One of my favorite business texts is “Sun Tzu and the Art of Business” version by Mark McNeilly. I find it’s a really useful thought starter to explore how we can create winning outcomes by leveraging our degrees of freedom. Often the key to the battle is not frontal assault.
So what’s that got to do with print on demand manufacturing? I’ve always felt that digital manufacturing, in particular, lends itself to being used in creative ways to shift the battlefield and flank the competition.
For many, manufacturing is just a baseline activity—executed to minimize cost, often at the expense of innovation (but with hidden costs lurking in workflows).
The counter to this strategy is to embrace the agility of digital devices and workflows—whether it’s via print, process, innovation or shipping—to drive innovation that adds value and applies competitive pressure.
Instead of focusing solely on standardization, digital workflows (and having a robust digital manufacturing platform) can be leveraged to put pressure on competitors in several key ways:
- Know your range and margins (maximize intelligence): Many firms understand their margins only in broad averages instead of categorizing their products as Stars, Cash Cows, Problem Children and Dogs. Truly understanding product range performance means focusing efforts where they “win” most.
- Enhance the offer (exploit competitor weaknesses): Digital workflows can offer new levels of personalization through branding, packaging, and insertions. There are many rule-based options to enhance the offer and give customers an experience competitors can’t match.
- Expand the range (change the battlefield): We are evolving from “print on demand” to “digital on demand.” Our core capability is managing agile workflows driven by digital files—we’re no longer limited by substrates in defining who we are – diversify range to shift the battle ground.
- Manufacture faster with ruthless quality (speed of execution advantage): Manufacturing at speed while maintaining high quality translates into a service advantage that can be backed by guarantees that others simply can’t match.
So the core message this week: Is that we shouldn’t see manufacturing as a black box run by a capable production manager whilst all the interesting strategy is executed elsewhere. Instead, view it as a source of creativity and competitive advantage and potentially a winning play.
