Billboard Insider spoke with Rod Rackley, the CEO and President of Circle Graphics on trends in the vinyl market. Circle Graphics leads US out of home printing market in market share, number of factories, customer base, employee count, and revenue.
Rod you’re on the OAAA Board of Directors. Could you share insights about your role and the buzz around the upcoming Annual Convention?
Indeed, I’m honored to represent the industry suppliers on the OAAA Board. Currently, I’m also part of the 2024 OOH Media Conference Advisory Group. We’ve just had our inaugural meeting, and I’m thrilled about the progress. This year’s theme, “Our Moment,” signals an exciting and impactful convention, building on our successful event in Nashville. Scheduled for April 29-May 1 in San Diego, the conference (registration now open) is shaping up to be extraordinary, thanks to Anna Bager (CEO), Marci Werlinich (EVP Ops), and their dedicated team. A key improvement this year is the integration of the trade show with the meeting space, enhancing the networking opportunities, which I personally find invaluable. I welcome any suggestions from your readers for the conference planning. Please email me at rod@circlegraphicsonline.com with topics or questions you’d like addressed, or your views on industry versus external speakers.
How have face-to-face meetings evolved compared to remote interactions during covid?
It’s heartening to see a resurgence in personal customer interactions. Recent visits from Clear Channel, ODN, and Billups leaders have been fantastic. They’ve offered us a chance to showcase our advanced automation and improvements since COVID-19. For interested clients who might want to visit, we delve deep into production KPIs, exploring ways to streamline processes and expedite campaign launches. Here are some metrics our systems meticulously track for client benefit:
- Time from Order to Art Receipt (in hours)
- Percentage of Orders with Art at the Time of Order
- Time Spent in Customer Service and Prepress (in hours)
- Accuracy of Orders to Spec
- Customer Proof Approval Time (in hours)
- Interval Between Proof Approval and Shipping (in days)
- Rates of Early or On-Time Shipments
- Breakdown of Shipment Methods (Ground, 2-Day Air, Next Day Air)
What current trends are you noticing in OOH printing?
This year mirrors the last in many ways. Of course, transit has been soft as we see a shift in transit advertising moving towards digital formats. National campaigns have been quieter, but local advertising remains fairly healthy. A notable area of growth for us is in Wall Production. Demand for oversized walls has surged, prompting us to double our capacity at our Wooster facility. We’ve invested in new printers and bespoke welding machines, catering to large cities’ high-profile locations for leading brands in fashion, liquor, technology, and automotive. Our 2020 acquisition of Metro Media Technologies significantly bolstered our wallscape production capabilities. Media companies face unique challenges with walls, like securing permits, ensuring safety with heavy graphics, and achieving impeccable color accuracy and weather resistance. The production really needs to be perfect, the first time. Our approach includes proprietary techniques and advanced equipment like EFI SR LED/UV printers, ensuring exceptional quality and durability. We also offer comprehensive installation services and a 5-year warranty on wallscape media produced using our drum technology.
Could you share updates on your systems and customer service enhancements?
Continuous improvement is a cornerstone at Circle Graphics. Our CG Order Management (CGOM) and customer portal, My Circle, evolve daily from market learnings and feedback.We’re committed to learning from every error and preventing future occurrences. Let me give you a small, but representative example. Reagan Outdoor acquired faces in Indianapolis that were previously owned by Fairway. Fairway used the Circle cable/clip system posters, called Eco-Posters. The majority of Reagan poster faces in other markets use the Formetco system, which is a different poster. The two posters systems are not compatible. Circle doesn’t adopt an attitude that “we print what the customer tells us”; our systems kick in and are smart enough to know what poster a market needs based on the ship address. We pull the brake cord, confirm the correct poster, and avoid a re-print and lost media by getting it right the first time. Recent enhancements to our systems include:
- Ability to edit orders in My Circle: a self-service feature that allows customers to add a new line, cancel an order, pull from print if possible, change ship method or address, and much more.
- Urgent Button: a priority help option if something goes wrong and you need immediate attention
- Daily Roundup: a daily email that shows you what is shipping to your market whether you ordered it or someone else ordered it and it’s shipping to you.
- Confirmation Emails: we can send (or suppress!) just about any order email you want, including: order confirmation emails, proof emails, art reminder emails, shipping confirmations, and, even, delivery confirmation emails.
For a demo or inquiries, I invite you to contact me at rod@circlegraphicsonline.com. In conclusion, Circle Graphics upholds a simple, honest promise: If it’s not right, we’ll fix it. We stand firmly behind this commitment, ensuring excellent service and quality for every client. And if we ever fall short of this, again, I would love to hear from you (rod@circlegraphicsonline.com).
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