Xerox Customer Focus is Front and Center at Graph Expo

Events feature leaders in the graphic communications field, opportunities to learn, share and network.

CHICAGO- Xerox Corporation (NYSE: XRX) put customers at the center of attention at Graph Expo 2007. The company brought together a compelling cadre of experts to share secrets of their success and created forums for graphic communication providers to collaborate and learn from each other.

Xerox’s news conference at the show featured a panel of two of the country’s premier print providers, each joined by one of their clients, for a discussion about The New Business of Printing™ and the role of digital print. The event was simultaneously broadcast around the world via the internet.

Ursula Burns, president, Xerox Corporation, kicked off the panel discussion with three “mega trends” in the business - personalization, collaboration and digitization.

“The trends reflect the changing business model that has put the customer at the center of the conversation, dictating how they want to receive information,” said Burns. “Digital technology has made it possible to succeed in this model by delivering communications services tailored to each customer’s unique needs.”

Panel participants echoed Burns’ take on the industry, highlighting the various print jobs driving growth, including marketing collateral, direct mail, books and manuals. Moderator Steve Lance, co-author of “The Little Blue Book of Advertising,” was joined by Freddie Baird of QuantumDirect and his client Sara Costello of Sylvan Learning Centers, as well as Mike Pannagio of DME and his client Scott Zientarski of AutoNation.

The panelists agreed that the key to bringing complex projects to life is to truly become a partner with your customers. Panelists also believed that the adoption of digital technology will likely happen quicker than currently projected.

“The opportunities that exist in the digital print market are immense and inaction is really the greatest enemy,” said Freddie Baird. “If you’re not in the business, you’re going to be out of business.”

Lance’s award-winning work in advertising, public relations and television has earned him the status of customer guru. A firm believer that technology has transformed the way in which businesses are able to interact and communicate with customers, Lance is an advocate for Xerox’s approach to The New Business of Printing - building your business around your customers’ demands for effective documents.

Closing out the panel discussion, Quincy Allen, president, Xerox Production Systems Group, emphasized that the customers and the end users on the stage are not an exception, they are the rule. End users are asking for faster turnaround, personalization and high-quality printing. And print providers recognize that these services are best done with digital printing.

“Xerox customers tell us that a key reason they are successful using digital printing to grow their business is that they don’t have to go it alone. Xerox is partnering with them, showing them how to succeed in the New Business of Printing,” said Allen.

Allen’s sentiments held true at a Xerox Premier Partners event held earlier in the day. Graphic communications providers from across the Americas gathered to learn and share with each other. The forum discussed a variety of trends in the marketplace and the challenges and opportunities that currently exist. A hot topic at the event was how to effectively price digital content and maximize profit. Xerox Premier Partners has seen large growth in 2007, driven by graphic communications providers looking to colleagues and Xerox to help them build their business.