Intergraf Congress: Shaping the Future of Print
At an international conference on the opportunities of the printed matter, the speakers pointed to a diverse market, but one that is changing rapidly, which is why copying successful market models is not enough. Several aspects have to be taken into account and the consequences reconciled. Hannes Zaugg on his key takeaways from Intergraf Brussels.
Intergraf President Cees Verweij notes that politics helps determine the survival of print.
Around 80 participants from 15 European countries came to Brussels at the end of February to find out about future opportunities for the printing industry at the Intergraf conference. Intergraf is the European link for the national associations in which the graphic arts companies are organized. Thanks to its international contacts, the organizer was able to bring together seven competent speakers and four people involved in the panel discussion, who covered very different perspectives of a feasible vision and were thus able to sketch out a good picture of the print future together.
More sustainability and a new business model
A key issue in all considerations is sustainability, which is also a central concern for the European Community (EU) in the form of circular production, as Emmanuelle Marie explained right at the beginning, who is the team leader responsible for more sustainability in production at the EU. Her goal is to achieve efficient production cycles by 2050. To promote sustainable production, so-called Eurolabels have been awarded for many years, which also apply to printed matter. The criteria for this are currently being revised to reflect the current situation and to fit into the overarching framework of the Green Deal, which was launched by Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen at the end of last year. Intergraf is involved in this work, representing the graphic arts industry.
A next aspect is contributed by Sean Smyth, he has worked on a study that looks at the future of commercial printing. This market has shrunk by 12.5% in the last five years, and his research sees direct mail and manuals and tickets/coupons as the only print areas that will continue to grow. What also continues to change is the nature of printing: Smyth anticipates a further increase in private printing. With such a shift in the environment, the only thing left for commercial printers to do is to streamline their workflow, Smyth concludes, in order to improve the bottom line, which will lead to more attractive prices for customers and help the entrepreneur make a decent living. According to his study, consolidation is also becoming visible in the printing processes, digital printing is unlikely to become as widespread, while the offset process can maintain its current level, according to the study.
Less advertising, more impact
Anyone who dares to look into the future of printing cannot do so without a client. Jo Van de Weghe is the Marketing and Sales Director at Symenta. The company handles document management for the Colruyt Group, Belgium's largest retail group, and thus has the workflow under control. In the marketing process, they are primarily pursuing an improvement with the goal of presenting the best offer to customers. This used to be done in the form of coupon brochures, a 32-page advertising material that was printed in a print run of 2.4 million copies and enclosed with the newspapers. Today, these are brochures of four pages containing 30 offers tailored to the customer's buying habits, which are now sent personally addressed by mail. This saves a lot of printed paper but also a lot of money. Today, 2 percent more households are served in this way. But more importantly, customers are redeeming 30% more coupons, resulting in a 6 percent increase in sales.
Jo Van De Weghe: The consumer wants less advertising and more benefits.
Advertising has also become more sustainable in this way: a total of 3600 tons less printed matter is produced, which amounts to 4 kilograms per household. Today, customers shop more efficiently thanks to advertising that is better accepted. For Van de Weghe, the path to personalization and individualization starts with general distribution to all households, a first step is taken by segmenting customer data in the form of more precise distribution, this is refined in a second step by including buying habits - as further segmentation - and ends in the third step with the individual offer for each customer, delivered to him personally.
In order to put together such a personalized offer, the factors for the purchase decision must be collected in a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), demands Jannick Schmidt, consultant and lecturer at the Danish University of Aalborg. The purchasing process is similar everywhere, but like should only be compared with like. He knows from many years of experience that many questions are answered unclearly in such surveys because emotions are involved. They therefore do not stand up to a more detailed and neutral examination. And from this point of view, the result planned in the company looks different from the result felt by the customer, which is collected by means of an assessment.
When this thesis is applied to ecolabels, they actually prove to be more or less worthless, Schmidt says. He takes the graphic arts industry as an example, where companies distinguish themselves by using paper made from certified wood. But an efficient life cycle is not demonstrable for recyclable papers, especially because oil-based inks do little more harm than organic inks, the LCA consultant notes.
By Hannes Zaugg
