Monday, May 25th, 2020 means a milestone in knowledge transfer in print. And it was a good start to an exciting week. The first day ‘Learn With Us’ went very well. Morten B. Reitoft, CEO/editor of INKISH did a great job!
It’s always a great pleasure to meet Jeroen van Druenen (fun included!). By chance you will meet him anyway: in Portugal, UK, Poland, the USA, Australia, Hongkong,.. and also sometimes (!) in Amsterdam. Haha! However in any case you will have a great conversation. There are not a lot like him around the globe. So read carefully what he has to tell us!
What is the beauty of print in the digital age?
Jeroen van Druenen:The beauty of print… The start of a good conversation. The attention prints get instead of an email. You see it happen every day. — According to Erik B. Nordstrom (Co-President Nordstrom),their results were in part hurt by their decision to stop using printed direct mail to reach its customer for their loyalty program.
Even tech companies like Google and Facebook use print to communicate with their audience nowadays.
It’s there when you have time, it’s on your coffee table, ready to use. In DM we see (much) more ROI, and when it’s tailored and personalized the ROI will dramatically get higher.
And, yes, it’s more expensive than for example email but with much more revenues. And to be very clear, I am not against email, we embrace the digital age. We use it in a multi-channel way. We can automate a reaction on a personalized webpage to start a print job and vice versa. It’s not do this and don’t do that. No, it’s usage of every channel in every way.
Everything in the Mobile Age is so fast. Why is the adaption of digital printing technology innovations so slow?
Jeroen van Druenen: Our industry has more fights.
Our industry is not sexy.
Our business partners are not digital savvys or they don’t understand the power of “personalized” print.
We need to educate our customers with more case studies, success cases etc.
We need to show that print in any form is sustainable and that we don’t pollute our environment.
What are the key drivers for a powerful & successful print service biz today and what will it be in the future?
Jeroen van Druenen: Key drivers to have a successful and profitable print service biz today are in my opinion the offering of multi-channel communications. By all means, printing as a service can be done everywhere. But adding value to paper is something different. Getting the right message for the right customer. Be relevant to them. Adding response mechanism to paper (purls/QR/AR etc.). And if you are relevant for the end customer it will be profitable for your customer and for your own company. So knowledge of marketing, knowledge of databases, knowledge how to get the information you want to use out of these databases, concepting, copy, design of all different channels etc.etc. And, yes, not every expertise is inside your company, so partner up with specialists to work together and built a strong relation with your customer.
Thank you very much for the great conversation!
About
Good friends for many years: Jeroen van Druenen, Jacob Aizikowitz, former President of XMPie, Andreas Weber. Photo: Jannie van Druenen.
Jeroen van Druenen, CEO @ Jubels — print and more. Based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. A privately held marketing communication service provider and printing company. With more than 25 years of experience in the Graphic Arts and Communications industry Jubels offers customers effective, on demand, integrated crossmedia communications.
Specialties: 1:1 marketing, crossmedia campaigns, printing – offset & digital, fulfillment activities, web to print applications, personalized url’s & images.
Jeroen van Druenen is also President of the XMPie Users Group and Board Member of the global Xerox Premier Partner network. And at least as one of the active members of the Think!Paper initiative, he is always giving great advice to all of us.
We evaluate and profile print and its proponents as an effective driving force for transformation – across all industries!
Our mission
We show, first and foremost, that print is by no means driftwood in an ocean of transformation (with Titanic-style effects) but rather a solid anchor for the ‘tsunamis in our heads’!
Our USP
We are bringing together the brightest minds to form interdisciplinary #Think!Teams with a global outlook.
We are building up the finest pool of expertise with a clear focus on interaction, discourse, customer experience and sustainable conversations.
We are reinforcing the bedrock of any successful ‘digital’ transformation – proficient, dynamic and meaningful communication.
Benefits for our partners
We help our partners make new and market-relevant discoveries that inspire them and inject new energy into their development.
Wer sich krampfhaft mit der Zukunft beschäftigt, verliert den Bezug zur Gegenwart!
Prolog
Da kommt vermeintlich Freude auf: „Druck ist die stabilste Währung“, lautet die Erkenntnis vom Print Trend Day 2019, den der Verband Druck & Medientechnik Österreich in Wien organisierte. In bewährter Manier präsentierten Experten Technologie- und Geschäftslösungen von morgen. Die Maßgabe war: Wie macht sich die Druckbranche zukunftsfit? Die Experten sind wie üblich zumeist Vertreter der Lieferindustrie, die auch den Event sponsern.
Wir lernen: „Die Druckbranche ist [im Schulterschluss von Zulieferern und erfolgreichen Druckereien] bereit für den Sprung in die Zukunft. Die Digitalisierung schafft großartige neue Möglichkeiten, die nun mit vorausschauenden Investitionen und cleverem Marketing ergriffen werden.“
Und auch die „Print Trends zur Zeitenwende“ werden angesprochen: Print-Technologie-Experte Bernd Zipper stellte in Wien klar: „Online, Print, TV, Radio — all das sind Bestandteile des Medienkanons, den wir für unsere Information und Marktwirtschaft dringend benötigen.“
Lichtblick statt nur Ausblick: Heidelbergs Chef Digital OfficerDr. Ulrich Hermann, dynamischer Treiber der digitalen Transformation des Branchenprimus, empfiehlt, sich an den Besten der Branche zu orientieren, um „besser gerüstet für die ständig wachsenden Anforderungen der Kunden“ zu sein. Und er betont: „Print-Medien-Industrie 4.0 bedeutet hochflexible Produktion von individualisierten Druckprojekten, wobei die Druckerei in die digitale Lieferkette des Kunden eingebettet ist“. Das trifft ins Schwarze, kennzeichnet aber die Gegenwart und darf nicht als Zukunftsmusik gedeutet werden.
Gewollt, aber nicht gekonnt?
Warum mäkle ich an einem durchaus ehrenwerten Verbands-Event rum? Nun, er steht symbolisch für eine Vielzahl solcher Events, die mit viel Aufwand für Veranstalter, Redner, Sponsoren und auch fürs Auditorium verbunden sind; und zumeist nicht erfüllen können, was versprochen wird.
Mit Tunnelblick suhlt man sich im eigenen Saft und tauscht sich mit KollegInnen aus, ohne gemeinsam Botschaften zu entwickeln, die Kunden / Nutzer und Prospects von Print-Medien begeistert und ins Gespräch bringen kann.
Sprich: Es entsteht wenig Nutzen und führt aus meiner Sicht kaum weiter. Denn hinterfragen wir, was eigentlich gemeint sein soll und wie die Gegenwart im Spiegel der sog, Trends aussieht, kommen wir zu überraschenden Überlegungen, die von Absurdität geprägt sind:
Muss man tatsächlich in die Zukunft ‚springen‘ können oder wollen, zumal diese doch von alleine kommt, selbst wenn man stehen bleibt oder sogar rückwärts läuft?
Ist Print tatsächlich eine ‚Währung‘? Wenn ja, was kann man z. B. mit einem exzellent gedrucktem Hochglanz-Prospekt ganz real bezahlen?
Besteht der Medienkanon tatsächlich aus ‚Online, Print, TV und Radio‘? Was ist mit den Boom-Bereichen Blockchain, Streaming, KI, Mobile etc, die bereits im Hier & Jetzt alles auf den Kopf stellen?
Der Schlüssel zum Erfolg: Das Hier & Jetzt begreifen!
Während ich über die digital kolportierten ‚Print Trend Tag 2019’-Resultate sinniere und mich über die Tunnelblick-Mentalität wundere, erfahre ich parallel, was in der Welt tatsächlich wichtiges passiert. Zum Beispiel, dass Amazon quasi aus dem Stand heraus nach Google und Facebook die Nummer 3 im Werbemarkt geworden ist. Mit über 10 Milliarden US-Dollar Umsatz in 2018 und einer gigantischen Wachstumskurve. Das ist fast schon soviel, wie die OTTO Group, die gerade den gedruckten Hauptkatalog beerdigt hat, jährlich an Konzernumsatz erwirtschaften kann. Und weitaus mehr, als die auch international ambitionierten deutschen Großverlage Werbeeinnahmen generieren. So traurig das klingen mag: Print spielt bei dieser Art des profitablen und hochwirksamen Werbegeschäfts keine Rolle.
Ich erfahre auch, dass ein Bollwerk deutscher Finanzkunst wie die Deutsche Bank taumelt und im internationalen Vergleich zum Winzling geworden ist. Im Gegensatz zu N26, einem neuen FinTech-Unternehmen, das Geldgeber begeistert und schon einen Marktwert im mittleren Milliarden-Euro-Bereich verzeichnet. Das meint: Nutzenstiftende Innovation schlägt Tradition.
Und fast noch spannender erscheint: Ich lerne als neuer Autor und Experte der europaweiten „MoreThanDigital“-Initiative von Benjamin Talin, Zürich, das sich die wissensdurstige Klientel — kleinere und mittlere Unternehmen aller Art, die an Transformation interessiert sind — bis dato mit allem auseinandersetzt, nur nicht mir Print! — Nun, das kann man ‚Zeitenwende‘ nennen, oder?
Meine Empfehlung
Wir sollten uns aktiver, cleverer und ehrlicher mit der Gegenwart auseinandersetzen, die immer Klärwerk und Katalysator für die Zukunft ist. Um die Gegenwart zu begreifen, gehört nämlich, die Vergangenheit richtig einschätzen zu können, um daraus Erkenntnisse für das hier und jetzt zu gewinnen. Damit tut man sich, warum auch immer, in der Print-Branche verdammt schwer. Und über den Tellerrand zu blicken, kann nicht schaden. Aber bitte nicht in der o. g. Form, die Trends verspricht und bisweilen wohlklingend Absurdes liefert.
Mein Resümee
Wer sich krampfhaft mit der Zukunft beschäftigt, verliert den Bezug zur Gegenwart! — Nichts für ungut, sich wie in Wien und anderswo unter Kollegen zu treffen, mag hilfreich sein, ist aber aus meiner Sicht in der geschilderten Form keinesfalls zielführend, um akute Probleme der Gegenwart zu lösen. Ebensowenig wie Zukunftsprognosen, die an anderer Stelle der VDMA als einer der Träger der #drupa2020 Ende des Jahres 2018 publizierte — sinngemäß: auch im Jahr 2040 wird noch gedruckt (!). Das sind für mich wie vieles andere im allzu wirren Trend-Geschehen nichts als teuer erkaufte Nebelkerzen.
Apropos drupa: Irre ich mich oder ist es so still wie nie zuvor um die globale Leitmesse der Print-Medien-Industrie geworden, die doch schon nächstes Jahr stattfinden soll? Schaun wir mal.
Vorher können wir uns bei dem für mich im Jahr 2019 wichtigsten internationalen Event, dem 7. Online Print Symposium (#OPS2019) Anfang April in München, selbst ein Bild machen, ob und welche Trends wirklich relevant ins Feld geführt werden. Und wie sich die Resonanz nach außen entwickelt.
Tipp zum Schnuppern
Die Plattform MoreThanDigital zeigt ganz hervorragend, wie man den Wissenstransfer und das Netzwerken rund um Innovation und Transformation im Digitalzeitalter erfolgreich gestaltet. Uns allen aus der Print-Branche ist das Anschauen&Mitmachen sehr zu empfehlen. Die Subskription des Newsletters ist kostenfrei möglich. Die Inhalte sind in deutsch und englisch gefasst.
Über den Autor
Andreas Weberbegleitet als Wissensarbeiter/Advisor die Kommunikation mit Medien — geprägt durch eine Vorliebe für Print-Innovationen im Digitalzeitalter. Bis dato hat er über 500 Innovations-/Transformations-Projekten realisiert, diverse Lehraufträge wahrgenommen (u.a an der School of Visual Arts/NYC, Hochschule Liechtenstein, Hochschule RheinMain) und Vorträge in über 30 Ländern gehalten. Sein Blog valuetrendradar.com (ISSN-zertifiziert) inspiriert Entscheider aus mehr als 150 Ländern.
Künstliche Intelligenz als Top-Thema in Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft — und neuerdings in der deutscher Politik auch für Dorothee Bär, die Staatsministerin für Digitalisierung im Berliner Bundeskanzleramt. — Foto: Medientage München. Bildcollage: Andreas Weber.
Der High-Tech-Konzern Xerox geht bei ‚Künstliche Intelligenz‘ (KI) mit seiner Denkfabrik und Entwicklungsschmiede PARC im kalifornischen Palo Alto neue Wege. Schon im nächsten Jahr soll eine KI-Software-Architektur marktreif sein, mit der Unternehmen automatisch Angebote und zukünftig auch Dokumente aller Art erstellen können. Das Ganze ist so brandaktuell, dass es noch keinen offiziellen Produkt-Namen dafür gibt.
„Derzeit sind wir in der Beta-Phase und setzen unsere neue KI-Lösung auch innerhalb des eigenen Konzerns in den USA, Kanada und dem Vereinigten Königreich ein“, erläuterteElisabeth Rochman, Director of Innovation, Strategy and Communication bei Xerox in London.
Im Fokus: Wissensarbeiter
Zielpersonen zur automatischen Dokumenten-Erstellung mit KI sind für Xerox primär Wissensarbeiter in allen Bereichen von Industrieunternehmen, Regierungsstellen und Organisationen. „Wir gehen nunmehr über das Scannen und Weiterleiten von Dokumenten und über andere ConnectKey-Funktionalitäten der Xerox Workplace Assistants, weit hinaus — die Basis zum Erfolg bieten sich durch modernste Deep Learning-Technologien“, so Rochman weiter.
Wichtig sei es, Wissensarbeiter maximal produktiv werden zu lassen, damit diese ihre wichtigen Aufgaben in komplexen Umgebungen bestmöglich bewerkstelligen können. Kritisch für Wissensarbeiter sei vor allem, über den Tellerrand blicken zu können und in komplexen und großen Organisationen zusätzliche Informationen identifizieren zu können, die für die eigene Arbeit wichtig sein können.
Bei dieser Mammut-Aufgabe kann sich Xerox auf eine 30-jährige Expertise von PARC in natürlicher Sprachverarbeitung stützen und ist dabei eine Vorreiterrolle bei „Natural Language Generation“ zu übernehmen. Xerox beherrscht bereits automatische Übersetzungen und Sprach-Eingabesysteme für Wissensarbeiter, sowie zukünftig auch Dialogsysteme z.B. für Außendienstarbeiter beim Reparatureinsatz.
Infobox zu Künstliche Intelligenz (KI)
KI im täglichen Einsatz am Beispiel von Apple mit Siri. Foto: Mashable
Dem direkten oder indirekten Zusammentreffen mit Künstlicher Intelligenz (KI) — englisch: Artifical Intelligence (AI) — kann sich niemand mehr entziehen. Geschäftlich wie auch privat — ob Industrie 4.0, Medizintechnik, Pflege, Smartphone, autonomes Auto, smarter Fernseher oder im Games-Sektor, wir alle nutzen KI bzw. profitieren davon.
KI ist aber keineswegs eine neue Erfindung. Seit den 1950er Jahren wird daran geforscht. Ausgangspunkt ist weniger eine ‚denkende Maschine‘ als vielmehr grundsätzlich Programme, die selbstständig eine Aufgabe erledigen können, für die normalerweise menschliche Intelligenz notwendig wäre. Dank inzwischen hoher Rechenleistungen wie durch IBM Watson kann die KI das schneller erledigen als ein Mensch. Primär geht es um die Automatisierung intelligenten Verhaltens und maschinelles Lernen. Neben US-Firmen ist die stärkste treibende Kraft China, mit Investitionen der Staatsregierung von mehr als 50 Milliarden US-Dollar. Die deutsche Bundesregierung will gerade mal 300 Millionen Euro bereitstellen.
Sehr einfach greifbar wird KI in unserem Alltag z. B. per Amazon Polly — ein Text-to-Speech-Service, der Texte aller Art in realistische Sprachausgabe verwandelt, sodass sich sprechende Anwendungen und ganz neue Kategorien sprachfähiger Produkte in dutzenden Sprachen mit einer Vielzahl lebensechter Stimmen entwickeln lassen, sowie bei Chatbots und den diversen Sprachassistenten von Google, Apple, Amazon und anderen.
The Big Shift
„Das Besondere und Neue bei KI — wir nennen das ‚The Big Shift‘ — ist, dass wir keine Bereichsexperten mehr brauchen um die Regeln zu schreiben, stattdessen brauchen wir viele Datenpunkte und Machine Learning-Algorithmen, die selbst die Regeln aus den Datensätzen ableiten“, sagt Rochman. Kreativität, Intuition und instinktmäßig richtiges Handeln in Kombination mit Deep-Learning seien wichtig, wenn es um die Akzeptanz und Interaktion von Maschinen und Menschen geht. Zur Nutzung der Xerox-KI-Lösung bedarf es laut Rochman keines besonderen Lernaufwandes mehr: „Nutzer haben jederzeit die volle Kontrolle und Oberhoheit. Unsere KI-Software-Architektur ist so ausgelegt, dass individuell definiert wird, welcher Grad der Intensität am sinnvollsten ist“.
KI wird dadurch der wohl wichtigste Zweig der modernen und künftigen Informatik. Vier Kernfelder werden adressiert und vernetzt: Komplexe Aufgaben, Lernfähigkeit, Emotionalisierung und soziale Interaktion. Das Ziel: Die Welt radikal vereinfachen, indem sich eine intelligente Schnittstelle zu allem bietet.
Die Xerox/PARC-Sichtweise lautet dabei: Künstliche Intelligenz kann lernen, Annahmen treffen, sich anpassen und auf unvorhersehbares Verhalten reagieren und somit mit dem Nutzer jeweils die beste Entscheidung treffen und dies quasi in Echtzeit. Dabei werden Emotionen des Nutzers wahrgenommen und berücksichtigt diese in der Interaktion. In diesem Sinne versteht sich die Xerox-KI-Architektur als ein verständiger und glaubhafter Interaktionspartner, um mit den Menschen zu kommunizieren und voneinander zu lernen.
Bei PARC-Entwicklungen folgt alles bereits seit dem Jahr 2002 dem Open-Innovation-Prinzip. Hinsichtlich KI bedeutet das, die Mensch-Maschine-Kollaboration bestmöglich durch ‚human-centered innovation services‘ zu gestalten. Insofern darf laut Rochman eine Xerox-KI-Lösung keinesfalls als undurchsichtige Black-Box gesehen werden. Vielmehr stehe für Xerox die allzeitige Transparenz im Vordergrund, um größtmögliches Vertrauen aufzubauen und nachhaltig aufrecht zu erhalten.
Idealerweise kann dies z. B. dadurch geschehen, dass Algorithmen sich selbst erklären. Oder plakativ formuliert: KI kann genutzt werden, um KI bestmöglich zu gestalten und menschengerecht werden zu lassen.
PARC-Forscher arbeiten entsprechend daran, eine gemeinsame Basis zwischen Mensch und KI zu schaffen. „Mit traditioneller KI, bei der alles nach vorbestimmten, festen Regeln erfolgen muss, hat unsere Entwicklung weniger zu tun. Daher ist KI bei Xerox nicht als Produkt, sondern als Service zu verstehen“, stellt Rochman klar. Und ergänzt: „Unsere KI-Architektur vermag dem Menschen, seinen Gewohnheiten und seinem Denken zu folgen, um als qualifizierter Lösungs- und Service-Partner zu dienen.“
Wesentlich ist zudem die Flexibilität und Simplizität beim Interfacing durch Connectors, um vielfältig Schnittstellen zu schaffen. Der Treibstoff für KI sind relevante, hochwertige Daten und ihre Vernetzung. Hier ist bei Xerox noch nicht entschieden, ob man das Interfacing selbst oder über Dritte anbietet.
My Take: Auf zu neuen Ufern! Denn KI ist Kopfsache!
Mit der neuen KI-Lösung hat Xerox die Chance, sich selbst neu zu erfinden und Wissensarbeit auf ein neues Level zu heben. Letztendlich muss man an den reinen Anbietern von Sprachassistenz-Diensten vorbeiziehen, um ganz vorne mitspielen zu können. Das kann gelingen, wenn man es bei Xerox schafft, vorhandene Kunden- und Netzwerkstrukturen zu nutzen, um KI in die unterschiedlichsten Anwendungsbereiche einzubinden.
Gerade für die digitale Transformation der Kernmärkte von Xerox — Business Communication und der Professional Print-Sektor — bildet KI den Schlüsselfaktor. Mithilfe und im Dialog mit KI automatisch generierte Daten, die in Echtzeit digital gedruckt werden können, müssen keine kühne Vision bleiben, sondern sollten alsbald Realität werden. Bis dahin mag es vielleicht als ein weiter oder steiniger Weg erscheinen, den Xerox aber aus meiner Sicht nicht scheuen sollte. Kreativität stellt nicht nur eine wichtige Facette von KI dar, sondern wird auch zum Treiber des künftigen Vermarktungserfolgs bei Xerox.
Zur Person
Die Französin Elisabeth Rochman studierte Information Systems and Networking an der French Engineering School, Ecole Polytechnique Femine. Sie kann seit über 20 Jahren auf eine erfolgreiche Industriekarriere bei Starts-ups wie auch in Konzernen wie HP und Hewlett Packard Enterprises zurückblicken. Im Februar 2018 wurde sie mit Sitz in London von Xerox berufen als Director of Innovation, Strategy and Communication. In Zusammenarbeit mit PARC (Palo Alto Research Center), innovativen Universitäten und Start-ups arbeitet sie an Xerox Intelligent Work-Produkten und Dienstleistungen, die von Artificial Intelligence unterstützt werden.
Seit mehr als 25 Jahren engagiert sich Andreas Weber als international renommierter Business Communication Analyst, Coach, Blogger und Transformer.Seine Aktivitäten fokussieren sich auf ‚Transformation for the Digital Age’ via Vorträgen, Management Briefings, Workshops, Analysen & Reports, Strategic Advice. — Mit seinem Blog www.valuetrendradar.com inspiriert er Leser aus über 150 Ländern der Welt.
Peter Sommer, Member of the Elanders Board, and Andreas Weber, Head of Value, met in Waiblingen, near Stuttgart, to discuss their ideas. Their meeting resulted in the #Think!Paper initiative.
“We are launching an initiative that highlights the importance of print not only in but also for the digital era. What counts is not what we do or how we do it, but rather why print delivers sustainable success. The focus needs to be on the unique benefits that professional print production delivers. And that applies whether you’re looking at the past, present or future!” – Peter Sommer and Andreas Weber
A special kind of summit on print and transformation: Peter Sommer, Member of the Elanders Board, and Andreas Weber, Head of Value, met in Waiblingen, near Stuttgart, Germany. This European city is a major hub for the most dynamic solutions portfolio for print and demonstrates with high volumes and strong profits just how big a contribution print (based on digital printing) can make in the digital age.
“I find it astounding and completely incomprehensible how poorly print is portrayed – especially by the print media industry itself. Why is that?” asks Sommer. The meeting picked out core issues that led to the establishment of the Think!Paper initiative. These points also represent the key thrust of the Think!Paper activities, offering a constructive and critical basis for further discussion.
Taking stock
The print media industry is underselling itself and taking far too little interest in what is going on elsewhere. It likes to keep to itself. There is usually little more than speculation about the challenges set by the digital age. Many positive aspects go unnoticed, and there is a failure to grasp the opportunities that change could bring.
Core arguments
Status quo: The industry has built its own funeral pyre and is fervently stoking the fire beneath it. However, the prospects for print shops in the digital age are far better than the image the industry is presenting, both within and beyond its own ranks.
The mistake being made is thatprint shops and print buyers are following false prophets.
Clarification: Print is a perfected medium with a pedigree, potential and the capacity for profitable new business.
Consider the facts:
Print represents an exceptionally valuable form of communication – made by people, for people!
Improved functionality is exponentially increasing the benefits that print offers in the digital age.
Print isn’t just about duplicating data – it can package text, images and special effects in a very special, highly personal format that moves people profoundly.
As a communication medium, print has the most lasting effect and can therefore be used to great advantage.
As part of the marketing mix, print is constantly raising the bar and creating new potential for customer relationships in the most effective ways possible.
And, when it comes to transformation – if anything has to change, then it is how print is handled as a premium product.
Paradigm: Print was, is and will remain an indispensable catalystfor cultural, social and economic developments. That is something ‘digital leaders’ such as Google, Amazon, Facebook and Apple have long since recognized. Indeed, these giants of the digital age are highly adept at using print to their benefit.
Plea: Print will continue to be a winner in the digital era, if it can strike the right balance between what is useful on a technical level and people’s real needs. The facts are on the table. Now is the time to communicate them clearly and comprehensibly! Let’s put the beauty and diversity of print in the right light!
Aims and measures
We are kicking off creative conversations that cut to the chase with a clear focus. This is how we want to present a vivid and forward-looking picture that highlights effective solutions for using print in all types of communication where it can harness its full potential and strengths.
We are kindling enthusiasm for innovative and exceptional communication solutions that use print.
We are reinforcing business development with print by identifying and integrating areas of the market that have so far been under-utilized but can rapidly and effectively benefit from innovation solutions using print.
We are organizing round tables, VIP events and social media-based interactive communication using print.
We are providing clear and concise concept papers as part of the new Think!Paper activities. These include elements such as dossiers, reports with analyses, and guidelines for top decision-makers in business.
We are launching a global ideas competition.
We are setting up and managing the international “Think!Team”, an interdisciplinary panel of experts.
Note
A number of hand-picked partners have already been found for Think!Paper, including first and foremost Mondi Group, GT Trendhouse 42 and DRUCKMARKT. More news to follow shortly.
On July 18, 2018 we celebrated the informal Think!Paper Kick-off. Günter Thomas, Founder and Head of GT… https://t.co/mqetRq9MZV
We evaluate and profile print and its proponents as an effective driving force for transformation – across all industries!
Our mission
We show, first and foremost, that print is by no means driftwood in an ocean of transformation (with Titanic-style effects) but rather a solid anchor for the ‘tsunamis in our heads’!
Our USP
We are bringing together the brightest minds to form interdisciplinary #Think!Teams with a global outlook.
We are building up the finest pool of expertise with a clear focus on interaction, discourse and sustainable conversations.
We are reinforcing the bedrock of any successful ‘digital’ transformation – proficient, dynamic and meaningful communication.
Benefits for our partners
We help our partners make new and market-relevant discoveries that inspire them and inject new energy into their development.
Print ad out of a campaign by ‘internet.org by Facebook’, designed by Sid Lee, U.S.A.
#Think!Paper — Edition 1, Volume 2
”I believe Think!Paper’s stance of recognising the role of print in a digital age will help address thisissue and fill an incredible void in knowledge in an ever-shifting communication environment.”
By Fraser Church
I applaud the initiative of Think!Paper. This addresses a number of issues that have become prevalent in recent years particularly in the communication industry.
Today’s marketers have been brought up on digital and social media as being the default form of customer communication, with the much-heralded cry of “digital first” becoming increasingly common. However, the question is whether they are listening to their customers, or whether they are getting carried away on the digital wave whilst at the same time being influenced by perceived efficiencies based more on cost than actual return on investment.
Brands are increasingly focussing on Customer Experience and optimising the customer journey; however, to do that properly, marketers need to recognise that a decision to make a purchase is as much emotional as rational these days. Brand trust, values and relationships are increasingly important in a world where there is a narrowing in product differentiation. As part of building that relationship, it is important for brands to understand which media to use when and for which messaging.
Print is perhaps the most trusted medium.
Remember the phrase “I would like to see that in writing”. So, when something needs consideration, or has to be seen as authoritative, print can be a great medium. Print Is also the only channel that can impact on one of our most important senses of touch. Indeed, in my later years at Paragon I spend considerable time persuading clients of the value of increasing the production values of their printed output, and thus cost, to help subliminally re-enforce brand values.
You could for example question whether a Tiffany shopping bag is perhaps an accessory as much as a means of getting goods home. At the same time, you have to be careful not to over play your hand; for example, charities would never use a coated stock, as this would seem to go against their environmental and cost saving credentials (even though recycled paper can cost more!).
But this does not mean everything should be printed.
Email is a great means to deliver offers, newsletters and access to the depth of content that the online environment can provide. Mobile, whilst being often seen as an invasive medium, is perhaps the best way to remind people of a medical or retail appointments, or increasingly keep them up-to-date in real time about their purchase deliveries; and with the advent of 5G networks they will increasingly deliver richer experiences. Apps are a great way for people to manage their life, for example online banking or travel. Whilst social media lets us reach audiences at pace, in an informal and engaging manner.
The issue is that whilst a digital revolution is undoubtedly taking place, interested parties have been perhaps a bit blinkered. The Print Industry has tended to take great pleasure at criticizing digital media whenever it can. On the other hand, the digital communication industry has just ignored print as irrelevant. It is not either or. It is not one or the other. The true power is recognising how brands can use all of the media to their best advantage, optimising customer journeys and building long-term relationships. I believe Think!Paper’s stance of recognising the role of print in a digital age will help address this issue and fill an incredible void in knowledge in an ever-shifting communication environment.
Finally, what about Digital Transformation?
Digital Transformation is often misunderstood. It is not about making sure that all communication is sent via email or mobile; it is about using technology to make it more efficient for businesses to both operate and deliver more engaging experiences for the customer. It is an innovation enabler, allowing new business, operational and communication models.
However, this does not preclude print, and it should always be considered as a channel to be used to undertake specific roles. For example, whilst comparison websites may help you find the best mortgage, and banks want you to complete applications online, the issuing of printed legal document, welcome pack and annual statements can provide reassurance and feeling of security for customers.
Also, we should remember that not all consumers are digital natives and a considerable proportion of the population have grown up enjoying and trusting print as a media.
So, whilst Digital Transformation will be responsible for creating a number of digital only brands such as Uber, the majority of companies partaking in digital transformation will still find there is a role, and a productive one at that, for print in their business model.
Fraser Church is an independent communication consultant and also General Manager of CPX Group — a co-operative of nine of the world’s largest and most innovative print and digital communication companies.
Fraser, who has a degree in Economics, started his career in consumer marketing working for a number of the UK’s leading brands. He then transferred his allegiances to the agency world as a director of RMP a data driven one-to-one communication agency specialising in customer loyalty in the retail sector.
He cut his teeth in the new digital world by setting up a dot.com company in 1999, providing consumers with an online resource for ordering catalogues and brochures. Fraser subsequently moved on to create some of the world’s earliest and most successful variable digital print applications for DSI who eventually became part of the Paragon Group.
Fraser was most recently Head of Creative Development at Paragon, particularly enjoying spending time with clients evangelising about how print plays an important part in customer journeys in an ever-increasing digital world.
He currently became a member of our #Think!Team to support the #Think!Paper initiative and to enrich knowledge sharing.
What we do We evaluate and profile print and its proponents as an effective driving force for transformation – across all industries!
Our mission We show, first and foremost, that print is by no means driftwood in an ocean of transformation (with Titanic-style effects) but rather a solid anchor for the ‘tsunamis in our heads’!
Our USP
We are bringing together the brightest minds to form interdisciplinary #Think!Teams with a global outlook.
We are building up the finest pool of expertise with a clear focus on interaction, discourse, customer experience and sustainable conversations.
We are reinforcing the bedrock of any successful ‘digital’ transformation – proficient, dynamic and meaningful communication.
Benefits for our partners We help our partners make new and market-relevant discoveries that inspire them and inject new energy into their development.
Much is mixed up or misrepresented in the discussions regarding “digital transformation” in the context of print. Success factors and new potentials are hardly achievable. At least, it certainly does not have to be mentioned that print production is a 100 percent data-driven and thus digital process, with constantly new and unique applications. But, where is the beef?
Challenge: Solutions available — and who knows?
Communication about a product is as important as the product or service itself.
What if there are highly complex technical solutions that could enable customers or customers’ customers to better manage and profit from the process of digital innovation and the necessary transformation?
Learn from communication errors
When it comes to understanding, informing, convincing, finding acceptance or even influencing opinions — be it employees, customers, potential customers, shareholders or even the media for the public — all of us obviously did not everything right but probably too much wrong.
Current sales figures and stock market prices on a low/declining level speak for itself.
The solution: #Think!Paper
Based on an exchange of views, knowledge and experience, we have developed an innovative approach to business communication, which itself is the best example of innovation and transformation.
While the well-known form of the static ’White Paper’ points out problems in the existing and designs possible solutions, the newly developed format of the #Think!Paper offers a dynamic form of expert communication via conversation based on perpetuum mobile-effects:
We use our profound knowledge to gain insights in an ongoing dialogue, to question things wisely, and to clarify in dialogue with others. Transformation can only succeed if we align communication with human-to-human relationships.
How does it work?
Think!Paper appears as a novel, cross-media, interactive publication designed as a sequel and compatible with the essence of transformation: research, analysis, assessment, insights and recommendations are always in flux.
Updates will be done by the publishers / authors in the team with selected-qualified partners as contributors.
In addition to a strong social media presence, the centerpiece is the ValueBlog, with excerpts appearing in the DRUCKMARKT (PDF magazines and print editions). As a special edition of the DRUCKMARKT collections, the Think!Paper is available to partners and subscribers for individual use.
Selected partners are actively involved and part of the conversation: Technology manufacturers and users who demonstrably contribute to the transformation of and with print for the digital age.
Together we reduce complexity and create clarity — promised!
The most important topics at a glance:
What is actually meant by “digital transformation”?
What role does print play?
Which benefits are available?
Where do we stand (Best Practice)?
Where do we have to go (Strategy & Outlook)?
Start: August 2018 — Destination: #drupa2020
On July 18, 2018 we celebrated the informal Think!Paper Kick-off. Günter Thomas, Founder and Head of GT… https://t.co/mqetRq9MZV
Photos: Heidelberg / HDU. Collage: Andreas Weber, Frankfurt am Main
“We’re remodeling customer interfaces for Heidelberg and creating a seamless digital ecosystem for its customers.”– Rainer Wiedmann, Head of the Heidelberg Digital Unit (HDU) and Chief Marketing Officer at Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG.
New digital ecosystem for the print media industry
The new “leading light function” of Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG heralded by CEO Rainer Hundsdörfer midway through 2017 is increasingly taking shape and making dynamic progress. “The new Heidelberg Digital Unit is boosting the company’s e-commerce business, online presence, and digital marketing expertise,” said member of the Management Board and Chief Digital Officer Dr. Ulrich Hermann just recently.
What exactly does that entail? Rainer Wiedmann discussed this publicly for the first time in an interview for ValueDialog. A successful digital pioneer, Wiedmann took charge of the Heidelberg Digital Unit start-up company (HDU for short) on April 1, 2018 in parallel with his role as the Heidelberg Group’s Chief Marketing Officer. – The interview was conducted by Head of Value Andreas Weber.
Location: Wiesloch-Walldorf, with branches in China, the United States, and Asia
Initial workforce: 50
Objective: To enjoy dynamic growth and establish the number one digital ecosystem in the print sector
Partner: Internet specialist iq!
As CDO on the Heidelberg Management Board, Dr. Ulrich Hermann is a dynamic driving force behind the company’s digital transformation.
Digital business models inspire the customer journey
Mr. Wiedmann, you were already a digital pioneer over 20 years ago when you founded the argonauten group, a multimedia agency that was an immediate success. What has changed since then?
Rainer Wiedmann: Back then, I was already heavily involved in shaping customer interfaces. This approach led by way of marketing innovation to e-commerce. Nowadays, the focus is on end-to-end digital business models. Thanks to IoT (the Internet of Things), machine learning, voice control, and similar innovations, a complete digital customer journey is now possible for the first time – not only sales & marketing, but many other parts of the value chain are being digitized.
So you see this as a linear dynamic development?
Rainer Wiedmann: What I see is an extremely dynamic process. An online presence is no longer the be-all and end-all. Access to customers and interaction with them are the most relevant things. Based on the new approach, an optimum customer interface is essential if digitization is to generate value.
What’s your motivation for treading new ground with HDU in the mechanical engineering sector, of all places?
Rainer Wiedmann: I started out as an engineer and, following my studies at the University of St. Gallen’s Institute of Technology Management, I gained vital experience with a large number of industrial customers. New forms of connectivity are rapidly transforming mechanical engineering, and Heidelberg is extremely well placed to benefit from this development.
How so?
Rainer Wiedmann: Our machines have long been networked. We also have our own global sales and service organization with a portfolio incorporating hardware, software, and consumables.
What’s more, the executive management team at Heidelberg understands exactly what transformation through digitization means, as demonstrated among other things by the new subscription model – a first in the industry. As I see it, all this creates the perfect conditions!
HDU in a nutshell
How is the newly founded HDU positioning itself in this context?
Rainer Wiedmann: Our goal is to design customer interfaces for Heidelberg that create a seamless digital ecosystem for the company’s customers.
What are HDU’s core values?
Rainer Wiedmann: HDU is all about creating added value based on permanence, consistency, and relevance. Its main value lies in getting the maximum number of existing and potential customers to use the Heidelberg offering on a weekly or, better still, daily basis. It’s not simply a case of registering a large number of nominal users in the system, but of having as many active users as possible. As I see it, content, function, coverage, and interaction are the key to success.
Does your new approach with HDU fit in with the Heidelberg culture?
Rainer Wiedmann: On the one hand, the people at Heidelberg come across as being open and innovative. On the other, they like to follow precise rules. In the digital transformation context, however, I feel a more target-driven approach is vital for employees.
What does that achieve?
Rainer Wiedmann: One advantage of HDU that can be transferred to Heidelberg is that in order to achieve specified goals or optimize target achievement, we work as a team on the structure of rules so that we can make adjustments as and when required.
Heidelberg is indisputably strong when it comes to technical innovation. But what about the company’s customers? Are you aware of any reservations about digitization?
Rainer Wiedmann: Given that all kinds of print production have long been based on digital data, our customers are well advanced with the process of digitization, and e-commerce is nothing new to them either. Online printing has created a huge new growth market. Our approach of working closely with customers to offer a comprehensive package providing peace of mind has therefore proved very popular. If you know what needs to be done and the goals are clear, digitization in printing is regarded very much as an opportunity.
Digital print shop processes are one thing, but the go-to-market strategy in the digital age is another matter entirely. I see a weakness here. Am I right?
Rainer Wiedmann: The important thing in my eyes is for Heidelberg to demonstrate the positive effects of digitization as effectively as possible to customers who are in dialog with us. Only personal experience gives a proper impression of how print shops can also put this to good use in their own customer relations.
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Screenshots from the Heidelberg Digital Unit’s new website.
HDU mission statements
“We develop innovative digital sales, marketing, and service solutions for all stages of the customer journey and deliver measurable results with a multidisciplinary team and external partners focused on success.”
“We contribute to the operational excellence of all Heidelberg units by offering a digital, state-of-the-art ecosystem that sets new standards in this area.”
“We don’t shy away from any risk. We rely on our entrepreneurial skills and make unexpected, disruptive decisions that enable us to score points with our customers.”
“We won’t let anything stop us achieving our goals and dreams. Continuously pursuing them and measuring our progress will see us succeed.”
“We embrace the digital age. We enjoy working with people who leave the office happy because everyone has done their best and is proud to be part of the team.”
It’s all about clear goals and measurable successes
HDU started out with 50 staff and is aiming to expand rapidly. What skills do you require?
Rainer Wiedmann: Around 80 percent of our initial team are very experienced and highly skilled in the print market. We’re adding new people who have experience in areas such as e-commerce, digital marketing, and social media.
What’s special about your team?
Rainer Wiedmann: We have the right mix! The mutual respect and common goals of our “mixed” team make us particularly effective. The excellent market position enjoyed by Heidelberg and our geographical proximity to the company are very helpful and motivate us all. We are “Born in Heidelberg” – a statement that perfectly demonstrates our unshakable commitment. It also boosts our credentials as an employer beyond the confines of the sector.
How is HDU’s work being integrated into the Heidelberg Group’s everyday operations? And how is the collaboration going?
Rainer Wiedmann: We’ve gotten off to a very promising start because we actively approach Heidelberg staff, provide them with all the information they need, and listen to what they have to say. We have contacts for the individual Heidelberg business units and access to all the sales units. Our global Growth Hacking Tour has already started. We’re using it to raise the local profile of our portfolio in key markets, offer training on our new tools and software solutions, and introduce e-commerce initiatives that we’ve developed.
Roadmap of the Global Growth Hacking Tour in the startup phase of the HDU. (Photo: screenshot from the HDU website)
Focus on maximum competitiveness and market relevance
Does that effectively mean HDU is offering in-house consulting and agency services at Heidelberg?
Rainer Wiedmann: Yes, but we’re not uniquely a service provider. We offer support with customized tools, efficient campaigns, and in-depth know-how. And we enter into clear target agreements. Our task is to create measurable results and boost e-commerce sales. We focus closely on figures to deliver success. And we achieve results as a team when we generate leads and sales.
What is the response to the Growth Hacking Tour?
Rainer Wiedmann: People are immediately seeing that we’re coming to them with the offer of added value for their day-to-day work and demonstrating a true community spirit. As a subsidiary, we have a clear advantage. We’re creating a trusting relationship from scratch for joint success.
Looking beyond Heidelberg, competitors on the digital printing market are claiming they provide their own digital platforms as ecosystems for print. What can and do you want to do differently or even better?
Rainer Wiedmann: Yes, we have our rivals, but in our segment – commercial and packaging printing – we have the highest market shares and by far the largest installed base. What’s more, we’ve had the world’s largest database for presses for over ten years.
And that means what?
Rainer Wiedmann: It enables us to offer even better functions and optimum access to our entire portfolio along with detailed knowledge of specific customer interests that is always up to date. Our extremely strong service is now helping to expand things again on the operating side.
So does that mean the HDU ecosystem must make it possible, based on the Heidelberg platform, to significantly improve all aspects of performance?
Rainer Wiedmann: We don’t simply want production to run smoothly at print shops. At the end of the day, we’re improving our customers’ competitiveness and market relevance – not just here and there but at all levels as far as possible.
Hand on heart, as a digital expert, what do you say to the boss of a print shop whose customers tell him printing is outdated and they no longer want to use it?
Rainer Wiedmann: Print media will never disappear. In fact, we’re seeing growth in areas such as packaging, labels, and mass customization. Yes, there are shifts from analog to digital – in particular when it comes to company marketing – but new applications will keep on emerging. For me, HDU’s main task in the long term is to unlock this new potential and enable customers to act flexibly, proactively, and sustainably as times change.
How do you personally think HDU will fare in the short, medium, and long term?
Rainer Wiedmann: I’m more than confident.We’re sticking to the vision and mission we formulated for HDU. And we’re measuring our progress, then responding immediately.
– Thank you very much for this interview.
My take on things – a solution of striking simplicity
It’s enough to take your breath away. Heidelberg is putting in an impressive sprint on the home straight, hurtling forward in a completely new guise – the Heidelberg Digital Unit (HDU) – and showing the competition quite clearly who’s in first place when it comes to digital transformation.
It’s official! A traditional company has without doubt completely reinvented itself – in record time –demonstrating the courage to take risks based on its wide-ranging expertise in printing and all things digital. Rather than abandoning much of the previous system, the company is using and optimizing it to benefit from new developments. One important additional aspect: Heidelberg has realized that in the digital age it’s no longer sufficient to aim for success with best-in-class product innovations.
Launching HDU in this form is a real stroke of genius in my opinion. A subsidiary designed as a start-up – fast, flexible, and firmly anchored with an excellent network – it provides new, user-oriented “digital” services for the Group and at the same time becomes a pacesetter with measurable results to make sales, marketing, and services permanently fit for the digital age on a global level. In my eyes, that’s the perfect way to firmly establish highly innovative products and solutions on the market on a lasting basis.
The biggest winners are Heidelberg customers and the market as a whole because, for the first time, they have access to a well thought-out, effective ecosystem in the form of an exponential platform that takes industrialprint production to a whole new level in the digital age and makes it fit for the future. To sum up, this is a real win-win situation – especially for Heidelberg staff, shareholders, and numerous new partners.
Rainer Wiedmanncomes from Stuttgart and is one of Germany’s great digital pioneers. After studying at the universities of Stuttgart and St. Gallen and gaining several years of professional experience, he founded the argonauten group (350 employees at 11 international locations) in 1996, the aquarius group (100 employees based in Munich, Hong Kong, and Shanghai) in 2005, and the iq! group (based in Munich and Palo Alto) in 2014.
The iq! group maintains close links with the new Heidelberg Digital Unit (HDU), which started operating on April 1, 2018 with 50 employees.
HDU is a start-up company and a subsidiary of Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG, where Wiedmann plays a dual role as Head of HDU and Chief Marketing Officer.
From 1999 to 2003, Wiedmann was President of the Deutscher Multimedia Verband e.V. (now BVDW e.V.). From 2003 to 2004, he was on the board of Gesamtverband Kommunikationsagenturen GWA e.V. in Frankfurt.
About the author
Andreas Weber has been a print expert and internationally renowned business communication analyst, coach, influencer, and networker for over 25 years. His activities focus on transformation for the digital age and include lectures, management briefings, workshops, analyses, reports, and strategic advice. – His blog www.valuetrendradar.com inspires readers from over 140 countries worldwide.
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Die Leistungsbereiche der Value Communication AG mit Schwerpunkte im B2B
BRAINWARE: Rent a Brain-Service — Persönliches Coaching durch CEO Andreas Weber als Ratgeber für nachhaltig-gedeihlichen Transformations-Erfolg auf Basis der Smart Communication-Methodik
SOLUTIONS: Projektarbeiten auf Basis von Netzwerk– und Influencer-Arbeiten (rund um den Globus!) für eine ‚nahtlose‘ Konversation — Fokus: Smart Communication Solutions in Kombination aus Wissen und Erkenntnis + Content Telling (and Sharing)+ Messaging + Presentation + Medialization + Interaction
MENTORING: Leitgedanke ist, die Kraft der Transformation dauerhaft nutzen zu können, um Menschen im Innersten zu berühren.
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Erfolgsfaktoren (beyond consulting)
#B2BInfluencer-Programmatik: Wir stellen sicher, das richtige Publikum nahtlos einzubinden, das (disruptive) Innovationen verstehen und nutzen kann. Mit dem Effekt, die Themen unserer Kunden in den richtigen Kontext zu bringen.
#ValuePublishing: Unsere wirkungsstarke, mediale, interaktive Kommunikations-Architektur ist einzigartig. Alles wissenswerte rund um Transformation fürs Digitalzeitalter mit Bezug auf die Werthaltigkeit von Kommunikation — angetrieben von Social Media im Team mit Print!
Referenzen
Wir sind stolz, über 500 Innovationsprojekte erfolgreich zum Ziel geführt zu haben. Wir erreichen die Elite der Innovatoren aus der Kultur- und Kreativ-Wirtschaft. — Unser Kunden kommen aus wichtigen Bereichen der Wirtschaft: Automobil, Handel, Finanzen, Technologie, Maschinenbau, Transport/Logistik, Kultur, Messen, Medien, Werbung, Marketing, Print-Dienstleistung.
„Transformation fürs Digitalzeitalter bedeutet für mich: Auf mehr Menschlichkeit achten. Wir behandeln Kunden stets wie gute Freunde: smart, vertrauensvoll, persönlich-individuell und wirkungsvoll!“
Hier auch das Video
Kontakt
Value Communication AG Andreas Weber, Head of Value Simsonstr, 6 60385 Frankfurt am Main zeitenwende(at)me.com
HEUREKA! At least I spent some time to re-think my analyst work results based on my 35+ years of business experience. — Conclusion: it shows the beauty of my smart business offerings via Value Communication AG partnering with amazing customers and biz partners around the globe! Happy to get your feedback! —Andreas Weber, Head of Value
Preliminary Note
Do you still have the right perspective? What is important in the digital age, what less, what not? — Our knowledge-based analyzes, real-time reports and network activities inspire decision-makers around the globe.
BRAINWARE: Rent a Brain — Personal Advisory & Coaching by our CEO Andreas Weber for sustainable smart communication success to master transformation at its best
SOLUTIONS: Project & Community & Influencer Work (around the globe!) — Focus: Smart Communication as a combination of Knowledge + Content Telling (and Sharing) + Messaging + Presentation + Medialization + Interaction to reach a seamless conversation
MENTORING: Use the power of transformation to hit human needs
Key for success (beyond consulting)
Our #B2BInfluencer program guarantees to reach a great audience for any (even disruptive) innovation approach. At least customers could benefit from our unique method to put their topics in the right context.
Providing value adding services & solutions via #ValuePublishing: All about the transformation for the digital age with a deep focus on the real value of communication driven by Social Media + Print
Credentials
We are proud to have successfully implemented more than 500+ innovation projects to date. Our clients come from many important sectors of the economy: automotive, retail/commercial, financial, technology invention, trade shows, publishing, advertising/marketing, printing. — At least we support the cultural & creative industry as the key driver for innovation and transformation in total.
Personal statement
We work beyond the McKinsey’s, Agency Groups and Technology suppliers around the globe. We treat customers as friends — smart, intimate, personal and very effective!
