LARGE FORMAT PRINTING SERVICES

Posted on January 18, 2012 by East Coast Graphics

East Coast Graphics is ready to handle any of your large format printing needs. We help companies like yours promote their products and services with digitally printed visual marketing solutions.

Choose from different paper types and canvas options for your posters and prints to best match your artwork. Whether you’re expressing your personal style, promoting your business, or doing a presentation, we have the best options for all of your printing needs.

We offer a complete range of large format printing:

Banners
Bannerstands
Billboards
Custom Digital Wallpaper
Floor Graphics
Outdoor Advertising
Posters
Retail Graphics
Trade Show Displays
Wall Murals
Window Graphics
Vehicle Wraps

To find out more about our large format printing services,

CONTACT OUR PRINTERS TODAY

631.231.9300

5 Core Concepts That Small Business Owners Should Know About Branding

Posted on January 11, 2012 by East Coast Graphics

The whole concept of branding is foreign to many small businesses. They view it as something that only matters in the ivory towers of global corporations. Nothing could be further from the truth. Branding is all about making your business memorable, and it’s the small business rather than the big one that’s likely to get lost in the shuffle.

Here are five core concepts that small business owners should know about branding:

1. Repetition and consistency are paramount. Any parent knows that when you say something once it seldom sinks in. And, parents who send mixed messages confuse the child … and perhaps themselves! The same dynamics apply to branding: the market needs to see the same imagery and the same message again and again and again.

2. Sales reps can undermine your consistency. Even in large organizations, sales reps tend to develop their own way of talking about the company they represent. However, if every rep tells a different story, your customer base will ultimately have many different impressions of what your business does. This may cause customers and prospects to overlook key products and services — and perhaps look for them elsewhere.

3. Branding is more than just a logo. Every business should have a logo, but just as important are a consistent color scheme for the website and brochures, a strong tagline, and a consistent set of talking points for sales and marketing communication. Branding should dive deeper into the details still, in terms of consistent font styles, product/service descriptions, item numbers, and any other data and imagery customers see.

4. Branding is far more than window dressing. Far from it: Effective branding reflects and projects the core values and key differentiators of your business. A strong brand tells customers what you stand for and why they should buy from you. Are you the cheapest? The best quality? The most reliable? The most innovative? Your imagery and messaging must get to the heart of what you do.

5. Branding must be focused. Continuing on the previous point, you must confine your branding to a few critical concepts. No amount of branding expertise can communicate that you’re the cheapest, best quality, most reliable AND the most innovative. The more you dilute your message, the harder it is to remember and the less important it sounds. This is counterintuitive for sales people and small business owners who feel compelled to tell the whole company story every time they have the floor.

Let East Coast Graphics assist you with your branding today.

p. 631.231.9300 xt.11 | f. 631.231.5159

Efficiency = Savings = Success

http://ecoastgraphics.com/

Four Reasons Why Direct Mail Is In, Not Out

Posted on November 8, 2011 by East Coast Graphics

Forget all the notions about digital media replacing direct mail. According to a recent article in Direct Marketing magazine by OgilvyOne Worldwide chairman and CEO Brian Fetherstonhaugh, this $56 million industry has lots of life. He points to the fact that all of the firm’s top 20 clients use direct mail because it has four massive strengths:

Endurance. Both research and in-market results consistently demonstrate that printed messaging such as direct mail lasts longer than digital alternatives.
Acquisition. Direct mail remains one of the most effective acquisition tools of all time. Even digital icon Google uses direct mail to win new enterprise and SMB customers.
Impact. Direct mail conveys importance like no other medium.
Sense. The sensory nature of direct mail has a distinct advantage over digital. You can’t feel a banner ad or smell an email.

According to Fetherstonhaugh, what direct mail needs to do is stop competing against digital media and learn to leverage them. “We must innovate with disciplined agility and purposeful innovation, built on core values and scalable platforms,” he says

To learn more about how East Coast Graphics can help you develop an effective direct mail campaign contact us today. We are always more than happy to help.

East Coast Graphics, Inc.
info@ecoastgraphics.com
631.231.9300

East Coast Graphics, Inc. is proud to announce they will be the tri-state representative for PS Mailers, Inc.

Posted on November 1, 2011 by East Coast Graphics

Pressure seal self mailers simplify the process of mail preparation.

Pressure seal self mailer systems enable far easier mail preparation for business. They relieve the demand of having to fold, stuff, seal and post each document individually, which can be a very time-consuming process demanding a lot of your company’s resources that could be used elsewhere. A pressure seal self mailer system relieves the workload by taking away all the menial tasks for you, allowing for effective time management and saved capital.

Pressure seal self mailers decrease buying, storing, and custom printing costs.

A pressure seal self mailer system will greatly decrease the costs involved in buying and storing supplies (not to mention the storage space for those supplies), plus the costs of custom printing envelopes and stationary, thus saving your company’s resources through responsible financial management. Whether the document is 11” or 14” in length with V-folds, C-folds, or Z-folds, pressure seal self mailer forms serve as their own envelopes, eliminating the need to shop for costly stationary.

A pressure seal self mailer system offers the convenience of faster mail processing.

Handling the documents to prepare them for mailing is no longer necessary, saving your company both time and money. The process of printing documents, folding documents, and stuffing envelopes has been cut in half thanks to pressure seal self mailers. After they are printed, the documents are sent directly to the pressure seal machine, which prepares them directly for mailing.

With pressure seal self mailers, postal processing is quick and easy.

Pressure seal self mailer technology allows you to print addresses directly onto the form. In addition, intelligent barcodes can be included, saving your company from many postal processing hassles.

Security and confidentiality will give you peace of mind.

A pressure seal self mailer system provides a more effective seal than a
regular envelope, and it can eliminate the chance of errors, as when two
confidential documents are accidentally inserted into the same envelope or a
document gets mismatched and inserted into the wrong envelope.

For more information on the benefits of a pressure seal self mailing system, contact us today!

USING QR CODE TECHNOLOGY FOR DIRECT MAIL

Posted on March 10, 2011 by East Coast Graphics

Who says Direct Mail is dead?

An ever increasing number of direct mail companies are breathing new life into their campaigns by adding Quick Response (QR) codes to their mailing projects.

Using QR codes, direct marketers can guide consumers to their website to view deals, discounts, and special promotions by using their smart phones. They are then directed to a next step, whether it is to look at a video, make a reservation or request a call back.

When the consumer goes beyond looking at the card to scan the QR code, they are at a deeper level of engagement, because they can see the special offer and take immediate action.

Nielsen Research indicates that 44 percent of people scanning QR codes have income levels of at least $100,000 and 57 percent are 35 years or older. These are prime candidates for direct marketers and enable them to engage these potential consumers with immediacy and ease of use.

CONTACT EAST COAST GRAPHICS TODAY TO LEARN MORE!
631-231-9300

Lowering Printing Expenses Efficiently

Posted on February 1, 2010 by East Coast Graphics

As 2010 is upon us, many companies are trying to slim down on their direct mail and/or printing budgets. Companies often end long relationships with their current vendors over a few dollars. During tough economic times, everyone is trying to save money. However, is it really cost effective to make your decision strictly on price?

The title of this article is “Lowering Printing Expenses Efficiently”. Efficiently is the key word! Being efficient with your printed material and promotional items does not necessarily mean making a purchase based strictly on the lowest price. As we are all in business to make the most money possible, sometimes the overall picture of what we are trying to accomplish is lost. If a company wanted to get a printed piece done for the cheapest price, it could probably achieve its goal every time. Is this really our goal? Are we really being cost effective by taking this approach? We absolutely are not being cost effective by taking this approach.

So how do we lower our print expenses efficiently?

While some printing companies are not interested in educating clients on purchasing efficiently, other firms are. Whether an organization is local, national or global, the process of managing commercial printing, promotional products and fulfillment in a centralized location has proven to be successful on many fronts. Dealing with a print management firm to centralize your printing and promotional procurement process instead of using a job-by-job mentality will ultimately lower costs, increase savings, improve accounting, service, quality and your overall brand.

Partnering with a Print Management Firm to streamline your printing procurement process and leverage their expertise to help you purchase more efficiently eventually results in large savings to the customer. Here are a few reasons why a Print Management Firm could be a great asset to your company or marketing department.

Leverage the print management firm’s buying power
Utilize the print management firm’s expertise to rationalize specifications on certain projects, creating production efficiencies
Implement the print management firm’s vendor network and pay only one invoice, reducing accounting expenses

If you or your company would like to learn how we can help you streamline your printing procurement process more efficiently please contact us. We are always happy to help!

East Coast Graphics, Inc.
Thomas Glenn
631.231.9300 xt.11
info@EcoastGraphics.com
www.EcoastGraphics.com

Print Management – Why It May Be Beneficial For My Company

Posted on January 6, 2010 by East Coast Graphics

It is a known fact that not every printing company is right for every project. This is also the case with companies that have their own in-house marketing departments. So you or your company wants to put together a new direct mail piece to generate new business and you are in charge. “Great, Right?” I bet most of you would agree that this does not sound like much fun at all. Your boss has already bought his Porsche 911 Turbo in cherry red from the ROI on this piece, and you are his go to guy. Fantastic!

Let’s get this party started! OK, we first need to come up with some great creative ideas and product images to catch the audience’s attention “Easy!” At least we thought it was easy… Forget the creative process for now, let’s move onto copy. Well, it is our product or service that we are speaking about so it must be child’s play to write something relative. “Uhhhh” where do I start and where do I begin is more like it. Forget the design and copy for now lets move onto the specs of the printed piece. Hmmm, yes, that’s it the brochure will be printed in 4 color process + 2 PMS colors + PMS metallic + Spot UV and an overall aqueou “who?” coating.

How do you find enough time in the day to even start trying to tie all of these elements together to generate a successful direct mail campaign we ask? The answer for most people: You Can’t!

Question: Should I use a “direct” shop or use a Print Management firm?

Answer: An in-house direct rep is committed to sell solely what their employer manufactures. They are not interested in educating you on what they can not offer you. On the other hand, the print management firm is independent, and not directly employed by the graphic arts companies that they rep. Management firms work as free agents and have the flexibility to rep several companies for you. Moreover, the print management firm has an incentive to deliver the services of a wide range of companies. Therefore, if you are a print buyer swamped with a variety of projects and overwhelmed with demands to produce, then the right print management firm would be a valuable addition to your production team!

Question: Why should I choose to use a Print Management Firm rather than going to multiple vendors direct?

Answer: Again “For the most of us, if you are short the resources needed to devote to the process, then enlisting the services of a Print Management Firm would be a good call to save you or your company money, prevent waste, and insure timely delivery of projects” says Thomas Glenn, VP Business Development of New York based East Coast Graphics (http://ECoastGraphics.com).

“It is not unusual for a complex print project to run through four or more manufacturers for completion. The key to success in a fragmented manufacturing process is to plan so that each transition between specialized manufacturers is done with precision. A print management firm would coordinate all manufacturing services needed for the project. The print management firm that delivers this service offers a huge value for your company. They’ll prevent costly waste and delay” says Glenn.

If you have more questions or if you would like to receive more information about East Coast Graphics’ (http://ECoastGraphics.com) services please contact:

Thomas Glenn
VP Business Development
East Coast Graphics, Inc.
tom@ecoastgraphics.com
631.231.9300 Ext. 11
http://ECoastGraphics.com
Blog: http://ecoastgraphics.com/eco-friendly-promotional-products/

Commercial Printing and Direct Mail New York

Posted on December 15, 2009 by East Coast Graphics

Intelligent, Efficient, Your Go To Guys!

For over 40 years East Coast Graphics has been providing premium quality commercial printing services for our clients in a host of industries, from manufacturing to healthcare. And because printing is a part of East Coast Graphics integrated approach, our clients reap the benefits of that full supply line service. For example: East Coast Graphics can design and print the product guide, that fits in the customized free-standing retail display; and to drive customers to the aisle, we can also design and print the window clings and posters that promote the new product in store; backing up one more step, we can design and print the packaging for these new product kits that we store in our warehouse and distribute to retail outlets nationwide.

East Coast Graphics is your one-stop-shopping resource for all of your commercial printing needs—and so much more.

Prepress and bindery services
Stationery products, corporate brochures and identity systems
Marketing and promotional material
Newsletters and annual reports
Pocket folders and binders
Posters, flyers, banners, signage
Magazines/catalogs, manuals
Packaging and POP

To learn more about how we can help you with your Commercial Printing needs please contact us.

East Coast Graphics, Inc.
Thomas Glenn
Vice President Business Development
tom@ecoastgraphics.com
631.231.9300 xt.11

www.ECoastGraphics.com

Recent Studies Show Direct Mail Is Still Effective But That We Need To Be Creative (Creativity Counts!)

Posted on December 10, 2009 by East Coast Graphics

In an annual survey conducted by Exact Target on effective media channels, the results came back rather surprising to most, but not to all. This survey is probably one of the most un- biased reports completed in recent years, especially considering that it was written by an email marketing provider. Here’s a direct quote from this report:

“Still wondering about the best channels through which to deliver your messages when you’re trying to boost your bottom line? Consumers are more likely to purchase based on messages they receive through traditional media. In this year’s study, we included direct mail, television commercials and infomercials as channels through which consumers may have been directly influenced to make a purchase.

The research shows: Direct mail has directly influenced more consumers to purchase than any other channel. “76% of consumers have been directly influenced to purchase products through direct mail.”

Some of the findings from this report were the statement that email is obviously very popular, but only 15% of people like to receive marketing messages via this channel! This confirms our view that email is more of a communication medium and not ideal for ‘push marketing’ purposes.

So you ask yourself this question? I have been sending out direct mail (postcards, catalogs, flyers, brochures) pieces for years only to see a decline in response rates. Yes, you are right! Response rates have hit all time lows in direct mail, but “why” we ask? The all holy answer is: We are too set in our “old school” ways declares Thomas Glenn, VP of Business Development for East Coast Graphics (www.EcoastGraphics.com) of New York. The idea that the more we send out, the more we will reap in rewards is not true anymore!

The truth, as stated earlier in this article, is that “direct mail” is still the MOST effective marketing channel today! But direct mail and print is changing, just like everything else we have grown accustomed to in this world. “It is more important today than ever that direct mail campaigns be integrated with multichannel online campaigns,” declares Thomas Glenn.

Two Tips to Increase Direct Mail Response Rates
1: Targeting a specific audience: Targeting is the forgotten secret to really high response rates. Look to send out different messages to different audience sectors. It’s just TOO hard to create one compelling copy that suits everybody. You are better off sending out four different pieces than one “one size fits all” printed mailing piece.

2: Be creative and different: Send out pieces that catch your audience’s attention. Way too often I come home to open my mailbox only to find a sea of white #10 envelopes says Glenn. Be different think “out of the box.” Think of a good commercial you saw on TV during the Super Bowl or a great radio commercial you heard on the way to work. You would probably agree with me, that 9 times out of 10 those advertisements were imbedded in your head because they were different but clever in their own little way. This is how you and your company should be approaching your direct mail. Don’t be afraid to be creative or different in your direct mail. Use oversized postcards, catalogs with catchy images on the cover or an envelope with a lot of bright color to help grab people’s eyes. Make your logo and website address easily visible. Remember you want your direct mail piece to stand out from that “sea of white #10 envelopes!” Even if the intended audience does not act on that offer at that time, make your brand be remembered just like that Super Bowl commercial!

To learn more about how we can help you or your company with your direct mail needs.

Contact: Thomas Glenn Vice President Business Development
East Coast Graphics, Inc.
Telephone: 631.231.9300 xt.11
Hauppauge, NY 11788
www.ECoastGraphics.com
tom@EcoastGraphics.com

EAST COAST GRAPHICS

Marketing Services Provider New York, NY

Tag Archives: Direct Mail