With the rise of digital marketing, it’s natural to think print marketing isn’t as effective as it used to be. However, adding print to your digital marketing strategy can result in great success for your brand.
Whether it’s building trust, reaching your audience with an omnichannel approach or breaking through the digital noise, print is something your business shouldn’t leave behind.
How Print Can Complement Your Digital Marketing Campaigns
There’s no denying the importance of digital marketing. With 4.7 billion current social media users worldwide, the potential digital marketing can offer is limitless. Our society is glued to their smartphones, using them for shopping, streaming, learning, networking — the list goes on.
This has caused a shift in how marketers think and work. Marketing budgets have moved from newsletters, print adverts and brochures to influencer advertising, pay-per-click (PPC) and email campaigns.
Social media made up approximately 15.97% of marketing budgets in the UK at the start of 2022, with that figure set to rise to 27.1% in the next five years. Yet despite the surge in digital marketing’s popularity, print marketing still holds a valuable place in a marketer’s toolbox.
High-street brands continue to look for ways to reach their customers digitally, but some of the most effective strategies are still print-based. Think about how elegant brochures, window displays, floor graphics and building wraps demand our attention.
High-quality print marketing that looks and feels good can leave a lasting impression compared to a social media post. Print marketing is still valuable for any marketer, even with smartphones, social media feeds and search engines. Here are a few reasons why.
It’s Tangible and Attention Grabbing
Our social media feeds and inboxes are bursting with different products, services and offers all demanding our attention. Although the online space provides several avenues to reach your customers, competing in such a saturated market can have consequences.
It has never been easier to get lost in the noise — the average user receives over 100 emails per day. Just think about how many posts and adverts you scroll past each time you browse social media. Did you really take in their message? How long did you watch an advert before hitting the ‘skip ad’ button?
By seeing and holding tangible print marketing material, you’re more likely to read and absorb its contents.
Research has found that print readers usually spend 20 minutes or more with a physical publication, while a visitor to a website typically hangs around for under five minutes.
Your brand, products and messaging are more likely to leave a lasting impression on a potential customer via tangible, high-quality materials.
Print Is Trusted More Than Digital
Fake news, disinformation and phishing scams have made the average internet user sceptical. If something sounds too good to be true, there’s a possibility it is. Building trust online is becoming more complex, with users wary about how their information is used and stored.
Cyber attackers can’t target printed material and no one has ever received a virus or malware from a printed brochure or leaflet. It’s also an opportunity to prove your legitimacy through a high-quality product.
A huge 82% of users trust print adverts when making a buying decision, higher than any other form of advertising.
Meeting Your Target Audience
Creating eye-catching and creative digital content alone isn’t enough — you also need to target your audience’s needs and preferences. You should already have a pretty good idea of your customers’ shopping habits, but it’s worth doing a little more research.
Do they have a smartphone? Are they more likely to trust a brochure or a download? How many hours do they spend a day online on average? The answers to these questions will give you a better idea of where to focus your marketing efforts.
Not everyone uses the internet or uses it to make buying decisions. Some demographics would much rather receive a physical brochure or leaflet than watch a video, with 73% of respondents to a survey saying they prefer receiving print advertisements over any other.
Creating print marketing materials for this section of your target audience means you can reach outliers that your competitors are potentially missing. You’ll raise your brand’s profile with your print-loving customers and give your overall marketing results a boost.
Want to Add Brilliant Print to Your Marketing Strategy?
Looking to add print to your marketing strategy? We can help with that. By partnering with a sustainable print partner such as B&B Press, you’ll not only ensure timely, high-quality print, but you’ll also do your bit for our planet, too.
Alongside offering a range of services to meet your needs, we’re committed to sustainability and Carbon Balance every job we perform.
If you’re looking for your new sustainable print partner, contact someone from our brilliant team today. We’d be more than happy to help.
