IR: What should we expect from the Hello paper brand
in the next 12 months and how will this enhance the industries
it serves?
DA: Throughout 2006, we will continue
the ongoing dialogue we have established with printers across
Europe. This communication is fundamental to the philosophy
of Hello and is what drives its product and service development.
More specifically, we will be looking to use the feedback
we have gained from this year’s ‘You have more
power than you think’ campaign to further improve Hello
according to printers’ requirements and service priorities.
IR: Can you tell us a little bit of history about
Hello Paper?
DA: Launched in 1998 – as
a result of one of the largest surveys into paper requirements
of printers ever undertaken – Hello offered printers
across Europe the widest range of coated paper surfaces, grammages
and sizes under one brand, available directly from stock.
From the initial printer feedback, the coating and surface
were fine tuned in 1999 to further improve print performance.
In 2000, the range was extended with the introduction of Hello
Silk Crème, which became popular with printers looking
for a more classic and refined look to their print work.
Such was the spread of the brand that, by the end of 2001,
Hello led the Opticom ranking of Europe’s top coated
paper brands, a position it has maintained ever since. From
2002 to 2004, major product quality enhancements were implemented
in response to further printer feedback and, in 2004, Hello
was also launched across Central Europe.
With Hello now the most recognised paper brand in Europe
and, in fact, used by one in every five European printers,
2005 has seen the brand’s most dynamic campaign to date.
The pan- European, ‘You have more power than you think’
campaign targeted buyers, press handlers and printer sales
teams and was designed to empower them by providing the opportunity
to give tailored feedback about the Hello coated paper package.
The campaign has been supported by a number of creative tools
such as the Hello Answer Kit and Coated Paper Guide, a dedicated
Hello website and a new Hello brochure.
IR: What is the thinking behind the Hello brand and
why do you think it is successful?
DA: In 1997, printers across Europe
were asked for their views as to what makes the perfect coated
paper. The results of this survey were used by Europe’s
leading group of paper merchants, including The Robert Horne
Group, to develop ‘the answer’, named ‘Hello’.
This approach of establishing a dialogue with European printers
and, as a direct result of their feedback, of designing a
coated paper specifically to meet their exacting product requirements
and service priorities is fundamental to Hello.
Since the launch of Hello seven years ago, we have put considerable
effort into building relationships with printers and working
more closely with them by continuously developing Hello in
response to their specific needs and feedback. The current
brand-building initiative, a pan-European campaign entitled
‘You have more power than you think’, is reaching
out to even more printers, making them realise that they have
more influence than they think over Hello and their working
relationships with paper merchants.
By adopting such a customer focused strategy towards the
ongoing development of Hello, more and more printers across
Europe are recognising the value of Hello and expressing a
preference for it, a positive trend that has been confirmed
by independent research organisation, Opticom.
IR: You have just launched the Hello website. What
difference do you think this will make to the whole Hello
service?
DA: www.hellopaper.com is a comprehensive
introduction to the Hello brand and has been deliberately
designed to engage the printer by offering a conversational
approach and seeking feedback. As well as incorporating the
latest new from Hello, the web site explains the philosophy
behind the brand, including the Hello cycle of product feedback
and development and it outlines how Hello has evolved in direct
response to changes requested by printers across Europe. The
web site also charts the history of Hello’s product
and service development since its creation; and provides an
introduction to each Hello paper – Gloss, Silk, Matt
and Silk Crème. Consistent with the fundamental approach
of Hello to maintain a dialogue with printers and to develop
its products and services on the basis of the feedback received
from printers, the web site also encourages the visitor to
provide email feedback on any Hello related issue to their
local Hello merchant.
In line with the Hello brand, www.hellopaper.com has been
designed to maintain the ‘conversation’ between
Europe’s printers and Hello, and reinforces our message
that Hello is the only paper brand that reaches out to customers,
finds out what they want and then delivers it to them in terms
of new products and services. We hope that the new web site,
www.hellopaper.com, which has been created to reflect the
international status of the Hello brand, will become the first
point of reference both for printers and paper specifiers
curious to find out more about Hello.
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With over 25 years
experience in business to business sales and marketing
and general management, David Allen is a high achieving
business director whose career to date has included
senior UK and European roles within such companies as
Saint-Gobain (one of the world’s largest distribution
and manufacturing groups) and Unicorn International.
As MD Robert Horne Group, he has responsibility
for the overall performance of the five divisions and
18 offices that comprise the UK's largest paper, plastics
and board merchant.
He joined Robert Horne in 2004 as the Director
responsible for the three operating companies of A&P
Display, Cox Plastics and Paragon Imaging Materials.
When the activities of the three companies were brought
together in September 2005 to create Robert Horne Sign
& Display, David headed up the integrated team of
130 Sign & Display specialists. He then was then
promoted to MD.
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