• Signage • Direct mail • Point of purchase Other print processes and print market segments
may provide opportunities for high sales growth or profits, but firms will need to outperform their peers in these areas.
2018 Checklist for Competitive Advantage Whatever
the economic and print market
environment, every printer’s success depends on planning and execution: è Think! Make sure you consciously understand
your business model in terms of: • Key products and service offerings • Key customer groups in terms of vertical markets
• Key ancillary services and value-added sources • The customers you can charge more • The customers that provide high profits • The customers you are losing money on è Understand pricing̓s three Cs—cost, customer,
and completion. All pricing should be customized and based on these three Cs simultaneously. Profit leaders have higher profits for two reasons—lower costs or higher prices. Develop a more nuanced and complete view of the relationship between costs, price, and utilization rates. The fact that a typical printing job is 40 percent fixed costs and 60 percent variable costs allows for pricing discretion. è Educate, train, and coach your workforce.
Profit-leading printers have a strong focus on HR management. Execute a high-performance work system: • Be all-inclusive in benefits, awards, profit sharing, and bonuses. Employees should perceive equity in sharing gains in good years and pains in bad years.
• Be transparent in sharing information on financial status, business plans, strategies, etc. • Invest in education and training for employees.
Visit
printing.org/topics/center-for-print-economics-and- management for more resources for a successful 2018.
LEARN MORE The Magazine 5 Forecast | 2018
• Link performance and reward. Reward employees based on individual performance, their team’s performance, and the firm’s performance.
è Substitute capital for labor. Profit leaders are
able to use less labor per sales dollar because they abide by the classic dictum of substituting capital for labor. Profit-leading printers employ an average of more than $15,000 in net assets per factory worker employed compared to average printers and employ fewer workers per million in sales. è Be proactive in tight labor markets. Our forecast
points to significantly tighter labor markets and higher wages, more turnover, and more difficult recruiting. Surveys show that employees highly value non- money issues such as flex-time, recognition, training opportunities, social events, and other options. Also, reduced headcounts will allow you to raise compensation for necessary employees. è Follow up on any tax law changes. Watch any
changes to personal and corporate tax laws and evaluate your business practices accordingly. Be ready to take advantage of changes in investment and depreciation rules, pass-through options, and others. Don’t wait until the end of the year to examine the impact on your business. There should be plenty of opportunities to achieve a
prosperous 2018 even though there will be substantial risks and challenges. As a member of PIA, you have the benefit of a team of experts that provide a significant competitive advantage over non-members so make sure you benefit from these services in 2018.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44
