Following is a discussion by Margie Dana, president of Dana Consulting in Chestnut Hill, a consulting firm for printers and print-buyers alike. Thanks to new technologies in desktop publishing and digital printing, the technical aspects of getting materials prepared for a printer have undergone significant transformations. New Internet printing services are in the process of significantly changing the industry. They offer consumers and printers alike a brand-new way of doing business. The buyer then sees the lowest bid, thereby eliminating the traditional and tedious methods of finding vendors, creating bid letters, and collecting and comparing the results.
Buyers have instant access to their jobs in progress through automated tracking software.
No more missed phone calls to the salesperson or customer service rep. No more guesswork about the status of a print job. Consumers don't select print vendors, the software does. This requires a strong dose of faith from the customer. Printing is customized manufacturing - every job is new.