‘White is the new black’ in printing, reveals Antalis
For businesses looking to make their mark in 2018, Antalis has advised that embracing innovative new printing technologies such as white toner will be key to tapping into the customer demand for ever more creative paper-based communications.
For businesses looking to make their mark in 2018, Antalis has advised that embracing innovative new printing technologies such as white toner will be key to tapping into the customer demand for ever more creative paper-based communications.
Latest figures show that despite the prominence of digital marketing techniques, 38% of adults in the UK have bought or ordered something as a result of receiving mail through the post1 - proving that direct mail’s response rates are actually anywhere from 10 to 30 times higher than that of digital2.
According to experts, the enduring effectiveness of direct mail is because, “giving, receiving and handling tangible objects remain deep and intuitive parts of the human experience”.3
As such, when it comes to creating stunning paper-based communications that really engage with the customer, it has never been a more compelling time for businesses to adopt the latest paper and print technologies.
Susana Marambio, Head of Channel – Retail, Office Reseller & Consumer at Antalis, comments: “Despite the onslaught of digital comms in recent years, it’s heartening to see that consumers still value the tangible aspect of receiving direct mail, proving that it is still an effective marketing tool.
“However, although we are seeing more and more brands and marketing agencies reacquainting their love affair with creative papers as a way of creating stand out, it’s important to remember that direct mail has evolved from the mass mail campaigns of the past into a data-driven and targeted solution.”
A huge opportunity, for example, lies in the creative inks concept. In particular, the growing popularity of the Xerox® White Dry Ink opens up a world of opportunities to create striking designs on direct mail, invitations and postcards.
Available on the Xerox iGen 5 Press, the ink enables white to be printed on coloured substrates by sitting atop either non-white media or CMYK-printed images. It can also provide a bright white base coat for optimising CMYK vibrancy and enabling variable information printing on coloured surfaces.
What’s more, when printed in percentages rather than full coverage, white ink can create frost or translucent effects, while manually printing an additional layer of White Dry Ink can increase opacity.
Susana adds: “With consumers now expecting to be wowed by beautifully crafted marketing materials, for businesses looking to pack a punch this year by creating cutting-edge paper based communications they must utilise the full suite of tools at their fingertips.
“At Antalis, white is definitely the new black when it comes to office printing with the growing popularity of speciality inks such as white toner likely to continue in the coming year. The Xerox White Dry Ink is ideal for broadening the range of non-white substrates that can be used for invitations, menus, direct mail and other promotional materials.
“For those looking to add sparkle and shine to their marketing materials, Xerox® Metallic Dry Inks creates striking silver and gold metallic effects with images, artwork, logos and texts while the Xerox® Clear Dry Ink can add new dimensions to output using spot, flood or textured effects.”
