Inspiration

Roland DG customers are some of the most imaginative and creative people we've ever met. To support your creativity and need for inspiration,we have created a selection of blog entries to help you get inspired and excited about creating your next vehicle wrap, sign, custom graphic or prototype. The following content ranges from fun articles and infographics to customer interviews and print news.

Roland DG Turns the Big 3-0, Big Party to Celebrate

07 May 2012 Dede Sabey Inspiration 30th anniversary , factory tour , hamamatsu , japan , roland creative awards

We turned 30 last month (Happy Birthday to us) and I was invited to the party! Our 30th anniversary celebration was a week-long, action-packed celebration attended by employees, friends, customers and colleagues held at the company’s headquarters in Hamamatsu, Japan. That’s right, JAPAN, also known as “Sushi Heaven” to some of the party-goers! Honored guests included 16 regional finalists from the Roland DG Creative Awards (chosen from the 1193 entries received from 120 countries) as well as representatives from each of the participating Roland DG offices around the world. Altogether, there were about 50 of us.

Off to Japan

13 April 2012 Andrew Oransky Engraving , Inspiration apparel , born to wrap , creative center , inkjet , isa , social media , wrap

Votes have been counted, and samples have been securely packed. While the Roland DG Creative Awards have been closed to entries for months now, final judging hasn’t taken place yet. In the next few days, regional winners from around the world will be headed to our headquarters in Japan for a tour, celebration, and awarding of the grand prizes, which include Roland DG hardware.

Ideas to differentiate your business

25 January 2012 Rick Scrimger Inspiration , Tips & Tricks 100 ways , creative center , differentiate , email , skip grant , state of the industry , webcam , wide format imaging magazine

Hello, and welcome to 2012! I got a simple email that really got me thinking more about how sign companies can focus on differentiating from the competition. Below is the question, and my response.

What will the New Year bring?

15 December 2011 Patrick Kersey Marketing Expertise , Engraving , Inspiration 2012 , forecast , packaging , personalization , signs , wrap

Well, it’s that time of year again. Among all the shopping, parties, sporting events, and other distractions, here at Roland DGA we’ve spent the last few months forecasting our sales and formulating strategies for 2012.

Making Money with Metallic Printing

29 November 2011 Rick Scrimger Inspiration bn-20 , metallic ink survey , metallic inks , mt ecosolmax , roland academy , roland dga channel youtube , roland support , signs101 , vs-series

We recently conducted a survey of our users who have “metallic capable” devices from our lineup, and we found some amazing nuggets I’d like to share. The survey was sent to 500+ users, with a 29% response rate, enough that the results are statistically significant. For starters, 61% of those units are set up to run our metallic Eco Sol Max inks.

Taking in the Creativity of the Creative Awards

11 November 2011 Dede Sabey Inspiration

I don’t know about your office, but ours runs at 100mph for most of the year. I’m sure you can relate. If it’s not a tradeshow, it’s a product launch. If it’s not a product launch, it’s budget time. If it’s not budget time, it’s a web redesign. And so it goes. The best part is, that no matter how busy we are, we always manage to squeeze in a little fun, mostly due to our quirky staff. Last week for example, the Occupy movement set up camp, right in our department! (Notice Romie, our web guy. He’s a total Mac-head and he made his “iProtest” sign on his iPad.)

Customer Testimonials

17 October 2011 Patrick Kersey Marketing Expertise , Inspiration creative awards , awards , creative center

Everyone loves a good story. Which is why whenever we’re not launching new products, we try to feature our customers’ work in our advertising and public relations. It’s our belief that seeing and reading about what a customer has done with their Roland DG inkjet, vinyl cutter, engraver or milling machine is far more engrossing and believable than us tooting our own horn.

What’s Your Secret Sauce?

12 September 2011 Patrick Kersey Marketing Expertise , Inspiration marketing expertise , quality , reliability , secret sauce

Back when I was in high school, our favorite burger joint advertised its secret sauce. Whatever it was made from, it gave their burgers a decidedly different taste than other hamburgers. Today, marketers often talk about successful brands having a “secret sauce” – and they’re not talking about fast food. For Apple, their secret sauce is not only inventing groundbreaking products, but packaging them in a way that is simplistic to the point of seeming obvious. As Jonathan Ive, Apple chief designer says, “It feels almost inevitable.”

Revisiting Japan… 5 Months After the Storm

22 August 2011 Dede Sabey Inspiration disaster , japan , miracle tree , recovery

It’s been 5 months since the country of Japan was turned upside down by a pair of natural disasters and a nuclear crisis. [See Dave’s Blog immediately following the crisis “The Sun Will Rise Again] While the world headlines have turned their attention elsewhere, the Japanese people are still dealing with the consequences and working on recovery day by day.

Recipe for a Successful Web Site

03 August 2011 Patrick Kersey Inspiration home page design , web navigation , web site design

We recently updated the home page of our web site at Roland DGA. It sounds simple enough to do, but the reality was quite different.