by Brittany Willes, editor, PostPress
In today’s market, competition between brands has grown fierce as customers’ attention spans have decreased. That’s where the new campaign for ROYAL SUNDANCE® Papers from Neenah Papers, Alpharetta, Georgia, comes in. The promotion, “Let Texture Define,” urges companies to explore the ways in which texture can enhance brands and entice customers.
According to Kathy Kemps, Neenah’s senior brand manager, “Texture can influence our decisions as it creates an emotional connection. It’s important to communicate a brand’s personality and create a memorable first impression through every touch point, starting with a company’s identity system.”
To create emotion and personality, “Let Texture Define” uses all five finishes from the ROYAL SUNDANCE collection. Each unique finish creates a distinct look and feel for any given project. For instance, the Felt finish is a rich finish that is both visual and tactile. “The Felt finish is designed to give a company’s message a bit more weight and attention,” stated Kemps. Meanwhile, the refined Linen finish evokes a sophisticated impression, while the Fiber finish enhances papers with fibers and flecks. The Laid finish provides a soft natural watermarked pattern which harkens back to the craft of handmade paper. Finally, the Smooth finish offers a pure, simple and crisp clarity.
In order to create the different paper finishes and their distinct looks, ROYAL SUNDANCE Papers are manufactured with quality raw materials on one of Neenah’s paper machines. “The Felt and Linen patters are created as offline embossed patters,” Kemps explained. This means the papers come off of the paper machine as a smooth finish. The rolls of paper then are run through an embosser and the patterns are impressed upon the paper between two embossing rolls. On the other hand, because the Smooth and Fiber are both classified as smooth finishes, the process is complete when they come off of the paper machine. The fibers are added to the wet pulp prior to being fed onto the paper machine. The Laid finish is created on the paper machine using a dandy roll, meaning the pattern is impressed into the sheet at the wet end of the machine when the paper still is 98-percent water.
To demonstrate the different textures, Neenah has devised four sample portfolios of promotional items, such as invitations, gift cards, menus and bookmarks, showcasing each of the available finishes. Each sample demonstrates ways in which companies have utilized textured paper in order to enhance their brand identities. For example, one portfolio sample showcases The Flying Loon restaurant. The Flying Loon “identity” uses Fiber finish menus in order to promote the natural feel of the restaurant. To complement the natural fiber feel, Felt finish business cards contribute a high-touch appeal.
“We developed this sample to showcase the ROYAL SUNDANCE Papers, and this line’s ability to use different, complementing finishes to best communicate a company’s messaging,” Kemps stated. “Businesses have just a few seconds to capture their customer’s attention, and research has shown that texture is something that a recipient will stop, feel and examine. At this point, you’ve already beat out the competition that’s used commodity paper.”
Other portfolio examples include the Centas Global Telecom portfolio, Viva Home Care and Front Porch Reality. “Front Porch is my favorite example,” Kemps declared. “The warmth and homey feel it portrays is a perfect message for a buyer looking to make a house a home. The felt finish adds a tactile quality and demonstrates how well it can take ink. We added a promotional postcard that was printed digitally, which shows how realtors can print small quantities for specific properties, to targeted audiences and still have it look outstanding. This identity package is a beautiful visual for a potential client.”
In addition to being beautiful, this ROYAL SUNDANCE Sample Folder demonstrates a variety of printing processes. From one-color ink on the Fiber finish, which shows how the paper can elevate even the simplest of printing processes, and one-color metallic on Eclipse Black™ showcasing the legibility of copy on a dark-colored stock, to how impressive digital printing is on the rich Felt finish. Four-color process, as well as several other specialty processes such as foil stamping and embossing, also are featured throughout the piece.
While “Let Texture Define” only has been available for a few weeks, Neenah already is hearing great things about it. “Printers and designers like the simplicity of the piece,” Kemps asserted. “It showcases beautiful, real-life samples that they often are commissioned to create.”