Fun fact: The printing industry is growing.
According to industry resources, printing will grow steadily for the next five years to almost $600 billion annually.
And it’s also an industry that offers great career opportunities. As of 2022, the print industry generates an annual payroll of $21.6 billion. According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, more than half (11,679) of the 22,651 printing establishments as of 2022 were small companies with fewer than five employees. And people in the printing industry are aggressively trying to hire people, with even entry-level salaries above those of other industries.
Many have also invested heavily in training programs to encourage younger people to become part of the printing world.
Why? Because the industry is facing two simultaneous challenges. Since people perceive print is in decline, it’s not considered an attractive career (we already know this is not the case). And many long-term print employees are getting older, so they’re retiring. This is opening up jobs, many of which require special skills.
For the right people, this is an opportunity.
Studies show that 61% of commercial printers reported sales growth in 2024, with overall growth over 2023 at around 2%. And 22% of respondents reported double-digit sales growth.
And even though print is an “old school” medium, the industry’s becoming more and more high tech, with digital printing growing, and technology advances making traditional offset printing presses more efficient and cost effective.
The U.S. Post Office notes that direct mail advertising continues to grow, and that direct mail is still one of the most effective forms of advertising.
So even in our digital age, there’s plenty of room for print. And many printers are actively embracing the new world, making investments in equipment and people to take advantage of the growth potential.
Want to know if you have a career opportunity in the print industry? King Printing Solutions is hiring, and we’d love to receive an application from you.
Although there are advantages to digital documents, there are still many cases where paper documents are still relevant and have solid advantages. King Printing Solutions has been a provider of business documents for more than 40 years, and we’ve seen the entire digital revolution unfold. We’ve also seen why, for many companies, there are still no electronic substitutes for paper documents.
Here are situations where paper is still better:
1. You need a “Chain of Custody.” For many legal documents, or situations where there could be liability, a “chain of custody” for materials is critical. An example of this would be a drug test for employment. In this case, it’s important to document receipt of a sample from an applicant, receipt at the testing lab (with identification of the individuals involved), and documentation of results. The risks of manipulating digital files can insert uncertainty into a situation like this. With paper, there’s a physical “trail.”
2. You need security. Legal documents, such as car titles, stock certificates, checks, or other valuable items need to be protected from counterfeiting. Digital documents are particularly susceptible to fakes. Paper documents with built-in security features (security papers, microprinting, security inks, and other techniques) provide the necessary protection for these types of documents.
3. You need to provide a receipt or reference material in a remote location. On construction sites or other field locations, paper documents protect both buyer and seller with proof that a delivery has been made. If you’re traveling or relaxing where there may not be digital communications, paper documents are light, portable, and provide the information you need when other sources aren’t accessible.
4. You want to make an impression. We are inundated with digital communications in today’s world, and research shows much of it we don’t recall—even the next day. Paper documents for presentations, corporate brochures, and similar materials encourage the reader to slow down and take in the information. Fine papers, precise color, and rich photography capture the reader’s attention and convey a level of capability and professionalism that may not come across on a computer or telephone screen.
King Printing Solutions provides companies large and small with the options they need for effective print communications, including security documents, high-quality offset and flexographic printing, pressure seal documents, multi-part forms, and many specialty print techniques. Digital documents sure save space, but in many situations paper documents still make sense and are still relevant in today’s world. Use our online form to get a quote on your project, or contact us here for ideas on meeting your toughest document challenges.
NEW TAZEWELL, TN (June 22, 2019)—While some forms of traditional advertising have lost effectiveness to new technologies like online advertising and search, direct mail still produces powerful results.
According to the Data & Marketing Association, direct mail actually IMPROVED in response and results in 2015 and 2016. So even though you may think you’re getting too much mail from marketers, there’s a reason:
It’s producing.
Why does direct mail still work? First of all, it’s targeted. Thanks to more and more sophisticated data analysis tools, you can very specifically target prospects with direct mail messages. This is true for both consumer and business to business marketing. In fact, data analysis tools are so good, analysts can tell you which side of a given street you should deliver your message to.
Direct mail can also be personal. If you know you’re targeting a specific audience, you can tailor your message so it relates directly to their needs and situation. With this extra advantage, it’s easy to see why people respond.
Direct mail is also colorful and exciting. Instead of being on a flat screen, direct mail comes in different sizes and shapes. It gets attention. Properly printed, a direct mail piece can cut through the clutter of other daily messages. It’s entertaining. It’s tactile. It gets people to respond.
King Printing Solutions has helped hundreds of companies with quality printed direct mail marketing. We can print high color, high volume cards, circulars, and other materials. And we can meet tight deadlines so you can take advantage of opportunities to reach customers, even in narrow response windows.
To learn more, take a look at our Specialty Products Page.
NEW TAZEWELL, TN (December 11, 2018)—There are thieves everywhere. And as individuals have gotten access to color printers and other imaging tools, they’ve targeted valuable documents.
This used to be fairly rare—it just wasn’t worth a criminal’s time to try to fake a car title or financial document, because it was too easy to get caught. But that’s changed.
So King Printing Solutions has introduced a variety of new technologies to keep you ahead of people who want to steal. Our security document features make it very difficult, if not impossible for your documents to be counterfeited.
Imagine a thief trying to duplicate your document, not knowing there was microprint in a border that is almost invisible to the human eye, but readily apparent to people who use the document? Or embossing that is so detailed it wouldn’t be cost effective to try to reproduce? There are new security papers with multiple security features built in. And our printing technologies can do amazing things that cannot be duplicated by other parties.
To learn more, take a look at our Security Features Page.
NEW TAZEWELL, TN (April 17, 2019)—Often, the first impression a customer has of your company is the instruction manual that comes with your product. Manuals are an opportunity to build brand loyalty and to encourage customers to buy other products you make.
But many companies don’t take advantage of this. They treat their manuals like a necessary evil—they have to provide them, but they don’t want to incur too much cost.
But instruction and training manuals don’t have to be a “cost.” They can be a marketing investment.
If you want an example, take a look at Lego, everyone’s favorite building block. Lego offers full-color instructions with its building sets. There are other details—watermarks featuring the “theme” of the set, for example, that go beyond what is necessary to build the toy. But these details keep you excited about the purchase and the creativity of Legos.
Another interesting fact about Lego instructions: there are almost no words, just images. Because Lego markets in so many countries with different languages, and because they often sell to children who are still building their reading skills, they let images tell the story.
And at the end of the instructions, there’s something extra: images of other Lego sets within the same collection or other similar sets in other categories that might interest the customer.
So Lego manuals are powerful tools for customer satisfaction, and for selling more Legos.
King Printing Solutions can help you make your manuals stand out, with quality printing plus specialty printing treatments that help you communicate and build brand loyalty. We can even help you with creative elements such as illustrations and copy.
To learn more, visit our Manuals Page.
