My Basement and Your Fulfillment Program: What s the Connection by Jeremy Suratt

Some of the clutter in my basement may soon be worthy of the Smithsonian. Check out that VHS player ( What's that, Dad? ), college notebooks (the paper kind) and the yellow telephone with the rotary dial and a ringer inside.

Sometimes I think of my mini museum when I consider the challenge many companies face when trying to optimize their marketing fulfillment program. While unused marketing sits for months or even years in storage, you're adding to overhead instead of devoting the expense to current high-value campaigns.

One great way to optimize your program is to work with a fulfillment partner to conduct a detailed inventory assessment. Then you can make well-informed decisions as to what stays and what goes.

What's All the Fuss About Optimization?

Optimization is really all about efficiency-a point that is particularly important when it comes to fulfillment campaigns that use print.

There's no doubt that print remains a necessary aspect of many marketing fulfillment campaigns. When used strategically, print is still highly effective in achieving pre-established goals. But many C-suite executives cringe at the combination of print, freight and mailing costs-especially compared to more economical digital channels.

The good news for those managing print initiatives is that optimization can help you quickly call out inefficiencies, save money and develop and maintain high-value initiatives. The key to effective optimization is culling the most relevant metrics possible.

How's Your Program? Key Data Tells All

Put simply, you can't optimize what you don't fully understand. To get (and understand) the information you need regularly, look to the expertise of a strategic and responsive fulfillment partner. Its team will have the expertise, technology tools and intellectual capital to provide ongoing optimization guidance.

Your fulfillment partner can help you track and access real-time metrics on your marketing collateral, including measurements such as:

Days on hand. When will you need to reorder?

Back order rates. Essential to optimizing inventory levels.

Usage by month. By identifying seasonal trends, this measurement helps you decide which communications should always be on hand and which to produce on demand.

Obsolescence. How much of your inventory do you dispose of annually?

Order fill rate. What percentage of a user's items is available upon order?

A supportive fulfillment partner can help you identify and measure these and other valuable metrics. Based on that data, you can further collaborate to develop the insights and best practices necessary for true fulfillment optimization.

Cut Clutter, Reduce Costs

We've determined that customers consistently focused on optimization can realize up to a 30 percent annual cost savings. These days, when everyone is being pushed to do more for less, results like that can help you get buy-in for investment in more high-value and creative fulfillment efforts.

Alas, if you're looking to clear that basement, we can't help. But if you're looking to make the most of your marketing fulfillment program, the right partner can help you clear the clutter-and much more.

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Do you have questions about fulfillment service? Read additional Knowledge Center stories on this subject, or contact Iron Mountain's Fulfillment Services team. You'll be connected with a knowledgeable product and services specialist who can address your specific challenges.

LINK:	http://blogs.ironmountain.com/2014/service-lines/marketing-production-...
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