Page 10 - Print 21 Magazine Jan-Feb 2019

Leading Article
Investing in your future
Hard work and determination are essential elements for success
in business. Add a tincture of luck and you’re on your way to the rewards of achievement and prosperity. But there are many hurdles to jump, no matter how fortunate you are. Of primary importance is deciding where to invest your time, effort and capital. This is where the prudent and the soon to be poor part company.
Here today... where tomorrow?
And this is the nub of it. Investing in your business must mean more than doing the same thing over again. Comfort zones can be deadly; habit and the familiar rut are the enemies of innovation, progress and success. It’s easy to coast along, especially if everything seems to be working okay. We can’t see that dark cloud on the horizon, because we don’t want to.
Printing has more than its fair share
of challenges; technical, existential and commercial. How to predict what it will look like in five years’ time? Even three? Yet it’s incumbent on business owners to make that leap, not to check the missed opportunities in their rear-view mirrors but to ‘vision up’ for the future. You have to decide in what and where to invest. This is your business, your money, your life. Get it wrong and it could go very badly.
There’s no magic bullet, no crystal ball
to show the future. The best you can do
is listen, learn, read, watch, talk, research and study. Remember to stay close to your customers, as they are the ones who will decide if you still have a business by the time your investment matures.
It’s a risky business, making investment decisions. The only thing riskier is putting them off – or not making them at all. 21
Good ideas, brilliant ideas, are ten a penny. There’s no shortage of spruikers peddling get rich quick schemes, the latest internet
developments, or even the upside of bitcoin. Closer to home, print business owners must decide where to invest their resources in an industry undergoing rapid change. It’s not easy.
There are many consolidation and merger opportunities available now as the industry shifts.
Practically no one wants legacy machinery, but customer lists
are notoriously hard to evaluate. Straightforward investment in new machinery, in presses, prepress and finishing equipment may seem easier, but there’s no point in increasing capacity without having the customers.
Even as the industry is transitioning
to digital, analogue technologies retain the majority of volumes in commercial printing, direct mail or packaging. In these heavy metal sectors, there’ll always be a requirement to keep your equipment up
to scratch, to not fall behind in terms of automation, speed and integration. For busy printing companies there are no investment-free periods.
Digital clicks through
The same goes for digital, but on steroids. Manufacturers are continually bringing new models to market. Investment cycles are dictated less by equipment deterioration than by improvements in imaging quality, ease of operation, production speeds, and faster rips. The range of digital production equipment
– printing and finishing – is constantly expanding. New iterations are focused on
a perceived industry demand, driven by market surveys of customers’ requirements. Not everything is suitable for everyone; in fact, the reverse is true – but printers can be assured there’s a suitable machine out there to meet their exact requirements.
As I said, however, there’s more to print investment than equipment. We’re an increasingly software-driven industry, interfacing with the communications industries on so many levels. Printers taking stock of presses and deciding that enough’s enough can sensibly and profitably turn to upgrading and transforming their ordering, production and communication software. It’s quite as exciting and may deliver better value. Exploring online ordering, marketing personalisation and web portal development will expand the range of offerings your business can deliver.
Patrick Howard
– Publishing Editor
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10 Print21 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2019