pare our workforce of thefuture,” said Ralph J. Nappi,GAERF President. “In this spirit,we are delighted to recognizeour industry’s most talentedstudents and encourage themto consider the many excitingcareer opportunities the graphiccommunications industry hasto offer.”The annual event which, this

year, hosted more than 5,700contestants competing in 94 dif-ferent skill and leadership con-tests, showcases the top careerand technical education stu-dents in the nation. Its purposeis to reward students for excel-lence, directly involve industryin evaluating student perform-ance, and provide training rele-vant to employers’ needs. Tothat end, the exhibition—whichoccupies a space equivalent to16 football fields—is held withthe assistance and support ofindustry, trade associations andlabor organizations.To become eligible for the

national competition, studentsmust first compete at the localand state levels. Two representa-tives from each state—one at thehigh school level and one at the

Volume XXX, Number 6 August 2011newsT H E A S S O C I A T I O N F O R S U P P L I E R S O F P R I N T I N G , P U B L I S H I N G A N D C O N V E R T I N G T E C H N O L O G I E S

INSIDE:

President’s Perspective........................... 2

Discover aWorld of NewBusiness Opportunities ..........................3

NPES 2011 Annual Conference .............. 4

TheNPES/PRIMIREXCHANGEMeansBusiness! ...................................... 4

NPES TradeMission: China andAll in Print China Tradeshow .................. 5

Market Intelligence News:UCC Filing Update .................................... 5

NPES Lease Data OffersInsights into Capital EquipmentInvestment Patterns ................................ 6

DirectMail and theGorilla in theRoom .. 8

News and Notes ...................................... 8

The NPES-managed GraphicArts Education and Research

Foundation (GAERF) awardednearly $30,000 in scholarships tothe nation’s top advertising de-sign, graphic communications,and screen printing technologystudents who participated in theSkillsUSA Championships heldJune 22-24, 2011, in Kansas City,MO. Each competitor was given$250 to defray the costs incurredin traveling to the event.“GAERF is committed to

supporting programs that pre-

GAERF Awards Student Scholarships toCompete in SkillsUSA ChampionshipsMEDALISTS ANNOUNCED

The 39 Graphic Communications competitors flanked by representatives ofHeidelberg, an official sponsor of the event, in Bartle Hall, Kansas City, MO.

Continued on page 7

post-secondary level—then ad-vance to the national competition.

In recognition of its continuedfinancial support for the past five

Continued on page 3

PRIMIR Summer Meeting

Nearly 50 marketing and other industry executives participated in theAugust 1-2, 2011, PRIMIR Summer Meeting held at RR Donnelleyheadquarters in Chicago.

2

In June,NPES mem-bers attend-ing ourCapitol HillFly-in had aunique op-portunity tomeet withPostmasterGeneral PatDonahoe.Pat is a longtime USPSemployee

who came up through the ranks and wasrecently named Postmaster General. Wequickly discovered at our meeting that hehad a detailed grasp of USPS challenges.Going into our visit I expected the typical

15-minute “meet and greet” quick exchangeof issues and a polite hand towards the door.We received just the opposite! The ‘politehand to the door’ led us to Pat’s conferenceroom where he spent 40 minutes sharingchallenges and possible solutions, while push-ing us for our opinions on what USPS shoulddo in the future. Ironically, we were the oneswho had to end the meeting, because weneeded to attend prearranged congressionalappointments. But we left his office withthree distinct observations:1. The USPS is in a lot more trouble than

most people, including Congress, realize;2. The possible solutions are not at all easy

(are they ever?); and,3. The USPS, at its highest level, is looking

at the mailing industry, including suppliergroups like NPES, as a partner and friend tomove USPS forward.While the issues are many, here are the

key ones:1. The USPS is looking at a $9 billion

shortfall for the 2011 fiscal year;2. Labor accounts for nearly 80% of the

post office’s operating expenses;3. First Class mail is the largest revenue

source and it is now falling at over 7%annually; and,

president’s perspective

Ralph NappiNPES President

Postman, We’ll MissYou If You Go

4. The contentious overpayment ofthe USPS pension program is not likelyto be ‘given back’ by the government tohelp balance the USPS budget.So where does the USPS head from

here? A few likely scenarios:1. An additional 3,700 post office

closures, approximately 11% of thecurrent number;2. A more aggressive transition to the

“Village Post Office” concept, wherepostal services like selling stamps andhandling small packages would be donein retail outlets like supermarkets anddrugstores;3. A potential decrease from 6 to 5

day delivery, with the elimination ofSaturday mail; and,4. A possible increase in the First Class

postage rate starting in January 2012.So why is this important to you? For

many reasons! First, is the impact thatchanges to the USPS will have on ourindustry, since to this point roughly 50%of everything printed goes through themail. So the futureviability of the USPSis important to theentire printing in-dustry. Second, isthe need to empha-size to both commu-nity leaders andelected officialsthat the depth andbreadth of themailing industry—8 million privatesector jobs in total—goes well beyondthe current 570,000plus postal employ-ees. And finally, a‘call to arms’ isneeded to helpmany constituentsrecognize the needfor a viable USPS.As our industry’s

collective voice,NPES is meetingthat “call to arms”by its active partici-

pation in the Coalition for a 21st CenturyPostal Service that is working at lengthwith the new 112th Congress, the USPS,postal unions and other stakeholdergroups to develop legislation that willprovide solutions to the needs of all theseconstituencies, and strengthen a service thatis still a vital part of the U.S. economy. Butwe need you, our members, to be engagedas well.To facilitate that engagement, Deputy

Post-master General Ronald Stroman will beattending GRAPH EXPO 2011 and will be akeynote presenter at our EXECUTIVE OUT-LOOK program on Saturday, September 10th.If you would like to see and hear him, andask him questions, please contact me and I’llarrange for a complimentary pass for you toattend.There are many things affecting our in-

dustry right now, and the future of theUnited States Postal Service is a huge one!Having you, our members, knowledgeableand impactful in this issue will have a directeffect on all our futures.

3

In the past, Latin America wasaffected by debt defaults, cur-rency devaluations and the needfor bailouts from rich countries.Today, the envy of its northerncounterparts, it is experiencingrobust economic growth!

If you are among the NPESmembers who understand thatNOW is the time to explore newbusiness opportunities beyond theU.S. market, don’t miss this FREEinformational seminar and net-working event at GRAPH EXPO2011 on Tuesday, September 13,“Success Formulas for DoingBusiness in Latin America.” Thisprogram will be the most efficientand effective way for you to explorethe fast growing markets in LatinAmerica as you:

• Network with prospectivecustomers and partners,• Listen to experienced busi-

ness development experts, and• Hear from already estab-

lished printers.While at GRAPH EXPO, be

sure to visit the InternationalBusiness Center (IBC) in Mc-Cormick Place, Room S102cd,open during show hours.The IBC is a unique informa-

tion and networking forum thatbrings together internationalbuyers, U.S. exhibitors andNPES members.The IBC’s complimentary

services include:• Matchmaking service to

connect international visitorsand U.S. exhibitors,• FREE export business assis-

tance consulting with U.S.Commercial Services Specialistsfrom the U.S. Department ofCommerce,• FREE customized market

development consulting meet-ings with NPES Market Repre-sentatives from China andBrazil,• Private meeting rooms,• FREE Internet,• Lounge area, and• Translator assistance.For more information about

NPES’ International Programsand Services, please contactPernilla Jonsson, AssistantDirector of International Tradeat e-mail: pjonsson@npes.orgor phone: 703/ 264-7200.

Discover aWorld of NewBusiness OpportunitiesLATIN AMERICA AWAITS AT GRAPH EXPO 2011

Introducing Today’s LatinAmerica Print MarketA year ago the World Bankforecast the region’s economywould grow 4.5 percent. Themain printing markets in theregion are Brazil, Mexico,Argentina, Colombia, Chileand Peru. The region hasapproximately 50,000 printingcompanies with Brazil andMexico representing 60% oftotal revenues. The mainprinting products are packaging,commercial and publishing.

years, GAERF was recognized with a Donor Service Award atthe Youth Development Foundation’s Award and RecognitionLuncheon on Thursday, June 23, 2011.

GAERF Awards, continued from page 1

Congratulations SkillsUSA 2011MedalistsGRAPHIC COMMUNICATIONSMEDALISTSSecondary school level:•Gold: Christina Hillman, EffinghamCounty High School,

Springfield, GA• Silver: ZackMinor, Tri County Technology Center, Bartlesville, OK• Bronze: Craig Sweet, Sammamish High School, Bellevue,WAPost-secondary school level:•Gold: Jonathan Hand, Appalachian State University, Boone, NC• Silver: AmandaBreese, Riverside Community College, Riverside, CA• Bronze: John Bohnett, Ferris State University, Big Rapids,MIADVERTISINGANDDESIGNMEDALISTSSecondary school level:•Gold:McKinzieMadsen, Desert Hills High School, St. George, UT• Silver: Emily Nelson, Arcadia High School, Phoenix, AZ• Bronze: Danielle Thompson,Miami Valley CTC, Clayton, OHPost-secondary school level:•Gold: Tiffany Baker, Rolla Technical Institute, Rolla,MO• Silver: RhetaWhittington, Guilford Tech Community College,

Jamestown, NC• Bronze: Isaiah Johnson, DesMoines Area Community College,

Ankeny, IASCREENPRINTING TECHNOLOGYMEDALISTSSecondary school level:•Gold: Travis Goad, Greenland High School, Greenland, AK•Silver: Austin Chupp, Elkhart Area Career Center, Elkhart, IN•Bronze: Domingo Ramirez, Austin High School, Austin,MNPost-secondary school level:•Gold: DannyMerritt, Forsyth Tech Community College,

Winston-Salem, NC•Silver: Ross Irwin, Sikeston Career & Technology Center,

Sikeston,MO•Bronze: Sara Newcomb, Arkansas Career Training Institute,

Hot Springs, AR

In recognition of its five-year sponsorship of the SkillsUSANational Championships, GAERF Director Eileen Cassidy (c)accepts Donor Service Award on behalf of GAERF from GregRintala (l), Chairman, SkillsUSA Youth Development Foundation,and Tim Lawrence (r), Executive Director, SkillsUSA.

4

The NPES/PRIMIR EXCHANGEis more than just your exclusive,

on-site oasis off the bustling GRAPHEXPO show floor. Just steps away,it’s the single best place where NPESand PRIMIR members come to:

• Conduct business with keycustomers and prospects in semi-private meeting rooms

• Regroup with staff members tostrategize the day’s agenda

• Grab a quick morning cup ofcoffee or a short afternoon refresh-ment break, and

• Utilize the convenient PCCorner with Internet and printingcapabilities.

The NPES/PRIMIREXCHANGEMeans Business!

Previewing the powerhouse line-up of presentationsis our featured panel discussion on a groundbreak-ing ‘new breed’ of “Pioneering New Partnerships”with Mal Baboyian, President, Production PrintingSystems, Oce North America; and, Mark Hiscar,President & CEO, KBA North America, plus...

• Alan Beaulieu, Presidentand Chief Executive Officer,Institute for Trend Research—back by member request (andalways eerily on-target)—on“The Economic Outlook”

• Rob Stevenson, author of“52 Essential Habits for Success”with his ‘new age’ advice onmastering “Leadership for Break-out Success”

• Dr. David Delong, President,David DeLong & Associates withhis well-timed method for “Con-fronting the Threats and Opportu-nities of a Changing Workforce:A Framework for Action”

• Tom Saggiomo, Presidentand CEO, the DG3 Group—andlongtime friend to our industry—with his ‘both sides of the fence’perspective on “The Evolving PrintMarket,” plus special guest…

• Steve Ford, Actor, Son ofPresident Gerald Ford and FirstLady Betty Ford, with insight hecould only have gained from,“Inside the White House andHollywood: Getting to the Topwith Character.”

From a value standpoint, inaddition to the provocative pro-gram, the hotel room rates for this year are thelowest they have been for an Annual Conference inover 12 years! Plus, the location is ideal for travelersfrom everywhere—easy in, and easy out.

Alan Beaulieu

Rob Stevenson

Steve Ford

NPES 2011ANNUAL CONFERENCEOCTOBER 17-19, 2011

Times are tough, so how areNPES members, like you,adapting to the realities oftoday’s economy and impactof the latest industry trends?

This year’s conference,themed “Rethink Print,” notonly recognizes the chal-lenges—but addresses themhead on with a solid, on-pointprogram that will deliver allof the economic updates,current trends information,and industry expert insightsyou need to position yourcompany for success now—and in the years ahead.And here, the networking iskey since there’s not a bettertime or place to meet andcompare notes with peerswho are going through thesame challenges as you.

Registration is open now. Doit today and you will returnhome armed with all of theinformation, insights andactionable strategies andtactics to best position yourbusiness for success in themonths and years ahead.

FOR COMPLETE PROGRAM DETAILS ANDTO REGISTER VISIT: WWW.NPES.ORG

LOCATION:McCORMICK PLACE SOUTH

Room S102a

HOURS OF OPERATION:Sunday, Sept. 11 - Tuesday, Sept. 13

9am - 5pm

Wednesday, Sept. 149am - 4pm

The chart compiled from UCC data provided herein byEquipment Data Associates (EDA), shows up-to-date UCC

(see definition below chart) activity for all printing equipment.Although UCC filings are a combination of new equipment sales,used equipment sales and refinancings of existing placements,they are still a strong indicator of market activity. Although newequipment filings for June were essentially flat when comparedto 2010 data, the first half of 2011 totaled 2151 units which isstill up 17.3% from the first half 2010. June used equipmentfilings were down 40% from 2010levels but despite that, used fil-ings for the first six months of2011 are only down 1%. Bothnew and used filings continuedthe downward trend from the2011 high point in March, how-ever. This information is ex-tracted directly from EDA’scomprehensive database ofnearly 30,000 records for pur-chasers of printing equipment.For each of the data points in

the table, subscribers to EDA’smarket intelligence services cansee exactly who purchased thepiece of equipment—and themanufacturer and model. NPESmember companies that partici-pate in the free NPES MarketData program are eligible for sig-nificant discounts on EDA’s serv-ices. By combining the critical

purchaser information from EDA with the comprehensive market statis-tics, analysis, and forecasts provided by NPES’ free Market Data program,participating NPES member companies can get a complete picture of thecurrent and anticipated future activity in the marketplace.For more information, or to join the free NPES Market Data program,

contact NPES Assistant Director for Market Data, Rekha Ratnam at phone:703/264–7200 or e-mail rratnam@npes.org. For specific informationabout the market intelligence services offered by EDA, contact MauricioJurin at phone: 704/845–1099 or e-mail: mjurin@edadata.com.

Market Intelligence News: UCC Filing Update

A Uniform Commercial Code Form 1 (UCC–1) filing is a financing statement required by law to be filed with the state to show thatone party (usually a lender) has a security interest in another party’s (usually a borrower’s) personal property, and most frequentlyrelates to the commercial financing of capital equipment through a lending institution. UCC data is filed everyday throughout theU.S. Each UCC data filing statement has three components: the borrower, the lender, and what the borrower purchased, includingmake, model and serial number. Once the data is filed, EDA’s more than 50 employees manually review each filing to identify andcorrectly classify the transactions of printing equipment. What results is a robust database that offers subscribers continually up-dated information on exactly who is buying or leasing what pieces of equipment.

Printing Equipment UCC Filings: 2006—2011

5

• Reach new customers, and• Increase sales.Utilizing NPES’ comprehensive, extensive network

of trade representatives and international offices strate-gically located in the fastest growing markets you willgain ‘VIP access’ to pre-qualified customers who areeager to learnmore about U.S. products and know-how.

The NPES Booth at All in Print China is…A high profile and cost-effective way to reach new

customers at All in Print China 2011. Here you willdisplay your company literature and, as part of theNPES Trade Mission, participate in a VIP tour to visitwith local printers.

NPESTradeMissionAll in Print China

November 14 -17, 2011Shanghai, China

For complete details aboutthe NPES TradeMissionto China, or discountedexhibit booth space atAll in Print China 2011

Contact Pernilla JonssonE-mail: pjonsson@npes.orgPhone: 703/264-7200

NPES TradeMission: China andAll in Print China TradeshowYOUR PASSPORT TO THE ASIAN MARKET

Let NPES be your guide to new businessopportunities in the Asian marketplace

during the NPES Trade Mission to China.Now is the ideal time to investigate first-hand how to expand your business intothe global marketplace through one of thelargest international exhibitions in Asia.

An NPES Trade Mission is…A customized VIP business development

program for NPES member companies andcorporations seeking to:• Expand into the International market• Create brand(s) awareness

a 12-month moving total, so thatthe lease data are always on anannual basis. Every time a newmonth is added, the oldestmonth is dropped. This smoothsthe data variations and seems toincrease the statistical value ofthese data.While there may be a down-

side to these data being the num-ber of leases, there is a significant

upside to that aspect.Dollar denominateddata are subject tothe distortionscaused by inflation,but the number ofleases is not. Com-paring dollar sales

frommonth to month does notusually pose a problem, butwhen comparing dollar-baseddata over a period of years, the

effects of inflation creep into theanalysis. This means that rises indollar sales volume might be at-tributed to stronger sales activitywhen it is actually inflation caus-

ing that upturn. This is why thislease data series is so meaningful.This means that some care

must be taken when comparingthese data to other data series.For example, it is interesting tocompare leasing trends withprinting shipments. Printing in-dustry shipments are in dollars,so those shipments data need tobe adjusted for inflation to makethat comparison relevant. Thereare many alternatives for infla-tion adjustment, but there is noperfect one. Our preference hasalways been the Consumer PriceIndex (CPI) as published by theBureau of Labor Statistics. Thecreation of a 12-month movingtotal of the inflation-adjustedprinting shipments data is alsoworthwhile, so we adjust eachmonth's data for the CPI, and

then create our moving totals.The chart above (Figure 1)

shows several data series. Thebasis of the chart is the year-to-year percentage change of each

series. That is, January 2007 iscompared to January 2006, Feb-ruary 2007 is compared to Feb-ruary 2006, etc. The purple line,the one that does not dip as lowas the others, is the inflation-ad-justed printing shipments. Keepin mind that the recessionaryperiod started in December2007, and bottomed out in June2009, and then the economystarted to recover. All of the dataseries show that kind of U-shaped pattern to one degree oranother.The dark blue line is the

change in new equipmentleases. When business is better,new equipment has better sales.When business is bad, new

equipment dips quite severely.Part of that dip is the greateravailability of used equipment.There has always been some

speculation about the drivers of

Every month, NPES reports adata series of the number of

leases for new and used equip-ment to its members. The dataoffer an important glimpse intothe investment patterns of printbusiness executives, and alsohas a very strong statistical rela-tionship, as would be expected,with U.S. commercial printingshipments.

NPES collects the leasing datathrough an exclusive contractwith Equipment Data Associates(EDA) and publishes the data forits members. Not all printingequipment are leased, however,as many printing organizationseither self-finance equipment, orfund their overall capital invest-ment with broader banking rela-tionships. There is enoughvolume of leases, however, espe-cially among small and mid-sizeprint businesses, that these datacan be used to provide a per-spective of the industry's invest-ment condition and patterns.The data are also the number

of leases, and not their dollarvalue. That is, a tabletop foldercounts as one lease just like asix-color press does. No dataseries is perfect, of course, andthis is something that needs tobe understood about these data.Since there are hundreds ofleases per month, this issuetends to be less problematic overtime. Many of these statisticalissues are minimized by creating

Dr. Joe Webb

This is why thislease data series

is so meaningful.”

NPES Lease Data Offers Insights intoCapital Equipment Investment Patternsby Dr. Joe Webb, Director, WhatTheyThink Economics & Research Center

6

Figure 1

Continued on page 7

7

used equipment sales trends. From ouranalysis, it is usually a function of the avail-ability of such equipment. The relative sta-bility of used equipment leases in the chartcompared to the more dramatic shifts ofnew equipment leases should not be a sur-prise. Economic downturns cause printbusinesses to close, and many weak shopsdefault on their leases. This means that theamount of used equipment on the marketrises. In good times, printers always checkthe used equipment markets, often seekingto match models of equipment they al-ready have in their shops. This means thatnew and used equipment compete with thesame dollars at those times, and if the usedmarket is dry, the new equipment gets thepreference.In general, the U.S. market for used

equipment is quite different than it was acouple of decades ago. At that time, usedequipment would be shipped to developingareas of the world, such as Latin Americaand Asia. Today, those markets are nowknown for their strong economic growthand rising incomes, and are buying morenew equipment. This, in turn, has ensuredthat there would be more used equipmentstranded in North American than wouldhave been typical many years ago.Since the general decade-long decline in

print volumes, and the commensurate de-cline in the number of print establish-

ments, remaining printers have realizedthat looking for used equipment was oftenworthwhile, and also that the difficult fi-nancial circumstances of many printers hascaused much of the used equipment to be“younger” and more current than it washistorically. In 2008, the percentage ofleases that was used hovered around 27%;in 2011, it has been about 35%.Finally, the chart shows an upturn in the

number of leases of printing equipment as

printing shipments have stabilized. Theyear-to-year comparisons are positive.How long this will last remains to beseen, of course, since printing shipmentsare still being aggressively challenged bydigital media.This leads to another question: can

changes in printing shipments be usedto forecast these leasing data? In someprevious work we experimented withthis idea, and even tested the concept ofusing printing profits to forecast invest-ments. The profits relationship was notstatistically strong enough to use, butthe sales trends were.We found the best statistical

relationship with a 3-month lead forthe 12-monthmoving totals of inflation-adjusted printing shipments and new,used, and total leases. In this case,having a 3-month lead would meanthat knowing March printing shipmentsdata might give you an indication aboutwhat June's lease data would be. Ther-squared value, which statisticians useto measure the strength of the statisticalrelationship of shipments compared tonew equipment leases was 98% with athree-month lead, which is superb.Without the lead, that is, comparingMarch leases with March shipmentswas about 75%, which is also good, butobviously not as good. The table below

(Figure 2) summarizes the values:What is very obvious from the chart

is that using 12-month moving totals tomake each month an annualized figuremarkedly raises the r-squared values. Theimprovement is particularly noticeablein the data for used equipment.In summary, the NPES equipment

lease data are a very important data se-ries to monitor the overall health of thecapital investment in our industry.

Figure 2

Arecord number of attendees participatedin the recent PRIMIR Summer Meeting

held August 1-2, 2011, at RR Donnelley head-quarters in Chicago. Attendees learned thefindings of two soon-to-be-published PRIMIRstudies: “Evolution of General CommercialPrinting: Implications for the Future” and“Printing Industry Consumables Usage andTrends.” They also heard from RR DonnelleyExecutive Vice President, Doug Fitzgerald,about “Keeping Print Relevant in a DigitalAge” and Wayne Peterson, Principal, BlackCanyon Consulting Group, about addingcreativity as an element of the business plan-ning process. Attendees also participated inthe development of six new PRIMIR studies.

PRIMIR Summer Meeting

Jack Miller, Market-Intell, shared findings from the re-cently completed PRIMIR study “Evolution of GeneralCommercial Printing: Implications for the Future.”

Wayne Peterson,principal, BlackCanyon ConsultingGroup. advisesPRIMIR audienceto incorporate andutilize creativityas a businessdiscipline to createnew value in theirorganizations.

Doug Fitzgerald,Senior Vice President,

RR Donnelley,explains to PRIMIR

attendees about“Keeping PrintRelevant in a

Digital World.”

Continued from page 1

Continued from page 6

Imagine watching a half-minute video in which twoteams pass a basketball. Oneteam wears black shirts, theother wears white. Your task isto count howmany times theteammembers in white com-plete a pass. If you are likemost people, chances are youwill report the correct numberof passes. But there is aboutan even chance that you willcompletely miss the womanin the gorilla suit … eventhough she walks through thegame in plain sight, includingpausing to face the camera fora bit of chest beating beforestriding off.By means of the gorilla

challenge and other ingenioustests, a pair of cognitive psy-chologists demonstrated yearsago that, try as they may,people simply cannot focuson more than one thing at atime. And though the psy-chologists never marched agorilla past a mailbox—atleast, as far as we know—wecannot help but see a possibleconnection between theirresearch and this tidbit froma recent survey: about 79percent of households read orat least skim their advertisingmail, whereas only about 19percent of commercial e-mailsare even opened.The same survey reports

that it is e-mail from un-knowns, or with too-long orirrelevant subject lines, thattends not to win attention.Seen in light of the gorillatest, this is hardly surprising.When people check theire-mail, they rivet their atten-

news and notes

a punch. Direct mail’s consistentability to deliver a robust ROI,along with survey data, do thaton their own. So if you’re lookingfor a solid way to keep the mar-ket’s eye on the ball in an onlineworld, count on direct mail.It’s the antithesis of the invisi-

ble gorilla.

Article reprinted with permission of USPS®Deliver® from April 2011 edition.

NPES CALENDARSeptember 2011

EXECUTIVE OUTLOOK ConferenceSeptember 10 • Chicago, Illinois

GRAPH EXPOSeptember 11-14 • Chicago, IllinoisTC130Working Groups and PlenarySeptember 16-22 • Berlin, GermanyInternational Graphic Arts Show

NPES Member Booth and Trade MissionSeptember 16-21 • Tokyo, Japan

October 2011NPES 2011 Annual Conference

October 17-19 • Palm Beach, Florida

November 2011ICC Meeting

November 13-15 • San Jose, CaliforniaAll in Print China

NPES Member Booth and Trade MissionNovember 14-17 • Shanghai, China

CGATS/USTAGNovember 17-18 • Long Beach, California

December 2011PRIMIRWinter Meeting

December 5-7 • Charleston, SC

January 2012ICC Meeting

January 30-February 1 • Munich, Germany

February 2012Vision 3 Summit

February 19-22 • Marco Island, Florida

May 2012drupa 2012

NPES Member BoothMay 3-16 • Düsseldorf, Germany

June 2012ICC Meeting

June 11-13 • Tokyo, JapanICC Symposium

June 15 • Shanghai, China

October 2012GRAPH EXPO

October 7-10 • Chicago, Illinois

November 2012NPES 2012 Annual Conference

November 10-12 • Indian Wells, California

March 2013PRINT

September 6-11 • Chicago, Illinois

NPES News is publishedmonthly by NPES.

Publisher:Ralph J. Nappi

Managing Editor:Deborah Vieder 703/264-7222

Correspondents:Jackie BlandEileen Cassidy

Circulation:Margie Garr 703/264-7200

The Association for Suppliers of Printing,Publishing and Converting Technologies

1899PrestonWhite DriveReston, VA20191USA703/264-7200e-mail: npes@npes.orgwww.npes.org

Pernilla JonssonKip Smythe

8

Direct Mail and the Gorilla in the RoomWHAT MARKETERS CAN LEARN FROM TWO BASKETBALLTEAMS AND A WOMAN IN AN APE SUIT

tion on the “From” field fornames they know, and onthe “Subject” field for short,relevant items. When mindsare engaged in that manner,e-mails from strangers, orwith irrelevant or too-longsubject lines, may as well beinvisible gorillas, chest-beat-ing and all. Assuming, thatis, that they evade spam fil-ters in the first place.By contrast, as people re-

trieve and sort through theirmail, they must focus oneach piece, one at a time, inorder to settle on which onesthey will explore further. Inits moment, each piece—including advertising mail—commands full attention.And not just so people canavoid inadvertently discard-ing letters, bank statementsor bills, either. Three out offour Americans say they like,trust and read advertisingmail. In fact, for new prod-uct announcements, theopen rate for direct mail isabout 1.7 times that of com-mercial e-mail. That includesGenerations X and Y, eventhough they grew up withthe Internet.Moreover, a visit to the

mailbox is a daily, antici-pated event. Most peoplelook forward to it. And, con-veniently for advertisers, it’san event that takes placeaway from the competingclamor of TVs, computers,stereos and video games.Of course, there’s no need

to don a gorilla suit andsaunter by a mailbox toprove that direct mail packs