Technology is not an end in itself

There’s a line of thinking that suggests technology on its own will create success – or even save a business. 

In this job, I’ve seen plenty of casualties of this mindframe, the classic misstep being when a printer buys a new press in the hope it alone will bring in much-needed volumes. 

But overcapitalising in heavy metal is not the only example of this cart-before-horse thinking. There is a broader mistake of seeing technology as an alternative to a business model. 

A vendor will always advertise their latest, greatest product by saying it will drive sales. A bigger, faster press will allow you to sell more sheets for a cheaper price. A colour management system means you can promise better quality. A shift to digital will open up lucrative markets for short runs. 

But none of these technological advances on their own will make much difference if you can’t sell the benefits to your customer. 

I remember one retired industry veteran telling me that when he was in business, he saw his group as a sales and marketing operation first, a production company second. 

(In fact, he told me this anecdote in relation to Geon, which at the time was undergoing massive internal reorganisations to consolidate printing at its two supersites in Banksmeadow and Mt Waverley.)

It is Printing 101 to know you need enough volumes to fill up a press. Clearly the only way to get those volumes is through sales. Every printer knows this. But do they apply the same no-nonsense analysis when mulling an investment in a new ordering system, such as an expensive web-to-print solution? I wonder. 

We examine this in our web-to-print feature. Despite what some may think, just switching on a web storefront will not see droves of online shoppers start clicking. 

The internet is a big place. There are a lot of sites vying for the customer’s attention. While having some kind of online strategy has become integral for every business, just having a website or ordering portal is not an end in itself. 

There are significant advantages to internet trading, not least the ability to automate the ordering process, which reduces costs and makes a company more efficient. But before getting to that point, think hard about how you are going to get customers there in the first place. 

Steven Kiernan is editor of ProPrint

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