As an in-house corporate print buyer, “Dee” has managed print spend budgets ranging from $15 million to $80 million for large ad agencies and Fortune 500 companies. Over the last decade, she has become increasingly concerned for the print industry and the talented print production professionals who lose their jobs as Print Management Services swoop in with promises of cost savings.
In this exclusive interview with Deborah Corn of Print Media Centr and #ProjectPeacock, Dee shares her perspective on the dangerous cost of the promised cost savings and what it means to lose knowledgeable in-house print buyers with clear loyalties and commitment to brand integrity. And are the cost savings real and sustainable? What happens when trusted printers are cut out of the equation or have their margins slashed?
You’ll hear first-hand how Print Management Services insinuate themselves into new customers and get a sense of how they operate. Now is not the time for print production professionals to be passive. Listen closely as Dee shares practical advice on how in-house print buyers can defend themselves and their brands.
Dee recognizes that many printers are experiencing hard times in this environment. As a print buyer for a major corporation, Dee receives cold calls constantly and 20 to 30 vendor solicitations every day. This podcast is an opportunity for printers and service providers to hear valuable intel on how to stand out and earn a spot on the list of someone like Dee. Spoiler: what you’re probably doing now will never work.
One Response
100% spot on! I’ve been living this for years. Dee’s advice is great…self-advocate for your team’s production value, but it can be very difficult. I speak from first hand experience. I’ve got over 25 years of professional print production experience, leading print production teams. I managed to sell the value of my team for a number of years before the company I worked for finally gave-in and bought-in to the external print management model. The company I worked for outsourced my group, all in the name of cost savings and supposed efficiencies. I ended up working on-site at my old employer for the print management company. Unfortunately, the company (our “client”) ended up selling to another company, which used a different print management service. The company I was outsourced to eliminated my entire team vs. re-assigning us…a team with well over 100+ years of professional print production experience. I’ve been out of work for almost a year now. I don’t want to give up on my industry experience, but the current print management company model makes things quite challenging for sure, particularly for someone of my age and experience level!