Traditional Print May Be Your Best Marketing Strategy

In the age of email spam and loud or obnoxious television and radio ads.

In the age of email spam and loud or obnoxious television and radio ads, a simple and effective print strategy may be the best marketing solution at your feet. Although many people listen to the radio in their cars through hours of traffic, or keep the television on all day, most of the ads on these forms of media become white noise. The same can be said for the barrage of spam emails most people receive on a daily basis.

To stand out, why not create a unique print marketing campaign? This may be the ideal format for distributing the message of your business. Studies and user polls have shown that “modern screens and e-readers fail to adequately recreate certain tactile experiences of reading on paper that many people miss and, more importantly, prevent people from navigating long texts in an intuitive and satisfying way.” Holding paper is a tangible sensation, which is how many people best consume and comprehend information.

How to deliver a standout product
Because paper is tactile, it allows the business to physically interact with the client. This, in turn, allows the end consumer to retain more information than if they had been passively reading a spam-type email.

“Bright, colourful, and engaging ads are making a comeback.”

Additionally, the Huffington Post reports that “all things ‘Mad Men’ are coming back into style, including cool graphics and using print as an effective storytelling medium.” This is beneficial to small- and medium-sized businesses who are searching for a new way to engage potential customers. Bright, colorful and engaging ads with a retro or vintage feel are making a comeback in advertising across many platforms.

Educate instead of sell
When using print as a medium, businesses need to ensure that their message educates instead of sells. The Business Journals suggested that education keeps content relevant. Furthermore, “your marketing materials need to exist for the value of the prospect and the customer, not for selling you.” By imparting intelligently presented information to your prospective buyer, they will feel empowered when they are ready to make a purchase.

Telling a story is another way to get prospective clients interested. Providing a narrative for your potential buyer will give them something to retain when thinking of your solution to their needs. According to Entrepreneur, the objective is to “create a memorable consumer experience at each touch point.” This means stimulating your consumer with tactile and visual sensations.

A simple and effective print strategy may be the best marketing solution.

Why print is better for comprehension
According to a study published in January 2013 by Anne Mangen of the University of Stavanger in Norway, students who read materials on paper comprehended the information better than those who read from computers. The study suggests that this may be due to the students’ inability to reference certain passages on screen with the same ease as those who read print. Apply this to marketing materials, and it is obvious that potential consumers will benefit from having an object that they can reference.

In another study from 2011, a survey of graduate students at National Taiwan University shows that most participants browsed a few paragraphs online before printing out the entire text. When given the option of reading both, most people prefer print to digital.

Those who are looking for a new marketing strategy may benefit from including print advertisements to target consumers who prefer visual and tactile encounters.