Page 68 - Print21 Nov-Dec 2019

Paper
Meeting printers’ aspirations
Printers may not need another reason to buy paper and other printable materials – but Ball & Doggett’s Aspire rewards programme has launched nonetheless, with a suite of rewards for customers from Australia’s largest distributor of printable materials and consumables.
Aspire, the new customer reward programme from the country’s biggest supplier of printable materials Ball & Doggett, features more than 100 rewards, across six categories – as well as a service to find prizes that are not already on the menu.
According to Tony Bertrand, national marketing manager at Ball & Doggett, the new rewards programme aims to incentivise customers in a similar manner to frequent flyer and supermarket loyalty schemes – “but better”, he says.
“We sell a wide range of products that are used throughout the printing industry, and we think it is important to reward our customers for their loyalty.
“It works on customers who, through achieving a series of targets, earn tokens which can be redeemed for rewards. It is an individualised programme which gives customers great opportunities to earn rewards.
“The targets are for customer purchases across our broad range of products – Paper, Label and Packaging, Display and Visual, Inks & Coatings and so on,” he says.
Existing customers have been automatically signed up for the scheme, and new customers also open up accounts when they purchase. The reward categories, says Bertrand, are Home and Kitchen; Outdoor and DIY; Technology and Entertainment;
Rewarding printers: Aspire loyalty programme launched by Ball & Doggett
Family and Fitness; Experiences and Travel; and Business.
“That Business category is relating to the printing industry itself – we have a section there for equipment that printers can use. Some owners may want to redeem their tokens
for equipment that can be used in their own business, reinvesting and extending their capability.
“We also have a service called the Concierge service: if you have five
or more tokens and you can’t find the perfect reward in our rewards catalogue, you can tell our Concierge service what you would like and they will chase it up for you,” he says.
Bertrand says that, though it is early days, customers are responding positively to Aspire, which features plenty of non-business prizes for printers looking to let their hair down.
“Our industry is made up of a
lot of small businesses, and these employers don’t have a lot of opportunity to take time off. Having a suite of prizes that are about fun and relaxation is important. There are more than 100 rewards in the catalogue, and the Concierge service adds to that as well.
“Feedback so far has been good. Customers are really responding to the programme, and they’re liking what they see. Many customers are already looking at ways in which they can grow their purchases with Ball & Doggett,” he says.
And no wonder – considering it is an extra reward for buying a staple that printers already need. 21
i_consignment ensuring speed to market
Making the purchase of paper and other printable materials and consumables easier,
says Tony Bertrand, is Ball
& Doggett’s i_consignment inventory management system, which boasts more than 600 customers across Australia and New Zealand.
The system ensures that customers always have stock sitting on the floor – but don’t waste money by buying stock they don’t need, according to Bertrand. “We’re listening to our customers who are saying they need benefit beyond
price and want help with that,” he says. Bertrand tells Print21 that, when setting up i_consignment, Ball & Doggett will go to a customer and
audit their usage to develop
a monthly pattern. “This pattern becomes the basis for the minimums and maximums set in the system. This is a technology-driven inventory management system, there’s no stocktakes involved,” he says.
When a Ball & Doggett i_consignment customer subsequently consumes stock, the consumption is recorded into the i_consignment system. Reaching the minimum triggers an automatic delivery of stock to take them back to the maximum, and at the end of the month, they are billed only for what they have actually consumed.
“It’s like a hotel minibar – if you have one bottle of red wine, that’s all you pay for. We know from research by some of the major print manufacturers that speed to market is vital for our medium of communication.
“The fact that clients have stock sitting on their floor that lets them react to customer requests immediately is a huge factor in them being successful in satisfying customer needs,” says Bertrand.
Bertrand adds that i_consignment is set for a refresh, with new features to be added early next year. He says, “It is absolutely working well for the customers who have it already.”
68 Print21 NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2019