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Business Applications for Photo Publishing: Digital Printing Opportunities for Photo-Intensive Documents

Publication Date: December 2009
Service: Photo Printing Trends

Introduction

Pictures are a powerful means for communicating messages and promoting business. They can effectively help customers understand a product or service, attract customers, and evoke emotional responses that help generate business. Examples of photo-intensive business and commercial documents and products that can be customized include:

• Booklets
• Brochures
• Calendars
• Catalogs
• Commemorative books
• Directories
• Greeting cards
• Newsletters
• Portfolios
• Postcards
• Promotional photo books
• Yearbooks

The majority of these documents are produced by commercial printers in centralized facilities on offset presses using traditional production processes and creative specialists. With the advent of digital cameras, digital presses, and web-to-print design and fulfillment operations, much of the market is shifting to digital production methods. InfoTrends also believes there are emerging opportunities for retail print service providers and “do-it-yourself” solutions to serve many small and micro-businesses.

While consumer photo books, calendars and greeting cards have provided an important lift in the market, the majority of this volume has been limited to a relatively small number of service providers and manufacturers of digital presses. Business applications for photo-intensive documents have attributes that make them attractive as compared to consumer photo books, cards and calendars.

• Lower degree of seasonality
• Different price sensitivity, product requirements, and decision factors
• Variety of production methods – centralized, retail, web-to-print, do-it yourself
• Wider range of production methods, equipment platforms and software
• Different brand allegiances and preferences
• Incremental growth/new customer base

Photo imaging technology vendors (equipment, software, finishing, paper manufacturers), print service providers and retail photofinishers need new opportunities to grow their business. InfoTrends is conducting a detailed study focusing on digital printing opportunities for photo-intensive business and commercial products in the United States to address the potential of this market.

Objectives

The objective of the project is to provide technology vendors and print service providers with the insights they need to understand the opportunities and develop the market for digital production of photo-intensive business and commercial applications in the United States.

• Segment and profile the market for photo-intensive business applications, including:
  o Usage, interest, and preferences among various business segments (by company size)
     - Home-based, micro, SMB, large
  o Most beneficial applications
  o Industries
  o Purchase patterns and locations
  o Customer service requirements
  o Awareness & interest
  o Price sensitivity
  o Workflow processes and unmet needs
  o Barriers to adoption
• Identify and profile photo-intensive business applications.
• Identify and profile key industry players
  o Technology vendors
  o Supplies
  o Print service providers
• Forecast the market for digitally printed photo-centric business applications by focusing on the following three areas:
  o Printing equipment
  o Page volume by application category
     - Promotional (e.g. booklets, catalogs, portfolios, post cards, greeting cards, flyers, calendars, marketing collaterals)
     - Publishing (e.g. photo books, photo directories, yearbooks, newsletters)
  o Retail value of print by application category
     - Promotional (e.g. booklets, catalogs, portfolios, post cards, greeting cards, flyers, calendars, marketing collaterals)
     - Publishing (e.g. photo books, photo directories, yearbooks, newsletters)
• Identify opportunities and strategies for technology vendors and service providers
  o Application focus
  o Key market segments
  o Go-to-market
  o Positioning
  o Market development
  o Production services
  o Partnering

Analysis and Project Deliverables

There will be extensive analysis of the desk research, in-depth interviews and structured survey to develop a comprehensive understanding of the opportunities and issues. Clients will receive a combination of summary report, presentation material, and research data. The material will include:

• Summary report addressing key issues, findings and overall recommendations
• Market forecast with supporting assumptions
• Presentation for internal communication of the research results
• Data book of the survey tabulations for additional analysis

Getting Started

For more information on the study or to sign up as a participant, contact Matt O'Keefe at +1 ext. 115 or via e-mail at . Early subscriber discounts are available until April 13, 2009.