It’s hard to believe that summer is already winding down. My son Nathan turned five, and has just started Kindergarten. And getting him there was no small task. My husband and I actually started the enrollment process early last year. It became our primary goal to get our child into the best school we could, period. School is hard, no matter if you are a parent registering you’re five year old for the first time or a busy public relations department for a major college.

Even after successfully getting my son enrolled in a good school we still faced doctor’s check-ups and shots, mounds of paperwork and online submissions. I honestly had no clue that it takes so much to get a five year old in to school. I can’t even imagine what it would be like on the other end of the table. What the teachers, administrators and public relations staff must go through to prepare for a mass amount of students. One of Oregon Printing’s higher education clients, Earlham College, has this task every year!

Earlham College Booklet

We work closely with the public relations department at Earlham to make sure we complete all of their projects on time. The ladies at Earlham have a lot on their plate as well. They start working for the next school year, even before the present school year comes to a close. So as I have only one child to prepare for, they have thousands. They not only have students, but the internal personnel as well. Anywhere from a new faces booklet introducing the entire incoming freshman class, complete with photos and phone numbers, to individual course Study brochures. Not to mention current events at Earlham and aboard, with international studies and more. But there is a twist… Earlham is in another state! They are located in Indiana… so why do they choose us? It’s simple: Oregon Printing cares, and we have the quality to back it up.

Earlham College Brochure

We understand how crucial it is to make deadlines, even if they seem impossible. Just because you might be in another state does not mean your deadlines can’t be met. We work with many Colleges and Universities, both local and in other states. Technology and our workflow are wonderful things. They are able to upload their files right to our server and can rest assured that we will get the job done in a timely manner. Whether they need a pdf proof, or a color calibrated Epson proof, we will ensure accuracy and promptness.

I have a new found respect for schools and everything they do to give students the best education they can and here at Oregon Printing, we utilize our resources to ease their process. See why it’s easier for Earlham College to have their printing done 60 miles away.

One more summer is in the books, and here we go into fall. And over the last couple of years I’ve seen more change in this industry than any 2 year space I can remember. Even the advent of the Mac, Pagemaker (now Adobe In-Design) and image-setters now seems like it was all happening at a snails pace compared to the speed of change we see today…and the beat goes on.

In the past printers had to deal with changing technology in how we made our products, even though the product stayed the same. Faster software and more efficient equipment meant more investment and training, but in the end, the printers job was to put the ink on the paper.

Today though, some printers are re-evaluating their place in the whole communications food-chain. Some find opportunities in logistic services of warehousing, distribution and fulfillment of printed products for their clients. Some provide creative services like design and content creation at the front end, and with the move to complex digital workflows, some printers have taken that expertise and offer IT services like database management as well as web design. Some digital printers are extending this expertise to offer personalization of printing for one to one marketing, personalized web landing pages and helping to design interactive campaigns. Taken all of these things together and we are moving into world of Integrated Communications.

Over the past 15 years, as printing became streamlined (because of digitization & the computer), the printer would work with the purchasing department or print buyer on what work was being offered. In most cases, the quote would go to multiple suppliers and the least expensive or the quickest printer would get the work. They seldom knew anything about the job until it arrived.

As we move ahead, some forward thinking printing companies are making the change into more of an “Integrated Communication Company” model, that is understanding that communications are delivered in many different ways. As we in the industry change our business models, our points of contact will change to the marketing and creative departments. Our companies will be involved in early planning stages of campaigns and products, and use their expertise to help clients optimize the way these campaigns and products are brought to market. That may involve some test marketing to determine the best way to deliver certain information, be it printed, mailed or electronic delivery, but most likely will be a well thought out integration of all methods of delivery. These integrated communication companies will not get the work because they are the cheapest supplier, but because they are partnering with their clients in the total planning, testing and creative process and are the only logical organization to do the work.

We all still have a lot of work to do to get there. Some printers are farther along than others on this journey, and some will never get there. It’s a whole mindset change for the printing companies as well as the people and companies that buy printing and communications. I can’t wait till 2015 and look back at how all these changes in our industry played out. We’ll probably be saying it all looks so simple in hindsight.