A Strategic Futurist View: How Printers Profit in a Redefined Industry

December 15, 2015

GJS_Predictions

It’s the season when we peer into the future and predict what may lie ahead in 2016 and beyond. As one of the leaders in the graphics communications industry, it allows us the fortitude to speak with leading printers and research analysts, polish our crystal ball and interpret what we see as the coming challenges and trends of this evolving market that will affect your business.

For the most part and quite frankly obvious, we see that the trend of declining print and the challenge of how to combat it will continue. The solutions today and in the coming years will lead the way were we to change the conversation in regard to the divergence of print spend by decision-makers. Today’s print spend is very different and in contrast with e-distribution of content and the changing social platforms whereby companies are redistributing marketing dollars towards them. Konica Minolta’s strategic offerings are helping printers expand their services, which would allow them to take advantage of this industry shift.

The graphics communication industry will shift and expand where it can flourish in the near future as it begins to successfully combine multiple forms of communications services – from proximity marketing to gamification to new automated cross media. We believe that converging technologies can drive value to print service providers, and we’re focusing on drivers like 3D printing and proximity marketing platforms to solutions that drive intelligent big data to accomplish that – not to mention big platform presses that connect these services to drive more print.

These technologies – and others like industrial print and cloud-enabling solutions and services –will continue to shape the industry. They’ll also continue to change the value chain of print as they re-shape the communications industry beyond the printed brochure. In fact, we see the way people consume content to be very different as well. Who knows, maybe the 3D printer is an early concept for Star Trek’s “replicator”!

More realistic and perhaps immediate, we see the industry starting to realize the possibility of a single cloud RIP that drives multiple devices. Scientific developments with nanotechnology in inks and intelligent predictive workflows will maximize profitability and reduce the cost of print. Some of these innovations are not too far away.

Finally and most importantly, we believe that understanding the value chain is critical to bringing value to your business. Reaching out to partners like Konica Minolta to help you explore new possibilities can certainly increase your odds of greater success in the future.

Gavin Jordan-Smith
VP/GM, Industrial Print and Graphic Communications

Gavin Jordan-Smith is responsible for developing the strategic direction to grow Konica Minolta’s solutions business in graphic communications, general office and vertical markets, including oversight of software planning, vertical market strategy, engineering and production print business planning and software development. In his spare time, he enjoys many activities, from hurling tennis rackets with deadly accuracy at small moving objects or jumping off a bridge with a thick elastic rubber band tied to his ankles.