The past year has been a time of transformation across all aspects of life. It has tested our ability to multi-task and adapt, forcing many of us to completely reinvent the daily routines we’ve lived in for years. While everyone has been faced with unique challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, the disruption it’s caused has provided a moment to pause, step back and look at how we live our lives. It has also given many of us the opportunity to evaluate our routines and make changes to help us be more successful, efficient and happy. (more…)

After wearing many hats within marketing throughout my career, including digital marketing, campaigns and events, I started at Konica Minolta in early 2019 in a much more focused role as their Public Relations Manager. Admittedly, I feared missing out on the marketing aspects of work I enjoyed so much, and wondered if I might not be challenged in such a specific role. Not to mention the fact that public relations (PR) ranked #8 in CareerCast’s 2019 Top Stressful Jobs Report. What was I getting myself into? Two years later, I am happy to say my trepidation was completely unwarranted. By taking a creative approach and integrating my role within our greater Marcomms team, I found ways to not only extend the reach of our PR messaging and build our brands, but help to support our sales teams and generate leads. (more…)

While 2020 was devastating for an innumerate amount of varied businesses nationwide, it was particularly fruitful for a few particular industries that work hand in hand. Shifts in human behavior have resulted in a banner 2020 for digital retail, with people staying at home more often and shopping online. During the COVID-19 crisis, e-commerce experienced 21% growth globally. With the majority of products needing packaging and labels, these two print segments experienced amazing growth; labeling has grown to a $13B business with corrugated print at $29B. The pandemic had a positive impact on packaging demand with forecasted growth of 4.5% CAGR. As more and more people continue to shop online, this number could possibly double due to the increased consumer demand on these new businesses. (more…)

COVID-19 catapulted the world into the future almost overnight. Firms that had a “wait and see” attitude when it came to deciding to take the plunge into new innovations in technology or to ensure they were not vulnerable to security breaches, had a rude awakening in store. There is a distinct concept that sums up how firms unknowingly prepared for the pandemic versus those who were considering a future preparedness plan: strategic partnerships. (more…)

So much has changed going into this year, but with that change comes the opportunity for businesses to reinvent themselves to better meet the needs of their customers. There is an ever-increasing shift from in-store to online shopping, which is not new, but according to a recent RBC Capital Markets survey, 42 percent of surveyed consumers now purchase groceries online at least once per week. That number is up almost half from a similar RBC survey conducted in 2018. This is truly a fortuitous chance for many consumer brand owners to develop a closer connection to their customers by enhancing their packaging and labels. (more…)

Like everything else in life, we all know the world of work is constantly changing. 2020 was undoubtedly a year that brought an unprecedented and unanticipated rate of change in how we work. The sudden transition from working in traditional offices to remote work created a wide range of challenges, from overextended IT departments to employees managing the complexities of working from home while managing their children’s remote schooling. Organizations struggled with VPN bandwidth, allowing remote access to information employees needed, deploying and managing conferencing tools like Zoom, Google Meet and Microsoft Teams.  Employees had to quickly adjust to new workstyles along with a complete redefinition of work-life balance and the accompanying dogs barking and kids yelling while on calls. (more…)

“Change is the only constant in life.”

This popular quote has been attributed to Heraclitus, a Greek philosopher born in 554 BC. Much more recently, in 2020, Mark Cuban, the billionaire entrepreneur, said, “The only constant of business is change.” How true both statements are! In fact, at no other time in recent memory have they been truer than now. We experienced a lot of changes in 2020. From constant Zoom meetings in makeshift home offices to getting used to wearing masks and sheltering in place, all of us have had to learn how to adjust to a new way of life. Our country turned virtual, seemingly overnight, and companies had to scramble to adapt as their employees transitioned to remote work. (more…)

The IT landscape is in a constant state of change. Whether it’s still seen as a supportive administrative function, an enabler of digital transformation, or an integral touchpoint woven within everyday interactions, it is critically important to stay on top of the latest technology evolutions. (more…)

As far as designers and companies are concerned, the future seems to be more about a creative collaboration between designers and algorithms, with raw talent and technology working together. (more…)

As our industry changes and evolves, and in uncertain times such as we’ve experienced for much of 2020, business transformation is key to maintaining profitability. An increasingly popular strategy for companies to steer through this transformation while continuing to grow and build revenue while staying ahead of the competition is partnerships. Partnerships allow companies to obtain and integrate new capabilities into their offerings; creating new opportunities for themselves and their customers. (more…)