5 Creative Catalog Techniques That Save Paper Costs

All catalogers want to capitalize on the recovering economy, but they're most likely still constrained by pretty tight budgets. To help catalogers learn how to prioritize their needs and tailor their printed catalogs to maximize revenue, All About ROI presented a Feb. 16 webinar called "Ways to Get More Bang for Your Paper Buck: How Combining Your Priorities and Paper Innovations Can Save You Money in 2010."

(To register for the on-demand version of the webinar, click here.)

The presentation featured Carol Worthington-Levy, creative director and partner at LENSER, a multichannel direct marketing firm, and Brian Cummins, marketing strategy manager at paper firm NewPage.

During the presentation, Worthington-Levy offered the following five creative catalog techniques designed to help you save on paper costs:

1. Design your catalog to fit press and paper sizes. "Look at sizes that don't waste paper but that can also run on a lot of different presses so you have some options when bidding," she said. "Look at sizes like 8-1/4 by 10-1/2 or thereabouts, and talk to your printers to see what fits on their presses."

2. Paginate your catalog in true signatures. "When developing your catalogs, choose the proper number of pages to fit together in the signatures on a press," Worthington-Levy said. On a half web press, for example, you'll probably have eight pages printing at one time, and on a full web press, you'll have 16 pages. But, "as soon as you start attaching a separate cover to your catalog, between the labor and the extra paper, it's going to start costing you more," she added. "So try to keep it in full signatures, and you'll find both printing and paper costs will go down."

3. If you're changing your catalog size, quantity or format, rebid work with three printers. "Even if you have a printer that you absolutely love, definitely rebid this work with other printers," Worthington-Levy said. "Your current printer may not be set up to run this new size efficiently or cost effectively."

4. Always review paper samples in a range; then narrow your choices down. When thinking of paper samples, Worthington-Levy suggested keeping the following in mind:

∗ Paper weight: If you're printing a catalog with only a few pages, "use something heavy, like 60-pound paper. If you use 40- or 50-pound paper, your catalog will be too floppy and look cheesy in the mail."

∗ Paper grade: While people in the agency world love to run on brighter No. 1 or No. 2 grade paper, "check out No. 3 or No. 4 freesheets," Worthington-Levy said. "Oftentimes they're just as nice, bright, white and opaque as a No. 1. You'd be surprised."

Also, look at paper samples very carefully, showing them to your art or creative directors to ask for their opinions. "Lay the paper on top of black-and-white type so you can judge how opaque it is," she added.

∗ Paper color: "I prefer paper that's a blue-white color to a yellow-white color because I like how colors look on it," Worthington-Levy said.

∗ Gloss? Matte? Dull? "I prefer a matte or dull finish because people who receive catalogs often like to write on them, and a dull or matte finish won't smear as much," Worthington-Levy said.

5. Format change. Try a few different format versions, Worthington-Levy said. Even though you may spend more, you'll get better response. Try a slim jim [or a letter-size catalog] for a special sale, she suggested. Or, try a tabloid-size for catalogs or annual newsletter-style catalogs.

"Switching out formats may cost more, but it keeps customers on their toes," Worthington-Levy said. "They'll be getting different formats from you, but as long as your brand, look and feel are consistent and your logo is clear, you won't lose customers." Before changing formats, however, "ask your printers what they've run for other people that's different; then ask for samples and pricing," Worthington-Levy recommended.