10.30.09
TWGA Reports on Large Format Printing
TrendWatch Graphic Arts (TWGA) has released a new report, Supersizing the Market: The TrendWatch Perspective on the Market for Large Format Graphics and Equipment.
This new TWGA report indicates commercial printers are missing the revenue-stream opportunities of large format printing. According to TWGA, a large part of the interest in large format printing over the last 10 years has been its novelty. But large format as a medium has become firmly entrenched in the media mix.
For creatives and their clients, including large format output as part of a campaign or project has become a strategic decision, reaching a more refined and defined targeted audience. Still, much of this work is being done outside the commercial printing industry–by screen printers, photolabs, sign shops and other “digital” print firms.
The survey reports, “As we speak about value-added services, we can’t help but get the feeling that of all the potential value-added services that commercial print shops could and should be adding to their mix, large format is the biggest potential missed opportunity.”
According to the new report:
• Of the commercial printers with large format capabilities, 78 percent offer large format output services, but 22 percent only use large format output for proofing jobs.
• The percentage of commercial printers who are offering large format service of any kind is less than 8 percent.
• More than half of large format output, sold as large format output and not for proofing purposes, is for retail signage.
• According to recent TWGA research, 13 percent of print and prepress firms, 16 percent of commercial photographers and 6 percent of publishing firms plan to invest in large format printers.
• Designing point-of-purchase/point-of-sale displays as a sales opportunity climbed to 8 percent of publishing firms, the highest in the history of the publishing surveys.
Supersizing the Market is available for purchase on the TWGA web site secure online store, www.trendwatchgraphicarts.com or by calling (866) 873-6310. TrendWatch Graphic Arts specializes in the assessment of trends and changes in graphic communications markets by providing timely and strategic information, market analysis and expert opinion.
NAPL Reports Printing Industry Upturn Continues
Conditions are continuing to improve for the printing industry, according to the latest analysis from the National Association for Printing Leadership (NAPL).
“From December 2003 through February of this year, print sales had their best three-month stretch in three years, and key indicators, such as work-on-hand, hiring plans and the Printing Business Index are either positive or improving,” said Andrew Paparozzi, NAPL vice president and chief economist.
The economic analysis comes from NAPL’s Printing Economic Research Center (PERC), which produces research and publications that are sponsored by Heidelberg, GA.
The NAPL Printing Business Index (PBI), the Association’s broadest measure of print activity, rose to 58.1 in March , up from 54.0 in January and 44.4 in March 2003. The PBI combines input from NAPL’s Printing Business Panel about work-on-hand, current business conditions, expected business conditions (confidence), hiring plans, profitability and other key indicators into a single measure of activity.
The NAPL Printing Business Panel is a representative group of more than 300 printers that the association surveys monthly on a range of key printing issues. Since the same companies are surveyed every time, data are strictly comparable from period to period. For more information contact NAPL, (201) 634-9600 or (800) 642-6275; fax: (201) 634-0324; web: www.napl.org.