Sustainability Report 2013: Customers

Sappi has long been respected as a leading provider of educational information to the print industry and we are committed to continuing this legacy.  We also know that our sustainability performance is an integral element of our brand promise.

Buyers want to know that they are working with reputable suppliers, eliminating risk from their supply chain. In addition to quality products and services, we are delivering peace of mind to pulp and paper buyers.

Sappi’s commitment to marketing and educational outreach has been unmatched within our industry. While we recog­nize that print advertising is a declining market segment, our efforts have allowed us to capture higher market share, keeping our assets full and our product mix optimized for profitability. Targeted, strategic pieces have established Sappi as a unique supply chain partner.

Print &

As marketing channels expand, we have embraced the evolution and worked to educate marketers about the synergies of print-activated media. Rather than taking a combative stance to defend print, “Print &” highlights per­suasive study results showing how print drives return on investment when used in combination with alternative media to create effective integrated campaigns. Through indepen­dent research and compelling examples, Print & explores data on demographic preferences, emotional triggers as well as shopping behaviors that show how print creates an interactive, visually intriguing and tactile experience.

Act Now!

At the close of 2013, Sappi launched Act Now! A Better Response to Direct Mail, a dynamic, educational resource to guide readers through the essential principles of creating effective mailings that deliver results. Act Now! showcases the strategies and techniques behind how direct mail can strike a uniquely delicate balance: the ability to package a message that will not only pique reader interest, but also ultimately drive consumer response. The resource guide is delivered in a tailored box with a clever opening mechanism. Recipients unzip the package to find the comprehensive guidebook and a summary version as well as samples of real-world mail pieces that serve as unique case studies. From a card campaign for a local butcher that wants to educate its neighbors on sustainable practices, to a dimen­sional format for Facebook, the samples showcase a variety of options that will inspire and educate direct marketers.

Trend Books

Sappi’s release paper business is centered on providing textured surfaces for coated fabrics and decorative lami­nates. As a means of inspiration for the design community, we create trend books twice a year. The books are used to highlight product offerings (patterns and finishing tech­niques) and show how they correspond with emerging color trends coming into fashion each season. It also gives us an opportunity to show our fabric casters and laminate manufacturers how they can better prepare samples for their customers. The release business marketing team recently redesigned the physical format and layout of the trend books which have been extremely well received in the marketplace. Custom-made swatch books have also been created in an effort to drive specification sales for key sporting goods companies based on patterns specific to their brands.

The Environmental Quotient

Sappi’s Environmental Quotient (eQ) platform is dedicated to providing information grounded in facts and science. Tackling a key issue head on, Sappi’s eQ Journal 005: Rethinking Recycling distinguishes between the facts and general misconceptions surrounding recycling and the paper life cycle. The edition highlights the benefits of recycling while challenging the common assumption that paper produced with a high percentage of recycled fiber is always better for the environment. With this latest eQ Journal, we implore stakeholders to look at the bigger picture of recycling to ensure our industry is putting recycled fiber to its best use, finding the most appropriate options that produce lower emissions and higher production yield. Because deinked pulp is more costly than Sappi’s own made virgin pulp, we charge a premium to add recycled fiber to non-standard offerings. It is therefore critical that customers understand the trade-offs associated with using this fiber source for coated papers.

Included in the Journal are results of a study of our Somerset Mill which show that adding 10 percent recycled content increases the product’s carbon footprint by 16 percent, compared to the same product made with 100 percent virgin fiber. In addition to revealing the trade-offs associated with recycled fiber, the Journal also promotes best practices of recycling, raising awareness of practical ways to reduce the environmental impact of using printed materials. Sappi also provides a series of custom-designed recycling logos available for download from our website, inviting everyone—especially corporate marketers and graphic designers—to get creative about promoting recycling.

Education, Training and Consulting

This year we launched a new Sappi etc. microsite, an online educational platform providing access to more than a century’s worth of rare historical documents, detailed case studies and expert technical advice as a part of the com­pany’s Education, Training and Consulting (etc.) program. Free and fully searchable, the Sappi etc. site covers every­thing from paper basics and sustainability resources to advanced print and design techniques, including color management, printer tech tips, special effects, varnishes, folding, and designing for direct mail.

Ideas that Matter

More than a decade ago, Sappi established the Ideas that Matter grant program to recognize and support designers who use their skills and expertise to solve communications problems for a wide range of charitable activities. Since 1999, Sappi has funded over 500 nonprofit projects, contrib­uting over US$12million worldwide to causes that enhance our lives and our planet. Targeted primarily at the design community, the program is open to individual designers, design firms, agencies, in-house corporate design depart­ments, instructors, individual students and student groups. Through this program we routinely see the power of good print design supporting good causes. Working together with our customers, we aim to make a difference.

Read the full SFPNA Sustainability Report 2013 by downloading an online PDF version directly from our website here or for more on sustainability, check out our eQ microsite at: http://www.na.sappi.com/eQ/index.html