Marketing is about both the customers and the business they’re buying from. To focus too much on only one or the other is failing to understand what truly strong marketing is all about.
To elaborate, one focus people might use is to make it all about the customer. This is for them, after all, and they’re business is going to be the lifeblood of your company. Every decision made is going to be centered on whether or not this will be something the customers like. All commercial printing done will be overshadowed by a desire to keep the customer happy.
The other extreme is a company caring only about what they want to push, or what they need to sell. A new item is coming out and they want it to be big, and so they decide that this is what the customers are going to want to buy. Every ad is emphasized by the language stating to your customers that they need to buy this item, and they want to buy this item, whether they actually do or not.
Good marketing finds a way to combine these two sides of the spectrum to provide an effective give and take between both company and consumer.
The downside to only focusing on the wants and needs of your customers is that you aren’t always able to guide the message as much, and you certainly won’t be as capable of altering yourself in anyway or releasing new products. After all, you’re only giving the customers what they want, but what if they don’t realize yet that they want something? Sometimes you have to guide your agenda and help them to realize what benefits a certain type of product can offer them.
This might affect the style of advertising you use as well. How do you tell when one type of advertising works? You get sales after using it. But does that mean this is the only kind of advertising that will work? Do you shun the rest of the world of commercial printing in favor of a single form of advertising simply because it initially had good results?
People like to be surprised, and a company trying as hard as possible to please them isn’t going to be as capable of offering up some unique surprises.
Your goal will always be to generate more customers and keep them happy, but that doesn’t mean you need to disregard your own needs in the process. Sometimes you need to expand your market into different areas, sometimes you need to alter your brand to keep up with the times, and sometimes you need to get new products and ideas out there. Form a good balance between fulfilling your needs as a company and your customers needs and you’ll find the best of both worlds when it comes to your marketing.
Related Articles
Printing Company: are They Customer, Service or Quality Oriented?
By: Joel Owens | 05/09/2007 | Business
What should a printing company be? What should it promise to deliver in order for you to get highly satisfactory prints?
How Offset Printing Works
By: Kaye Z. Marks | 27/05/2008 | Printing
Offset printing is a technique during which an inked image is transferred, or “offset” from a plate to a rubber blanket, then to a printing surface. Offset printing is often combined with lithographic printing, which uses the repulsion of oil and water to produce a flat image carrier. This is often referred to as offset lithography.
3d Printing Technologies
By: John Mahoney | 21/06/2008 | Sales
Printing has developed over the ages to what has now been called the 3-dimensional printing. Printing has come out of its age-old forms and has introduced new technologies for innovations in the field.
Building Client Relationship With Greeting Cards
By: John Mahoney | 31/07/2008 | Sales
Building up a positive client relationship is the key to securing a loyal long-term customer base, which is a boon for any kind of business from the sales perspective.The customer loyalty campaigns may include adhering to such practice and that may include distribution of greeting cards.
The Different Forms of Business Cards
By: Kaye Z. Marks | 20/08/2008 | Printing
There are so many possibilities out there for business cards and yet so few people bother to make good use of them.
Commercial Printing and Binding Methods
By: Kaye Z. Marks | 18/09/2008 | Marketing Tips
If you are printing a multi-page document, you will probably need to choose a binding method. Commercial printing firms use many different kinds of methods for holding the sheets of paper in place. Which kind of binding methods should you choose?
Always Have Something on Hand
By: Kaye Z. Marks | 22/10/2008 | Online Promotion
Something I’ve stated before, and still gladly stand by, is the need to plan ahead.
The Truth About Commercial Printing
By: Kaye Z. Marks | 16/01/2008 | Marketing Tips
Commercial printing is all about those shiny marketing collaterals you use to entice your target readers to your business. In fact, commercial printing is all about creating a collage of beautiful colors that use halftone, spot colors, and process colors.
Got a Question? Ask.
Ask the community a question about this article:
Frequently Asked Questions
Screen printing
By: george300c | 31-08-2008
where can i find a cheap start up silk screen printing machine
Brothers With A Print Problem
By: medavi | 27-08-2008
Recently my Brother HL2040 began to show "document failed to print error" when printing. However it prints fine anyway. My Brother MFC240C giev the same error but I have to shut it off and on again and it prints then. I'm running Windows XP, 1.5 GB ram, Office 2003, HELP
Craft Pattern Printing
By: Dana | 26-08-2008
Where would I go to get craft patterns (on the very thin "tissue" type paper) printed? I have tried all the local printers in my area, but have found no one who does it...
Printers
By: Kellie cutie | 20-08-2008
what printers can print muli-part forms
Do you know of any sticher/trimmer jobs going in ...
By: judynbriancoram | 14-08-2008
do you know of any sticher/trimmer jobs going in denver or round about there.i have over forty years in print finishing
How many sheets can I print with one hp 2100 m ...
By: luis_carcass | 28-07-2008
how many sheets can I print with one hp 2100 m. cause I dont have any ideia for the amount of sheets that this toner is capable of printing. many thanks.
Q&A Powered by:
Latest Printing Articles
The Larger Your Audience the More Unfocused Your Message
By: Kaitlyn Miller | 17/11/2008
As size increases so does diversity. Every state is going to have something unique about it. Every major city is going to have those specific traits unique only to them. Every section of that very city is going to have more and more variations
Place Your Product Into a Person’s Life
By: Kaitlyn Miller | 17/11/2008
When I look at a product I’m not immediately thinking to myself about how I might make use out of it. Typically I just see the product, see what it does, and that’s it. Yes, I’m sure that product could change my life
Look to the Future
By: Kaye Z. Marks | 14/11/2008
Marketing isn’t really about what’s going on in the moment. A truly effective form of marketing is going to be focused far more on the future than what is right in front of you at this moment. Your color printing should be done with the future in mind and how this is going to affect you in the long run.
Checking Out Special Offers
By: Kaye Z. Marks | 14/11/2008
Consider this scenario: you have a list of products that you regularly sell, and each product has its specific packaging. The packaging tells people what your company name is, what the product is, and various details about the product—all the things you would expect to find on a package.
Find Something No One Else is Using
By: Kate | 13/11/2008
The solution to the issue of doing something new is to quite literally come up with something that has never been done before. Yes, that is an option, but this is a risky path that feels a little more like gambling to me than anything else. Maybe I’m just particularly squeamish, but I hate to gamble if it can be helped, especially with something like marketing.
Keep Your Image Strong
By: Kaitlyn Miller | 13/11/2008
There are a lot of different things that go into the image you need to present to people. If you work in a service industry where you are the center piece of your company this becomes even more important.
Tips for Designing Letterheads
By: Kishor Nayak | 13/11/2008
When planning for your letterhead, consider what feeling you want each of your customers to have when they receive something from you, and incorporate that into your letterhead design. Among the things you should consider is the color.
How to Maximize Your Savings on Promotional Custom Printed Products
By: Kishor Nayak | 13/11/2008
Whatever product you decide to have custom printed, to make sure it's a decent quality product which suits your business image. Consult a custom print company that specializes in custom printed promotional items to find out what the best value is for your given needs.
More from Kaye Z. Marks
Look to the Future
By: Kaye Z. Marks | 14/11/2008 | Printing
Marketing isn’t really about what’s going on in the moment. A truly effective form of marketing is going to be focused far more on the future than what is right in front of you at this moment. Your color printing should be done with the future in mind and how this is going to affect you in the long run.
Checking Out Special Offers
By: Kaye Z. Marks | 14/11/2008 | Printing
Consider this scenario: you have a list of products that you regularly sell, and each product has its specific packaging. The packaging tells people what your company name is, what the product is, and various details about the product—all the things you would expect to find on a package.
Know What to Do Between Marketing Campaigns
By: Kaye Z. Marks | 12/11/2008 | Printing
There are many companies who just look at marketing as one large campaign after another. For the biggest of the big corporations this is probably going to be accurate, because they can afford to never let up. Every major marketing push is going to flow smoothly with the next big, expensive marketing.
Research is Only as Good as How You Use it
By: Kaye Z. Marks | 10/11/2008 | Home Business
Any worthwhile company is going to know that they need to do a lot of research if they want to stay around for long. When it comes to the products you make, improving the products that you currently have, the commercial printing you focus on with your advertising, and the areas that you concentrate your marketing, you need to know what people think.
Selling Your Experience
By: Kaye Z. Marks | 07/11/2008 | Printing
Experience is just as much a commodity as any other item you might sell. Each time someone hires you out to perform a service for you what they’re really hiring is your expertise in your field.
Do not Let the Competition Scare You Away
By: Kaye Z. Marks | 06/11/2008 | Graphic Design
Even if you don’t know much of anything about video games I’m guessing you’ve probably at least heard in passing the name World of Warcaft. The level of success this game has managed to achieve is something that has drawn a lot of attention of the years.
Understand Exactly What Your Business Has to Offer
By: Kaye Z. Marks | 05/11/2008 | Online Promotion
Every business started for a reason and every business did so because they felt they could offer people something that no other company was able to. When a company first starts out they’re more likely to keep that idea close to them. Everything they do will likely be centered around this very idea.
Knowing the Specifics About Presentation Folders
By: Kaye Z. Marks | 04/11/2008 | Graphic Design
A presentation folder is a little self explanatory, but given how few people I see making good use of them, I have to imagine that many just don’t realize what they are, or how significant they are.
Advertising 
