NO Print’s not dead! Building business relationships with print marketing.

February 22, 2022

Take a minute to count all of the electronic devices in your home, including phones, computers, and tablets. The digital age is booming. But is print marketing still effective and profitable? What are the benefits of promoting brands on the glossy pages of trade publications or with brochures, posters, and postcards? Even if print is still a viable option, how do you know if it is suitable for your company?

We strongly believe that many brands have a great deal to gain from print advertising. It can be a substantial complementary marketing channel to all digital and other traditional campaigns. So let’s take a look at how print can help you develop a strong relationship with your customers.

The Meet-Cute: Make a more tactile impactful introduction and first impression.

Anyone can find pretty much anything on the internet if they know how to look for it. An excellent digital campaign can put your brand in front of a customer even if they don’t type the exact words used to describe your company. However, those search result pages can be cluttered with a lot of images and information. Finding a perfect match in a noisy crowd can be very difficult. Print gives companies captive readers who spend longer looking at published pages than digital sites.

With print, a customer has a chance to meet your brand and get a more tangible feel for who you are for a company before they go online. Aligning your brand with trade information or special interests helps readers to identify with your products and services in a way that relates directly to their wants and needs. Also, studies have shown that a reader being able to feel a page in their hands provides a more lasting experience than viewing an article on a screen.

The scope and depth of all digital marketing opportunities can be overwhelming and confusing, especially if you’re a small business or new to the digital playing field. For companies wanting to keep things simple, print, in all its many avenues, can feel much more familiar. Having a sales executive or team dedicated to responding to inquiries and requests obtained from the print promotions can allow you to see immediate results.

Friends First: Take the opportunity to hang out with your customers for a while.

A website can be gone with one click, but we’ve all got those magazines and brochures that just seem to linger for a while before heading to the recycle bin. They pile up on a bookshelf, side table, or the corner of our desk. The pages within those publications are windows to potential customers; subtle, casual ways to reach readers with no pressure. Creating a “coffee table piece” puts you in the middle of that person’s life without an overwhelming attack of cold calling and emailing.

Developing your brand with a customer in an organic way can help that customer to feel more comfortable approaching your company for information and ultimately making a purchase. Sometimes, a brand can come on too strong with a barrage of digital ads and sponsored social media posts, causing a customer to block all of your promotional materials. Each time a reader flips through a magazine or publication, your ad will be right there in a reassuring way. They may choose to turn the page, but even a glimpse can leave an impact. 

Also, unlike the never-ending search result pages of the internet, your brand will not be displayed next to a half dozen other companies. When a customer, potential or current, sees your marketing message in print, the images and words on the page get the final say in that interaction.

A Foundation of Trust: Add extra print marketing touches to campaigns to build a stronger relationship.

As of Q4 of 2018, Stanley Black & Decker had the largest portion of the market share for power tools. The next largest market shareholder sold almost an entire $1 Billion less than B&D. Despite being the top-selling and one of the most well-known brands within their industry, you can find ads for Black & Decker Power Tools within the pages of many different publications, in addition to their print marketing channels. A well-diversified marketing strategy keeps their brand and products at the top of mind with corporate buyers and retail customers.

Even after a customer has decided to work with your company, print can offer a sense of support to your brand image. While casually reading a magazine or other publication, their eyes are drawn to a familiar image, your logo. Maybe they even see a product they’ve already purchased or information about a service they’re already using. Seeing your company, those products or services, pop up in the middle of their everyday life can be so reassuring. The customers can see and feel that you are still present and still representing the values that lead them to choose you to begin with

You may not think that print is necessary or beneficial for your company and brand. However, you may be surprised to see how publication reader demographics overlap with your target audience. We can break down whom you want to reach and how to get in front of them across all channels in the most efficient way possible. With our expertise in graphic design, print advertising, and trade show displays, we have all the right tools for your small business to succeed.

Contact us today to discuss designing the perfect print marketing plan for you.