When it comes to winning new clients for your print business, the first thing most people think about is price. As in, if you offer the lowest price, you’ll get the contract. But is that really the case? Is that the only thing that matters when a brand is choosing a print service provider (PSP)?
The short answer: No.
Check out NAPCO Research’s latest comprehensive survey for a full — and informative — list, but for our purposes, let’s take a closer look at the top 5.
1. Quality and Reliability. The No. 1 element a brand considers when they start researching PSPs is the quality of the work and their reliability. Brands want to know that the printer they’ve entrusted their files to will produce high-quality work that will represent them in the best way possible — whether that’s a direct mail postcard, a booklet, a poster, a vehicle wrap, or something else entirely. The ability to consistently hit brand colors, to reproduce pieces from month to month — or year to year — and get the same look and feel, and the ability to always do it on time (and as expected) top the list for most buyers.
2. Price. OK, yes, it is the second consideration, but it isn’t the most important. That said, if two PSPs are equal on every other level, of course, price will be the determining factor. Add to that a tight economy, factors such as increasing postal rates, and the overall price increases for inks to paper and everything in between, and yes, budget is important. That said, PSPs who can take a budget and put together an amazing campaign or application that goes beyond what they expected, but stays within budget, will be more likely to win a customer for life — even if someone else comes along with a cheaper price.
3. Easy to Work With. No one likes to work with frustrating people or systems. If your web-to-print system is out of date or isn’t user-friendly — or worse, requires them to call a person every time they have a question or need a minor change — they are going to start shopping for a new PSP. Make everything easy, accessible, and transparent from the order entry to the day it goes out the door to win long-term business.
4. Responsiveness. This goes hand-in-hand with being easy to work with. We all know nothing ever goes exactly to plan. Things come up. Where the mistake originated matters less than how you handle it. Brands are looking for PSPs that will take their calls, jump in to fix problems, and be right there beside them every step of the way.
5. Experience. Never let it be said that familiarity breeds anything except loyalty. Brands like working with people they know, who already understand their color requirements, know their systems, know their formats and applications, even manage their data, and bring new ideas to the table. The more jobs you do with any given brand, the harder it will be for them to leave.
BONUS. You can go through the list below to check out all the factors brands consider, but we would like to call out one in particular from the survey’s top 10: offering additional services. Whether that’s unique embellishments, personalization, data management, mailing and fulfillment, or something else, brands do value working with PSPs who can offer more than just print. And when the time comes for them to choose a new provider — for whatever reason — the more services and abilities you offer, the more attractive you’ll be.
TONI McQUILKEN
Guest Blogger
NAPCO Media
