Great Customer Service is Key!

Wow this weekend was hot! Tried to do a little yard work but it was tough BBQ'd instead.

CANVAS magazine sends me a Monday newsletter every week and I thought this one was great. My personal purchasing habits are completely based on the personal touch vs just the price, someone who knows their field and walks you through exactly what you need is invaluable.


July 13, 2009

CANVAS Weekly Newsletter"Nothin' But a Chicken Wing"

It is easy to become skeptical in these challenging times. It seems as though many of our buying experiences are defined by the bare minimum customer service and great ambivalence from the people who are charged with serving.

With a growing concern that our country is mired in a "save yourself" attitude and "commoditized" service, I had some hope restored this weekend.

My brother, a couple of buddies and I traveled to Clinton, South Carolina to play golf. We got up at 5:30 and drove two hours to what amounted to the middle of nowhere. As my friends raved about this golf course, the skeptic in me began to take over. I mean, come on, two hours to play golf? I like the game, but a four hour round-trip doesn't seem to make a lot sense to me.

As you can imagine, there are not a lot of golfers on the course. I think there were about 20-30 people all day. In turn, the golf course is extremely difficult and magnified my very pedestrian game. My score would suggest that this day was not a lot of fun for me. However, I cannot think of a better golf experience in recent memory.

The difference was the service provided. The very small staff seemed to realize that a job is not a right. It is a responsibility. They were falling all over themselves to make sure we had everything we needed. As an example, the general manager actually came out on the course to see how we were doing.

After our round, we were relaxing and telling stories, when Dennis, our waiter, came up with a plate of chicken wings. With a big smile, he said, "these are on my tab, please enjoy". We all looked at each other with shock. This was unexpected, but delightful. By the way, it cost us $60 to play 36 holes of golf!

Having a job instills remarkable pride and should be respected and loved. We may receive some questionable service in our individual lives. However, let's empower each other to create memorable buying experiences for our clients. In the end, it is actually more fun to serve. It makes you feel great and it says a lot about you. In fact, it's easier to serve with enthusiasm than with disdain. In other words, it ain't nothin' but a chicken wing!

All the best,

Mark Potter
CANVAS
www.thecanvasmag.com

Hope you enjoyed

Ronnie

Reasons' that compel consumers to open their Direct Mail

As recent survey from Vertis Communication asked adult consumers a question, "Which one of the following makes a difference as to what direct mail you open?"

The results:
1) Timing of the piece arriving coinciding with need for the service/product = 67%
2) Consumer's name on the front of the envelope = 66%
3) A special offer or discount = 54%
4) The package looks important = 52%
5) Feel something in the package = 51%
6) A free gift or token inside = 42%
7) Donated material enclosed = 35%
8) None of these = 5%

So what can you do with this information, well implementing some of these tactics in with your current direct mail campaigns would be the first step, then testing which method or methods work best to fit with your products or services and budget. Remember just because you try these tactics doesn't mean it will work, to work the best you will also need a targeted list, great follow up and as I said in my previous entry consistency. Call today for any questions or if you want us to come by and help develop an effective campaign for your business.


Thanks

Ronnie

The results above are from Vertis Communications, property of an annual study tracking consumer media and buying behavior across a wide variety of industry segments... from 2009

Reflecting over a vacation

I haven't taken a vacation in a very long time and forgot how that time away can allow you to reflect on what you have been doing and how to improve on it. Growing up in Southern California the bright green landscape in Ireland was amazing, the food was hearty and the beer was, well everywhere. My only complaint was limited Ketchup for the chips.

During the 2 flights home which included a 4 hour layover in Philly my time was spent thinking about the first 6 months of this year. Marketing ideas for DeFrance, marketing ideas we assisted our clients with and we're they effective or not. Most people, myself included are extremely impatient with marketing, expecting that the first mailing, magazine ad or billboard campaign you will rake in the dough. The reality is some will respond immediately to the campaign and others are on the fences or are not in need at the immediate time. This is why consistent marketing is so important, people need to be reminded why they need your products or services regularly, keep your name is their face.

I was reading a blog over the trip and Mark Potter from Canvas magazine was talking about the long term effects of marketing and companies holding off of spending that money. "For example, I was talking to a couple of my friends at Coca Cola, the number one brand in the world, and I asked them about curbing their advertising. They responded by saying that if Coke stopped advertising today, there would be no effect tomorrow. However, in a year's time, Pepsi will surely gain market share."

It's hard to think of the future when we are worried about today but we must. The are no companies who are the exception to the rule, we must market to our target audience, solve their problems and provide superior service.

Just my thoughts after a vacation.

Ronnie

Wedding Package (Offset + Letterpress + Die Cut)

DeFrance just finished this project for a designer last week. Its always neat to use multiple processes on a project and this wedding invitation definetely allowed us to. We offset printed the green apple color, Letterpress printed the red and the die cut the shape on the face + card tabs on back panel. The package included this main piece + 2 other Invitation cards. For more details call us.

Enjoy

Ronnie

619.474.8626

Del Mar Fair Trip

Well the Fair has never been a must go yearly event for me but this year we had a reason so I was all for it. My wife (Nicole) is a high school teacher and this school year she got a taste of my world, the printing world because she was in charge of the yearbook. I remember she had many late nights of proof reading, photo editing, last minute changes and just plain old stress.

All of the hard work really paid off in the end, the yearbook sold out (funny that kids who are so into technology still love looking through a book, wow) and the yearbook was awarded a 1st place prize at the Del Mar Fair. I'm very proud of her and her yearbook class, they did a great job. Printing is contagious and guess what she's doing it again next year.

Side note we tried some great food (Fried Zucchini, Cheese Bread, Pizza, Corn Dog, Fried Snickers and a Brownie Sundae) there were 4 of us but that's still a lot of food and it was all great!

Kudos to DeFrance

Here a couple of nice comments from Reacomm to the DeFrance staff..........

"Thank you for EVERYTHING - you guys did an excellent job, as always, of managing our vendors from inception to mailing.
Kudos to DeFrance Printing staff for all of their exceptional attention to the details!"

from Linda Maynhart and Realcomm

..
"I spoke to my customer ... earlier this week and he brought up the postcard mailing. He said he was very pleased with how smoothly everything went, how well it turned out and that you were a pleasure to work with. Thank you for doing such a great job!"

Best regards,

Cameron Saunders
Account Manager
Realcomm

..

At DeFrance we love working hand in hand with our customers. Watching a project from beginning to end, seeing the results and feeling good that we helped a customer meet a tight deadline or draw attention to an upcoming event. Reading emails like the above lets us know our hard work was worth it and our philosophy of putting our customers first is right on track.

Tradeshow Marketing for RealComm

The end of June is the Realcomm 2009 in Chicago, a 2 day real estate technology conference. This year Realcomm and it's exhibitor's stepped up marketing, contacting attendies early ensuring they stop by their booths. Over the past 2 weeks we produced 11 different postcards all digitally printed. Our job was to work with Realcomm Exhibitors from reciept of artwork, print and mailing. As always they we're a pleasure to work with and we feel that everything turned out great.

To find out what type of marketing will increase attendance to your booth call today!

619.474.8626

Thanks

Ronnie