I recently participated in a podcast discussion where I had the pleasure of introducing the SGIA Critical Trends Report: Commercial Printing, which we will publish in November. Among the points discussed were:
Commercial printing is increasingly about more than printing. Members of the SGIA Commercial Printing Panel expect, on average, something other than printing to provide 25.6% of their revenue by 2020, up from 20.2% today and 16.2% two years ago. One member concisely states the reason why: “Our industry continues to evolve, and it is not just a print business anymore. It is about communications and how we can best help clients communicate their message.”
Revenue is growing but margins are being squeezed. SGIA estimates that commercial printing segment sales (all sources) increased 1.5% during the first half of 2018, according to SGIA estimates. Sales now total to $86.0 billion, 10.4% greater than the 2011 low. But a number of factors are making it difficult to get growth from the top line to the bottom line. Rising paper prices, cited by 61.8% of our research group, tops the list. A lack of sales/excess capacity (53.9%), rising healthcare benefits (52.6%), rising wages (46.1%), and labor shortages that force the hiring of less skilled (35.5%) follow.
The future is about thinking big—i.e., thinking beyond how print is manufactured to how print powers communicate.
The conclusion: Don’t jump right in, no matter how much buzz they are creating or how well others are doing, because of the stiff challenges and complexities ahead.>
Instead, we should be asking questions such as these:>
- How important is the service to our clients and prospects?
- What’s necessary to offer it profitably?
- How will we price the service? Even if clients are interested, will they pay for it?
- How will we market and sell the service?
- Do we have the personnel to offer it profitably? If not, where do we get them?
- Do we try it on our own? Or do we partner with an expert until we get to critical mass and high enough on the learning curve?
- When we base our decision on honest, thorough answers to those questions, we can be confident that we aren’t missing opportunities. Other topics covered in this report include:
- The changing profile of commercial printing.
- Current and expected business conditions, including the economy’s likely effect on the segment.
- How client needs are changing and how those changes are being addressed.
- Building and maintaining competitive advantage.
- “Best in business intelligence,” or how to make what’s happening and what’s ahead an opportunity rather than a threat.