project, I took a hard look at my own self-motivational toolbox. I forced myself to go back over the ground I covered. What was it about this project that made it so hard to get started and keep going? Why did I let it drag on for so long?

When I finally finished, there was little satisfaction in a job well done – only relief that I finally completed the task. Since it’s important to find joy in my work, what should I have done differently?

Motivation gives you a reason to act. It is an emotional state that prods you into action. Activity creates progress, resulting in momentum toward a goal, making you feel good.

Like all emotions, motivation ebbs and flows. Occasion-ally, it vanishes completely, going into a dark cave in our minds to hibernate. Productivity plunges off a cliff. We diddle and dither, and check out social media. Some-times, a short break revitalizes us. Other times, distrac-tion has the opposite effect, especially when a deadline is involved. Lack of focus leads to stress.

To avoid that, you want to recapture motivation, and do it quickly. To accomplish that, here are four simple, but effective tactics you can use to reawaken desire and get going again:

THE YOUTUBE METHODSometimes, I just need a little outside inspiration to get back on track. If you have access to a phone or computer, inspiration is easy to find on YouTube. One of my favorite videos is from Vince Lombardi, the legendary coach of the Green Bay Packers.

The video, created by ESPN, is called “Winning is a Habit.” It reminds me that it takes gritty determination to win, and even when I don’t feel like working hard, hard work is required to be the best.

For musical inspiration, I’m a fan of the “Eye of the Tiger” video, which features clips from the movie, “Rocky III.” Watching this reminds me that greatness lives inside all of us, and hard work and dedication can turn ordinary guys into big winners.

Why does this method work? It’s because we are all natural mimics. We have a unique ability to watch others and imagine ourselves in the same circumstances. The next time you need a motivational boost, give this simple method a try. It works.

HAVE AN ACCOUNTABILITY PARTNERThis is simple, too. When you’re stuck, pick up the

phone. Call a friend. Explain the situation. You’re stuck and you must get moving. Friends can be very

Introducing the Canon imagePRESS C800 Series

Today’s world of print is constantly changing, creating new

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imagePRESS C800 Series to prepare for what’s next. With

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new forms and at a pace you need.

From the first print to the last, and across a wide range of

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consistently delivers legendary Canon color and quality you

expect. And that will give you the confidence to plan for

tomorrow, where you can expect more than just a return on

your investment — expect to see a return on your ideas.

See the imagePRESS C800 Series in action at

Graph Expo Exhibition Space #1213

The new Canon imagePRESS C800 has proven to be one of the finest machines that we have ever seen. It is fast, reliable,

flexible, and consistent.

“

”JIM LA MAIREPresident of AJS Business Imaging Solutions, LLC

©2015 Canon U.S.A., Inc. All Rights Reserved. Canon and imagePRESS are registered trademarks of Canon Inc. in the United States and may also be registered trademarks or trademarks in other countries. Canon U.S.A. provided the imagePRESS C800 to AJS Business Imaging Solutions, LLC for beta testing.

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By continually revisiting

your strategic solutions

list as your project

progresses, you’re

continually ready to

anticipate and act.

CANVAS P37

Introducing the Canon imagePRESS C800 Series

Today’s world of print is constantly changing, creating new

demands on your organization. We designed the new Canon

imagePRESS C800 Series to prepare for what’s next. With

speed and flexibility, now you can apply your creativity in

new forms and at a pace you need.

From the first print to the last, and across a wide range of

formats and finishing options, the imagePRESS C800 Series

consistently delivers legendary Canon color and quality you

expect. And that will give you the confidence to plan for

tomorrow, where you can expect more than just a return on

your investment — expect to see a return on your ideas.

See the imagePRESS C800 Series in action at

Graph Expo Exhibition Space #1213

The new Canon imagePRESS C800 has proven to be one of the finest machines that we have ever seen. It is fast, reliable,

flexible, and consistent.

“

”JIM LA MAIREPresident of AJS Business Imaging Solutions, LLC

©2015 Canon U.S.A., Inc. All Rights Reserved. Canon and imagePRESS are registered trademarks of Canon Inc. in the United States and may also be registered trademarks or trademarks in other countries. Canon U.S.A. provided the imagePRESS C800 to AJS Business Imaging Solutions, LLC for beta testing.

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Never surrender

Linda Bishop, a longtime veteran of the commercial printing industry, is the founder of Thought Transformation Inc. (www.thoughttransformation.com), which trains and consults companies and sales professionals on how to sell more and reach their full potential. You can reach her at [email protected].

helpful and when they give good advice, don’t waffle. Promise to take the action they recommend within a set time frame. Hold yourself accountable to your promise, and commit to letting your friend know you have taken the action within the agreed-upon time frame.

When we ignore a commitment to a friend, we feel guilty. No one wants to feel that way, so having an accountability partner provides an extra dose of motivation when needed.

ANTICIPATE AND PREPAREThere are short-term goals and long-term goals. When you’re on a journey to a long-term goal, the road is longer. Oftentimes, there are more hills to climb. To reach big goals, it pays to anticipate moments when you will feel unmoti-vated and plan to pass these barriers as quickly as possible.

One method that works is to list all potential obstacles you may encounter. Allow your imagination to run free and be as negative as possible. What could go wrong? What delays could happen? Why would you lose focus?

List everything you can think of. Next, devise a strategy to triumph when you face one of these situations.

Here’s another tip: By continually revisiting your strate-gic solutions list as your project progresses, you’re contin-ually ready to anticipate and act. Continual preparation is what it takes to win in sports and in life. Be less likely to get stuck. By knowing the answer to problems before they occur, you can adopt a grab and go approach with the right solution.

TAP INTO YOUR INNER TONY ROBBINSOne of my favorite sales tools is the recording app on my phone. I record to-do lists, practice voicemails to pros-pects and plan sales calls. I also record my own motiva-tional speeches, speaking in second person terms, using the “you” form of address.

Research published in The European Journal of Social Psychology has shown that 96 percent of the popula-tion report engaging in on-going internal dialog. This same study also found that using “you” self-talk improves outcomes over “I” self-talk when you want to motivate yourself to achieve an outcome.

To put it another way, it’s more effective to say, “You need to make three prospecting calls before 9 a.m.,” than to say, “I need to make three prospecting calls before 9 a.m.”

One theory as to why this is effective is based on early childhood training, where we are socialized into society by instructions that are delivered in second-person terms. For example, “You must pick up your toys.” During those critical developmental years, “You” talk instruction was internalized as behavioral guidance. It continues to work when you use it as a framework for your own motivational pep talks.

Every sales professional has days when motivation is low. When this happens, don’t wait for your attitude to change. Instead, have a go-to strategy to take charge and change your attitude as quickly as possible. As Rocky Balboa said, “It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done.”

To reach big goals, it pays to

anticipate moments when you

will feel unmotivated and plan to

pass these barriers as

quickly as possible.

CONDUIT, INC.MAKES IT HARDERFOR YOUR CLIENTS

TO DROP YOU.DON’T GET DROPPED.

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FINAL THOUGHT

JURJEN JACOBSOn point with...

Global marketing and innovation leader Jurjen Jacobs on what today’s customers are thinkingStaying ahead of the competition. Remaining relevant with your customers. Staying in step with trends. Ask Jurjen Jacobs what keeps marketers up at night, and there are his answers. Jacobs, VP of global marketing and innovation for Velcro Companies, has a front row seat to the world of customer engagement, overseeing a team of more than 40 marketers strategically spread across Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Europe, Mexico, and the United States, and serving both the B2B and B2C mar-kets. Here are his insights on what today’s consumers want from the brands they follow.

What does the marketing landscape look like out there today?I think it’s best to define what mar-keting is today. From where we sit, it is to identify, and agree to how we look at the market. Once a consensus is achieved, the effort must focus on gaining customer insights around what the market’s needs are. Through this, you drive product development, the core value proposition and, of course, an unrivaled customer experience. Marketers have to make sure these projects and opportunities are man-aged through the operational funnel.

What is marketing’s role in the customer experience?Marketing owns the front end innovation and the unrivaled customer experience, but then it also has to manage the entire process to ensure that delivery is on time and profitable. Marketing owns the business case. Today’s marketing landscape requires own-ership of front-end innovation and design thinking to deliver unrivaled customer experience. In today’s world, there isn’t enough focus on owning the front-end and, ultimately, the entire business case in the end.

How important is the customer experience today? Marketers must understand how to deliver the unbeatable customer experience, especially in today’s digital environment where customer feedback is greatly transparent and readily available to go viral at any moment. There isn’t room for mis-takes or false promises, your brand will always be present.

What consumer trends do you see evolving? Customers are not only telling you what they think about a product, they’re tell-ing you what they need or what they’re looking for. This drives their decision to purchase and encourage others to do the same. Previously, brands would bring a product to market and consum-ers would provide feedback. Today, they’re telling you how to improve it, and how to make it great and desir-able. The “voice of the customer” is incredibly important. Customers want to be seen as strategic partners. They want to be a valued part of the product development and innovation process.

So, it’s about staying one step ahead of the technological race?In today’s digital world, everything moves at a much faster pace. It is impor-tant to keep up with new technologies and industry trends. With new technolo-gies and platforms, brands are combin-ing ideas with existing platforms and creating tremendous success. They can-not do it alone. They must have strategic partnerships and networks. It’s all about differentiation between their brand and their direct competition, customer loyalty and keeping their employees happy while maintaining an innovative corporate reputation.

Customers want

to be seen as strategic

partners. They want

to be a valued part

of the product

development and

innovation process.

TOUCH ISTHE FINE LINE BETWEEN

read &

There’s a reason the smartest brands choose paper for important messages. Because holding something in our hands can shape how we feel. What we know. And, critically for marketers, what we buy.

See how brilliant brands use haptics—the science of how things we touch shape the way we feel— to create deeper connections with their customers. Visit sappi.com/haptics to learn more and request your own copy of “A Communicators Guide to the Neuroscience of Touch.”

remembered

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Canvas Magazine | Disrupt! | October 2015

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Transcript of Canvas Magazine | Disrupt! | October 2015