Within the past decade, the pull of the digital world made most marketers abandon print completely. So now, when you receive something that you can actually touch and feel, it’s pretty special. Postcards, flyers, and brochures have become luxury items just because they are rare. With this drought in the tactile world, there is opportunity.
Targeting
No matter what marketers do online, they can’t guarantee that they can reach every person in a geographic area. Yet, the United States Postal Service can. Even with mail rates increasing, it costs very little to reach your target market in a designated zip code through a well-designed post card or mailer. The returns on direct mail campaigns are still respectable, too. Direct mail is the cheapest and most effective way to blanket a population – period.
The Hip Factor
It’s now hip to “unplug.” We are so overwhelmed by technology that sometimes we run away from it. A catalog may be the perfect, low-tech way to show customers your newest products. They can browse from a couch or a hammock – with no Internet connection required.
Letting Go
Some people are never going to give up on paper; my mentor who was a pioneer is document management and imaging (paperless office) used to say, “When there is a paperless bathroom, we'll see a paperless office.” It might be a preference of a paperback over an eBook, or a desk calendar over a Google calendar… but the pull to paper is real. Because of this, many people will refuse to read an online magazine or newspaper. This means that if you want to reach the demographic that a magazine or newspaper reaches, you should consider investing in both digital and print advertising.
Trust Issues
Because we have all learned that things online can change in seconds, print materials seem trustworthy. Having something in writing gives it more gravity and makes it believable. With all the scams online, just receiving a postcard or letter from a business can make them seem more legitimate and established.
Finding Answers
I came across a quote the other day that said something like, “Online, we ask questions. In print, we find answers to the questions we didn’t even know we had.” It’s a pretty profound remark. We Google everything from how to cure poison ivy to how to play Pokemon Go. Print, on the other hand, brings ideas to us. It tells us what we’ve been missing or what we need to know. When you consider that in terms of marketing, the power of print is quite impressive.
It may seem odd, but traditional marketing is now all about social media and online content. While traditional channels are crucial for a successful marketing campaign, marketers are always looking for the next best thing. In this case, it may be as simple as looking back.
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