Sustainability has to be one of the first quality aspects to have in mind when choosing paper for direct marketing and catalogues. Paper is a renewable material with a great recycling rate. Holmen's papers are all made from fresh fibres in a TMP process, a thermomechanical pulping process. The production is 100 % traceable and the raw material comes from sustainably managed forests in Sweden, one of the most forested countries in the world.
How to buy paper for catalogues and direct marketing
Catalogues and direct mail send-outs have to earn their attention. Be it inspirational, informative, evocative and sales-driving - your choice of paper is still fundamental. Here's how to buy paper for your important large-volume printed solutions.
Paper for catalogues and product overviews
When you go high-end, the paper choice cannot be over-estimated. A high-end product range overview or catalogue sets out to fulfil your mission, to carry the representation of the product to where the buyer is. Tactility is one of the most important tools available to achieve this. Coated papers with a glossy or matte finish are common choices, but just like in the magazine segment, uncoated papers have started to gain interest, and rightfully so. Innovative and bold choices attract the eye. A natural feeling works to your advantage. A matte surface makes it possible to stand out and to use embossing, partial lacquer coating or UV coating to their full effect.
Holmen's uncoated fresh-fibre papers are rich and bulky. Their bulky properties enable a comfortable thickness of the page, even though the paper is still very light in grammage. This means that you often can achieve the same feeling of quality when using a lower grammage paper than the paper you are used to.
Evoke the right emotions with vivid, tactile and memorable product presentations. We'll make it easy for you to find the right catalogue paper from the segment of light-weight or medium-weight papers.
Using a light-weight paper with great printing properties may be the defining factor for the catalogue to be picked up at your showroom or store and brought home by the reader. It's so easy to hold, so the reader doesn't put it down. It's so comfortable to read when you feel how light it is. And it doesn't add much weight to carry, so it gets carried home.
If you would like to make your paper choices within the Holmen family, you should go for Holmen Iggesund's Invercote on the cover and Holmen EPIC, Holmen VIEW or Holmen TRND for the insert. For catalogue productions with many pages, our super-calendered, light-weight paper Holmen UNIQ is very appreciated.
Paper for direct marketing and weekly offers
Direct mail that is made to be sent out in large volumes, such as weekly offers or product range overviews, also have to attract and inspire their readers. But because of their large circulation, distribution will make up a very large part of the cost. And no company can go about their business without thinking about the environment. We all need to make sustainable communication choices. This is why different kinds of light-weight paper are the most widely used for direct marketing.
A leading choice for large volume printed matters would be a high-bulk SC-paper, super-calendered, such as the market pioneer Holmen UNIQ. Holmen UNIQ is a super-slim paper with a double-sided smooth surface. It comes in different grammages from 37 gsm to 50 gsm to cover different needs.
Holmen XLNT is another highly competitive paper that helps you keep down the cost for production and distribution. In the MF-paper segment, machine-finished papers, we also offer Holmen PLUS, with qualities that compare well with many more expensive products.
Make it sustainable
How to make a sustainable choice
Sustainability is often defined as meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs. It is described from three main pillar aspects: social, environmental, and economical, referred to as 'people, planet, profit'. To read more about Holmen's work regarding these three aspects, please go to our Sustainability pages.
When buying fresh fibre paper, ensure that it's sourced from sustainably managed forests with care for regrowth and biodiversity. When it comes to production and transport, a circular approach is to be preferred.
For both recycled and fresh fibre paper, try to look more closely into how much energy that is consumed in the production process, and from where this energy is taken. Look for what happens to waste and wastewater, find out which chemicals are used and with what impact. Having sustainable processes makes the whole difference.
If we are to minimize our impact on the environment, we have to take the circular approach to process, reprocess and restore. And this has to be managed in an economical way, with concern for biodiversity in the short and long term.
It may seem difficult to know, but there are tools
To compare papers from different paper suppliers, or see how much lower the footprint will be with paper in a lower basic weight, you can use Carbon footprints and Paper profiles. Our Carbon footprint document does exactly as the name says, it states both the carbon sequestration in the forests and the emissions associated with the production, transportation and usage. The Paper profile is a product declaration that simplifies comparison between different paper suppliers because they show the same aspects, measured in the same way.
Find them and other environmental certifications in our Download center.
Calculator
Calculate the savings
With Holmen's papers, it's often possible to choose a lower grammage paper than you are used to. Our Bulky Math Calculator shows you how this would lower your cost.
Roll or sheet printing
Paper is manufactured and delivered in rolls. Paper for catalogues or direct mail in large circulation is normally supplied to the printing house on reels with an agreed width (normally between 0.8-3.8 meters). The printing house usually takes care of printing, cutting, binding, and sometimes wrapping or packing before distribution.
The web printer press is made for printing, folding, and handling of large print editions from paper rolls in a fast process which reduces overhead costs and production time, as long as there are no standstills. Our customer care set-up makes sure our paper rolls are delivered in the right time and place to fit the planning.
Holmen Paper always offer technical support, and we work in close contact with most of the European printing houses as well as with printers all over the world. We are experts in facilitation.
Paper sheets for catalogues or direct mail
But many digital and offset printing presses aren't constructed for paper rolls, instead they are sheet-fed. Sheet-feeding is common especially for smaller printing presses or smaller circulation luxury catalogues with different paper grades for cover and insert.
Holmen Paper cooperates with paper converters and wholesale specialists to provide paper sheets for your needs. Your local sales contact will help you to find the best solutions for your part of the world.
Direct marketing research and effects
There are many examples of how printed materials show better effects than digital communication. Here is inspiration from the world of printed catalogues and direct mail.