Is Print’s Death Wildly Exaggerated?

Today’s topic was about Printing and Mailing…is print dead, or are the rumors just wildly exaggerated? Yes, I’ve seen many printers close their doors in the last few years, and there’s many who say “online is the only place to be!” Well my guest from the decidedly “un-dead” print world had some thoughts, statistics and new ideas about marketing that may make you re-think your future marketing strategies.
According to my guest, Sue Rowe, Marketing Director of Perfect Printing, print is ‘certainly not dead.’
Some statistics:*
1. 70% of Americans including 69% of 18-24 year olds state they prefer to read print and paper communications rather than reading off a screen
2. 74% of college students prefer a printed textbook when taking a class. And research shows that people learn more effectively from print than a computer.
3. Consumers in the 18-34 demographic prefer to learn about marketing offers via postal mail and newspapers rather than online sources like social media sites.
4. According to a recent Pitney Bowes survey, 76% of small businesses state their ideal marketing mix is a combination of print and digital communications
What has changed, however, is the way that printing is being used. The key word is Integration. Companies are melding online and traditional marketing together, and are getting better results than ever before. For example, they are mailing out a postcard that has a QR code or a personal microsite that a reader can go to for more information. They are combining print mailings with e-newsletters. Or personalizing a printed piece so that it includes the recipient’s name, and other personal info (such as the make/model of their car), so it looks like it was created just for them (and it was!).
One issue for many companies is the cost of online vs traditional offline marketing. Many are willing to give online a try due to the cost – there’s no debate that it’s much cheaper to send out an e-newsletter than it is to mail out a printed one. But remember not to focus solely on the cost – keep in mind your ROI (Return on Investment). You may find that while your cost is less with ann online campaign, your return may also be less. Mix and match your marketing tools so that you can find out which combinations net the best results for your markets.
It’s also important to remember that frequency – the number of times that you ‘touch’ a person with your message – needs to stay high, and it might need to be higher with online than with traditional marketing tools, due to stuffed e-mailboxes. According to Rowe, people spend 25% more time with their print mail vs. an email, and are more inclined to immediately delete an email that they don’t want vs. an unsolicited printed mail piece.
Looking to mail but don’t want to spend all that money on postage? There’s a few ways to cut postage costs, such as bulk rates, which are cheaper than first class rates. And you don’t have to be a non-profit to use a bulk rate – anyone is eligible! There’s also a program called ‘Every Door Direct’ by the US Postal Service – you can mail for as low as 14 cents per name.
Here’s some more quick stats** about marketing with email vs print:

• B2C: For customer acquisition, marketers point to direct mail (31.3%) as the top deliverer of new customers, followed by email (16.7%) and social marketing (12.5%).
• For customer retention, again, direct mail is the top choice of respondents (37.5%), followed by email (29.2%),trailed by social media (10.4%).
• B2B:  For customer acquisition, marketers report email (39.8%) as the tactic delivering the best ROI, followed by direct mail (19.4%), telemarketing (12.2%) and search engine marketing (9.2%).
• For customer retention, respondents again cite email  (53.1%) as having the best ROI. Telemarketing (14.3%) and direct mail (13.3%) are nearly tied for second.

* Source: PIA fact book and Paper Because
**Source: Target Marketing Seventh Annual Media Usage Forecast
Source: Perfect Printing
To listen to this segment in its entirety, go to: Marketing Chat with Nancy Sipera, 6/11/13