Killer Birthdays – SonicPrint Style
Here at SonicPrint we DEFINITELY create fun and a little weirdness, and we sure know how to do birthdays! When the opportunity arose to birthday prank one of our Dexter lover staffmembers we quickly spun into action!
If you are not familiar with Dexter, it is a TV show about a serial killer that likes to get rid of bad people. Not that we condone any acts of violence, but we sure appreciate his neatness. He creates “kill rooms” to avoid leaving any evidence behind including all that pesky… uhm… “magenta ink” he wraps entire rooms in platic, including his victims before performing his deed.
This is our version of a SonicPrint birthday room. We wrapped the whole work area in plastic!
And of course covered up the desk area as to not leave any evidence behind.
We also shrink wrapped our victim to retain all its “magenta ink” and not make too much a mess.
And some motivational torture images to think about…
Just kidding! In reality its a happy celebration! Look at all those balloons!
We love our staff as much as we love our customers.
DEEP Printing Discounts at SonicPrint!
Kickstart 2011 with DEEP Printing Discounts
Start the year right. Do you need business cards, postcards or brochures?
Take advantage of our deep discounts and save some serious money!
20% Off Printing of 5000 Pieces or More
Use Promo Code 20Printing2011 and receive 20% off any printing product quantities 5000 and above for a savings of up to $50. Discount does not apply to special finishing, mailing services, nor postage.
50% Off Mailing Services
Use Promo Code 50Mailing2011 and receive 50% off mailing services for a savings of up to $100. Valid for direct mail services added to a la carte print products only. Print+Mail packages are not available for this offer (those are already discounted!). Discount applies exclusively to direct mail servies and does not discount printing, mailing lists, postage nor any special finishing options.
Free FedEx Ground Shipping
Definitely one of our most popular offers. Use Promo Code FXGrnd2011 when selecting FedEx Ground shipping and we will cover the costs up to $100.
How to take advantage of these specials?
To qualify for discount the appropriate promo code must be mentioned at time of order of one of the above mentioned products. Once your qualifying order has been placed with the corresponding promo code we will manually update your order to reflect the discount. One time use per customer. Offers cannot be combined. Promotional codes valid until 02/28/2011. Thats it!
January $100 American Express Gift Card Giveaway!
Do you want to win a $100 American Express gift card to use any where American Express is accepted? If you want to win just click here to enter our sweepstakes! Best of all there is no purchase necessary. Remember that you can increase your chances of winning by recommending our contest to your friends! Click here to enter our sweepstakes.
Good luck from the SonicPrint.com Team
5018 Tampa West Blvd, Tampa, FL 33634
Phone: 813-443-5271 Fax: 813-443-5278
Toll Free: 1-888-441-PRINT(7746)
Printing geeks ONLY need apply. This one is for you!
Do you want to see something that we think is really cool? Check out this tabletop Kelsey Excelsior 3″x5″ letterpress proudly being displayed in our shop . You want green energy? Nothing is more green than a swoosh of your arm to make a printing impression!
Think about this for a second: our digital press produces high quality, short run color printing instantly. Our digital workflow and CTP system has eliminated the need for artboards, film, stripping and plate frames. Today in 2011, printers are able to produce fully imposed plates in less time than it took to generate unimposed film in the late 1990s.
Compare today’s technology to this little baby which was made from 1875 to 1975 with little modification to the features or function.
This one is from 1974 relatively new with no rust. We have original rotary cut stock that we’ve dug out, making this one of the most fascinating printing presses in our shop. Sure, we love Komori, but, this is printing at it’s roots.
Anyways, we’ve got some real print geeks in our shop and we just had to share our fun. We’ll make a blog post next showing it in action!
Bonus trivia question:
We’ll give the first commenter $50 gift card to SonicPrint if they can tell us what is the official printer’s term for what is going on in this picture.
It is called a Printer’s ___!
Good luck!
———————————–
Original Flyer from 1800s:
Original Rotary Cut Paper Stock From 1974
Original Ink
A Printer’s ____.
The real meaning of “upper case” and “lower case”
Social Media Marketing and Direct Mail Go Hand in Hand
Are you diverting marketing resources from traditional programs like postcard direct mail to emerging technologies like social media and email marketing?
Not so fast, says the Wall Street Journal, which has released an article regarding decline of direct mail and the affect it is having on businesses. According to WSJ’s story, many small businesses have abandoned printed direct mail in favor of online advertising and social media in attempt to reduce advertising costs. The article profiles a company called Per Annum Inc. who dropped a letter direct mail campaign in favor of marketing through email channels. The company found that orders dropped 25% from the previous year.
“We realized we had made a huge mistake,” says Ms. Settle, president of the New York firm. Instead of dropping direct mail altogether, the Wall Street Journal notes that marketers are using social media and email marketing to compliment their traditional direct mail campaigns. By combining the two mediums, businesses are catching recipients’ attention and generate higher response rates.
Here are some ideas that will help you bridge the two mediums.
- Email your clients the same day that receive your print postcard in the mail. This “one-two” punch is something that we have seen dramatically increase response rates in our business.
- Follow up your quote requests by mailing a postcard. If you have a CRM system for your business you may be able to export the list of all customers that requested quotes. Once a week, mail out postcards to “touch” the prospect. Sure you could do it by e-mail, but it is much more personal and unexpected coming via “snail mail.”
- Mail postcards with a personalized URL (PURL) – A PURL is an automatically generated personalized website customized for your prospect. It’s an excellent way to perk the interest of the reader, and increases response rates dramatically.
- Add your Blog, Twitter, Facebook, Linked-in, or other new media account to your business card printing and your postcard marketing. In addition, give them as many means to contact you as possible including your AIM, ICQ, Skype, or other online communication account.
We’ve seen clients consistently bridge the gap between online and offline marketing with variable data, personalized URLS and digital printing. I believe that postcard printing & direct mail will continue to captivate “offline” prospects and compel them to find out more information to share with their friends and family via Twitter, Facebook, and other new media outlets.
Although postcard marketing has seen a decline in the last few years, many marketing experts continue to see massive value from the benefits of direct mail by integrating their offline and online programs together.
Holiday Party Success!
Thank you to everyone who made it out to our Annual Open House party of 2010. We had over 75 of our closest friends and family come play pinball games and celebrate the wonderful holiday. Be sure to check out all of the pictures in our facebook gallery located here to see some of the crazy pictures!
Thank you to Mac Papers, Xpedx, and Wikoff Ink for the great door prizes!
We look forward to doing it again next year!
RSVP to our Holiday Party
If you are local to our facility and would like to join us please RSVP through this link. Thanks!
20% Off Postcards
Its the most wonderful time of the year. Want to save some holiday money? then enjoy 20% Off Postcards printing for a limited time only.
To take advantage of this special, simply choose one of our postcard items, add the items to your cart, while you are checking out mention promo code: “Postcards1210,” in the comment section. Once your order has been placed we will manually update your order to reflect the 20% discount (up to $50 off) and reverse any charges made to your card.
You may use this promo code once. Not combinable with any other offers. Valid for postcard printing products only. Not applicable to special finishing options, mailing services, nor postage. Promo code must be mentioned while placing the order.
Of course you can call us at 813-443-5271 and we’ll assist you
Offer Valid until 12/31/2010
We’re giving away $100 American Express Gift Card This Month
Do you want to win a $100 American Express gift card to use any where American Express is accepted? If you want to win just click here to enter our sweepstakes! Best of all there is no purchase necessary. Remember that you can increase your chances of winning by recommending our contest to your friends! Click here to enter our sweepstakes.
Good luck from the SonicPrint.com Team
5018 Tampa West Blvd, Tampa, FL 33634
Phone: 813-443-5271 Fax: 813-443-5278
Toll Free: 1-888-441-PRINT(7746)
Why we are inspired by “Delivering Happiness”
Although this is not print marketing related post, I wanted to share a “must read” book that is inspiring people and spreading happiness throughout our print shop.
The Book
Tony Hsieh, the CEO of Zappos.com wrote a book titled “Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose.” After picking up this book at the recommendation of a fellow blogger, I felt compelled to share my review and recommendation.
On the surface, Delivering Happiness is a straight forward story about Tony, his professional life, and the growth of Zappos.com. After the first 50 pages, it began to open itself up as a wealth of inspiration regarding hope, happiness, humility and growth both personally and professionally. I’ve recommended it to everyone at the print shop, and thinking about starting our own SonicPrint library of “must reads” beginning with this book.
If you are involved in the world of business, entrepreneurship, or just seeking your own personal growth, Delivering Happiness is a fresh take and a loose roadmap on how companies (like Zappos) should act more like people. The book drives the point home that profits are not as important as the happiness and growth of the employee and customers.
Core Values
Tony talks in detail about the core values of Zappos and how the company culture defines them. Here are SonicPrint, we employ many similar values and the read was a refreshing “nod” to what we strive for everyday. The book inspired us to follow in the footsteps of Zappos and adopt the core values as a manifesto of our culture and what we strive for as well.
We proudly display them on our front office wall (with full credit to Tony H. and Zappos of course)!
At SonicPrint.com, we have one core value that is the favorite among everyone here.
#3 Create Fun and A Little Weirdness
We recommend Delivering Happiness
I highly recommend the read of Delivering Happiness as it moved me greatly. It’s more than just a book about business, it makes great strides in making this world a better place.
Thanks for reading!
SonicPrint.com
P.S. The book tour!
After reading the book and going online to learn more, we found that Tony and crew are delivering happiness in a 20+ city bus tour and it’s coming through Tampa. We’re going to do our part to share the happiness and have the date marked on our calendar. Check the dates to see if they are coming to your town as well.
For the record if the @dhbus wants to stop by, we’ve got our Red Bull machine stocked and loaded and would love to play a mean game of pinball!
