The Value of Print

Much is being made today of the decline of printing. Newspaper and magazine subscribers are dwindling; e-books are gaining popularity; online advertising is replacing print; and printed products are being assailed as environmentally unsound. So does printing have a future? Does it have a present?

We say unequivocally: Yes, but it will be different. Let me explain.....

Business and organizations know that printing is not about the ink on the paper; it is about the target audience's reaction to it. As author, journalist and marketing consultant, Cary Sherburne says, "it is not about print; it is about the most effective way to achieve the business objectives associated with any given customer communication or campaign."

Print is not dead or dying, though it is changing. In today's message we'll share with you why our outlook on print is so positive.

Affordable color

One beneficial change in printing is the new affordability of full color printing. Improvements in digital printing equipment have resulted in output that rivals offset printing for color fidelity, image resolution and the range of papers that can be used. Because digital printing requires almost no make ready, there are minimal fixed costs associated with each job. That means full color printing is now affordable in quantities as low as 100 prints, as well as in variable data printing applications such as versioning and one-to-one marketing.

Affordable color and the ready availability of stock photography means that small businesses and organizations can now realize the benefit of having corporate identity and marketing materials designed and printed in full color and illustrated with photographs. The effectiveness of informational material such as instruction sheets and training guides can be increased by incorporating color. Membership communications like newsletters and event invitations can be more visually appealing by printing in full color. Booklets and catalogs can now have full color covers (and maybe even full color interior pages). Depending on the design and the stock requirements, it may even be possible to print business cards digitally on demand, eliminating the need for imprinting on masters on shells.

Direct mail

As the amount of advertising on the Internet has grown, conventional wisdom has declared that direct mail marketing will disappear as a way of reaching customers and prospects. To us this sounds a lot like the now-debunked predictions about the paperless office. Every year since 1987, the United States Postal Service has conducted an annual study called The Household Diary Study. In 2008 the study included 5,312 households who completed a seven-day household diary of mail received and sent for all 52 months of the study year. Here are some of the study results:

• Advertising mail represented 63% of all mail received- an average of about 16 pieces a week.
• 79% of households said they either read or scanned the advertising mail they received.
• One in three households said they made one or more purchases as a result of receiving the advertising mail.

Contrary to the prevailing opinion that direct mail is "junk" mail that is immediately discarded by recipients, a majority of respondents in the 2008 Household Study reported paying attention to the advertising.

In another 2008 study, DMN New/Pitney Bowes survey, 1000 American consumers (split 50-50 between men and women) age 18 and up from ten major metropolitan areas (Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Phoenix, and Seattle) were surveyed regarding the direct mail marketing pieces they receive. The survey findings:

• Nearly 94% of consumers surveyed reported taking action on promotional offers and coupons received via direct mail.
• 20% of consumers reported that more that 10% of the offers or coupons they received by mail led to a purchase.
• Almost 40% of respondents said they tried a new business for the first time because of information received via direct mail.
• Nearly 70% of respondents said they renewed a relationship with a business because they received a direct mailing of promotional item.
• Respondents stated that information received via direct mail often led to contribution to a non-profit organization for the first time.

The surveyors concluded that "direct mail induces consumers to touch the offer- recipients of mail are receiving, sorting, reading and using direct mail to make purchasing decisions".

Combine direct mail with e-mail marketing

The best strategy for communicating with consumers and prospects is to use a combination of direct mail and e-mail marketing. According to an Ipsos survey conducted in 2007, 67% of respondents performed online searches for more information on a company, service or product after receiving an "offline" message.

Results from ExactTarget's 2008 Channel Preference Survey supports the strategy of combining direct mail with e-mail. Respondents in that survey gave direct mail a score of 3.9 (out of a possible 5) as an acceptable marketing method and e-mail a score of 3.7. Three- quarters of respondents (75%) said they made a purchase because of a marketing message received through direct mail, and 65% said they made a purchase because of an e-mail.

Print is here to stay

Despite the pace of change affecting printing, it remains a proven way to communicate with customers and prospects. Direct mail marketing, when combined with e-mail, is more effective than e-mail alone. And the affordability of full color means that direct mail pieces can be eye catching and appealing to the target audience.

At PaperGraphics we can teach you how to grow sales and make more money through our ManagedMarketing program, where we can handle all of your printing needs but also teach your staff how to prepare, invite and close the sale with your prospects. In fact, we are the only printer in this market that is certified to do so.

If your organization or business needs to increase sales we can help. Call us at 254-773-7391 in Temple, 254-526-4303 in Killeen or visit us 24/7 at www.papergraphicsltd.com to set up a no obligation consultation where we assess your current situation and offer a plan of attack that works for your budget.