* Sign up now for free "Dr. Joe" economic webinar, sponsored by Creo and WhatTheyThink.com, on January 19.
* Offshore printing is expanding while U.S. printing is "flat"; special report discusses key issues, strategies for printers to compete
* Graphic design business growing, new report analyzes growth of freelancers, investments, and other essential industry issues
* Dr. Joe Webb and Vince Naselli announce availability as speakers for company sales meetings, industry events
* Bob Rosen's "Graphic Arts CEO" highlighted in American Printer; free FedEx shipping when ordered through www.drjoewebb.com ; special bundle with Dr. Joe's "Renewing the Print Industry" saves you $150
* Dr. Joe receives GAMIS' Neil Richards Visionary Leadership Award
* Dr. Joe's "hot picks" for free printing and media information on the Internet

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SIGN UP FOR ECONOMIC WEBINAR
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This is my quarterly economic assessment and forecast. The event is free thanks to the sponsorship of WhatTheyThink.com and Creo. All you need is a phone and Internet access.

Among the things I'll be discussing are the sales rebound of print and its unfortunate decline in profits. Our industry's strange times continue, it seems, and I'll try to add some clarity to the situation.

Join me on Wednesday, January 19 at 2PM Eastern Standard Time. Be sure to sign in to be sure you'll have a spot.

Sign up now at this special Web page:
http://members.whattheythink.com/home/webinarregistrationform.cfm

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OFFSHORE PRINTING NOT A "FAD"
OR PASSING TREND: TAKE IT SERIOUSLY
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Our report "A Critical Look at Offshore Printing" is now complete. The printing industry is experiencing increased competition from overseas printing firms. Until recently, offshore print quality, turnaround times, language/cultural issues, shipping costs and logistics all made submitting and managing cross-border print work difficult. Now, there are numerous technological and economic factors reducing the barriers U.S. print buyers experience sending work overseas. This is NOT a passing trend experienced by a handful of U.S. printers.
Some of the findings in the research study include:
-- All print buyers interviewed for the report said "top-notch" offshore printers exhibit print quality levels that are "comparable" to U.S. print vendors.
-- Offshore printers have increased quality over the past few years, and thus confidence among offshore print buyers, through the combined adoption of press-calibrated digital proofers and computer-to-plate devices
-- Buyers find that the combination of Internet connectivity and PDF workflows make job submission and management with offshore vendors easier.
-- Overseas printers are doing more commercial work in runs up to 10,000 pieces and shipping jobs via air freight to reduce turnarounds.
-- Foreign printers are providing U.S. clients average price savings from 30% to 50% (including shipping), principally derived from lower labor costs.
-- Some offshore printers (especially in India) are offering graphic design services to capture commercial work.

There are also recommendations about how U.S. printers can successfully navigate and find opportunities in this growing global print marketplace.

Priced at $2,875, the report can be ordered and downloaded at http://store.yahoo.com/drjoe/offshore.html
A CD-ROM with support data and materials will be mailed separately. Purchasers will receive a username and password for private access to a special web site that has additional information. The web site will be updated for the next six months with the latest news and data concerning this critical topic.

Download the table of contents at http://www.prweb.com/prfiles/2005/01/06/195117/SFM_Offshore_Table_of_Contents.pdf

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GRAPHIC DESIGN BUSINESS GROWING
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As of 2004 the U.S. graphic design industry had over 16,000 individual businesses, 60,000 employees, and over 74,000 freelancers. Industry wide, design firms annually generate $7.8 billion in revenues and purchase about $165 million in capital equipment, while freelancers account for over $3.4 billion in revenues and nearly $46 million in equipment-buying each year.

Some of the report's findings, based on historical and forecasted data include (all figures in 2004 US dollars):
-- Total industry revenues for both graphic-design businesses and freelancers in 2004 is estimated at over $11 billion, which is expected to top $13 billion by 2009
--Graphic design firms currently employ about 60,000 people, a level that is expected to reach nearly 68,000 employees by 2009
-- Nearly 75% of design businesses employ 1 to 4 people, and almost 90% have less than 10 employees
-- 15% of the industry's graphic design firms are newly created each year

The single-person virtual design firm is now in the process of becoming a major part of the graphic-design marketplace. In 1997 there were less than 48,000 graphic-design freelancers. Today it is estimated there are nearly 75,000 independent designers, which is expected to reach over 86,000 freelancers by 2009. By comparison, design businesses are expected to employ 68,000 people by the end of the decade, only 8,000 more employees than those working today.

The report is available for $2875 and is downloadable Adobe Acrobat PDF and Microsoft Excel file at http://store.yahoo.com/drjoe/graphicdesign.html. The Excel file includes all of the tables and graphs of the report.

The table of contents may be viewed at http://www.prweb.com/prfiles/2004/12/12/188255/Table_of_Contents_of_SFM_Graphic_Design_Report.pdf

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DO YOU DARE HAVE DR. JOE OR VINCE
NASELLI AT YOUR NEXT MEETING?
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Need to rock the boat a bit? Need to make people think? Consider having me or consultant Vince Naselli at your next meeting. Or, have both of us. We've pooled our experiences and observations to provide a service available for contract by companies and associations who are looking for thought-provoking presentations for...
-- customer events
-- sales meetings
-- keynote addresses
-- planning meetings
-- product launches
-- association events

Please contact Vince Naselli to explore the possibilities at 1-732-568-0316.

For more background, visit http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/1/prweb191085.php

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BOB ROSEN'S "GRAPHIC ARTS CEO" HIGHLIGHTED
IN AMERICAN PRINTER; SPECIAL OFFER EXTENDED
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For the past year, I've been recommending Bob Rosen's "Graphic Arts CEO" for those who want a different view of the printing business from one who has been quite successful at it. The book was recently highlighted in American Printer (as its December cover story), and we quickly went out of stock! We've replenished our inventory, and continue to offer the book for $149, including free shipment to the U.S. and Canada by FedEx.

Read the American Printer article at http://americanprinter.com/mag/printing_survive/

Order the report at http://store.yahoo.com/drjoe/rosen.html

* Special offer: combine this with my "Renewing the Print Industry" and save $150! See the deal at http://store.yahoo.com/drjoe/packagedeal.html (more about this report below)

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GAMIS' NEIL RICHARDS VISIONARY
LEADERSHIP AWARD
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I recently received the GAMIS Neil Richards Visionary Leadership Award, which was quite a surprise and honor. I hope to live up to all of the attributes they claim I had to deserve it.

Read the release http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/1/prweb191076.php

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"RENEWING THE PRINT INDUSTRY"
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Okay, this report has made some people squirm a bit, but it's my contrary and (I think) constructive look at what individual businesses need to count themselves among the industry's thriving survivors. Suppliers and vendors will benefit from the report, too, as their products and sales approaches need to proactively assist printers in meeting the challenges discussed in the report.

To buy the report in PDF or hard copy: http://store.yahoo.com/drjoe/reprin.html

To buy the PDF version of the report and "Dr. Joe's Almanac" at a special combination price (save $125): http://store.yahoo.com/drjoe/drjoalreprin.html

Download the table of contents and the first chapter: http://www.prweb.com/prfiles/2004/06/03/131251/renew_ind_toc&chap1.pdf

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DR. JOE'S HOT PICKS
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The 2005 edition of the Index of Economic Freedom is has just been released. It has great profiles of individual countries, insights into the political and economic circumstances and their outlook for change. In this edition, the U.S. dropped out of the top 10! It's a big file (93mb), so start downloading and then go for a snack. You have to fill out a short form to get access to the download page. Go to http://www.heritage.org/research/features/index/userdata.cfm?filename=entire

The Pew Internet Survey has released a report about what technology experts and scholar see for the Internet's future. For more information and to download, visit http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/145/report_display.asp

Data from the 2002 Economic Census are now available. The printing industry is in NAICS series 323, and that can be found at http://www.census.gov/econ/census02/guide/INDRPT31.HTM (the printing industry reports can be found about 1/3 of the way down the page).

My favorite directory of all government data is at href="http://www.census.gov/epcd/www/recent.htm There you can access the Economic Census and a broad range of other reports and data.

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Regards

Dr. Joe Webb

Strategies for Management, Inc., 42 Tall Timber Drive, PO Box 483, Harrisville, RI 02830, 1-401-709-4423 (THIS IS A NEW PHONE NUMBER), www.drjoewebb.com