A few reminders during economic slowdown

by Jack Burke – Jack@HighVelocityCommunications.com

As you take stock of your business in these difficult economic times, consider these points:

Keep talking: Employees are scared, suppliers are worried, customers wonder if quality will decline or prices will rise. Your silence makes them worry more. Good managers respond by communicating even more than usual.

Reduce your space: If you acquired space in anticipation of expansion that ultimately proved unnecessary, this may be a good time to sublet that space—reducing overhead and generating extra income.

Power in numbers: Consider joining trade associations to get industry-specific information, advice, sales opportunities and other member benefits.

Will your customers lay you off?

by Jack Burke—Jack@HighVelocityCommunications.com

You like to think you provide great service at a fair price. But think about what you do from your customers’ perspective. Remember, they’re probably worried about the economy as much as you are and are looking for ways to cut costs. When they look at your services, what do they think? Will you be laid off?

To ensure you’ll survive the next cut, take an honest look at yourself. Look not only at what you see but what others see in you. Focus on these areas of your performance:

• Can I be relied on to meet expectations 100 percent of the time, regardless of challenges?
• Do I complain about the occasional request to do something extra?
• How broad based and flexible am I? How many roles can I fill for the client?
• Am I seen as positive, as a team player who is always part of the solution?
• Do clients like being around me?
• Am I a valuable multi-tasker?

To get more market, you have to market yourself

by Jack Burke – Jack@HighVelocityCommunications.com

Historically, many businesses reduce advertising and promotional expenditures rather than slash fixed costs during hard times. However, studies have shown that those maintaining or increasing marketing during slowdowns wind up outselling rivals who cut back.

Savvy marketers can boost sales and market share, even in a slump, by focusing on short-term tactical techniques such as sales and price promotions and tailoring advertising in response to the shaky economic climate.

Here are key ideas to keep in mind, courtesy of the U.S. Small Business Administration:

• Monitor your competitors’ marketing. If they’re cutting down, seriously consider increasing your ad budget and hitting harder. This will provide a great opportunity to capture—and retain—a larger share of the market.
• Avoid gimmicky and clever advertising. Center your message on the benefits and advantages of your product or service.
• Stress quality and durability. Consumers are looking for as much value as possible in a weak economy.
• Keep in mind that perceptions play a major role in a weak economy. If people believe money is going to be tight, they will behave as if it is—even if they have money to spend. Your marketing has to convince prospective clients.
• Promote your business every chance you get with signs on your vehicle and at the jobsite.
• Start a website. More and more people are gathering information from the Internet. You should be there.
• Contact the local Chamber of Commerce to see if your business information can be included in a welcome packet for new residents.
• Become known by establishing a presence in the community. Don’t be afraid to use your company to support parades, community festivals, golf outings and other events.

 

Tough times, silver lining

by Jack Burke – Jack@HighVelocityCommunications.com

I recently talked to a small businessman who’s had to reduce his staff from 30 to 3 over the last two years. Business was drying up and he felt he had no choice but to cut—or go out of business altogether.

Letting one person go—let alone dozens—is never easy and it really tore at him. But once the die was cast, he realized he was happier running a smaller operation.

To him, having so many people was stressful and kept him awake at night. He couldn’t be everywhere at once and worried that jobs weren’t getting done correctly (the way he would do them). He couldn’t delegate effectively and it drove him crazy.

A smaller, more hands-on business suits him better, he said.

A simple lesson for us all. Bigger isn’t always better. 

Bleed, trim, and live area

by Ben Newby – Ben@HighVelocityCommunications.com

When Johannes Gutenberg invented the mechanical printing press more than 500 years ago, he could not have anticipated the speed and sophistication of today’s printing press. While Gutenberg’s printing press was a marvel, it was painfully slow by today’s standards.

The printing press continued after Gutenberg’s death, and it was the Industrial Revolution that spurred its rapid advancement. The continually changing world environment—including World War II propaganda, and post-qar advertising—demanded that printed communications reach far bigger audiences than ever before.

Today’s presses are capable of stunning speeds and quality. While modern presses have become very accurate, the speed at which they run creates some variance.

That’s where bleed and live area can help you and your printer.

When designing an ad, there are three sizes designers need to remember. Trim size, bleed size, and live area.

Trim size – The dimensions of a finished piece.

Bleed size – Bleed size is equal to the trim size plus 1/8^th inch top, bottom, left, and right. The extra 1/8^th inch per side is called the bleed. Bleed of 1/8^th inch is standard in the printing industry, although some printing processes may require more (or less) bleed. Check with your printer if you are unsure.

Live area – Live area can be thought of as the opposite of bleed. Where as bleed extends out from trim, live area extends in from trim. Keep in mind that live area size is not the same size as bleed size. Live area is usually 3/16^th inch in from bleed. Again, some printers may require more or less.

Paper and the press

Paper running through a press needs to be larger than the print size. This is to allow the press to grip the paper outside the printed area and pull it through. It then needs to be trimmed to the final size.

Slight variance of the printed area occurs because of the speed the paper runs through the press. This means designers need to extend their images and color elements to bleed size. This eliminates the possibility of unprinted white paper showing up on the edges of the page if the trimmer is off slightly.

Designers should use live area to guarantee that important elements such as copy, headers and footers, logos, etc., are not trimmed. Live area allows the trimmer to err slightly to the inside of the trim edge. Copy, folios, logos, headers and footers should always be inside the live area.

Here’s a good rule of thumb: If you don’t want your photos, backgrounds, and color elements to bleed (extend to the edge of the final trim size), then keep them all within the live area. This will help mask any variance in the trimming process.

Keep in mind: as printing technology advances, press speed increases. As designers it is our responsibility to help printers do their jobs. Give the printer bleed to work with. Use live area for your copy and elements. At the end of the day your finished product and your relationship with your printer will be better for it.

What do you need to know about your paper resources?

by Kris Matz – Kris@HighVelocityCommunications.com

According to the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), the U.S. consumes 100 million tons of paper each year, about 35% of the consumption comes from recycled fiber. 

That’s a lot of paper! 

Environmental topics are a significant concern of many people these days.  When considering paper resources, these concerns lead to questions about responsible forestry and the environmental and social impacts of harvest.

Ask your printer if their paper comes from an FSC certified resource.  The FSC is a not-for-profit organization that promotes responsible forest management.  Their purpose is to “…eliminate habitat destruction, water pollution, displacement of indigenous peoples and violence against people and wildlife that often accompanies logging.”

Go here to learn more about FSC certified paper. 

High Velocity Communications publications are printed through a resource that is certified for the Forest Stewardship Council through the Rainforest Alliance.  This ensures that standards are met for conservation of natural resources and the welfare of local workers and communities.

A website starting point

By Jay Blazek – Jay@HighVelocityCommunications.com

Thinking about building a website? You’ll have to educate yourself. Here are a few thoughts …

1. One of the best starting points can be found at http://www.usability.gov/. This site is tailored toward government web designers, but also provides great general information that can help virtually anyone—or any business. Overall, it’s a great way to build your general knowledge.

2. Look at your competitors’ sites to see what works and what doesn’t. Combine what they’re doing with your own industry knowledge to help refine your site.

3. Make sure you understand key industry terms. Even if you use a web design team, you still must understand these words and phrases so you can communicate your needs. Read books such as “Don’t Make Me Think” and visit sites like the one referenced above. Of course there are many other great sources out there. The key is making sure you can speak the language.

Don’t skimp on customer service

by Kris Matz -- Kris@HighVelocityCommunications.com

You can set your company apart by providing outstanding service. But how do you accomplish this when budgets are tight?

1. Recognize the value of every employee’s role in providing service to the customer. Those who never actually talk to a customer still play a critical role by performing their jobs properly—producing quality work and hitting deadlines.

2. Make sure all your bases are covered so customers don’t perceive diminished or delayed customer service. In the event of downsizing, cross-train employees to help keep things flowing smoothly.

3. Customers can sense dissatisfaction, so take steps to keep your current staff happy. Recognition for a job well done is important. Make sure employees know that you value their contributions. It’s the right thing to do, and it’s good for business.

4. Don’t let service to your best customers slide while trying to get new business. Remember: Your competition is probably chasing your best clients. Great customer service can slam the door on those efforts.

Ideas all around us

by Jason France – Jason@HighVelocityCommunications.com

 People often ask me where I come up with ideas for my design. The answer is everywhere. But here are a few specifics:

• Read lots of magazines. Thumbing through a magazine that you normally wouldn’t subscribe to is a great way to avoid “reading” the mag and, instead, noticing the design. I pay special attention to use of color, typestyles and how photography is being used. To get some exposure to lots of different publications, I get a cup of joe at Barnes and Noble and grab three random magazines off the rack and flip through them.
• Work at finding ideas consistently. For example, I go to Barnes and Noble once a week.
• Pay attention to billboards, product wrappers and websites.
• Music is a great inspiration. This morning on my way into the office, I listened to Kings of Leon. Great band.

Let the day-to-day be your guide. Sometimes you don’t need to look very hard to find your inspiration for design.

Tips on keeping a happy workplace

by Pete Kennedy --Pete@HighVelocityCommunications.com

Slate has an interesting blog entry on tips for a happy workplace. Some you've seen before, but others are a little more compelling.

Why should you ask your printer to use soy-based inks?

by Kris Matz – Kris@HighVelocityCommunications.com

Here are a few of the highpoints:

1. Great color resulting from the soybean oil’s clarity

2. A ‘green’ choice

• Soybeans are a sustainable and renewable resource.
• Soy inks are more easily removed in the de-inking process to support paper recycling.
• When compared to petroleum based inks, soy ink is low in volatile organic compounds – improving inside air quality during the printing process.

3. More bang for the buck

• Due to the intense colors, less ink is usually used in the printing process.
• Comparably priced to conventional inks.
• Lithographic stability reduces rejects and waste.

High Velocity Communications’ publications are printed with soy-certified inks and environmentally safe solvents.

 Click here to read more about soy ink.