How Print Can Contribute To Your Business Goals
The Homer Group has been in business for over 50 years. That’s three generations adapting and working with complex changes of business to business (B2B) or business to consumer (B2C) interaction.
Print is Important
Our bread and butter comes from printing and distribution. Companies can engage almost anybody in their target audience with unique styles of brand communication. We do live in a modernized and on-demand digital world where Google AdWords, e-mail blasts, and social media is king (check out our marketing agency, Navitas Marketing, for that stuff)… but let’s not axe print altogether as it does serve an important portion of your business budget.
But There Have Been Changes…
In a recent Reuters article by Arathy Nair and Supantha Mukherjee focusing on The New York Times, the prominent newspaper has taken some punches with underwhelming print advertising revenue. Drastic changes (like scrapping the Home and Automotive sections) have been made at The New York Times—a common motif in today’s print publication world. It has gone as far as massive layoffs and alternative strategies at respected companies.
Yet, according to authors Nair and Mukherjee, “Print advertising accounts for more than two-thirds of the Times’ print advertising revenue.”
Use Print and Digital
To warrant that eye-opening statistic, New York Times CEO Mark Thompson declared digital as main growth area but directs attention to investing in ‘islands of growth’ for the print side.
Realistically, companies we work with may not be as powerful or enterprising as The New York Times, but we strongly urge anyone handling their budget to take printing serious and make use of Mr. Thompson’s strategy if you want to showcase your business in the best manner.
Use Your Audience
If your company has an audience that is engaged by in-depth reading, make use of materials such as catalogs or newsletters. Remember how your audience may behave and if your relationship extends to keeping a record of surveys, there may be data related to questions about their favorite magazines or publications.
Your company’s print collateral can be mailed and kept for careful consideration. In fact, according to Stratton research, 50 percent or more of association members prefer print publications and 30 percent prefer a print-and-digital combination.
There will always be a tangible value to what you publish. People are on the go in today’s hectic society, but someone reading on long-distance commutes with no WiFi can open any material and truly concentrate on what message is communicated.
Grab Your Reader’s Attention
With concentrating on one or two solid messages about your businesses, you can have your reader avoid skimming habits which usually occur more frequently for websites in 15 seconds (Alshaai & Varshney, 2005). One company in particular, Valpak, a direct marketer of coupons, compiles data from focus group sessions of people and tend to use an O.H.I.O (Offer, Headline, Information, Other) method that grabs a reader’s attention fastest.
Design is Key
Consumers want credibility, so you must factor in a way to promote your brand in cost-effective ways that showcase your business. People may be leery of scams if your internet presence is the bare minimum. The prestige of fine printing can be utilized in many different ways! Well-designed sell sheets, brochures, and business cards do not have those threats attached.
Post originally written for The Homer Group.
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