Rachel Nies, Author at Marketing, content, & technology to help printers sell more printing

While digital marketing can disappear quickly, the right print strategy provides unbeatable staying power. For print shops, June is more than a seasonal slowdown. It’s a chance to equip your business with ready-to-use campaigns that help you stay in front of print buyers and spark new conversations. This month’s lineup is built to help you do exactly that: sell smarter, stay visible, and position print as a long-term marketing solution, especially with high-impact tools like calendars. Each piece is professionally written, designed, and ready for you to brand and deploy, so you can focus on selling, not creating. Direct Mail For Printers Options FastStart This month’s FastStart campaign gives you a complete, ready-to-use way to start conversations around one of the most effective print products available: calendars. Built around the theme “Visibility: 365,” this multi-piece campaign (mailer + postcard) helps you position calendars as a high-value marketing tool, not just a giveaway. Instead of figuring out how to promote calendars yourself, you get: Proven messaging that sells long-term visibility A structured campaign you can send immediately A timely angle (summer planning) that creates urgency How this helps you sell printing:It gives you a turnkey campaign to confidently promote and sell

Spring marketing works best when it feels timely, visible, and easy to act on. One challenge many printers face is helping customers stand out without overcomplicating their message. The May 2026 lineup (available for download now) answers that challenge with a strong neighborhood-focused theme: direct, tangible marketing that gets seen. From door hangers to content-rich newsletters and digital strategy insights, this collection gives print providers practical ways to help clients build awareness, drive response, and stay top-of-mind. Here’s a look at the direct mail and content options featured for May and available now. Direct Mail For Printers Options FastStart For May, FastStart centers on door hangers as a practical, high-visibility marketing piece for neighborhood outreach. This package highlights how door hangers can support time-sensitive sales, Memorial Day promotions, open houses, summer kickoff events, service reminders, and restaurant offers. The content emphasizes useful finishing and response-building options such as tear-off coupons and QR codes, while also positioning the piece as flexible and easy to customize around timing, paper choice, perforation, and messaging. It is a smart way to promote a service that is simple, visible, and built for local response. > Download Samples Local Edge Highlighting local strengths through creativity, Local

Remember the childhood game of “kick the can”? It was fun, simple, and easy. You’d kick a can down the street, pushing the challenge just a little further ahead, never truly resolving it, just postponing the inevitable. But when you’re running a printing business, playing “kick the can” with your pricing strategy isn’t fun; it’s risky. Why Traditional Pricing Feels Comfortable (But Isn’t) Many printers rely on gut instincts and legacy methods to price their services. It feels comfortable. You know your clients, you know your business, and you think you know your costs. But the reality is often different. You’re frequently pricing based on assumptions or guesses, not facts. And when uncertainty creeps in, you instinctively compensate by inflating costs in areas you believe are already covered. You’ve effectively kicked the can a little further down the road. You haven’t solved your pricing discomfort; you’ve just displaced it somewhere else. The Real Problem: Avoiding the Uncomfortable Truth Let’s face it. The reason you’re increasing the perceived cost of something you’re already confident about is that there’s another area in your pricing you’re less certain of. Maybe it’s labor, maybe it’s materials, maybe it’s overhead. You have a sense that

You’ve been there: a new order comes in, the deadline is tight, and the file? Not quite ready. Whether it’s missing bleeds, fuzzy images, or font issues, file prep problems can slow everything down and create more stress than they should. The good news? You can head off most of those headaches by giving your print buyers a little help without piling more work on your plate. Here are four practical ways to set them up for success. 1. Share Common File Prep Pitfalls Not every client knows what goes into a production-ready file, and that’s OK. A simple, printer-approved checklist can make a big difference. That’s why we put together a free guide on the most common file prep mistakes. It’s an easy win: give your customers the info upfront, and you’ll both save time later. >> FREE DOWNLOAD: Top 7 File Prep Mistakes 2. Offer Setup Support That Scales If your clients design their own pieces, you know how often things like margins, trim areas, and safe zones get overlooked. That’s where artwork layout templates can help. Available as a website add-on, these downloadable templates (branded with your company’s logo) include clear design boundaries for popular products and

We’ve heard it before, and maybe you’ve even said it yourself: “I delete most of the emails I get. I don’t think email really works.” It’s an honest thought. But here’s the thing: you aren’t your print buyer. Just because email doesn’t resonate with you doesn’t mean it doesn’t work. In fact, many of your print buyers rely on email as their primary way of hearing from businesses they trust. Some aren’t active on social media. Some toss printed mail in the trash. Some skip websites altogether and just wait for updates to hit their inbox. Visibility For Printing Companies Matters If you’re not showing up where your customers are paying attention, even if that’s not where you prefer to engage, you’re invisible.And when you’re invisible, you’re forgotten. That “I didn’t know you did that” moment?That’s the sound of a missed opportunity echoing in your inbox. You’re Not Trying to Reach Everyone. Just the Right Someone. It’s easy to assume your audience behaves like you do. But marketing works best when you meet people where they are, not where you wish they were. Even if 90% of your list scrolls past your email, that remaining 10% may be your best

As the fall season draws closer, September brings the perfect opportunity to help your customers refocus, reconnect, and stand out. With routines resuming and back-to-business energy in the air, now is the time for printers to help clients deliver marketing that gets noticed, especially with banners that boost visibility and drive results. The September content—available now for download and print—features tools that make your clients’ messages clear, bold, and effective. From high-impact banners to lighthearted newsletters, every piece is designed to turn heads and support real marketing goals. Here’s a look at what you can start producing today for September outreach. Direct Mail For Printers Options Coffee Break Type: Direct Mail Humor NewsletterDimensions: 8.5″ x 14″Coffee Break Highlighting humor and fun themes, Coffee Break keeps connections strong with a fresh mix of jokes, trivia, and notable dates. This issue features punchlines like: “What do you give a man who has everything? Penicillin.” “My grandma has the heart of a lion—and a lifetime ban from the zoo.” The sidebar article plays with the age-old question, “How many does it take to change a lightbulb?” with witty answers from optometrists, politicians, and programmers. Paired with an October calendar full of trivia-worthy milestones,

What makes a high-value customer say, “Yep, this is my printer”? You could have the best pricing, stellar turnaround, and years of experience, but if that trust doesn’t come across on your website, the sale might not either. And for your dream clients, the nonprofits, schools, manufacturers, and marketing teams you really want, your website is the first sales call. So let’s make sure it’s pulling its weight. Why Trust Details Matter More Than Ever When print buyers visit your website, they’re often thinking: “Can I trust this company to do what I need, on time, without making me look bad?” They’re not looking for bells and whistles. They’re looking for signals—visual, verbal, and structural—that show your shop is experienced, approachable, and built to deliver. The 8 Trust Builders Your Website Can’t Afford to Miss 1. Clear, Clickable Navigation Your website’s navigation should feel like second nature. A first-time visitor should be able to land on your home page and know within seconds what you do, what to click next, and how to place an order. If your website is crammed with vague or internal-facing terms, simplify it. Use buyer-friendly language like “Order Printing,” “Request a Quote,” or “What We

It’s been a while since I’ve had the chance to step out of the day-to-day marketing mindset to remind you of, and hopefully inspire you with, a bigger idea. So, today’s the day! After meeting with printer after printer to discuss their marketing strategies, there’s been this growing “earworm” in the minds of printers that I think needs to be said out loud. You see, there’s a quiet little lie infiltrating our industry. Maybe you’ve noticed it, and maybe it’s crept into your thoughts, too. It’s the lie that says, “Print can’t keep up.” It’s not something people in the industry usually say directly. But you feel it, and I hear it in your voices when orders slow, when clients lean harder into digital, and when it feels like everything is changing faster than you can keep up. To be clear, I’ve fought this same earworm at times. Even being in the printing industry with you for almost 30 years, I can struggle the same way. When Doubts Start to Creep In There are moments when I’ve stared at our own direct mail offerings and thought, Is this still enough? I’ve talked with printers who’ve run successful businesses for

Imagine this: a print buyer lands on your website, curious about your promotional products. They click a link… and suddenly, they’re not on your site anymore. They’re in a completely new environment with unfamiliar branding and no clear reminder of you. This kind of abrupt shift is more common than you might think. Many printers link directly to vendor platforms like Sage, ASI, Carlson Craft, or DisplayCity. It’s fast. It’s easy. And it’s quietly working against you. Losing the Visitor Too Soon It’s not the act of linking out that’s the problem—it’s when and how it happens. If someone clicks off your website right after arriving, without taking in who you are, what you offer, or how to come back, you’ve lost control of their experience. This kind of early exit leads to: Higher bounce rates Lower engagement signals (like time on site or page views) Decreased search engine visibility Worse, it’s a missed opportunity to build a relationship. You brought them in, but then sent them away before they really saw you. A simple change, like adding a transitional landing page, keeps them engaged a few moments longer. That time matters. It helps your visitor feel anchored to your