QUANTUM DIGITAL – PRESS MATCHER
CGS ORIS: A QUANTUM LEAP IN COLOR
Marketing innovator QuantumDigital added CGS ORIS PRESS MATCHER to its fleet of high-speed digital presses. By doing so, it was able to win significant new business _ from brand-centric businesses with G7-level color quality expectations.
Austin, Texas-based QuantumDigital is a growing online service provider focused on direct marketing automation, fulfillment and response. Their core business focuses on direct mail, on-demand digital printing and innovative e-marketing solutions for enterprise and small businesses.
In the past 24 years, it has grown to over $30 million in annual sales, and employs over 100 people. It specializes in providing printing and mailing support to companies at the field sales level. Business customers can easily order customized direct marketing materials online, which QuantumDigital prepares, prints and mails. QuantumDigital’s business model is not just typical Web-to-print, however. Chief Operations Officer, Freddie Baird points to innovations that distinguish QuantumDigital’s offerings from other printers. For example, their in-house developed system features automatic “triggers” – business rules-based settings that automatically create and send out promotional mailings when a significant event occurs. Real estate clients, for example, can specify targeted promotions to a geographic area whenever there’s a sale or a new listing in that area, drive prospective customers online to collect key data and receive real-time metrics back showing the success of their campaign. Such innovation, Baird says, makes their operations profitable, despite the fact that a typical order is only about 100 pieces.
As a Xerox partner, with four iGen digital print presses, QuantumDigital has always sought to produce pieces with the highest possible color quality. Originally, Baird said, the iGen color was good, but not measurable, and not always consistent. This was a problem for one particular Fortune 500 company, a potential customer whose branded materials had to be produced under very stringent, G7 color quality requirements. To address this, QuantumDigital obtained IDEAlliance’s G7 Master Printer Certification, using ORIS color management in its iGen press environment. In fact, QuantumDigital was the first all-digital printing facility to achieve G7 Master Printer status, thanks to PRESS MATCHER. Baird applauded CGS ORIS testing, training and implementation, which enabled them to easily achieve certification, and not only win the Fortune 500 account but also benefit their existing customers and add new business.
“With PRESS MATCHER, we achieved an ROI in the first 90 days.”
Freddie Baird, Chief Operations Officer, QuantumDigital
“Before PRESS MATCHER, color quality was good, but not measurable,” Baird said. “We didn’t have the tools and the technical expertise to hit these colors consistently. When we brought in PRESS MATCHER, we were able to do so. We now have extremely tight color, and we can hit it every time.” The economic results of using PRESS MATCHER have been impressive. One color-critical customer, a large telecommunications company, has increased its business with QuantumDigital by 25-30%. Baird estimates that the increase in revenue due to PRESS MATCHER is in the millions of dollars. “Usually, I expect a return on investment in 6-9 months,” he said, “but in the case of PRESS MATCHER, we achieved an ROI in the first 90 days.”
QuantumDigital uses other CGS ORIS products in its digital color workflow. For contract proofing, they use COLOR TUNER on an Epson inkjet printer. The company also employs CERTIFIED to verify color consistency and keep the iGen presses within tight G7 tolerances. They also use CERTIFIED to achieve and lock in specific brand colors. “With CGS ORIS software, we don’t have to guess anymore,” Baird said. “Even with brand colors, we can achieve it, measure it, dial it in and pretty much forget about it. Some of our customers demand this level of measurable color; others just benefit from getting great color. Everybody’s happy.”