By: Michael Boucher

Mimeo.com — Just Hit Print™

They say people are more likely to talk about bad experiences they have with companies than good ones and that it takes an extremely good experiences for somebody to talk about it. Well, I've had an extremely good experience with Mimeo.com, an on-demand digital printer.

I've always seemed to have problems with FedEx Kinkos, granted I heard they were working on their customer service not sure how that is working for them at this point, and I've wanted to find an alternative. FedEx Kinkos just seemed to be the lesser of two evils for me. They are "quick" and convienient, with stores on almost every corner. Some are even open 24-hours, which has been a life saver in the past. However, on countless occasions I've just been disappointed by both the quality of the products they've printed for me and at times the customer service. Put a smile, on will ya?

So for those quick document duplications I think FedEx Kinkos may still be a decent choice. However, what options do you have when you want quality marketing materials? You don't want to present to a client with materials that are cut askew or pages that don't line up. Plus, you have to pay ridiculous prices for basic options. If you want an 8.5x11.0 document to have a full bleed, you have to pay for color printing on 11x17 and then pay for each cut that is made to trim the 11x17 down to 8.5x11. Do the math, you just wasted half of the paper! Want your documents saddle stitched? Well, you are limited to black and white documents then, at least this is what I've been told when I've asked.

Well I'm excited to say that I have found a solution, or at least I will know for sure tomorrow. I just got off of the phone with Mimeo.com and I have to say I'm blown away by the services they offer, the options they have and how helpful my sales guy was. I know, sales people are paid to be nice, but at this juncture I don't care. Bottom line, he was nice and answered my questions. He also expressed an interest in my needs and what my business does, then talked to me about how Mimeo could help.

The Scoop on Mimeo

So at this point, if you haven't click on the link to check them out, you are probably wondering what is so great about Mimeo. What constituted me actually writing about them? Well, rest assured I haven't recieved a dime. This is coming from a prospective customer of theirs that is excited about the possibilities they offer.

Mimeo's slogan is "Just hit print." It's that simple. If you thought high-quality marketing materials and collateral were for the big guns, think again. Actually, the big guns are switching over to Mimeo's on-demand printing business model just because it cuts both the cost and waste related to conventional printing.

On-demand printing, is just as the name suggests, printing only the documents you need, as you need them. Say good-bye to print runs of 100s or even 1000s of materials that if you are lucky, only half will be used and the rest discarded before the next set of changes need to be made.

Whether you need one full-color proposal or you need 20 full-color presentations, Mimeo has you covered. And, we aren't talking about Kinko's full color on a Xerox printer. Mimeo uses high-quality, professional digital presses just like the ones used to print your competitor's sales brochures. That means you get professionally printed documents and marketing collateral.

If you aren't excited yet, hold on because it only gets better. Mimeo offers a number of binding and other options. You can select comb binding, coil binding, twin-loop coil binding, velo binding, tape binding, saddle stitching or have your documents inserted into 3-ring binders. If you are like me and think that vinyl backings and covers make your presentations look like high-school book reports, you can opt out and select a card stock cover and back-cover which can be printed on.

Scenario: Been There, Done That, Wish I had Mimeo

We've all been in situations like this before. I just wish I had Mimeo then. It is 6:30 p.m. and the CEO of your company just informed you 5 minutes before you were leaving for the day that she needs eight marketing booklets printed, bound and delivered before her big presentation tomorrow morning? Mimeo to the rescue. Approve your job for printing by 10:00 p.m. and get it delivered next day, to anyone, anywhere (sans the moon or mars, smart-asses). Not only are you getting on-demand, high-quality digital printing, you are getting it next day too.

"Just hit print." That's right, at 9:00 p.m. when you are marketing manager has finally given his blessing you "just hit print" and send your document on its way. Mimeo offers a print driver that packages and uploads your files to the Mimeo server. This is where they will live for those last minute re-orders as well. You can even transfer multiple files and merge them together during the order process. Just select all the options you want and you will be in the good graces of your CEO in no time.

It's 9:45 p.m., you just hit the local Taco Bell for 4th-meal and you are headed home. Your mobile phone rings. It is your marketing manager in a panic that the document had some mispellings. Tell him to pull himself together. Mimeo allows you to open uploaded documents and make changes to them right their on their web site. Make a quick change or ten and you are good to go.

All of your uploaded documents can be saved to your personal Mimeo library for future referrence, editing and re-ordering. The web interface is very easy to use and it only takes about 10 minutes to complete an order.

Freelancers, Small Firms: Custom Tailor Your Message

All this works just as well for freelancers and small firms as well. Last minute client requests or even last minute preperations for a sale pitch meeting you might have. The other advantage to this is access to high-quality, professional looking marketing materials that are going to set you apart from your competition and get your noticed by prospects.

There's no need for me to print 100 sales brochures. By the time I used them up the times will have changed and I will want to showcase new work that I've done. Also, I provide a range of services. My focus is on interactive media design but I also provide print design, collateral, logo design, photography and illustration. Mimeo allows me the ability to custom tailor my marketing materials to my prospect's needs.

What better way to end a phone call with a prospect than telling them you will have some materials out to them tomorrow. Custom tailor and peronalize your marketing materials, showcase relevant past projects, speak to your prospects pain-points, then fire up Mimeo and away you go.

Too-Good-To-Be-True? Try it for Yourself

Mimeo's site leaves you with a bit of curiousity. Effective marketing, because they want you to pick up the phone and actually talk to somebody who can make the sell. They also offer a free demo of their services. No, I'm not talking about a cheesey ten minute marketing video or presentation on their web site, I'm talking about an account manager calling you up to place your first order with Mimeo. They will print one document and have it sent to you the next day. And they'll even pick up the cost.

As I said I just got off the phone with them. I had my doubts at first and they slowly melted away as I ran through the demo and the account manager answered my questions. My printed document will arrive tomorrow and I'll follow up on the findings.