<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<!--Generated by Squarespace Site Server v5.9.2 (http://www.squarespace.com/) on Mon, 15 Mar 2010 02:05:44 GMT--><feed xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"><title>Journal</title><subtitle>Journal</subtitle><id>http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/</id><link rel="alternate" type="application/xhtml+xml" href="http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/"/><link rel="self" type="application/atom+xml" href="http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/atom.xml"/><updated>2010-03-10T20:02:20Z</updated><generator uri="http://www.squarespace.com/" version="Squarespace Site Server v5.9.2 (http://www.squarespace.com/)">Squarespace</generator><entry><title>Good Things Come in 3s</title><id>http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/2010/3/10/good-things-come-in-3s.html</id><link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/2010/3/10/good-things-come-in-3s.html"/><author><name>Sue</name></author><published>2010-03-10T19:56:41Z</published><updated>2010-03-10T19:56:41Z</updated><content type="html" xml:lang="en-US"><![CDATA[<p>We have found that there needs to be a balance when it comes to choices. Too many choices can be overwhelming but too few, like Chocolate or Vanilla, can be unsatisfying.</p>
<p>So, why work with just one album company when Century Color makes it easy to mix and match among three album companies? Our partnerships with Capri, Renaissance, and Azura Albums ensure you will have a wide cross-selection of album styles, sizes and prices to meet the needs of your clientele.</p>
<p>Our offerings range from peel &amp; stick to traditional to modern coffee table books. Coupled with our easy-<span class="full-image-float-right ssNonEditable"><span><img src="http://www.centurycolorblog.com/storage/albums.jpg?__SQUARESPACE_CACHEVERSION=1268251485322" alt="" /></span></span>to-use software, Album Spinner&trade;, we&rsquo;ve created a seamless workflow that makes designing and ordering albums not only simple, but also fun and worry-free.</p>
<p>Regardless of which album you order, Century Color returns a finished product. Select a peel &amp; stick album from Capri or Renaissance and Century Color technicians adhere the pages to the album for you. All other orders are shipped directly to the album company after Century Color prints the pages. Albums are returned to you or drop shipped directly to your customer upon request.</p>
<p>To learn more about Capri, Renaissance and Azura Albums offered through Century Color, please <a href="http://www.centurycolor.com/Products/AlbumsTemplates/albumtemplate.html">click here</a>.</p>
<p>In addition, our &ldquo;Just Print&rdquo; option allows you to design and order pages to be bound by an album company of your choosing. You may have the pages returned to you or drop-shipped directly to the album company; it&rsquo;s your choice.</p>]]></content></entry><entry><title>Introducing Album Spinner™</title><id>http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/2010/3/3/introducing-album-spinner.html</id><link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/2010/3/3/introducing-album-spinner.html"/><author><name>Sue</name></author><published>2010-03-03T15:39:31Z</published><updated>2010-03-03T15:39:31Z</updated><content type="html" xml:lang="en-US"><![CDATA[<p>If you could create your own album designing software what features would you want to include? Would you want to create your own templates and store them for future use? How about the ability to share the finished design with your bride &amp; groom online? Would you want to import your own backgrounds or masks? What about the ability to edit the images within the program without changing the original image?</p>
<p><span class="full-image-float-left ssNonEditable" style="width: 162px; height: 129px;"><span><img src="http://www.centurycolorblog.com/storage/AlbumSpinner-Logo001.png?__SQUARESPACE_CACHEVERSION=1267643398500" alt="" /></span></span>Well, we have just the right tool for you. Album Spinner&trade; is an album designing software that was created by a professional photography team, Joey and Dawn Fox. Ok, so Joey happens to also be a programmer, but what better combination for creating an album-building software program that meets the needs of busy professional photographers?</p>
<p>We have been working with Joey for the past few months to make Album Spinner&trade; available to our customers as the ultimate instrument for designing, sharing and ordering albums. It is so easy to use that even those of you who outsource your album designing may reconsider, which could save you thousands of dollars a year.</p>
<p>Album Spinner&trade; also features the simplest ordering system available. Once you have built and shared your album with your customer, simply click the &ldquo;send to lab&rdquo; button and your album order will come directly to Century Color for printing and ordering. Century Color has partnered with three album companies, Capri, Renaissance and Azura Albums, to meet your unique needs. Album Spinner&trade; also has a &ldquo;just print&rdquo; option for having the pages printed and returned to you or drop shipped to another album company of your choosing.</p>
<p>To learn more about Album Spinner&trade; <a href="http://www.centurycolor.com/Services/albumspinner.html">click here</a> or contact customer service at 800-242-9501 ext 2.</p>]]></content></entry><entry><title>CPPA Convention Tradeshow</title><id>http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/2010/2/18/cppa-convention-tradeshow.html</id><link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/2010/2/18/cppa-convention-tradeshow.html"/><author><name>Sue</name></author><published>2010-02-18T14:13:17Z</published><updated>2010-02-18T14:13:17Z</updated><content type="html" xml:lang="en-US"><![CDATA[<p>Two great events took place on Sunday, February 7<sup>th</sup> this year. One was the nationally recognized and celebrated Super Bowl, the other was the Connecticut Professional Photographers Association (CP<span class="full-image-float-right ssNonEditable"><span><img style="width: 180px;" src="http://www.centurycolorblog.com/storage/CPPA%20logo-72.jpg?__SQUARESPACE_CACHEVERSION=1266502956887" alt="" /></span></span>PA) Tradeshow!</p>
<p>Of the two events the Tradeshow was the place to be, not only because it was free, but also because the CPPA committee did a fantastic job of recruiting vendors and encouraging CPPA members to attend. We were very pleased with the amount of traffic throughout the day and enjoyed seeing many of our customers and meeting potential new customers.</p>
<p>The tradeshow also allowed us the opportunity to introduce our latest ventures, our new green screen technology for schools and sports, and our soon-to-be released album-designing software, Album Spinner. To learn more about either of these tools please contact customer service at 800-242-9501.</p>
<p>Again, we would like to thank Dan Tual, President of CPPA and Mike Spiegel, VP of Tradeshow, Sales &amp; Advertising, and the rest of the committee for putting on a great convention and tradeshow. We are already looking forward to next year!</p>]]></content></entry><entry><title>A Success Story</title><id>http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/2010/1/27/a-success-story.html</id><link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/2010/1/27/a-success-story.html"/><author><name>Sue</name></author><published>2010-01-27T15:56:34Z</published><updated>2010-01-27T15:56:34Z</updated><content type="html" xml:lang="en-US"><![CDATA[<p>Fifteen of our Underclass photographers participated in our pilot program of hosting their underclass jobs online for reorders. The busiest part of the Underclass season is behind us, so we asked our participants to complete a brief survey of their experience. We received some great feedback indicating that overall the program was a success and participants are looking forward to next year. Additionally, several ideas were suggested for improvements to the program, which we are already working on.</p>
<p><span class="full-image-float-left ssNonEditable"><span><img style="width: 150px;" src="http://www.centurycolorblog.com/storage/ImageQuix.jpg?__SQUARESPACE_CACHEVERSION=1264608018041" alt="" /></span></span>It&rsquo;s late January and we still receive online reorders every day for jobs that were posted prior to the holidays, which translates into bonus sales for the photographer in a traditionally slow season. Online hosting allows photographers to offer specialty products that are not part of their traditional packages. The younger the students the higher the interest in products such as key fobs, fun packs and notebooks. We&rsquo;ve seen orders from numerous states including Florida and Tennessee, so the online ordering is working just as intended, allowing grandparents and extended family members to place their own orders.</p>
<p>If you would like to learn more about how you can participate in hosting your Underclass&nbsp;online, please contact customer service at 800-242-9501 ext. 2.</p>]]></content></entry><entry><title>Welcome 2010!</title><id>http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/2010/1/6/welcome-2010.html</id><link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/2010/1/6/welcome-2010.html"/><author><name>Sue</name></author><published>2010-01-06T17:38:48Z</published><updated>2010-01-06T17:38:48Z</updated><content type="html" xml:lang="en-US"><![CDATA[<p><span class="full-image-block ssNonEditable"><span><img src="http://www.centurycolorblog.com/storage/j02229141.wmf?__SQUARESPACE_CACHEVERSION=1262799722791" alt="" /></span></span></p>
<p>Sort of...</p>
<p>Century Color was closed between Christmas and New Year and we all appreciated the much-needed rest. Unfortunately, our Internet server decided it was time to retire (and didn&rsquo;t even give us two weeks notice)!</p>
<p>As you may have noticed we have been experiencing some difficulty with our web page, ROES, DataMatch, and the ability to FTP images. While this is never an ideal situation, we are certainly relieved that the server spared us this inconvenience during the busy season. We are working diligently to fully restore everything and I am happy to report we are nearly there.</p>
<p>Despite the technological mishap we are looking forward to a new decade. We are working on many new products and online features to introduce in the coming year. We will continue to host workshops to introduce products and programs that will help you boost sales and improve workflow. While we will be reaching out to you in the coming months, please feel free to contact us if you would like to schedule a more immediate meeting.</p>
<p>Tip: January is a great time to sit down and develop a marketing plan, <em>ThePressRoom</em> at Century Color can help.</p>]]></content></entry><entry><title>Holiday Schedule</title><id>http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/2009/12/21/holiday-schedule.html</id><link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/2009/12/21/holiday-schedule.html"/><author><name>Sue</name></author><published>2009-12-21T15:30:46Z</published><updated>2009-12-21T15:30:46Z</updated><content type="html" xml:lang="en-US"><![CDATA[<p>With&nbsp;less than&nbsp;a week till Christmas</p>
<p>Orders come in with a &ldquo;rush&rdquo;</p>
<p>And Century Color workers</p>
<p>Are ready for that push.</p>
<p>We&rsquo;ll get you your orders</p>
<p>And do so with a smile</p>
<p>Because we know after Christmas</p>
<p>We won&rsquo;t be back for a while.</p>
<p>Just like Santa&rsquo;s elves</p>
<p>And eight flying reindeer</p>
<p>You won&rsquo;t see us again</p>
<p>Until early next year.</p>
<p>Till the day before Christmas</p>
<p>We give all that we&rsquo;re worth</p>
<p>So we&rsquo;re gifted with a break</p>
<p>Until January fourth!</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Century Color will be closed from noon on Dec.24<sup>th</sup> until Monday January 4<sup>th</sup>, 2010!</p>
<p>We wish you all a safe and happy holiday season and a very Happy New Year!</p>
<p>Century Color hours starting in January will be Monday - Thursday 8:30 a.m - 5:00 p.m.</p>
<p>Century Color will be closed on Fridays through March.</p>]]></content></entry><entry><title>Holiday Cards</title><id>http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/2009/12/2/holiday-cards.html</id><link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/2009/12/2/holiday-cards.html"/><author><name>Sue</name></author><published>2009-12-02T16:33:58Z</published><updated>2009-12-02T16:33:58Z</updated><content type="html" xml:lang="en-US"><![CDATA[<p>The turkey has been eaten and the bellies have all been stuffed; now it is on to December.&nbsp; It seems that holiday card orders have been a little slow to arrive, but we have seen a dramatic increase this past week. If you are experiencing an initial decrease in holiday card orders we urge you to stay diligent with your marketing efforts, a late order is better than no order.</p>
<p>On that note, we are not imposing a holiday deadline for card orders. We have been able to maintain a timely turn around for card orders, so we do not anticipate a need to set a definitive deadline. Please use your best judgment when dealing with your own customers&rsquo; requests.</p>]]></content></entry><entry><title>This and that...</title><id>http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/2009/10/7/this-and-that.html</id><link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/2009/10/7/this-and-that.html"/><author><name>Sue</name></author><published>2009-10-07T13:38:58Z</published><updated>2009-10-07T13:38:58Z</updated><content type="html" xml:lang="en-US"><![CDATA[<p>This year we introduced online posting of underclass jobs. Quite a few of our school photographers have signed up to be a part of this new venture and are starting to see the benefits already. The very first job that was posted received four online re-orders within the first week! We are sure the other participating photographers will see the same rewards as their school images are posted.&nbsp;</p>
<p>We&rsquo;ve also been receiving rave reviews about our ID cards this year. Earlier in the year we purchased two new ID card printers and the quality is fantastic. Photographers and schools have commented that the bar codes are easier to read and the image quality surpasses previous ID cards.&nbsp;</p>
<p>ThePressRoom staff has noticed an increase in orders for marketing materials from photographers. We would like to applaud all of you who have taken the initiative to create new marketing campaigns and get the word out about your business. As we noted in our September Newsletter, &ldquo;better marketing&rdquo; is the number one need of photographers for increasing their revenue.</p>
<p>ThePressRoom at Century Color was designed with your marketing needs in mind.</p>
<p>And last, but not least, more rave reviews about our new design feature in ROES for ordering books, greeting cards and bookmarks. The new feature allows you to &ldquo;flip&rdquo; to the next page or side, making designing much easier. If you haven&rsquo;t tried it, what are you waiting for?</p>
<p>Please keep the feedback coming! While we all appreciate recognition for a job well done, we also want your feedback if there are products or services you would like to see added or improved. Our goal is to help you meet the needs of your customers.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>]]></content></entry><entry><title>Customer Appreciation</title><id>http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/2009/9/10/customer-appreciation.html</id><link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/2009/9/10/customer-appreciation.html"/><author><name>Sue</name></author><published>2009-09-10T15:00:59Z</published><updated>2009-09-10T15:00:59Z</updated><content type="html" xml:lang="en-US"><![CDATA[<p>The crisp mornings we have been experiencing here in New England make me realize that the leaves are about to change color, pint-sized ghosts and goblins will soon be ringing my doorbell, and before long we&rsquo;ll be celebrating my favorite holiday, Thanksgiving!</p>
<p>But, I am getting a little ahead of myself, although speaking of giving thanks reminds me that Century Color has a special promotion this month for studio thank you cards. Personal studio thank you cards are the ideal way to show your customers how much you appreciate their business.</p>
<p>Mother Theresa once said, &ldquo;There is more hunger for love and appreciation in this world than for bread.&rdquo;</p>
<p>At Century Color we make every effort to send personal cards to our customers whenever the opportunity arises. Whether it is a thank you for a referral or recognition for an award or milestone, we feel great letting our customers know we are thinking about them. And from the feedback we have received, we know our customers appreciate being thought of.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<span class="thumbnail-image-block ssNonEditable"><span><a href="javascript:showFullImage('/display/ShowImage?imageUrl=%2Fstorage%2FDesign2centuryfront.jpg%3F__SQUARESPACE_CACHEVERSION%3D1252595674035',1000,1400);"></a></span></span></p>
<p>To learn more about how to order your studio thank you cards <a href="http://www.centurycolor.com/emailnewsletter/templateimages/thankyou_card_promo.jpg">click here</a>.</p>]]></content></entry><entry><title>It's Official, Summer is Over</title><id>http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/2009/8/26/its-official-summer-is-over.html</id><link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="http://www.centurycolorblog.com/journal/2009/8/26/its-official-summer-is-over.html"/><author><name>Sue</name></author><published>2009-08-26T18:14:59Z</published><updated>2009-08-26T18:14:59Z</updated><content type="html" xml:lang="en-US"><![CDATA[<p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #000000;">September is&nbsp;upon us&nbsp;and the kids are going back to school. I can hear a collective sigh of relief from all the parents out there!</span></span></p>
<p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #000000;">&nbsp;</span></span></p>
<p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #000000;">Now it&rsquo;s time to get down to the nitty-gritty. Whether you&rsquo;re a wedding or school photographer this is a very busy time of year for you. Wedding photographers already have plenty of jobs to edit and present for clients&rsquo; review, not to mention waiting on spring brides to choose images for their albums. And October, one of the busiest wedding months of the year, is right around the corner.</span></span></p>
<p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #000000;">&nbsp;</span></span></p>
<p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #000000;">School photographers are busy securing shoot dates, restocking order envelopes and communicating data information from the school to the lab. All in addition to juggling the various stages of work for the jobs you shot over the summer.</span></span></p>
<p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #000000;">&nbsp;</span></span></p>
<p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #000000;">However, you can never be too busy to consider opportunities for boosting sales. For wedding photographers, we suggest utilizing our <a href="http://www.centurycolor.com/Emailnewsletter/1_dollar_card_promo.html">$1 Card promotion</a> to generate holiday card orders from your couples.</span></span></p>
<p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; color: black; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">&nbsp;</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #000000;">And for the school photographers out there we recommend <a href="http://www.centurycolor.com/Emailnewsletter/CCandIQ_underclass_2.html">posting your underclass online</a> to increase reorder sales without increasing your workload.</span></span></p>
<p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #000000;">&nbsp;</span></span></p>
<p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #000000;">For more information on either of these suggestions please contact Sue or Doreen in customer service.</span></span></p>]]></content></entry></feed>