7 compelling reasons why you should enter the 2014 Canadian Printing Awards

I know you’re terribly busy.  On most days most printers are stretched so thin that squeezing in one more extra task seems next to impossible.  Even so, it would be a serious strategic error for you to skip making your submission to the Canadian Printing Awards (CPAs) in time for the entry deadline.  In fact, any serious business owner or manager needs to make it a priority to enter awards programs in their field because of the multitude of astonishing benefits they’ll reap in return.  

Here are seven of the biggest:

1.            Large-scale publicity  – Arguably, awards are the most powerful and cost-effective marketing tool.  The publication, association, or trade show that organizes an awards program will devote all its considerable resources to publicizing the awards and participants before, during, and after the event.  Especially if you are a winner or finalist, you can continue to publicize your own participation and successes in the awards program to your customers, prospects, prospective investors, and trade media indefinitely.  Many awards, including the CPAs, come with an impressive trophy you can display prominently at your company forever.

2.         A record of your achievements – Awards contests help you review your own progress and evaluate your successes and the areas of your business that need improvement.  Initially you’ll perform this process when deciding which projects and initiatives to submit to the contest.  But also, while some of the CPA award categories require you to submit only basic information with the entry fee, others require more detailed documentation.  The latter categories not only help you document your progress but also result in a report you can recycle many times in many ways to broadcast your achievements and track your future progress.

3.            Networking opportunities and peer recognition – Awards competitions and ceremonies attract the best companies and prominent business leaders.  Thus they provide an opportunity for you to show off and discuss your best achievements and latest innovations with a discerning and appreciative audience.  Additionally, by attending the presentation ceremony or even by connecting with fellow participants by phone, e-mail, or social media, you can build your relationships and network with a prestigious new pool of contacts.

4.         A leg up on your competition – Entries, recognition, or wins all give you a tangible edge over competitors and showcase your company as among the best in your field.

5.            Support for your employer brand – Participants gain recognition in their industry as award-winning employers whose companies and products make them leaders in their field.  This recognition makes your company a more attractive place to work for top-performing new hires.

6.         Staff motivation, morale, and retention – Everyone wants to feel appreciated and part of a successful organization.  Participating in awards competitions sends your staff the message that your company is worthy of recognition by a respected external body.  This realization raises staff’s motivation and morale--especially if your company is astute enough to use your victories in awards competitions as platforms to stage internal celebrations recognizing the achievements of staff members who contributed to your success.  If your company is located within reasonable striking distance of the Greater Toronto Area, it also helps to buy staff tickets for the dinner where prizes are announced.  (Information on ticket sales is available at: http://www.printaction.com/CPA )

7.         A measure of your performance – Entering the awards gives you an unparalleled opportunity to assess the strength of your entry against others in the same category and gauge how your business stacks up against the very best.  Frankly, you’d be crazy not to take advantage of this opportunity for an economically priced assessment from some of the industry’s most knowledgeable independent business experts who judge the entries.  (For details see:  http://www.printaction.com/news/20140825-cpa-judges )

But the craziest part is that you can reap all the above seven benefits for a cost of between $90 and $110 per contest submission.  (The actual cost depends on the total number of submissions you make.)  With awards in 28 diverse categories, it’s hard to imagine why any printing company of any size wouldn’t take advantage of the opportunity to participate in the CPAs.  To get started immediately, click on:  http://www.printaction.com/CPA/event/awards

Seven reasons why you should enter the 2013 Canadian Printing Awards

I know you’re terribly busy.  On most days most printers are stretched so thin that squeezing in one more extra task seems next to impossible.  Even so, it would be a serious strategic error for you to skip making your submission to the Canadian Printing Awards (CPAs) in time for the October-25^th deadline.  In fact, any serious business owner or manager needs to make it a priority to enter awards programs in their field because of the multitude of astonishing benefits they’ll reap in return.  

Here are seven of the biggest:

1.            Large-scale publicity  – Arguably, awards are the most powerful and cost-effective marketing tool.  The publication, association, or trade show that organizes an awards program will devote all its considerable resources to publicizing the awards and participants before, during, and after the event.  Especially if you are a winner or finalist, you can continue to publicize your own participation and successes in the awards program to your customers, prospects, prospective investors, and trade media indefinitely.  Many awards, including the CPAs, come with an impressive trophy you can display prominently at your company forever.

2.         A record of your achievements – Awards contests help you review your own progress and evaluate your successes and the areas of your business that need improvement.  Initially you’ll perform this process when deciding which projects and initiatives to submit to the contest.  But also, while some of the CPA award categories require you to submit only basic information with the entry fee, others require more detailed documentation.  The latter categories not only help you document your progress but also result in a report you can recycle many times in many ways to broadcast your achievements and track your future progress.

3.            Networking opportunities and peer recognition – Awards competitions and ceremonies attract the best companies and prominent business leaders.  Thus they provide an opportunity for you to show off and discuss your best achievements and latest innovations with a discerning and appreciative audience.  Additionally, by attending the presentation ceremony or even by connecting with fellow participants by phone, e-mail, or social media, you can build your relationships and network with a prestigious new pool of contacts.

4.         A leg up on your competition – Entries, recognition, or wins all give you a tangible edge over competitors and showcase your company as among the best in your field.

5.            Support for your employer brand – Participants gain recognition in their industry as award-winning employers whose companies and products make them leaders in their field.  This recognition makes your company a more attractive place to work for top-performing new hires.

6.         Staff motivation, morale, and retention – Everyone wants to feel appreciated and part of a successful organization.  Participating in awards competitions sends your staff the message that your company is worthy of recognition by a respected external body.  This realization raises staff’s motivation and morale--especially if your company is astute enough to use your victories in awards competitions as platforms to stage internal celebrations recognizing the achievements of staff members who contributed to your success.  It also helps to buy staff tickets for the dinner where prizes are announced, held in Toronto on November 21st.  (Information on ticket sales will be available shortly on the CPAs microsite at: http://www.printaction.com/CPA/ )

7.         A measure of your performance – Entering the awards gives you an unparalleled opportunity to assess the strength of your entry against others in the same category and gauge how your business stacks up against the very best.  Frankly, you’d be crazy not to take advantage of this opportunity for an economically priced assessment from some of the industry’s most knowledgeable independent business experts who judge the entries.

But the craziest part is that you can reap all the above seven benefits for a cost of between $90 and $110 per contest submission.  (The actual cost depends on the total number of submissions you make.)  With 24 awards in diverse categories, it’s hard to imagine why any printing company of any size wouldn’t take advantage of the opportunity to participate in the CPAs.  To get started immediately, click on: http://www.printaction.com/CPA/entryforms.html  

Today’s post resurrects a similar entry I made prior to last year’s Awards, but it bears repeating because this content is truer than ever in 2013.   

Cross-media-marketing case studies

My October article for PrintAction details how Cats Media, a small Canadian business, grew and thrived by transforming itself from a traditional print and copy shop into a cross-media-marketing services provider.  I wrote the story because I perceived a frustrating scarcity of information on role models and action plans to help other printers make similar transitions in their business.

Now I’m glad to report that Jeffrey Steele has documented more such case studies in his December-1st article for MyPrintResource.com, “Grab Attention with Cross-Media Marketing”.  His article details the tactics of several U.S. print providers who are successfully expanding their services beyond printing into such other media as QR codes, augmented reality, and social media to bolster their customers' marketing campaigns.  The printers describe their best campaigns to date, the types of media they favour, how they sell customers on cross-media-marketing services, and—very importantly—how they track and report campaign results to clients.

Addendum dated 3 January 2013:
I see Joann Whitcher of MyPrintResource.com has reprised a similar topic in her December-31st article, "Implementing Cross Media Solutions: Are You Up to the Task?"

http://www.myprintresource.com/article/10821663/grab-attention-with-cross-media-marketing

https://www.box.com/shared/w27y2bcarpemhwl804vp
http://www.myprintresource.com/article/10844953/implementing-cross-media-solutions-are-you-up-to-the-task

My 2 favourite awards categories & why

Further to my last post on "Seven reasons why you should enter the Canadian Printing Awards", today I want to throw in a special plug for submissions to my two favourite awards categories:  Business Development and Environmental Printing.

I'm posting this shamelessly subjective promotion for three reasons:  The first and most selfish one is that submissions to these categories often have wonderful stories attached, giving trade journalists like me who attend the awards ceremony plenty of interesting new material to write articles about in the next eleven months.  (One example that comes immediately to mind is Symcor's award-winning intergenerational green initiatives that formed the basis for one of my columns for PrintAction.) https://www.box.net/s/egv1f8xq5f5fh2qqeqzx

The second reason is that, maybe because I often write about new trends in marketing communications, I have amassed a considerable following of social-media contacts in the marketing and advertising fields.  These people in particular might be interested to learn that not only printers but also vendors can apply to such competitions in the Business Development Categories as Best Marketing Campaign.

The third reason is that, although some CPA categories only require you to submit your printed product, contact information, and a modest entry fee, submissions under my two favourite categories require applicants to record a little more detail.  I'm not talking about volumes of paperwork, but typically at least a page or two.  

For example, applications for Best Online Presence [from either printers or vendors] require you briefly to outline the scope, objectives, outstanding features, and results of your Web site(s), social media, or on-line storefront.  Application forms for some Environmental Printing entries include a handy chart that helps you pinpoint your achievement(s) under various headings, such as certifications, energy, distribution management, facility engineering, health and safety, policy, pollution prevention, product development--you get the picture.    

So although the application process isn't all that much more complicated for either the Business Development Categories or Environmental Printing Categories, if you haven't begun already, you'll probably need to get started on your application today or tomorrow (Thursday would definitely be pushing it) in order to submit it in time for the 5 p.m. deadline this Friday 2 November.  http://www.printaction.com/CPA/entryforms.html

One final subjective note:  please give serious additional thought to submitting an entry to the new category of Display Graphics (under the Quality Printing Categories), because none of us in the printing industry ever tires of admiring colourful eye candy--the bigger the better. 

Seven reasons why you should enter the 2012 Canadian Printing Awards

I know you’re terribly busy.  On most days most printers are stretched so thin that squeezing in one more extra task seems next to impossible.  Even so, it would be a serious strategic error for you to skip making your submission to the Canadian Printing Awards (CPAs) in time for the October-26^th deadline, eight days from now.  In fact, any serious business owner or manager needs to make it a priority to enter awards programs in their field because of the multitude of astonishing benefits they’ll reap in return.  Here are seven of the biggest:

1.            Large-scale publicity  – Arguably, awards are the most powerful and cost-effective marketing tool.  The publication, association, or trade show that organizes an awards program will devote all its considerable resources to publicizing the awards and participants before, during, and after the event.  Especially if you are a winner or finalist, you can continue to publicize your own participation and successes in the awards program to your customers, prospects, prospective investors, and trade media indefinitely.  Many awards, including the CPAs, come with an impressive trophy you can display prominently at your company forever.

2.         A record of your achievements – Awards contests help you review your own progress and evaluate your successes and the areas of your business that need improvement.  Initially you’ll perform this process when deciding which projects and initiatives to submit to the contest.  But also, while some of the CPA award categories require you to submit only basic information with the entry fee, others require more detailed documentation.  The latter categories not only help you document your progress but also result in a report you can recycle many times in many ways to broadcast your achievements and track your future progress.

3.            Networking opportunities and peer recognition – Awards competitions and ceremonies attract the best companies and prominent business leaders.  Thus they provide an opportunity for you to show off and discuss your best achievements and latest innovations with a discerning and appreciative audience.  Additionally, by attending the presentation ceremony or even by connecting with fellow participants by phone, e-mail, or social media, you can build your relationships and network with a prestigious new pool of contacts.

4.         A leg up on your competition – Entries, recognition, or wins all give you a tangible edge over competitors and showcase your company as among the best in your field.

5.            Support for your employer brand – Participants gain recognition in their industry as award-winning employers whose companies and products make them leaders in their field.  This recognition makes your company a more attractive place to work for top-performing new hires.

6.         Staff motivation, morale, and retention – Everyone wants to feel appreciated and part of a successful organization.  Participating in awards competitions sends your staff the message that your company is worthy of recognition by a respected external body.  This realization raises staff’s motivation and morale--especially if your company is astute enough to use your victories in awards competitions as platforms to stage internal celebrations recognizing the achievements of staff members who contributed to your success.  It also helps to buy staff tickets for the dinner where prizes are announced, held in Toronto on November 29th. http://www.printaction.com/CPA/tickets.html

7.         A measure of your performance – Entering the awards gives you an unparalleled opportunity to assess the strength of your entry against others in the same category and gauge how your business stacks up against the very best.  Frankly, you’d be crazy not to take advantage of this opportunity for an economically priced assessment from some of the industry’s most knowledgeable independent business experts who judge the entries.

But the craziest part is that you can reap all the above seven benefits for a cost of between $90 and $110 per contest submission.  (The actual cost depends on the total number of submissions you make.)  With 25 awards in three diverse categories, it’s hard to imagine why any printing company of any size wouldn’t take advantage of the opportunity to participate in the CPAs.  To get started immediately, click on: http://www.printaction.com/CPA/entryforms.html      

University Health Network’s in-plant is even busier than I described

Sorry, I got the math wrong in the last paragraph of my June-2012 column for PrintAction about University Health Network (UHN)’s remarkably successful in-plant printing operation in Toronto, run by longtime manager Joe Carrelas.  
https://www.box.net/s/8zck29hd7by8drozefid

Joe just e-mailed me to say that, although he liked the article, the last paragraph incorrectly recorded the annual total produced by UHN’s copier fleet as 4,674,000 copies, whereas in fact this figure only represents the fleet’s quarterly output.

The fleet’s annual total would be 4 x 4,674,000 or 18,696,000 copies.

Adding this figure to the 13,000,000 yearly impressions produced by UHN’s print shop brings the organization’s annual total to a whopping 31,696,000 impressions.

So although my column was accurate when it said they were busy, it didn’t quantify the half of it.  PrintAction and I sincerely regret the error.

Also on the subject of in-plants, my search of the upcoming seminar program offered at the Graph Expo trade show (Chicago, 7-10 October 2012) turned up seven sessions of specific interest to in-plants.  They include “Empowered In-plants: Tell-All Success Stories from the Field”, a panel comprised of a “dream-team” of top in-plants chosen by their peers http://www.myprintresource.com/press_release/10745581/graph-expo-in-plant-panel-session-members-announced   

Readers wanting more details on Graph Expo seminars can conduct their own search at:  http://www.graphexpo.com/SessionsEvents/SeminarProgram.aspx

New museum exhibit uses wide-format printing + smartphones 2 recreate prehistoric world

A new dinosaur exhibit at the Royal Ontario Museum (Toronto) makes extensive use of wide-format printing and smartphones to recreate the prehistoric world.

Today’s e-news from PrintAction highlights the exhibit’s enormous scientifically accurate murals printed by Beyond Digital Imaging using HP's latex ink technology at:

http://www.printaction.com/News/20120724-bdi-rom.html

Reuters describes the augmented reality technology that museum visitors can access via a mobile app at:

http://lnkd.in/K7xryY

More e-book & p-book milestones

Exciting new milestones the world of e-books and p-books include online giant Amazon.com’s recent announcement of plans to allow students to rent textbooks through its Kindle service.  According to the company, renters can save up to 80 percent compared to the cost of purchasing a physical book.  Users can choose the exact length of a rental, from 30 days to a full year. Rentals can subsequently be extended by the day, if needed, or else converted into a purchase.

 http://www.printaction.com/News/20110719-amazon-rental.html

Additionally, my June-2011 column for PrintAction details the new e-book and p-book solution launched by Montreal-based giant Transcontinental Printing in partnership with

De Marque, a developer of international platforms for digital content, based in Quebec City.
https://www.box.net/shared/unr54aj9akns9igvy8f8