As a print business owner, what trends will you be paying close attention to in 2022? Here are six trends we think are worth following.
1. Reworking the Workplace
Although some jobs will always require an on-site presence, the accelerated growth of collaboration platforms and video-conferencing tools during the pandemic has made it easier to re-imagine how, when and where work can be before.
In 2021, we saw “The Great Resignation,” the post-pandemic phenomenon in which roughly 38.6 million employees had quit their jobs by the end of October. Some resigning employees blamed burnout, toxic workplaces, and bad bosses. Others cited day-care issues, the need for flexible work schedules, or a desire to continue working from home.
Instead of reflexively trying to refill the same types of jobs, use this time to reconsider the types of skills your business needs going forward. The skills that on-site employees need will evolve as your shop automates business processes and production workflows and incorporates more robotics into your work. There will be less focus on manual labor, but a growing need for creative technologists, problem-solvers, change leaders, and relationship-builders.
Many job-seekers want opportunities that offer more autonomy and less micromanagement.
2. Serving the Creator Economy
One trend fueling the Great Resignation is the rise of the Creator Economy, which offers expanded opportunities to start and grow sustainable personal enterprises. Creator enterprises can include things such creating podcasts or short-form videos, teaching online courses, or opening Shopify or Etsy stores.
Many people discovered the Creator Economy when they set up side hustles to generate extra income during the pandemic shutdowns. One creators build loyal followings, they can monetize their audiences by selling physical and digital products, offering subscriptions, running native advertising, hosting virtual and live events, or providing consulting or speaking services.
“The creator economy has been around for the last couple of decades, but its economic impact has only become apparent in the last few years,” writes Trudi Roth on Copyblogger. “In 2021, $1.3 billion in private equity funding was made available to finance platforms for different types of creators.”
On-demand digital printing businesses cater to creators. When Shutterfly acquired Spoonflower in 2021, the press release noted that the merger “positions Shutterfly to help close a gap in the creative economy by leveraging its vertically integrated production platform to deliver premium customized products for millions of makers and small businesses.” In addition to ordering custom photo products from Shutterfly, consumers will be able to buy custom home decor items from Spoonflower’s large community of artists and designers.
Shutterfly CEO Hilary Schneider said, “At Shutterfly we believe that anyone can be a creator.” Shutterfly’s vast manufacturing footprint helps Spoonflower scale to meet the demands of consumers, interior designers, DIY’ers, small businesses and artists.”
3. Heeding Environmental Issues
Long-term shareholders and fund managers will continue to pressure corporate boards to pay attention to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria. Entrepreneurs and start-up brand owners will also expect small- to medium-sized businesses to promote their environmental and social initiatives as well.
Environmental initiatives are gaining traction partly because the pandemic has renewed focus on all types of systemic risks, including climate change.
Sustainability is a particularly hot topic for companies that produce packaging, labels, garments, and textiles. In 2022, expect to see progress in sourcing responsibly produced raw materials and manufacturing goods that are easier to recycle, compost, or upcycle.
This pressure to act on environmental and social issues comes from the rising numbers of consumers who buy from brands that reflect their values. Forrester analysts predict the number of U.S. adults who regularly purchase from brands that align with their values will rise from 40% in 2020 to over 50% in 2022.
4. Moving into Adjacent Markets
According to the 2021 “Convergence in Print” study conducted by NAPCO Research and PRINTING United Alliance, 81% of print-service providers were entering or considering entering a print segment other than their primary segment.
“Not only has the percentage of service providers considering segment expansion increased since 2018, the number of different segments that printers are considering entering has increased substantially. The most popular segment print service providers are migrating to is the label segment.
Package printers are also expanding, particularly into adjacent packaging segments. 77% of packaging converters report evaluating expensation into at least one of the four segments beyond their primary focus (label, folding carton, flexible, and corrugated)
In a WhatTheyThink! webinar in November, WTT managing editor Richard Romano and IDC analyst Tim Greene talked about trends in wide-format and signage. Romano shared WhatTheyThink! data that showed that long-time wide-format and signage specialists were feeling the effects of more competition from commercial printers who added wide-format capabilities over the years. Some wide-format shops have responded by acquiring digital presses, forming partnerships, or acquiring commercial print business. Sign shops are focusing on fabricating and installing more complex signs that use a mix of processes that go beyond printing.
As for expanding into new markets, 80% of the print shops that responded to an IDC Production and Wide-Format Printing survey said they were considering new opportunities. The five most commonly named expansion opportunities were adding: 3D printing, T-shirts or direct-to-garment (DTG) printing, design services, large-format graphics, or digital signage or digital display assembly.
Other options mentioned on the IDC survey included label printing, package printing, ADA signage, digital display content, large-format printing of interior decor, package prototyping, print embellishment, and installation services.
Greene and Romano agreed that expanding into new markets and services is much easier said than done. More than 50% of the respondents to the IDC survey said that in order to enter new markets or add services, print-service providers would have to develop a better web presence, forge better relationships with new groups of customers, and add sales expertise for new services.
Greene advised print-shop owners to use changes in demographic trends to identify growth opportunities. For example, the Census Bureau’s Business Formation Statistics revealed that the number of new businesses started in November 2021 topped more than 400,000, up slightly from October 2021.
Many of these new small businesses are being formed in verticals that use wide-format, signs, direct mail, and marketing collateral. Small start-up brands also need small quantities of labels and packaging for prototypes or test marketing.
New opportunities will also exist for producers of environmental graphics, said Romano, because not everyone will be able to work from home. As more employees choose to work hybrid (remote/in-office) schedules, companies might relocate their offices to smaller, less expensive facilities. This will create opportunities for printed interior decor as well as exterior signage.
5. Adapting to B2B E-Commerce
Consumers who have grown comfortable buying products through Amazon, now want the same easy experience when buying business products and services.
Printing companies are addressing this trend. Of the 303 print-service providers that responded to an IDC survey in August 2021, 93% offered online sales of printed products. When asked what percentage of business comes through jobs submitted through websites, respondents revealed that the number rose to about 47% compared to about 40% before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Businesses not only will be able to buy products online. They can also shop for support services as well. Vistaprint, a pioneer in selling on-demand print services to millions of small businesses, has strategically acquired complementary online services such as 99designs, Wix, Depositphotos and Crello. In October 2021, Vistaprint rebranded itself as Vista, a full-service design, digital, and print partner to small businesses.
The rise of B2B e-commerce is changing the role of the salesperson. To connect with today’s buyers, salespeople not only need expertise in printing, materials, and finishing, but they must know how to use social media to connect with prospects and make presentations via video meetings and online production demonstrations.
For example, through the SiteAudit service of Resource Label Group, customers can schedule an immersive, interactive virtual facility tour. No travel arrangements or expenses are involved.
Customers meet virtually with account representatives in the online conference room, then tour the factory where their labels will be produced. The assigned sales representative accompanies tour visitors and answers specific questions related to their jobs.
Of course, face to face meetings will always be vital. But those meetings might not happen until the prospect has already accumulated a wealth of product information through digital channels.
FuturePrint experts believe trade shows are likely to be smaller and attract more decision-makers than people. Instead of coming to a show simply to see what’s new, people who attend trade shows will be there to finalize buying decisions.
6. Creating Micro-Factories to Avoid Supply Chain Issues
Supply-chain disruptions and rising prices have caused headaches for every business. The shipping problems that caused product shortages may accelerate trends such as near-shoring and digital manufacturing.
“The traditional manufacturing model has been challenged,” notes FuturePrint. “The cross-continental model has proven inflexible.” Although supply-chain issues will settle over time, brands and retailers are looking at waste-reducing digital production methods at sites closer to where the goods will be delivered to consumers.
Microfactories can be equipped with a mix of additive manufacturing equipment (3D printers) and digitally driven industrial printers, cutters, coaters, engravers, and robotics to produce a range of products, including printed thin-film electronics, fashion, and decor.
Microfactories lessen the impact of supply chain disruptions and labor shortages.
At the ideation conference hosted by Gerber Technology (a Lectra Company), sponsors such as Kornit Digital discuss how the fashion industry could achieve sustainable, single-step microfactory production on demand.
Companies such as Mimaki and Roland encourage creative professionals to develop their own micro-factories. With entry-level, small-footprint devices such as DTG printers, laser engravers, and UV-LED tabletop printers, creative entrepreneurs can create their own sellable merchandise.
Although label and packaging converters will never be “micro-factories,” they are getting into distributed manufacturing. Label and packaging companies being consolidated to provide nationwide networks that place service providers in all regions of the country. This consolidation will provide faster turnarounds and make it easier for packaging companies to offer packaging technologies (such as RFID labels) to a broader base of customers.
Cloud-based systems are making it easier for print-business managers to quote jobs, monitor inventory levels, schedule production, inspect color quality, and track shipping at multiple printing locations.
Learn More
At the LaManna Consulting Group, our team follows these trends and will call attention to other important developments affecting your ability to adapt, grow and sell your business.
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When you are ready to sell your business, our team of multi-media content professionals can help produce videos that make it easy for potential investors to meet you, see your company’s work, and tour its facilities. Call me at 561-543-2323.
SOURCES
Deloitte: Long-term Investors Expect More from Boards on Environmental and Social Issues
Convergence in Print: A Shift to the New Normal
Shutterfly Acquires Spoonflower in Major Expansion Beyond Photo Personalization
Forrester: Predictions 2022
Future Print 2021: The Year in Review
What They Think!: Graphics on Display: A Wide-Format Look Back and Outlook
The Creator Economy: Audience, Community, and Commerce
VistaPrint Evolves into Full-Service Design, Digital and Print Partner to Small Business with Launch of Vista
Re:Create: The Growth of America’s New Creative Economy