Issue link: https://nbm.uberflip.com/i/1490460
4 0 G R A P H I C S P R O • F E B R U A R Y 2 0 2 3 G R A P H I C S - P R O. C O M T E A M S P O R T S B U S I N E S S T I P I t's hard to believe that the spring award and trophy sea- son is right around the corner. Now is the time to start thinking about what products you can offer your custom- ers that will help set you apart from your competition. A great, cost-effective way to do that is by offering full-color awards and plaques using sublimation. The advantages of sublimation Sublimation offers several advantages over the traditional base/column/topper trophy that dominates the space this time of year. e first, and most obvious, is the ability to use full color. School awards take on a whole new dimen- sion when you add in a full-color school logo, mascot, or group photo. PRO TIP: Add in a small sublimated "coaches award" with a team photo. It's a great way to build customer loy- alty while also showing what's possible for the next season with sublimation. Be efficient Another advantage to using sublimation for awards is the ability to batch print those full-color awards. You can send multiple plaques or medals to the printer while you're press- ing the first batch or working on another project. With a little planning, you'll find that sublimation can make you more efficient during the busy awards season. PRO TIP: Set your sublimation printer to print landscape (length-wise) as opposed to the traditional portrait mode. Doing this will allow the print head to do more printing and less "traveling" (moving back and forth to reset the next print line). You can increase your print efficiency by up to 30% using this little trick! Create truly custom awards Did you know that with the wide range of sublimation substrates available, you can create customized shapes for awards? Even if a customer is ordering a base/col- umn/topper trophy or "billboard" style award, you can cut sublimatable alumi- num with a small table-top metal shear to fit any size. Adding a full-color element to a traditional trophy can and give you a great up-sell opportunity. We often think of sublimation when it comes to customized gifts and keepsakes, but using subli- mation during awards season can give you a unique selling proposition with your customers. Sublimatable awards have come a long way in the past decade, with many great-look- ing options available. Using sublimatable awards can also introduce the process to teams and coaches and open the door to future sublimation sales, such as key chains, mugs, and photo frames. GP C O U R T E S Y O F J O H N S O N P L A S T I C S P L U S Awards USING SUBLIMATION IN