What is Print Advertising?
Many new marketers consider advertising on print media a waste of time and resources. Yet many companies, including leading corporations, still tend to use print ads for marketing their products and services.
Everyone knows that print advertising is not nearly as flexible or easy as digital advertising.
If so, why do we continue to use it?
Why do small and large companies worldwide still use print ads for their products and services?
What can print advertisements accomplish that digital advertising can not?
If you have ever wanted to know the answers to any of these questions, then this article is for you. Here, we will explain all the nifty details about print advertising and why it can be a good choice for marketing your unique product/service.
So then, let’s get straight to it!
What Is Print Advertising And Why Is It Crucial For Businesses?
Print advertising or print media advertising is a type of advertising method that uses printed, physical mediums such as newspapers and magazines. It is one of the most effective ways to reach out to diverse and highly targeted audiences. Here are some of the promising aspects of using print ads for your business.
More Effective Than Most Digital Marketing Strategies
When was the last time you got excited to read a text message or email you received? Regardless of the quality of your mail copy or the high discount offer you include in it, the email/text can often go unnoticed.
On the other hand, receiving postal mail such as postcards or letters and reading them is somewhat exciting. In addition, print advertisements such as highly-personalised and targeted direct mail campaigns can better connect with the audience.
As a result, the chances of getting a successful conversion using direct mail are more than what you get using most digital marketing methods.
More Flexible Targeting For Ad Campaigns
The great thing about print ads is their diverse channels, each with its unique advantages and marketing application. For example, a billboard ad is print advertising that can reach a large and diverse audience. Here, you can target customers of all ages, gender, and socioeconomic status.
But, if you are using direct mail campaigns, you get a print advertising channel that you can employ on a particular target audience. Hence, you can diversify your marketing efforts depending on the print advertisement channel.
More Automation Capabilities
Although we still consider print advertising a traditional form of marketing, it can now be equipped with automated software solutions. Take the case of direct mail marketing, for example. Using PostGrid, you can easily automate your entire direct mail campaign.
It means you can eliminate all the tedious manual processes involved in direct mail. Unfortunately, such extensive automation may not be available for all types of printed marketing materials. However, you can still use software solutions to optimise various processes.
5 Types Of Effective Print Advertisements You Can Use
Printed advertising lets you choose from several types of printed marketing materials. It means you can select the type of print advertisement most suitable for your marketing campaign and its goals. Here is a list of the most preferred printed marketing materials by businesses.
Direct Mail
Personalised marketing always gets better results for your business than general marketing campaigns. However, the amount of personalisation you can implement on print ads are limited when compared to digital advertisements. Direct mail marketing is the most personalised print advertising campaign you can employ for your business.
It can be a tedious task to manage high volumes of personalised direct mail unless you use an automated solution. By integrating tools like PostGrid with your CRM software, you can easily personalise your direct mail campaigns. However, the best thing is that there is no margin of error because there are no manual interventions necessary.
Newspapers
Newspapers are among the oldest marketing channels that businesses of all sizes still use for their marketing needs. But, it is also true that the number of newspaper readers is significantly less than what it once used to be.
On the bright side, customers who read newspapers tend to be more proactive than those who don’t. Furthermore, newspaper advertising can also come in all sizes – local, city, and national newspapers. Hence, you can use newspaper advertising regardless of how big or small your company is.
Magazines
In many ways, print advertisements in magazines are similar to those in newspapers. But, magazines are better suited for businesses that want to take a more targeted approach than newspaper ads but less targeted than direct mail.
In addition to better targeting your customers/prospects, magazines also let you make the ad visually appealing using attractive imagery. Like newspaper ads, you can choose from regional or national magazines based on your target audience and scope of business.
Brochures
Brochures are similar to direct mail in many aspects. They are small, don’t use a lot of paper or ink, and you can even personalise them. Furthermore, brochures are a great way of establishing your brand and its credibility in the relevant industry.
Unlike smaller types of printed marketing materials such as postcards, brochures can hold significantly more information. Additionally, you can either distribute them in a single sitting or send them with your direct mail to your target audience.
Posters And Billboards
Posters and billboards have been around for almost as long as marketing itself, maybe even before. Billboards, as you know, mainly target people who are driving or walking past them. Hence, much like newspaper ads, billboards also target the general audience and are not ideal for more specific marketing campaigns.
Billboards are gigantic and easily noticeable from afar. However, billboards may not always get the attention you are hoping for. Hence, you may want to consider using posters instead. Much like billboards, posters also target passers-by. But unlike billboards, you can have them indoors, in public spaces, and they are more readable than billboards.
Why is Print Advertising Still Effective?
It is no secret that we live in a world where most of our interactions are not over digital platforms. Instead, we connect with our friends and family through mobile phones and other electronic mediums. Hence, it is not surprising that almost all companies focus all their efforts on digital marketing campaigns.
You can fully automate digital marketing campaigns, and they are easy on the pocket and incredibly flexible. So then, why is it still effective in the market when most of our interactions happen online?
Here is a list of reasons why print advertising is still an effective marketing method for businesses.
#1 Print Advertisements Are Unique
No matter how engrossed we are in social media and how entertaining it is, you are still bound to feel its monotonous nature. Take email marketing, for example. It was one of the most effective ways for businesses to reach out to their customers/prospects.
But, today, people are so overwhelmed by the plethora of marketing messages they receive every day. So, the chances are that you or someone you know has abandoned an email address because it is easier than unsubscribing countless marketing emails.
Print advertisements such as direct mail offer a unique way of reaching your target audience. Such print ad campaigns are feasible and more personal to the recipients. You can further enhance your print ad’s impact on the customer by personalising it using automation tools such as PostGrid.
#2 Influence Customer Perception & Raise Brand Value
Your brand’s presence in print media such as newspapers and magazines automatically raises its value. Generally, customers tend to think companies they see on advertisements in the print media are more credible than the ones they see online alone.
Even if you splurge all your money on a new website and social media marketing campaigns, you may still fail to establish credibility. It is one of the reasons why even established eCommerce companies often use print media for their marketing campaigns.
The fact that the online world is brimming with misleading information does not help online brands boost their credibility. So, when the customer sees your brand’s advertisement in a popular newspaper or magazine, they will assume that yours is a reputable company.
#3 Print Advertising Has a High Rate Of Conversion
We know that print advertising is costlier than digital advertising. The price difference between print and digital marketing campaigns is mainly due to the former’s essential investment.
However, a print marketing enthusiast would argue that the substantial investment is worth every penny of your money.
As we have already mentioned, digital marketing is a crowded space where every marketer is after the user’s undivided attention. Therefore, it is challenging to grab user attention on any digital platform.
But, when it comes to print advertising like direct mail, people look forward to opening it. As customers connect better with the print ads and find them more appealing, the conversion rate also rises.
#4 Print Ads Enable Superior Demographic Targeting
One of the worst misconceptions modern marketers still have about print advertising is they think print ads can not target specific audiences. However, that is not always the case. With the right tools and approach, you can target print ads just as effectively as digital ads.
As you know, not all print ads are the same. For example, print advertising such as direct mail can be easily targeted using automated solutions like PostGrid. But other print ads may require extensive research and well-planned marketing strategies to reach the target demographic.
Some of the ways businesses can monitor the effectiveness or success of their marketing campaigns include:
- Using unique discount/promo codes.
- Setting up a specific point of contact, such as a toll-free number.
- Using QR codes.
- Conducting customer surveys.
#5 Customer Retains More Information From Print Ads
Another reason why print ads are so popular today is that they are more memorable than digital marketing campaigns. Generally, customers take a long time reviewing print ads than digital ads. In addition, customers often view digital ads on their mobile devices. As a result, it is easy to get distracted or swipe away from a digital ad.
But, effective print advertisements get the reader’s undivided attention. Hence, customers spend more time viewing your print ad and absorbing all the information you provide in the mailer. As a result, customers retain all the essential information from print ads.
Print Marketing Campaigns vs Digital Marketing Campaigns
Print media is much older than digital media, and it was the first means of mass communication. Businesses have used it for years to market their products and services successfully. But, eventually, print media got replaced with digital media for business marketing.
However, print marketing campaigns never completely disappeared because many business verticals still chose to use them. In addition, some businesses were smart enough to combine their digital and print marketing campaigns. It further paved the way for omnichannel/multichannel marketing experiences.
However, learning the distinction between print and digital marketing campaigns is vital. Hence, we will list the significant differences you should know about print and digital marketing.
Medium Of Communication
The first difference between print and digital marketing is their medium. As you can guess, the print ads use some form of publication such as newspapers, magazines, direct mail, and even billboards. In addition, the print medium often requires some initial investment as it needs feasible materials such as paper, ink, etc.
When it comes to digital marketing campaigns, you get to convey your advertising message through a computerised medium. Therefore, digital marketing campaigns do not require a high initial investment because there is no need for feasible materials. But, you may still have to invest money in advanced software solutions and tools for digital marketing.
Diversity Of Content
When it comes to print advertisements, you need a literate audience as they can only contain text and image content. However, you have the option to include a QR code/pURL in your print advertisements to lead the customers to your website/landing page.
For digital marketing campaigns, you have complete control over the type of content. You can utilise everything from pictures to videos to GIFs for your digital marketing campaigns. Companies can even employ audio formats for their marketing material if basing the marketing campaign on the digital platform.
Durability
Imagine that yours is a real estate business. You send a postcard to your specific target audience as part of your marketing campaign. The postcards contain pictures and details of a property that will interest your target audience.
Since it is a print medium, interested prospects can easily hang the postcard on their refrigerator if they want to save it for later. On the other hand, a digital postcard is not so easy to hold and access because the average user goes through hundreds or even thousands of media content.
Furthermore, digital files or offers tend to expire within a specific time frame. Hence, storing and accessing ads are more effective in print media than in digital media.
Ability To Grab Attention
As we have already mentioned above, using any digital device, such as a mobile phone, tablet, or even a smartwatch, can be very distracting. You can never know when a user can get a pop-up notification. It is not hard to imagine the user forgetting all about your marketing campaign.
But, there is no scope for a distraction when it comes to print media such as direct mail or a simple brochure. As a result, the customer or prospect gives your print ad their undivided attention, which is more than you can ask for an advertisement.
Challenges Of Implementing Print Advertisements For Your Business
Implementing print advertising for your business comes with a set of challenges. Suppose you want to beat these challenges and implement an effective print ad campaign for your business. In that case, you must first understand these challenges.
Understanding these challenges will help you better prepare for them and aid you in running a flawless ad campaign for your business. Here is the list of challenges involved in print advertisements:
Decreased Popularity
Although it is not necessarily a bad thing, the popularity of print media has gone down over the years. It might not be so easy to encourage your customers to subscribe to your mailing campaigns. However, print advertising can still do wonders for your regular marketing campaigns that do not involve the customers subscribing to your mailing list.
Timing
Perhaps the biggest challenge in executing print advertisement campaigns is the timing. Print advertising takes time for printing and other processes that come with it.
Hence, it would be best to plan your campaigns for weeks or even months before you can implement them. Suppose your preferred print media is direct mail. In that case, you can use a tool like PostGrid to automate the entire process and time your campaigns accordingly.
Varying Cost Based On Target Audience
The cost of running your print ad campaigns can vary based on your target market. High-end publications employ experienced writers, designers, and specialised photographers.
On top of it all, you may also need to use superior-quality paper, ink, and printers which can further drive up your cost.
Your best option is to outsource your printing needs to a firm like PostGrid that can deliver everything mentioned above.
Print Advertisement Examples For Innovative Marketing
Let us look at some of the most innovative print advertising that we have witnessed in recent times. Analysing these print advertising examples will help you create your unique print ads.
KFC’s Finger Licking Phone
KFC made a bold print advertisement by smartly using their slogan “finger-lickin ‘ good.” The campaign featured the image of a smartphone with a button ready to lick your fingers. KFC used an image that implies that their chicken is so good that even your phone will want a taste of it.
Hellmann’s Santa Shaped Mayonnaise
Hellmann’s used the Christmas time to pitch an innovative print advertising campaign apt for the holiday season. The image used by Hellmann included a spoon-dripping mayonnaise, except that the shape of the mayonnaise resembles the face of Santa Claus.
IKEA’s Gift To Expecting Mothers
IKEA came up with a unique campaign where they used a print ad that also acts as a pregnancy test! Although it is arguably awkward to ask customers to pee into the print ad, the idea was fresh and unlike anything we have ever seen. And if the test turned out to be positive, IKEA would give a 50% discount to the mom-to-be.
Conclusion
Print advertising used to be the sole method for companies to reach out to a vast audience. However, it has changed over the years, and most companies have shifted exclusively to digital platforms for advertising. But despite digital advertising overshadowing them, print ads continue to help businesses grow.
When it comes to marketing, print ads have one of the best response and conversion rates you can find anywhere. You need to incorporate advanced solutions to get the most out of print advertising and keep up with the technologically superior digital ads.
Advanced software solutions like PostGrid can efficiently optimise your direct mail campaigns. PostGrid offers a fully automated solution that lets you personalise your mail by connecting it to your CRM system.
Also, PostGrid lets you keep track of your direct mail campaigns and measure their effectiveness. Hence, you can optimise your print ad campaigns and get the best result for your business.
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source https://www.postgrid.com.au/what-is-print-advertising/
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