January Shipments: Back to Normal?

January 2024 shipments came in at $7.04 billion, up from December’s $6.94 billion—and right between January 2021 and 2022. Read more in this data analysis on WhatTheyThink.com.

Best in New Food and Beverage Packaging

Food and beverage brands constantly launch new products and new packages, and Packaging Digest highlights the best of them on a regular basis. In the latest batch: DIY in-store wine dispensing, rPS cups a go, PepsiCo's new snacks bag, Frugal Bottle news, operatic olive oil tin, Berry's reusable tableware, life-saving snack bags. See more.

Printed Books are Here to Stay: Here's How to Compete with Digital Saturation

In a digitally saturated world, customers are experiencing more and more digital fatigue. The sheer volume of digital communications is causing many to switch off and opt out – and actively seek ways to reduce their intake of online content. Read more on Creative Bloq.com.

Brands Lean on Catalogs, Direct Mail to Build Awareness and Drive Sales

A resurgence in direct mail is offering companies a costlier, but arguably more impactful, alternative to digital advertising. Read more on Retail Brew.com.

Hearing Sales Voices

On a call with a prospective client, a little voice inside you speaks up and whispers to you. You ignore it at first but the voice persists. Do you listen or shut it out. Bill Farquharson hears voices all the time and has advice for what to do in this Short Attention Span Sales Tip. Read more on the Sales Vault.com.

LinkedIn Shares Insights Into Its Latest Feed Algorithm Updates

LinkedIn has outlined some of the latest updates to its content distribution algorithm, which could alter your posting approach in the app, including a bigger focus on valuable, evergreen updates, its ongoing efforts to stamp out clickbait approaches, and changes to its “Creator Mode” offering. Read more on SocialMediaToday.com.

Video - Best of Fold of the Week: Low Budget Folds

Trish Witkowski of Fold Factory is wrapping up 15 years of the show with a special series highlighting her picks for the best of what we’ve seen across 655 shows. Let's see which "Low Budget Wonder" made the cut. See and read more.

Upcoming Personal Branding Webinar

GLGA and our sister regional printing industry associations are joining together to present a special webinar on Wednesday, March 27. In Personal Branding through LinkedIn, Dan Evans of Hydrate Marketing will discuss 5 actionable steps that you can take to optimize your personal brand on LinkedIn and create the profile that your brand deserves.

Next Talent Report Features A Closer Look at Corporate Culture - FREE for GLGA Members

Tune in for the monthly Talent Report, brought to you by GLGA’s HR partner MRA. Coming up on the April 10 Talent Report: Jim Morgan, MRA’s Vice President of Workforce Strategies, will take a closer look at Corporate Culture with special guest speaker Kelly Kauffman of the Milwaukee Bucks.

GLGA members can attend for free through our partnership. Click here to register.

Your Help Requested: April 2024 “Printing Industry Performance and Insights” Study Will Focus on Benchmarking

A personal note to GLGA members from Dr. Ralph Williams, the coordinator of the Printing Industry Performance and Insights studies:

Industry financial benchmarks help in budgeting, making strategic decisions and finding a path to improve performance. So, we are excited about the April 2024 Printing Industry Performance and Insights survey, which will build financial benchmarks. We aim to provide company leaders with comparable and relevant financial benchmarks.

To make our financial benchmarks credible and valid, we need a bunch of completed surveys. Help us develop knowledge that will help you by completing our survey! Watch for the survey to open soon.

Editor's note: the Great Lakes Graphics Association is among 15 regional printing associations partnering to sponsor the Performance and Insights studies. GLGA members can download reports from previous studies for free from the Members Only area of the GLGA website. 

Inland Packaging Announces Scott Roob as New Chief Operating Officer

Posted on their website blog by Inland Packaging, LaCrosse, WI:

Inland Packaging, a third-generation family-owned label and packaging manufacturer, is thrilled to announce its new Chief Operating Officer, Scott Roob. He brings over 25 years of extensive experience, not only in the label industry, but at Inland. Read more.

Ewing Printing: Rolling in Style!

Posted on Facebook by Ewing Printing, Vincennes, IN:

Check out the sleek new design we crafted for Wildcat Trucking's semi-truck decals! 🚛 See more.

JohnsByrne Acquires Scodix Digital Enhancement Press

Posted on LinkedIn by JohnsByrne, Niles, IL:

Our investment in the Scodix press supports our commitment to ongoing and purposeful CAPEX investment to provide our customers with the latest technology for delivering elevated brand premiumization. Read and see more.