Innovation in Document Communication
The market for document communication has already existed for many dozens of years, if not hundreds or thousands. In essence communication via spoken or written language is centuries old. Cave drawings and hieroglyphs are probably the most ancient forms of document oriented communication. In the course of time the market for document communication has developed into the present information overload. The rise of internet, competition between organizations, the changes on social level – they all influence how communication takes place today.
Commercials as such are not a recent phenomenon. In Pompeii they already had sign boards. The middle ages featured the town-crier who loudly proclaimed his messages. Advertisements first appeared in 16th century newspapers. Advertising as a means for boosting sales has grown into a complicated process since the beginning of this century. Advertising is brought to us in many different ways. Estimates vary but on an average we, as consumers, are bombarded with a few thousand commercial messages every day. Via radio, TV, bill boards, mailings, internet and SMS we are informed about products, special offers and services. In order to distinguish from others in the abundance of messages the supplier’s market is convinced that mass communication must be replaced by one-to-one communication. The recipient must be addressed personally. The message must be aimed at the receiver’s profile.
In the last 20 years the market for supplying products that can get a personal message across has developed vigorously. Many products have been developed during the mid 80s of the last century; products that had the intention of converting a standard message to a message with a personal touch. In the early days “personal” probably meant nothing more than adding “Mr.” or “Mrs.”
Document communication still is very much a paper matter. On the whole communication on paper is still not decreasing; we can still see a growth. The increase is not as fast as before the internet era. It has been proven that paper communication still is the recipient’s favourite by far. A “personal” note will generate more attention than an e-mail with identical contents. A shift from paper to electronics can best be observed in the documents such as transaction overviews, invoices and newsletters. To the document generation, however, it makes little difference whether a document is designed for paper distribution or e-mail. The document communication products market (also called the variable data design and production, customer production management, document composition and one-to-one marketing) is still a healthy market with a reasonable number of active suppliers. A rough estimate for the 2007 revenue in document composition software is € 150 million in Western Europe; the growth figures range somewhere between 10% and 15% on a yearly basis.
Document communication therefore is a serious matter that receives more and more attention on a corporate strategic level. The question of how to employ document communication effectively and efficiently for the support of yielding business results is still very high on the agenda.
Want to know more contact; Oscar.Dubbeldam@DocsTalk.nl or go to http://www.docstalk.nl/pageID_6503014.html (Dutch language).
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Automated Document Process Management
The traditional Print and Mail activities are changing rapidly. Due to economic influences, new available techniques and market trends the traditional process of just producing and distributing paper documents is undergoing drastic changes. Multi-channel delivery as a result of the Going Green initiatives and process optimization using Lean Six Sigma techniques are just a few of the new Print and Mail requirements. As indicated by a Strategy Partners survey, 95 percent of the organizations indicates that document based communication is business critical to important, in reaching the business goals. The overwhelming number of vendors, suppliers, system integrators and service providers however don’t make it easy to choose the right approach. With what products, services and equipment can I have the highest return and how do I implement these in my organization?
The report (190 pages) is unique within the ECM / OM market research and analysis space. The first two sections of the report connect the business options in automated document process innovation with the available techniques. The innovations as described and the approach to implement are based on extensive market research among organizations. Strategy Partners has spoken with many IT, Facility Management and business managers to discuss the current environment and the future requirements. This has lead to the description of several innovative solutions which can be implemented within a short time frame and deliver tangible business results. The second part of the document discusses vendors who can deliver the software and services needed for these innovations. The report also provides a comprehensive checklist to qualify these vendors in relation to the business and document communication goals of the user company.
Oscar Dubbeldam, the author of the report, has more than 20 years of experience in the automated document process management industry. He has been involved in many projects and vendor discussions to gain a detailed knowledge. The author used his experience to make this a practical report. The report gives a clear roadmap to organizations and service providers on how to describe and implement a profitable innovation in automated document process management. What are the steps to define the strategy? What decisions need to be taken? What are the advantages? What are the available techniques and how can they best be used? To all these questions an answer will be given, so the reader will have the opportunity to define a realistic project plan and document production and distribution strategy. A strategy aligned with the corporate business goals.
The report ‘Innovation in Automated Document Process Management’ or additional information can be obtained by sending an e-mail to Oscar.Dubbeldam@DocsTalk.nl. The costs of the report are €475.00 (excl VAT).
See also http://www.docstalk.nl
