Postcards, brochures, and any other kind of materials you hand out or leave behind are considered printed collateral. With the boom of digital marketing and social media, one might assume that printed marketing is dead, but we disagree and the statistics support our belief. According to data compiled by Vistaprint: consumers trust print ads 34% more than they trust search engine ads. Postcards have an average 4.25% response rate in comparison the 0.1% rate of cold emailing. And finally, the response to direct-mail marketing was 37% higher than email.
If digital marketing was supposed to kill print, then what gives?
Digital marketing is powered by fast, attention-grabbing, tactics to get as many eyeballs on your website as possible. With pop-up ads, overflowing email inboxes and 24/7 social media feeds, connecting with your audience requires that you cut through the noise. Printed collateral provides an opportunity to share your brand’s message, minus the potential interruption or distraction from other internet marketers.
There’s no longer a need to carry heavy binders of sales sheets or product catalogs, but items like business cards and capability brochures are still just as important as ever. Think of print marketing not as a replacement for your digital marketing efforts, but as a complementary strategy to reach your audience via as many channels as possible. In one of our previous blogs, we mentioned that traditional advertising – billboards, TV ads, radio ads – were still thriving in a digital world, and the same holds true for print marketing. This is because your customers live in reality away from a digital screen. They still read printed magazines. They still check their mailbox and sort through direct mail. They still stop and look at eye-catching posters.
Marketing Tech News wrote the following about print marketing:
Print continues to have a place in the marketing mix – because it works. Four-fifths (79%) of consumers will act on direct mail immediately compared to only 45% who say they deal with email straightaway.
Targeted directed mail boasts a 4.4% response rate, compared to email’s rate of 0.12%.
That is why online brands like Airbnb launch print magazines to reach important stakeholders, print catalogues are on the rise, 10bn business cards are printed in the US each year and advertising print totaled $45.2bn globally in 2013. Growth averaging 4.5% per year is predicted to continue to 2024.
The following items are popular printed collateral that we frequently recommend our clients utilize to connect with their buyers:
Project cut sheets/portfolios
Compilations of project cut sheets are an opportunity to share your company’s best work and to provide a snapshot of your expertise. Use one sheet per project and include details such as client name, industry type, applicable numbers (square feet, budget, etc) and any professional skills that set you apart from your competitors.
Business cards
Even in a digital age, business cards are shared and used as a tool for networking. Business cards can now be digitally printed and ordered online, which keeps their costs low and encourages generous sharing. The design of your business card will likely guide the recipient’s first impression of your company and brand, so keep that in mind when deciding what you print. Additionally, the paper stock and coating can also add a dynamic to the design; thicker, smoother, cards will be more pleasant to hold.
Postcards
Postcards are great for reaching a specific audience by geography or demographics. You can live miles away and still share your company’s capabilities. Keep in mind that a postcard doesn’t deliver a personal connection, thus the messaging should be equivalent to a cold lead. Postcards are best for grabbing attention and encouraging recipients to visit your website and learn more. When budgeting for postcards, you’ll also need to consider the need for UV coating (to stand up to weather) and postage stamps.
Brochures
If you’d like to share more information than can fit on a postcard, a brochure is a good option for providing a more complete picture of your business. Brochures are typically folded, either in half or into thirds, and include multiple panels of text or images. Since brochures are typically more expensive than postcards, they’re a better option for professional conferences or exhibit booths, where you’ll have a chance to establish a connection before handing over the collateral.
Digital marketing isn’t going anywhere and deserves focus and budget within any company’s marketing plan. However, smart companies know that employing a comprehensive marketing strategy, with both digital and traditional, is the best way to reach your target audience across all channels and in their daily lives. Our toolbox of services includes both digital marketing and traditional marketing. We leverage decades of experience in design and advertising to help you decide on which types of printed collateral could best fit your needs. Give us a call and let’s see how we can fully capture your ideal buyer.
Ready to take your business to the next level? Contact us. We’re here to help.