In this post, guest blogger Jon Aston, of Marketing Partners, explores the opportunities hidden in QR codes for sign and display industry. Formerly ND’s Marketing Manager, Jon now consults with sign and graphics companies throughout North America.

Meet John Wanamaker

You see that gentleman off to the left? His name was John Wanamaker. This was a man who lived an extraordinary, accomplished life. Among other things, JW is credited with creating the money-back guarantee (seriously!) and is considered, by many, to be the father of modern advertising. Today, he is probably best known for quipping that “Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is I don’t know which half”.

Today, roughly 90 years after his death… I daresay Mr. Wanamaker’s words continue to ring all-too-true for all-too-many a small business owner.

Enter the QR Code

If you’ve scanned a QR Code with a smartphone, you’ve undoubtedly experienced a kind of technological magic that people in John Wanamaker’s day could scarcely have dreamt of. Most likely, the QR Code pointed to a page on the worldwide web. From there, perhaps you watched a video, entered a contest, browsed further, subscribed to something – or possibly even purchased a product or service – and then shared your discovery with friends and colleagues in your social networks! All in a matter of several seconds. And, as we learned in Part-1 of this series, it’s happening all around us, throughout the day and into the night.

What you might not realize, or may not have fully considered

Right from the very moment any smartphone scans a QR Code (say, for the sake of argument – from a sign, or display, or vehicle graphic) someone is treated to a tiny, valuable stream of data. Advertisers can easily track how many prospects scanned the QR code and when. They learn how much time prospects stayed on the page. They know what actions prospects have taken – from downloading a video, or a PDF – to which links they clicked. They can easily quantify, identify and qualify prospects who subscribed to a newsletter, who requested more product info, or requested a quotation. And they know who made a purchase. This is the magic of the internet as marketing tool. It’s all measurable. And it’s enough to put a big smile on John Wanamaker’s face.

As of today, you’re no longer just in the sign or display business.

Frankly, you never were just in the sign or display business. It’s all a matter of perspective. There’s an old axiom from the copywriting world that I would like you to consider for a moment: Nobody ever bought a drill because they wanted a drill. Think about that. Likewise, nobody every bought a sign because they wanted a sign. Your single greatest opportunity for success (and I believe this with all my heart) is to focus on delivering measurable results for your customers. And QR Codes just made doing that a whole lot easier.

Welcome, my friends, to the Mobile Marketing Industry

While I’m not necessarily suggesting a full-on “pivot” for your business, I see real potential for sign and display companies to jump on this – to demonstrate measurable value in ways none of us could have imagined a few years ago (let alone in John Wanamaker’s Day).

Stay in the know.

In Part-3 of this series, we’ll do our best to point you down the right path – to give you the knowledge and direction you need to get started. If you want receive notification as we publish each new part of this series via email, complete and submit the form below.

For more information please call 604-525-7940

]]> http://www.ndgraphics.com/vancouver-open-house/feed/ 0 http://www.ndgraphics.com/sawtrax-panel-cart-50-00-manufacturers-rebate/ http://www.ndgraphics.com/sawtrax-panel-cart-50-00-manufacturers-rebate/#comments Mon, 06 Feb 2012 20:54:59 +0000 Lindie Hills http://www.ndgraphics.com/?p=3796

To review the Panel Cart Product Page & watch a short video please click here

To redeem the coupon, print it and send it to Saw Trax Mfg., 3694 Kennesaw S. Ind. Dr, Suite A, Kennesaw GA 30144

Huh? QR What?

By now, you’ve at least seen them: Strange, checkered-looking barcodes – found on everything from packaging to print advertising. Many of you have scanned one or two with your smartphones, but still may not realize the QR Code’s full potential.  A small vanguard of you are already helping customers integrate signs, displays and even car wraps into their mobile marketing campaigns.

QR codes appear to have already crossed into the mainstream. Are you ready to take full advantage?

QR Codes aren’t new. And they’re not some passing fad.

QR Codes are simply part of a revolution that’s taking place in the way customers interact with businesses and brands: The Mobile Internet.

• One half of all local searches are already conducted on a mobile device – and mobile is now expected to exceed desktop internet usage by 2013.
• 8 million Canadians now own a smartphone – that’s 40% of the Canadian mobile phone market.
• Comscore reported that an astonishing 1.3 million Canadians scanned a QR code in June of 2011.

In other words: QR Code usage appears to have crossed into the mainstream in 2011.

So, if you’re not already using QR Codes in your marketing – and if you’re not already helping customers integrate QR Codes into their signage – you’re on the verge of falling behind. Hopefully, this will serve as a wake-up call.

Don’t Panic. We’ve got you covered.

As we’ll find out in Part-2 of this series: there’s a valuable, hidden opportunity in QR Code technology for your company.  In Part-3, we’ll arm you with all the information you’ll need to get started in planning and launching your own “Baby Steps” mobile marketing campaign. And finally, in Part-4, we’ll wrap the series up by framing the discussion you will want to start having with your customers.

Stay in the know.

If you want receive notification as we publish each new part of this series via email, complete and submit the form below.

Image: Thanks to James Bowe for use of his photo under Creative Commons 2.0 Generic Attribution.

On September 23^rd  ND Graphics attended the 2011 Consac Show, where we showcased some of our equipment and materials and held our first ever “Live Auction” with 100% of the proceeds going to The Sick Kids Foundation.

The Live Auction event raised over $20,000.  We were very fortunate to be able to pass on the big cheque and receive a very informative and eye-opening tour of the hospital.

ND Graphics is now being recognized within the Atrium of the hospital as well as the SickKids website.

We are very proud of this recognition and look forward to our next event to be able to continue contributing to this Charitable Cause.

ND Graphics participated in the Imprint Canada show last week at the Toronto Congress Centre. Recognized as the premier event for the “Imprintable Products” business, participating in this show was a bit of a departure for ND Graphics.

Yes,  ND Graphics sells screen printing chemicals still that can be used for t-shirt printing.  And yes, ND Graphics sells SISER heat transfer materials for garment decoration, be it cutting graphics, weeding, and then heat transferring, or for inkjet printing, then cutting, weeding and transferring.  Still, for me, it was a big step to take part in something as widely recognized as the ‘sportswear and t-shirt show’.

Boy, was I wrong.

YOU CAN DO WHAT?

Just as we have seen customers come into the sign business from screen printing or commercial printing, shops that are doing garments and “giftware” are also delving into the sign business.

We went into this show with a small Summa plotter for cutting of the SISER EasyWeed heat transfer material, and a Mimaki CJV30-130 for printing and cutting of SISER’s digital products.  We also were showcasing our new line of screen chemicals from Franmar.

The real magic happened for us when we loaded a roll of banner into the Mimaki, and started printing beautiful landscape vignettes that my friend, a professional photographer had taken.  Between printing on the banner, and then pressure sensitive vinyl—in this case, gloss 3M 180CV3—people really started to take notice of the ND Graphics booth.

This I can write off as “we were doing something completely different” at that point than everyone else in the show was doing.  While 4′ wide prints of landscapes was nothing new for us at ND Graphics or for any of you, our regular customer base, it certainly was for this group of potential customers.

LESSON LEARNED

SO, what’s in this for you, a customer of ND Graphics?  Well, there was a very valuable lesson here not only for us at ND, but also for each and all of you.

We strayed outside our usual “comfort zone” at this show, and stand to perhaps reap some benefits from it.  We also learned that customers in this “imprint” end of the business are interested in larger format signs and graphics, not just printing on t-shirts, coffee mugs and other promotional products.

It’s easy to keep going to the same customers, same customer base, and presenting the same offerings to try to grow business.  Sometimes, a radical rethink is needed to get your company noticed, and to drum up some new business.

Take a lesson from us.  Break out of the usual, and try something different.  You never know what you may find out, and what may come out of it.

Slightly Smaller, Still Healthy

Overall, I would say that the show itself seemed a bit smaller than in years past, but it was nice to see Heidelberg make it`s return after not exhibiting at Graphics Canada in 2009.   Attendance was a little light on the Thursday, the first day of the show, but Friday and Saturday numbers kept the ND staff busy and engaged around the booth.

Lest We Forget

Show organizers marked Remembrance Day with “One Minute of Silence” at 11am. Not that I didn’t appreciate the attempt, but I couldn’t help but remember when the show piped veterans in for a flag ceremony about six years ago.  That set the bar for me – and was a more suitable representation of the debt of gratitude I think most Canadians still feel to those who sacrificed so much for the freedoms we enjoy today.

Apologies: Not a Full Report

The ND Graphics exhibit was busy enough each day to keep me from taking in the rest of the show – so I’m afraid I can only report on our presence from this point forward.  If you happened to attend the show, please consider sharing whatever you care to highlight about the your experience by adding a comment below.

Wide Format Digital Printers Showcased

ND showcased the Agfa Anapurna M4f UV flatbed, Mimaki’s JV33 light solvent printer, and a Mutoh ValueJet 1624 – featuring Mutoh’s new and very snazzy SpectroVue colour measurement device – a compact spectrophotometer for accurate, on-the-fly colour calibration.

A North American Debut

We were also thrilled to introduce the Aristo TL48 digital flatbed cutter – which made it’s North American debut in our booth. The Aristo cutter performed fantastically throughout the show, cutting thousands of “coasters” printed on 3mm Excel PVC, Converd Enviroboard, and 3mm Alumabrite (ND’s answer to DiBond).  We cut all of the substrates with the Aristo’s oscillating knife – a cleaner, more efficient alternative to routering.

Your Turn

Once again, if you were at Graphics Canada and care share your insights or highlights from the show, please do leave us a comment below.

Photo Credits: Many thanks to Paul Strak, Gridwork Photography, Stouffville ON for joining us at the show – and for supplying images for this post!

We all know banner mesh is an excellent material choice for banner applications requiring reduced wind resistance, or a certain amount of “transparency” – from construction site and fence graphics to building wraps and even window blinds. But a lesser known application with terrific market potential is in-ice graphics.

In-ice graphics are a high visibility advertising medium that can command a premium from sponsors for local curling, hockey and skating tournament organizers. For some clubs, this may mean a new source of sponsorship revenue. For others, in-ice graphics produced using banner mesh offers distinct advantages over conventional methods. For example: Unlike other methods, digitally printed banner mesh is reusable, inexpensive and easy for ice makers to install, and does not create a thermal barrier.

So Far, So Good – Right?

Here’s the thing. We’re not experts in ice-making. We’re not even novice icemakers. In all likelihood, you aren’t either. So, when you’re discussing the idea with your customer, make sure the ice-maker is present at some point.

Only qualified ice makers can determine the safety and suitability of use of, and installation methods for, banner mesh for in-ice graphics in their facility and particular circumstance. Encourage them to test and make their own determination. From what we can gather, the following installation/testing guidelines should help them get started.

Installation/Testing Guidelines:

1. First, ensure that printed graphics have been allowed to cure for a minimum of 24 hours. For that to happen, remove prints from take up roll, in order to ensure maximum air circulation.
2. Ice makers typically install graphics between their first and second layers of ice.
3. After first layer of ice is in, shave down slightly the area where the banner mesh graphics will be placed.
4. Place graphics in this area, then use a pressurized sprayer to lay a light mist of water covering the graphic to about 12” beyond all edges. Allow mist of water to freeze.
5. Take a clean paint roller and dip in water. Roll this over graphic covering to about 12” beyond all edges. Allow this coat to freeze.
6. Next, install a second layer of ice.
7. Inspect area to ensure ice over the graphics has sufficient integrity, and that graphics are set in at a safe depth, based on intended use(s) of the ice surface
8. Re-inspect after first use, before and after ice resurfacing.

Photo used with permission under Creative Commons “Attribution Generic 2.0″ License, with thanks to Kraft Hockeyville Thetford Mines 2009