For the first time in over 20 years of working within the large-format graphics industry I am starting to feel that I'm not just a printer anymore. This moment came when I was on a night out with other parents from our kids’ school. Chatting away to somebody I'd just met for the first time I was asked the inevitable question: "What do you do for a living?".
For years it has been a simple answer of “I run a print business”, which either prompts another, more in-depth question or deflects us onto something else to chat about, which is often "fat blokes in lycra and is cycling the new golf?", or "I was thinking about signing up for the next series of Masterchef", both of which can usually keep the chat going for at least another five minutes.
On this occasion though, as I went to answer the question, I stumbled a bit. For the first time in years I was giving it some thought. I questioned myself and seconds later I was spouting out my new answer: “I run a creative production company helping to deliver campaigns within the retail, outdoor advertising and experiential markets.”
Wow! What a mouthful! I don't think I could fit it all on a business card but I might try.
And there you have it. Our business has grown up. 70% of what we do each day might centre around artwork problems, printing things, delivering the impossible and making our clients look good. But, we no longer consider ourselves a print company. It might be a trick of the mind, but it helps to keep our business just a little more interesting, definitely more relevant to our customers and ultimately more profitable too.
I should have tried it years ago!
Comments please to industrymole@imagereportsmag.co.uk