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Customization in Wide-Format Printing: It’s Getting Personal(ized)
Posted on by Shellie Terry Posted in Tips & Tricks
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Customization in Wide-Format Printing: It’s Getting Personal(ized)

One of the earliest benefits of digital inkjet printing was the ability to create one-off, customized prints. Over the past two decades, that’s been a major selling point for printers offering banners, POP signage and trade show graphics, and it shows no signs of slowing down.

In fact, the digital print industry is branching out into many more market segments, thanks to improved print technology as well as new, innovative media and substrates, such as the personalized wallcovering printed with quotes, pictured above.

These new ideas and products, of course, are in response to increasing demands from graphic designers, brand owners, interior designers and consumers themselves who have seen customization in action with everything from canvas printed on demand to the mass-customization project: Share a Coke. Digital print technology allows print service providers to deliver smaller runs faster and with higher-quality results.

In the décor market, “there are more companies developing brands, which is increasing the competition and simultaneously creating a need for customization,” Rachel Nunziata writes in Big Picture magazine. “Product companies and manufacturers are also adopting in-house digital print – or outsourcing to print providers. This allows for product modifications of color or scale and smaller curated collections.”

This has been embraced in the label and packaging arena, as well, with digital printing giving smaller brands the chance to stand out. “The ability to customize packaging allows independent brands entree into the big leagues,” says Ralph Giammarco, VP of S-One Labels & Packaging in BXP magazine. “They can use personalization, tactile substrates and metallic finishes, do promotions around sporting events or holidays and enjoy super-fast turnaround.”

Check out some of the newest products now available that can help you delve further into customized wide-format printing:

Wrapping paper: Have your customers asked you to print photos for an upcoming wedding or birthday? Imagine using those pictures to customize wrapping paper, allowing them to personalize the gift-giving experience. If you have a latex printer or DesignJet production printer (Z6200 or newer), you could increase profitability by adding HP Satin Wrapping Paper to your product offering and help your customers make a splash at their next gift.

Wallcovering: For years, homeowners have spent countless hours in the wallpaper and paint departments at home improvement stores. With the ability to create custom wall coverings for your clients, you will help save them time and money as well as give them a way to design unique and personal bedrooms, boardrooms or commercial spaces. If you have either a latex or solvent printer, you can create custom wall murals with an array of options: the various textures of Vescom, HP PVC-free Wall Paper, which is certified for use in schools and hospitals when printed with the HP latex printers, and finally, the subtle textured options of Avery Dennison MPI 2600 Wall Film.

Art and décor: While printing images on photo papers is what initially put digital printing on the map, it’s time PSPs help customers understand all the options available for personalized art and décor. Canvas prints help your clients turn a great photo into a beautiful work of art. There are a variety of canvas products available for all printer technologies, including LexJet Sunset Select Matte Canvas for aqueous or LexJet Sunset by Fredrix Satin Canvas SUV for latex and solvent. If you have a dye-sub printer, ChromaLuxe Aluminum Photo Panels create stunning wall décor that will surely be a great conversation starter for homeowners and business owners, alike.

These are only a handful of options that are available to you to help you expand your product offering and keep your customers happy and always coming back to see what new and exciting things you can print for them.

If you have questions about any of these products or would like additional ideas on customization opportunities, visit LexJet.com or contact one of our sales specialists at 800-453-9538.

Posted on by Shellie Terry Posted in News & Trends
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5 Printing Trends to Watch in 2018

Welcome to 2018! As we begin the new year, we take a look at what’s hot now in wide-format printing and what’s going to gain traction in the coming months. Our team provided insight on what they see as the growing trends for 2018, so we can help you be prepared with the media and equipment you need to meet your customers’ evolving demands.

1. Digital Keeps Growing: During the past two decades, we were at the forefront as digital took the lead in the graphics, photography and signage markets. Now, we’re watching digital printing make new inroads in industries that range from décor to flexible packaging. In the same way digital printing made signage faster and more customized than technologies of the past, we’re going to see that advantage work for short-run, super customized, more quickly produced fabrics for applications such as signage, upholstery, drapery, bedding, accessories, fast fashion and much more.

Kornit Allegro roll-to-roll digital fabric printing system

Because digital allows a file to print directly to a substrate without expensive plate setup, short- or even micro-runs are a whole new possibility for fabric, specifically. With these shorter run possibilities, we anticipate more fabric printing here in the U.S., rather than mass production off-shore that equates to tons of inventory on shelves here. One-off digital printing means your customers no longer need to stock all that inventory from overseas.

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Posted on by Shellie Terry Posted in Tips & Tricks
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Video Tip: Easy Pre-Pasted Wall Paper Install and Removal

What if we told you there was a wall paper that you could apply with the aid of a squirt bottle – no glue and no water troughs necessary? HP has created its PVC-free Wall Paper that not only makes installation and removal a breeze, it’s also a great choice for high-traffic and sensitive areas, like hospitals or schools.

Check out the video above to see how easy it is to prep your printed panels and install them using just these tools:

  • Damp sponge
  • Spray bottle with room-temperature water
  • Razor knife with fresh blades
  • Squeegee
  • Metal puddy knife

The video covers preparing the wall and panels with room-temperature water, position and secure the panels in place and trim the excess as needed. You’ll also learn how to remove the wall paper without damaging the wall beneath it.

HP PVC-free Wall Paper is an odor-free, PVC-free alternative to wallcovering that is flame-resistant and provides vivid color and high-definition detail, ideal for wall murals. Not only is it mold- and mildew-resistant, it has multiple environmental assurances including FSC® and UL GREENGUARD certifications and it meets AgBB criteria making it safe for use in homes, hospitals, schools and public buildings.

Available at LexJet, this product is manufactured with two finishes: HP PVC-free Durable Smooth Wall Paper and HP PVC-free Durable Suede Wall Paper.

For more décor tips and tricks, call a LexJet representative at 800-453-9538.

Easy Ways to Start Marketing Your Décor Services Today
Posted on by Shellie Terry Posted in Marketing & Sales, Tips & Tricks
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Easy Ways to Start Marketing Your Décor Services Today

Whether you’ve got full décor printing capabilities, or you’re just dipping your toe into this new market, everyone will eventually need to start marketing their services to build business. We sat down with LexJet’s market development pro Rachel Gamberg to learn how to get a décor-focused marketing plan off the ground.

“Based on your equipment and current capabilities, you can identify markets that you can created product lines for and start to segment these groups,” she says. “And if you have plans to invest in new equipment, started thinking about more applications you can offer in the future.”

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Intro to Décor Printing: You Already Have What You Need to Begin
Posted on by Shellie Terry Posted in Technology & Products, Tips & Tricks
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Intro to Décor Printing: You Already Have What You Need to Begin

Today, we’re kicking off a blog series on how on-demand printers and anyone offering wide-format printing services can jump into an exciting new market within the industry: Décor printing.

Chances are you’ve heard about the booming customizable décor printing opportunities in our industry. With the advances in substrates and printer technology, offering your customers more ways to create one-of-a-kind projects for residential or commercial spaces has become more accessible than ever.

It’s also likely your customers are starting to make requests for projects like wall murals, canvas wraps, floor graphics, customized window screens and even lampshades. In other words, if you can print it, they can decorate with it!

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Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in Case Studies & Profiles, Marketing & Sales
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Open House Success: Building Business with the HP Latex Printer at Red River Photo

 

Red River Photo Services Open House
Hey! It’s two captions for the price of one! The headline, image and caption above is from an article about Red River Photo Services and the addition of its new HP Latex 330 Printer that ran in The Journal Record, a local business journal. Red River Photo’s open house generated new business and great publicity.

Red River Photo Services in Oklahoma City recently made the big jump to latex printing with the addition of the new HP Latex 330 Printer from LexJet, supplementing the company’s fleet of Epson Stylus Pro aqueous inkjet printers to expand their offerings and their market.

Owners Leighton and Katrina Kirkpatrick have so far been impressed with the additional capabilities and benefits the printer provides and were eager to share those capabilities and benefits with their market.

Red River Photo Services Open HouseLeighton and Katrina hosted an open house at their facility last night that brought in about 75 customers and prospects. The couple provided beer, wine and a spread of hors d’oeuvres Katrina made for the event, but the big draw was the HP Latex 330.

And, the most important goal of the event was to educate and drive new business through the printer. Leighton reports that they reached that goal. In fact, he was working on an estimate for a new museum print project that was a direct result of the open house.

“Our customers were already familiar with our quality and knew the open house would be a good use of their time, but we also scored some new clients, like museums, which was really important,” Leighton says. “There was also someone at the open house who does a lot of wallpaper projects; he said he will use us, so I think we scored there as well. We’ll follow up with sales calls to LEED architects and show them some of the products, like the HP PVC-free Wall Paper because of its environmental certifications for hospitals and other facilities.”

Red River Photo ServicesLeighton and Katrina printed application samples on various media, including HP PVC-free Wall Paper, LexJet PVC-Free Cling, dreamScape Terralon, dreamScape 15 oz. Suede, banner materials and display films.

“We printed different images on the various substrates so people could see an actual wallpaper design on a wallpaper product as opposed to graphics and photos. We had several different 6×8 tables covered with these samples,” Leighton says.

Leighton also used literature from LexJet about the inks and media and an overview of HP Latex printing technologies and the environment. Along with invitations to customers and prospects, Leighton got more buzz going before the event by sharing a video LexJet produced and customized for Red River Photo about HP PVC-free Wall Paper, both through email and posted on Facebook.

“We sent the video out the day before the open house. We got a lot of response to it, and it was very successful in terms of the introduction of the latex printer’s capabilities. It was very effective and did its job by opening people’s eyes to all the possibilities the printer offers,” Leighton says. “We wanted people to know they can get a great product with the same durability as a solvent-based ink system with great imaging and application versatility. The best part about this printer? Kat and I are excited about it, and we can’t sell something we’re not excited about.”