Book Preview:
Personalization: Data-Driven Print and Internet Communications

This month’s eReview is an overview of the new book Personalization: Data-Driven Print and Internet Communications by Center Director Dr. Patricia Sorce.

"The premise of this book is that marketing firms can improve the results of their campaigns by eliminating the waste of unwanted advertising through the use of relevant, personalized promotional materials using the latest database and media technologies. Personally relevant marketing communications that are perceived as worthwhile by the receiver will reduce waste in both marketing budgets and environmental resources."

Personalization should be of interest to anyone who works in marketing, as well as printers who are looking to find ways to better educate their customers on the benefits and value of personalization. The book also includes case studies—real-world examples of how companies have put the power of personalization to work for them—that can offer ideas and strategies for marketers and salespeople looking to use or sell personalized communications.

Included below are the table of contents, chapter excerpts, and advance industry praise for Personalization.

The RIT Cary Graphic Arts Press is currently accepting pre-orders for Personalization. Pricing is as follows:

• Regular orders (1-9 copies): $18.00 USD each - visit the Cary Press website.
   
• Bulk orders (10+ copies): $10.80 USD each - fill out the form available here (PDF, 176 KB) and fax or mail to the Cary Press as indicated on the form.
  

Table of Contents

• Chapter 1: The Power of Personalization
  Personalization Catches The User’s Eye
  Case Study: Gannett Co. Automates Multi-Channel Direct Marketing Program for Newspaper Renewals
  
  
• Chapter 2: Personalized Marketing Communications in the Integrated Media World
   
• Chapter 3: The Current State of Personalized Marketing Communications
  Hello, You
  Personalization Pitfalls of Internet Search
  
  
• Chapter 4: Personalization Strategies for Customer Development
  Ace Hardware Insert Test Passes with Flying Colors
  Appendix 4A: Overview of Relationship Marketing
  Appendix 4B: Web-Enabled Print Architectures
  
  
• Chapter 5: Database Technologies for Personalization
  WideWaters Gaming Case Study
  Appendix 5A: Database Fundamentals
  Appendix 5B: Overview of Four Variable Data Printing Products
  
  
• Chapter 6: Corporate Communications: In-Plant Print Shops and Transpromotional Documents
  Evolution of an In-Plant: A Case Study of Printing Services at RIT
  Case Study: Ameriprise Financial Statement Redesign
  Case Study: First Data: The Opportunities are Limitless
   
• Chapter 7: Transforming Printers and Publishers into Digital Service Providers
  Case Study: Thomson Corporation
  Case Study: A Newspaper Transformed
  Case Study: Global Printing, Inc
  Case Study: Standard Register/Dealer Office XPress (DOX)
  
  
• Chapter 8: Measuring Success: Closing the Feedback Loop
  
  
• Chapter 9: The Intelligent Use of Personalization
  Case Study: Custom Publishing

Chapter Excerpts

Chapter 2: Personalized Marketing Communications in the Integrated Media World
We have already seen that, in the marketing planning process, selecting the actual media to be used can be one of the last considerations the marketing manager or advertising agency will make. If a print services provider wants to get a piece of the marketing promotion budget, he or she must understand:

• who the decision makers are,
• what their role will be in the promotion planning process,
• the marketing objectives of the campaign, and
• how print will be able to deliver the firm’s objectives of building awareness, generating leads, or getting an order in a cost-effective way.

As noted above, marketing executives can plan and implement advertising campaigns themselves or they can pay for the help of advertising agencies, media planners, or media services providers. This chapter examines the typical services provided by advertising agencies and documents trends in advertising media expenditures within the last few years. Next, it discusses the media decisions that marketing executives have historically been responsible for. Finally, it looks at current research on how printed advertising effectiveness compares with other media.

Chapter 4: Personalization Strategies for Customer Development
As noted above, demand generation or acquiring a new customer involves building awareness, inducing trial or inquiry, and motivating a prospective customer’s first purchase. This is often accomplished via the use of mass communications to solicit leads or responses by interested parties. Since not much is known about a prospect, simple forms of personalization are required. Retaining customers, on the other hand, can be facilitated by personalized communications that are sent in response to customer behavior as the firm tries to move the customer towards higher levels of commitment to its brand. Since more is known about an existing customer, more complex messages can be integrated into the personalized communications to make offers more relevant and to help build a dialogue.

Four categories of personalized communication tactics are presented below, from the lowest level of complexity (versioning) to the highest (fully customized communications). ... Table 4.2 links these four personalization levels with the marketing objectives of acquisition and retention described earlier in this chapter.

Table 4.2 Levels of personalization and the typical marketing objectives (click to view full-size image)

Chapter 9: The Intelligent Use of Personalization
The purpose of this final chapter is to address the likely questions that top management will ask of communications consultants who want to sell personalized marketing communication to a firm that has never used it before. First, can the communications consultant demonstrate unequivocally that the program will improve the bottom line? Second, will these programs grow long-term customer value? Let’s examine the evidence in the public domain.

Evidence for the Assumptions
First, has it been proven that response rates go up when a company uses personalized advertising? The short answer is “Yes.” The most convincing research regarding the difference between personalized and static mailings comes from studies that use experimental methods (that is, that include both experimental and control groups). In a 2004 report from PIA/GATF’s Digital Printing Council (DPC), the response rate for personalized color direct mail campaigns ranged from 6% to 75%, with an average of 21%. The response rates were, on average, 5.6 times higher for personalized color versions than
for simple mail-merge applications.

For example, a German utility firm mailed a personalized brochure to one sample of customers and a generic brochure to a second sample. In both mailings, the brochure described the benefits of a new energy savings program, but the personalized brochure included the estimated energy savings for each household based on its own particular history of energy use. The average inquiry rate for the personalized brochure was 6.3%, versus only 2.4% for the generic brochure. The personalized mailing delivered a significantly higher response rate than the generic one.

Advance Industry Praise

“In a world where marketers are trying to cut through the media clutter and reach consumers, Dr. Sorce’s book does an excellent job of explaining the importance of delivering a relevant message . . . and blends case histories with critical business concepts to educate the market on both how and why companies need customized communications solutions that have measurable results.”
— Barbara Pellow, InfoTrends

“As a printer trying to assess our strategy in the variable data market, this book was a superb reference in helping our group understand key concepts.”
— Lem Richards, Digital Marketing and Print Solutions

Order Personalization Today!

Personalization is available from the RIT Cary Graphic Arts Press for $18 USD.

For 10 or more copies (bulk orders), please fill out the form available here (PDF, 176 KB) and fax or mail to the Cary Press as indicated on the form.