Interviews

Question & Answer Session with Creative Automation's Senior Vice President, Rick Miller
Interview taken from Print Professional Magazine

Rick Miller

Please state your name, title, company and the date.

Rick Miller - Senior Vice President of Creative Automation - a Vmark Company February 12, 2007.

Can you give a general description of Creative Automation (CAC)?

Founded in 1969, Creative Automation is a privately held, minority certified supplier to the direct marketing industry.

What kinds of direct mail services does CAC offer?

We provide data processing, database management, forms printing, personalization, finishing and mailing services.

When did CAC begin offering direct mail services?

Early on CAC's ownership recognized the benefit of providing our customers with a complete solution for their direct marketing needs. Our growth has been directed in many instances by the ever changing needs and requirements of our customers and changes within the industry itself. Customer trust in our capabilities has over time allowed us to expand into services such as forms printing and lettershop/mailing.

What was the biggest obstacle you faced in adding direct mail as a service?

The mailing industry is competitive in nature. As an organization entering into that field 20+ years ago there were a number of issues that needed to be addressed. Initial service level offerings, investment in technological advancement, effective marketing of these services to existing as well as prospective customers all were issues that were faced initially and to some extent are continually addressed by our management and ownership.

When did manufacturers in general begin offering direct mail services?

In many cases it is related to what we often refer to as "vendor management". As customers purchasing and marketing departments have gone through consolidation over the years the result has been more responsibility for each employee. Companies such as Creative Automation need to offer these organizations the time-saving opportunity to work with one company for multiple services.

This article is going to focus on how direct mail has changed since it's introduction into the marketplace. What changes have you directly witnessed?

In CAC's early years true "database marketing" and segmentation was in its infancy. As the ability to identify profitable customer and prospect segments has evolved, so has the impact on direct mail. Smaller print groups with more focused and targeted messages have resulted from the advancements in the data management technology.