MIS Archives - Marketing, content, & technology to help printers sell more printing

Odyssey 2.0 MIS shown on computer screen

As a print owner, you know how important it is to stay competitive and efficient in today’s fast-paced world. One way to achieve this is by using a Print MIS solution. A Print MIS solution, or Management Information System, is a software tool that streamlines your workflow by managing customer information, materials, labor costs, and prices, and here are the top five reasons why your print shop needs one. 1. Print MIS Improves Efficiency One of the most significant benefits of using a Print MIS solution is improved efficiency. With Odyssey 2.0, you can manage customer information, materials, labor costs, and prices in one place. This eliminates the need for double entry and ensures accurate pricing. You can also estimate jobs faster and take on more work, which allows you to grow your business. 2. A Print MIS Gives You the Competitive Advantage In today’s fast-paced world, speed is essential. Print buyers expect quick turnaround times, and if you can’t provide that, they’ll look for another print shop that can. By using a Print MIS solution, you can provide accurate quotes to customers within minutes, giving you a competitive edge over those who still rely on manual estimating methods. Odyssey

Printers have a habit of working in a production timespan measured in days, if not hours! Why? Because print buyers demand a faster turnaround, and efficient technology makes it possible. The print production scheduling guidelines of “one day per task” from back in the day when I started my career in print just don’t apply anymore. With those ever-shrinking production timelines, how does a phrase like “Print Production Started Last Year” even make sense? Here’s how: You started building the customer relationship long before that first production step was scheduled. You may have scheduled the physical tasks for each step of print production, and those tasks may cover the span of a few days or hours, but you started building a relationship with the print buyer long before that first production step was scheduled. When Does Print Production Start? Print production begins before the print buyer orders printing; before they know you are a print and communications expert. It even starts before you take the time to sit down and show your prospect how print is a powerful vehicle for communicating their important ideas. Print production begins the first time you proactively contact your prospect, and that first touch may have occurred last year, before

Estimating has been a cornerstone in the printing industry for years. While you may think that providing your customers with an estimate is for their benefit only, in fact, estimating a job also provides you with a myriad of benefits. A good estimate: Provides efficiency Ensures accuracy Creates consistency Fosters professionalism Displays your cost/value ratio Most importantly, good estimating is the secret sauce to good sales. Estimating Supports Good Pricing Willy-nilly pricing can mean lost profits and missed opportunities. By knowing your anticipated costs before negotiating your price, you’ll have vital information to know things like the break-even point on print production, an acceptable price point, and at what point there is both zero profit and zero loss. These details are also critical when you want data on which of your print items are (or aren’t) profitable. Printing multiple orders of [blank] doesn’t mean business is good if you’re losing money on every order you accept. Good print estimating empowers your staff with the knowledge they need about where they can be aggressive and where they need to hold the line on price. What About Digital Printing? For low-margin work, estimating takes on an increasingly important role. In most situations,

“Does my print shop really need a Print MIS Solution?” The short answer to that question is: Yes! And here’s why… Print MIS Explained MIS is an abbreviation for “Management Information System.” Like most manufacturing businesses, the printing industry requires juggling a lot of information to function profitably. An MIS solution helps you with the juggling, and therefore, the profits! Here are some examples of the types of information a Print MIS solution will manage for you: Customer names and contact info Paper cost Ink cost Click cost Hourly rates of each piece of equipment in your shop Boxes Tape Overhead Accounts receivables Account aging Sales commissions You get the idea. Although it might seem like an overabundance of bullet points there, that’s really just scratching the surface of the knowledge you can have at your fingertips with a Print MIS solution for your print business. Back in 2006, we implemented our first robust MIS solution. We were able to prepare estimates so fast that many customers reported that we had delivered the completed job before our competition even delivered pricing! A Rocky Path to an Imperfect Result Take a minute to picture this and see if it sounds familiar:

Imagine a world where you’re able to sell more printing online AND in person. (This isn’t some dreamy place beyond the realm of possibility.) It sounds easier said than done, but it is VERY possible. A recent experience of mine with my cell phone company touched on one of the most important goals to not overlook in selling more printing: having an in-person AND an online focus for your business. My Experience(s) Let me start by saying I hate dealing with the details of cell phone agreements and contracts. When my kids were young and impressionable, I told them, “Hate is a strong word.” I don’t use the word “hate” lightly, but I hate trying to make sense of cell phone agreements and contracts. Recently, my wife and I decided to add our youngest child to our family’s cell phone plan. I approached the task with a combination of fear and the perseverance of a bully-mindset where I got my way by taking no prisoners. Ordering Online: The Path of Least Resistance I went for the path of least resistance: online ordering, here I come! It was more convenient and, quite honestly, it empowered me to make better decisions. If I need to

five things im thankful for, Odyssey, Print MIS, Marketing Ideas For Printers

Here’s a quote that has really impacted me in recent days: …there’s a danger in overfocusing on the finish line. When you do, you lose the power of seeing how far you’ve come. ~ Jon Acuff When working on a project as big as Odyssey, our Print MIS, that finish line can be elusive. The truth is, there is no finish line for Odyssey because it makes its home in the cloud. The cloud is never “done.” Instead, the cloud allows for a neverending stream of updates that will enable Odyssey to grow well past any finish line. Finish lines are so limiting! There is no finish line, but there’s a definite starting point, and in the spirit of this season of thanks, when I look back at the starting line I see so many things I’m thankful for. When looking through the lens of the work we do here at Marketing Ideas For Printers, here are five things I’m grateful for this Thanksgiving season. Our wonderful team. There’s power in numbers, and there’s super-power in a team that’s united for a common purpose! The support of Odyssey’s Early Adopters. These are Odyssey’s very first customers; we would have never been able

Odyssey, MIS, Marketing Ideas For Printers, How Much Does Odyssey Cost?

The countdown is on to Print 2017! Soon, from September 10th through the 14th, our team from Marketing Ideas For Printers will be in Chicago, claiming Booth 351 as our temporary home away from home. Last year at GraphExpo we presented a preview of Odyssey, an all-in-one Marketing, Web-To-Print, and Print MIS system. One year later, we’re ready to show how Odyssey is ready for you, and that’s exciting! Where Do Your Customers Shop? We know it’s important to you to be where your customers are. With more and more of your clients online than ever before, you need a solution that meets them where they’re at. After all, according to a Pew Research Center study published in December 2016, …roughly eight-in-ten Americans are now online shoppers. (Source: pewinternet.org: Online Shopping and E-Commerce) But where your customers shop online and where your team works are two different places. Now, you can close that gap between where your customers order printing online and where your team manages those tasks that make printing happen because Odyssey is a Print MIS that lives online in a web browser. When that gap gets closed, you and your team get to experience the efficiency you’ve been aiming for, and

Print 17, blog, MIS, Marketing Ideas For Printers,

By now, the list of excuses for not joining us at the Print 17 conference in Chicago this September should be pretty small. After all, we’ve already laid out 5 Reasons You Should Join Us At Print 17, and we’ve topped it off by offering you free, exhibits-only passes to the show. Do you really need one more offer? Well, alright, we’ve got one more for you. The Timing Couldn’t Be Better Odyssey, our new breed of Print MIS, is now available, and with it, we’re offering you a chance to take advantage of a special offer and claim a free gift with your purchase of Odyssey! One of those free gift options is a One Night Free Stay during the Print 17 Conference. This is excellent timing for you, and it’s simple, really. By making the decision to purchase Odyssey now, you’ll not only get an unfair amount of attention from our team to help you get Odyssey up and running smoothly but you’ll also get your choice of a free gift!! Take advantage of a free night’s stay during the conference or choose from other options like an Apple Watch, Amazon Echo, or a pizza party for your entire team!

Here's How You Eat An Elephant, Marketing Ideas For Printers, Odyssey, MIS

You’ve started your next big project. It’s the big idea that will leapfrog you past other printers competing with you. It’s the revolutionary change that will usher in your next period of success. And it’s intimidating. You’ve lost your momentum, and you’re stuck. The mighty elephant in the room is your obstacle. It’s easy to see, but at the same time you don’t know how to get past it, so it seems even easier just to ignore. You can beat the elephant! How? You beat an elephant the same way you eat an elephant: one bite at a time. We’ve Been There Our “next big project” is our Print MIS called Odyssey. Building a new Print MIS from the ground up is challenging. It would be nice if we could say that we perfectly executed a plan that took us from concept to launch with no surprises. The truth is much different, of course. There were days we’d have a stare-down with Odyssey as we tried to figure out how to move past the elephant in the room. If you’re stuck on your project, borrow some ideas from us. Here are three ideas the team at Marketing Ideas For Printers