Personalisation software needs to be fed with the very best data. Any all-singing, all-dancing marketing drive will fall flat if a name is misspelled or an address is inaccurate. It's not good for the recipient and damages the reputation of the brand. So, if printers spend time investing in data management, then highly personalised campaigns are more likely to hit the spot.
"It's about taking the time to make sure the data is clean and correct," says Neil Bather, managing director of Transeo Media. "If you send a message to a ‘Mr' and it's a ‘Mrs', then you may cause offence. You have to get it spot on."
Another consideration is effectively managing that data to ensure that the process complies with data protection laws. "A lot of printers have been caught out because you have to remember you're dealing with home addresses," says Kelvin Bell, e-commerce director at VPress.
There is no doubt that cross-media campaigns are on the rise, with print increasingly linking up with email, text and personalised URLs. Multiplatform integration gives brands significant feedback on their customers and allows them to reach out to individuals using the best communication channel for that specific customer.
"For instance, you might not have everyone's home or email addresses or mobile numbers," says Tim Cox, managing director of ROI Distribution. An SMS text drive can be rolled out on a particular day to collect other data and then followed up with a direct mail piece.
Cox believes that, in the future, there will be a more segmented approach to marketing. "For example, you may want to target women between the ages of 25-35 in the North East - a very specific market - and right now often you can't do that," he explains. He adds that 2D barcodes will come into play a lot more, although their success depends on developments by mobile phone technology.
"When purchasing personalisation software, research the market, the different pros and cons and have a thorough knowledge of the technology you are looking to buy," says Transeo Media's Bather.
VPress's Bell adds that any software purchase has to be affordable, easy-to-use and provide a financially secure model. "The printer needs to develop a relationship with the software supplier, and start from the basic posters, flyers, mailers and then move on to personalised brochures," he adds.
WHAT'S NEW IN PERSONALISATION SOFTWARE
Transeo Media is to introduce DirectSmile Card and Gift Shop personalisation software into the UK at the end of this month. The off-the-shelf product allows online sales of personalised products
Last month Pixart.it launched a personalised calendar design
and print service. Visitors to
www.pixart.it can download calendar templates in a variety of formats and add personalised graphics and images
MBA Group enhanced its high-volume, personalised transactional and transpromo document production service with the installation of GMC Software Technology’s PrintNet personalised printing software last month
In July 2009, Canon expanded its personalisation software offering by incorporating the latest version of PlanetPress Suite, which allows users to personalise text and images for applications such as financial and educational documents
