1. A Look into the new Social Life
     

    June 28th, 2011

    In 2010, it was recorded that the average American spent thirty-two hours a month on the Internet. As the popularity of social media sites like Facebook and Twitter increases, so does the amount of time people spend online. But why do people spend hours on end cruising about the Internet and what are the elements we users find so addicting? This suction cup called social media is addicting because it is current. People love current. The Internet has conditioned us to stay plugged in, so to speak. If something’s going on, posted, tweeted about, uploaded, we need to see it and we need to see it now. Other people’s lives unfold before our eyes, as we watch our screen refresh and update. New information inundates our newsfeed and timelines. People stay online because other people stay online. Together, we form a community of addicts, all addicted to each other. This is our new definition of social. How ironic that social media is the term used for online correspondence. So, as I sit here on Facebook all day, consider my social life enviable.

    Celebrities and companies have taken notice: people are always on Facebook. Why not target people in a place they spend thirty-two hours every month? This part makes sense, but what’s so important about having as many followers/ fans as possible? What’s the benefit of having a high number? It’s simple: viral recognition. Like fashion, Facebook has trends- certain pages become popular at certain times, based on who likes them. The more people like your page, the more user pages your fan page shows up on, increasing the chances of more people viewing your page.

    So is there a right or wrong way to utilize social media to one’s professional advantage?  Or are we all figuring it out as we go? There’s a reason why there is no Facebook rulebook- that reason being that Facebook changes regularly. Elements are constantly added- different features, layouts, and capabilities, etc. As technology advances, so do the social media sites that rely on it. And for this reason, there is no guidebook instructing companies how best to use Facebook- because using Facebook to better one’s business has never been done before. This resource of exposure is revolutionary, and each day more people learn it is a skill worth learning. Millions of fan pages exist, and each fan page hopes to rack up their “likes”- because they want to be recognized. They want to be seen by the masses, and the masses use Facebook. Perhaps on the day that progress can no longer be made, and developers have done all that they can to advance the world wide web, a rulebook can be written.

    Julie Daniels

     

    Source:

    http://www.comscoredatamine.com/2011/01/average-time-spent-online-per-u-s-visitor-in-2010/

     

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  2. A Wall is a Terrible Thing to Waste
     

    May 20th, 2011

    If your house says something about the person you are, then what do your walls say about you? Every building has plenty of them, whether you like them or not. The month of May is one of the busiest months for people to change residences. College students are moving out of their dorms or apartments, families are moving into their summer home, and many are starting a new lease in a new location. With all of the chaos surrounding a move-in or move-out, many forget the essential step of dressing-up the one thing that takes up most of the space in their home: their walls.

    In today’s society, the poster market is a bit undefined. There are no stores that specialize solely in the sale of posters, and the retail stores that carry them don’t usually carry a broad selection. The sale of posters in abundance lives largely online, but that too does not come without its drawbacks. When ordering online, you run the risk of purchasing from an untrustworthy seller, receiving damaged goods, and being overcharged with taxes and shipping. In a world where technology rules, it seems that the poster industry is lagging significantly. I yearn for the day when I can walk into a friend’s dorm or apartment and see something other than a Bob Marley or John Belushi “College” poster. That day may come sooner than I thought.

    At Pixxlz, we value creativity as much as we do printing. We believe that the two go hand-in-hand. Having said that, we wanted to provide a platform for our customers to create original posters from any image of their choice and we’ve been successful in creating such a platform. Being able to use this online platform, via Pixxlz.com, Facebook, or your mobile device, you can submit any image to be made into a poster. Say goodbye to traditional posters like Scarface and Aubrey Hepburn. And say hello to your new poster of your creation that includes memories of you and your friends at the Prom or that crazy day at the beach. Pixxlz is expanding the horizons of the very limited poster market for you and all your “Wall-Space.” Control goes back to the people who have to live in the wall and look at the wall everyday: You.

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  3. Poster Prints from Facebook
     

    April 21st, 2011

    Pixxlz is re-defining the way consumers interact with and transform their photos. Pixxlz has recently launched a revolutionary Facebook application for the world. Facebook and non-Facebook members alike will have access to the easy-to-use app that allows users to upload photos within Facebook to be printed as posters. Once uploaded, the customer will be able to choose from sizing and customization options, before finalizing their order in a secure PayPal commerce checkout. The Facebook interface caters to all ages: both older individuals who are accustomed to traditional order forms and younger persons who have grown up with Facebook
    With the company’s recent move to South Boston’s Innovation District, Pixxlz thinks that now is the perfect time to unveil the unprecedented venture in the photo sharing and print eco-space. “We understand that print is becoming an end of life product,” says CEO Grover Daniels, “but if we can find ways to work with the technology of today instead of against it, we can still play an important role with people and businesses. And that is exactly what we are doing with the Poster Prints App.”
    The Facebook application can be accessed by all at facebook.com/Pixxlz.

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  4. Unearthing Awareness at Pixxlz
     

    April 20th, 2011

    Earth Day is one of those holidays that fall into the cracks, somewhere between St. Patrick’s Day and Easter. Here at Pixxlz, though, we consider April 22nd one of the most important days of the year. A concept that started out as a day dedicated to inspiring awareness and appreciation of the Earth’s natural landscape has now made its way into the agendas of many organizations. More and more people are making the conservation of the Earth a top priority in both their personal endeavors as well as in their business ventures.
    Providing customized printing products in the most environmentally conscious ways is our mission at Pixxlz. As the printing world has evolved, so has the role of the Earth’s natural resources within the industry. Pixxlz has found several printing alternatives that have diversified our customers experience and reduced our environmental impact in the process. One major transition that we have been reinforcing is the move away from hard (paper) proofs towards soft (digital) proofs of projects. With the great advancements of technology, it only makes sense to save paper and create copies of projects digitally, making storage and distribution all the more easier.
    Our implementation of electronic PDF’s is another step towards environmental conservation. At Pixxlz, we offer sophisticated flip page PDF files for our business clients as an alternative to paper documents. This way, our customers can achieve the same level of professionalism in their presentations while maintaining the tangible life-like feel and saving paper.
    When it comes to submitting files, we believe that digital is better. We offer a number of ways to submit work, all in the absence of actual paper. We have created an online submission form within Facebook that easily allows our customers to communicate with us, without ever leaving the social networking site. In addition, our website provides the same infrastructure for those who wish to submit files in a more familiar way.
    Pixxlz also uses soy-based inks as well as environmentally sensitive printing plates and hybrid delivery vehicles. As you can see, our environmental agenda transcends paper. We have found several ways to reduce our impact on the Earth, and for that, today is a celebration!

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  5. Hope on the Horizon for Print
     

    April 7th, 2011

    If you have read this week’s bfsdaniels | copycop blog, then you already have learned all about the way digital and print are working seamlessly together through the process known as “web-to-print.” The print-digital relationship is an interesting one. In some aspects they are competitors, in others they are compliments, and in even more ways they are platforms for one another.
    By now, it is common knowledge that many print publications are going out of business. Newspapers and magazines have fallen throughout the world in alarming numbers. With the advancement of technology, we can now access all of our news digitally via the internet. Digital technology is not just a threat to print, though, it is also a catalyst. Digital takes and it gives.
    A prime example of this phenomenon is the VizitMe digital photo frame (produced by Isabella Products, a strategic partner of Pixxlz for three years). Through using this digital frame, consumers can share pictures with anyone at anytime over their private network. It is a visually centered social network for family and friends. Users have personal accounts created for them in which they can add photos from their computer and mobile devices to be shared exclusively with who they choose only. With VizitMe, your parents do not have to wait for you to get back from Florida to see pictures of their grandchildren at Disney World – they can see them instantaneously. VizitMe was even recently featured on a segment of the Today Show.
    VizitMe’s technology creates new opportunities for the printing industry. Its architecture lends itself to a sharing aspect, in which many people have access to the same images. Expanding on this concept, these people now have access to printing these images. Just as they created a social network for image viewing, they created opportunity for a social network for printing. Instead of reaching out to the individual who took the picture for a copy, any approved user of the device could theoretically print the picture on their own.
    As stated before, digital is a thief and a philanthropist. Where it destroys opportunity, it also creates many more. Only time will be able to tell where digital will take the industry, but for now, we are very excited about this revolution in the printing world.

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  6. State of the Union
     

    March 31st, 2011

    The topic of paper production and its impact on the environment never fails to ignite controversy when discussed. Whether it is through providing massive “deforestation” or enormous “waste” propaganda, the media has done a good job of distorting the truth of the matter. The fact is many people do not know the actual realities of paper production. Too often, we are made to feel bad about our paper consumption. I would like to take the time to discuss the immense progress the industry has made in production and recycling, so that you won’t feel bad the next time you print out that copy of Harry Potter.

    The following are some facts regarding our recycling progress (most of which you won’t hear in the media):

    • 37 percent of the fiber used to make new paper products in the United States comes from recycled sources.
    • In 2008, the amount of paper recovered for recycling averaged340 pounds for every person in the U.S.
    • 57.4 percent of the paper consumed in the U.S. was recovered for recycling.
    • By 2012, the paper industry’s goal is to recover 60 percent of all the paper Americans consume for recycling, which is approximately 60 million tons of paper.

    Pixxlz, we understand the dire importance of preserving the environment. But we are not here to lecture or patronize you. We want to celebrate the progress that we have made in recycling and continue to make even more. We want to show that you can make great, original paper products and help the environment. It doesn’t have to be one or the other.

    Source: http://www.environment-green.com

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  7. Design Tip of the Week: Saving Your Work
     

    January 29th, 2010

    We get a lot of questions about saving work on our site, and whether or not customers need to save their work in order to successfully place an order. The simple answer is no; you can visit our site, design or upload a file, and checkout in just a few short minutes without ever creating an account. But a great option that our site offers is the ability for customers to create an account and save their work to be edited or ordered in the future. So here’s how:

    Save your work

    When you are in the design tool and have finished designing your template, click the “Save My Work” button on the left side of the page. (Only the current page that you are designing and future pages that you create will be saved, so if you are designing a two-sided business card, make sure that you initiate this step on the first side of the card so that your first side is saved!) This prompts you to navigate away from the page to set up an account. If you already have an account, enter your information and the page you are currently working on will be saved. Otherwise, you can create a new account. Fill in your information and once you click “Register,” you will receive confirmation on the screen with your login information, as well as a confirmation email to keep for future use. Enter your email and password, click Login, and your saved works are available to be managed!

    Having trouble with this feature? Contact us and we’ll be happy to help. Have suggestions for how to make your experience better? Let us know! We’re always trying to improve the user experience.

    Category: Keeping It Green, PixxlzComments (0)

  8. NEW:: Square Eco Friendly Business Cards
     

    November 12th, 2009

    We’re mixing it up at Pixxlz by adding a new size and shape to our line of business cards. In addition to our standard size and mini business cards, now we offer square, 2.5″ X 2.5″ cards. Square business cards are a great way for you to distinguish yourself. People always comment on my square card and I know that they’ll remember me later when they see my card peeking out behind the others in their Rolodex. The shape alone makes the card stand out so it’s ok to keep the graphic design simple and sleek.

    The price of square business cards is the same as our other cards, so there’s no reason to choose one over the other because of price. If you can’t decide between mini and square, why not get both? It’s fun to choose which people to give your favorite card to.

    Design Tip::

    Get creative with our templates. One of our customers introduced me to a clever idea when he ordered “Save the Date” cards for his upcoming wedding. Using a blank business card template and centering the text, he created a wallet-size card that he could give to his wedding guests. Not only was it a creative way to announce his upcoming nuptials, but he also got to take advantage of our low prices for eco friendly printing.

    So check out our new square business cards, and whether you’re creating something for business or pleasure, we know you’ll be pleased with your results!

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  9. Online Print-on-Demand:: myprintdocs.com
     

    November 6th, 2009

    Ever get tired of re-submitting documents for printing? Or have you lost documents that you meant to save for future use? Myprintdocs.com may just be the solution for you. We are proud to introduce our newest site, an online print-on-demand service that offers the simplest way to store and print your business documents for free.

    Myprintdocs.com is the perfect solution for customers who frequently reorder jobs. We upload your documents to a user-friendly, password protected storefront and you control the content; whether documents are static or customizable is up to you. Log in to order any quantity of any document at any time. Your Copy Cop or Pixxlz sales representative will help you manage your myprintdocs.com site, working together to determine the best documents for us to upload for you. Just login, add the items you would like to purchase to your shopping cart, submit your order and we’re ready to print.

    Myprintdocs.com also allows you to maintain brand integrity. What you order from myprintdocs.com should always reflect your company’s true brand identity, and we will work with you to make sure all of your documents are consistent to your brand.

    In addition to being easy to use, myprintdocs.com is environmentally conscious. Print only what you need at any point in time, and come back to reorder when your product runs out. This eliminates a tremendous amount of waste as well as the need for warehousing. Let myprintdocs.com help reduce your business’ carbon footprint.

    To test out myprintdocs.com yourself, check out our demo site. (User Id: testuser; Password: welcome)

    To get started using myprintdocs.com, please contact us at Daniels@dpcboston.com.

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  10. A Greener Apple
     

    October 15th, 2009

    I’m a Mac girl, always have been – always will be. From the first Macintosh desktop that I had in my room in elementary school, to the Mac Classic that I learned to type on, there has been no shortage of Apple influence in my life. So as a die-hard Mac follower and an eco-friendly printer, I was sad to hear that Apple’s environmental awareness was rather lacking in the past few years while competitors like Dell and HP came out ahead of the curve.

    Apple has been criticized by groups like Greenpeace for advertising green practices when, in actuality, they weren’t as eco-conscious as they claimed. Citing the lack of disposal options for customers with outdated Apple products and chemicals used in the manufacturing of their products, Apple was called upon to do more than just talk the talk. After touting their line of MacBooks as the most environmentally friendly laptop family in the industry, Apple is now doing more than just advertising their supposed green initiative.

    Enter: Apple and the Environment, a new page on Apple.com aimed at breaking down the environmental impact of Apple’s products, from design and production through their product life cycle. Not only does the site breakdown where exactly Apple’s greenhouse gas emissions come from, it also explains the steps they have taken in the past few years to reduce their impact. For one, the size of their products has decreased. They have also taken measures to rid their products of harmful chemicals that they were once criticized for, even taking it a step further to rid their products of bromine and chlorine, an industry first.

    So thank you, Apple. I knew I loved you for a reason.

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