UKvUSA episode 1: Will Your Print Business Survive in 2020?
UKvUSA is back! This popular duel between Deborah Corn and I returns in a new format as a podcast. In this first episode we discuss what printing companies need to do in order to survive in the current environment. And there are plenty more challenging debates to come! Please add your thoughts below. Links Mentioned in this episode: Matthew Parker: https://www.linkedin.com/in/profitableprintrelationships/ Deborah Corn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deborahcorn/ Print Media Centr: https://printmediacentr.com PS If you liked what I had to say, make sure you sign up below for regular updates from me Get your free copy of “10 Common Print Selling Errors And What…
Happy Christmas!
As we approach the end of 2019, I wanted to take a moment to wish all of you in my community a very happy Christmas with those around you and some peace and relaxation. And I hope that 2020 is a good year for everyone! A special thank you to all those that: Are or have been clients Have worked with me on so many exciting projects and events this year Are members of my “Views From The Buyer” newsletter list Have taken the time and trouble to read, comment upon and challenge me on my blogs I am now…
Why print is the perfect partner to LinkedIn
Do you remember everyone who connected with you on LinkedIn? I have over 5,000 connections on LinkedIn. With the best will in the world it is hard to remember every single one! What makes it even harder is that many people reach out with the standard connection message and never engage further. As good as LinkedIn is for forging great business relationships it only works if you do something to stand out from the crowd. Here’s how one connection made sure I would remember her – by using print A few weeks ago I had a request to connect from…
Matthew Parker featured on Podcasts From The Printerverse
Hear Deborah Corn from PrintMediaCentr and myself in conversation. Here are some of the things we cover: – why printing companies should not sell print – why the price, service, quality triangle is no longer relevant – how to communicate effectively with today’s buyers who are scared of traditional sales channels – interesting statistics on how prospects behave – how printing companies create social proof – key mistakes that printing companies make with their websites and on social media – the difference between the UK and US print markets – how much knowledge do buyers really have? – why…
11 ways to sell more print to your customers
“If only I’d known you provided that” This is a sentence that many customers have probably uttered over the years. No matter how hard we try, most of our customers don’t know anything about at least some of the many products and services that we offer. I’ve certainly come up against this issue myself. How many opportunities are we losing as a result of this? How much money is this costing us?
Warning: most printing companies are on track to lose 15-20% of their customers in the next 12 months
Do you plan for decline? No matter how hard you try, it’s impossible to keep all your current customers. Some will stop using print, some will choose another supplier and some will simply go out of business. If you stay being reactive to your customers needs, your business will almost certainly start declining. This will happen sooner rather than later. That’s why it’s essential that you create a plan to create new business
Why growth may be the wrong path for printing companies
Why do we concentrate on growth? Many sales targets consistently focus on increasing turnover. Naturally, if you have a lot of press capacity to fill then this is important. However, for some companies it may be a better strategy to focus on bringing in more profitable clients or even customers that are nicer to deal with! I want to challenge the idea that sales always has to be about growth. For many, the path of standing still may not be right. For others, it is certainly something worth considering.
How failing to plan for decline leads to missed print sales targets
There are some great success stories in print at the moment I constantly use social media to share great stories about why people should use print. Companies are waking up to the fact that print is still a highly effective communication channel. Companies such as Google, LinkedIn, Amazon and Apple are all using print as part of their marketing strategies. (If you are not already receiving this information from me, please connect with me on LinkedIn, follow me on Twitter or hook up with me on Facebook.) Many people say that print is having a renaissance. It is certainly true…
How traditional selling encourages customers to buy on price
Can you imagine how it feels to be sold to by 1,400 different printing companies? That is what happened to me as a buyer. In fact, that’s a pretty conservative estimate of the number of printing companies that I spoke to during my print buying career. In theory, I should be able to tell you about all the creative sales approaches that I received. Unfortunately, the reality was rather less positive. 98% of the sales approaches that I received followed a broadly similar pattern. Here’s what usually happened. The sales person would tell me a bit about their company. Then…
How to create a message that sells more print
98% of sales messages from printing companies sound pretty much the same That’s what I discovered during my time as a buyer. During my buying career I had over 1,400 printing companies sell to me. But few had an effective sales message. That’s why printing companies need a different way to sell. So here’s the TPD Principle