David Milisock's Blog
https://au.marketo.com/
Never noticed this until a read today.
Marketo is more than just software - when you use it, you get a playbook for digital marketing success.
Not that I'm suggesting Corel should do this. Maybe worth finding a partner that's a "king" in this area.
Alternatives — Always looking for better than Adobe. financesonline.com/.../
I agree, I only use Acrobat Pro 9 anymore and that's because of the Adobe conforming PDF driver and Distiller. I us no Adobe graphics applications any longer and that has been for several years.
I do some of all the above. To stay profitable I've sectioned off how we work. I have a 40' lift, and rent cranes or lifts, we've gone to 100'. I've backed off the install aspect except for oversight as I'm old and really cranky.
I hate cheap people, it's one of the main reasons I avoid designers. You simply cannot own every piece of equipment needed so you need vendors who can trust you. I used a guy for extra large plasma cutting, I ask for a price and he gave me one. I ask if he was comfortable with the price. He seemed unsure so I told him let's add 15%. It turned out it was 12% more. He and I made out, he treats me well.
I would rather lose a job then have my people or my vendors lose money. I only load power supplies to 80%, I use RTV not commercial grade silicone, superior grade tools. Yes my projects cost more up front but they last and in the long run are cheaper.
We only build the custom signs and the donor/history walls because it's what we can do and make a profit. An example would be entrance and way finding for a retirement village. I got called for repair of the signs in the first phase and created and installed the signs for the second and third phase.
The first phase was done by a company that didn't understand working with coreten steel and aluminum. They ended up with supports rusting out and aluminum oxidation streaks. This nursing home was $750,000 minimum to get in to. So you understand the problem.
For most commercial work the budget won't support our costs so we'll buy those cheap cans and stick built crap and put them up. It keeps the staff paid and out of trouble.
A too large a percentage of my time is zoning, variance drawings and hearings. Lighting dispersion drawings have become the rage with municipalities in my area. I'm not bitching I can make decent money and they pay for the application fees and my presentation time.
The government sucks, a variance starts at $1,000+, then the drawings and presentation can be $1,500 to $2,000 and that's win or lose. I started a printing company, built it up and sold it, they are now a vendor, did the same with a web business early in the internet days and a computer company.
Using Draw and a PC I was not limited in many ways a MAC Adobe user was so I instantly went from $50 average print billings to $5,000+ billings to an endless set of possibilities. Building web, building computers and supporting software, utilizing nearly any material to build some art somewhere.
I read this forum and I don't get it, build a powerful computer, load up Draw and use your imagination. Hell I'm a dumb ass farm boy from South Central PA and I'm having a blast and making money even while trying to retire. When the emails come in it's from literally anywhere in the world from anyone, from a church in Ireland to a movie production company in Japan. You don't need to be a huge company but you also don't need to think small.
Here's an example just this morning after I wrote this post. 5 images editing jobs came in and a request to prepare a variance for 2 entrance signs that I'm not even installing 3 States away.
Amazing how far off topic a conversation can go without ever hitting a point that is connected to the initial topic, being Adobe becoming everything from a stock shot library to a CRM. Not that I care.
I have news for Adobe, the print industry moved that direction in a big way 30 years ago. Any graphics shop big enough to need one already has one.
Corel is trying to migrate that way with its online proofing and customer communication portal but it will be a waste of time.
As far as drifting a subject people ask I answer.
I don't think the Abode CRM is targeted at print shops. They are targeting small agencies, design studios and inhouse marketers; the ones that are the "believers". I do think this is all building to a case where Corel (likely the largest competitor) and the rest of the non Adobe providers form a promotional group. They are all being shat on with this "only Adobe is industry standard" rubbish. I've been listening to this "only Adobe is industry standard" with "the Mac is designed for graphics" BS for 30 years. I haven't seen much effort to counter it. That said, I'm talking from Australia. We are prone to "BMW" thinking.
Have you ever seen what happens to a business after a CRM is installed? The continuity that is promised is the first thing that goes. The staff relies on the computer system and it has no brain. I've seen it with every vendor I've used. Companies need brains and a manager not a software.