In today’s digital world, online marketing eclipses traditional marketing in terms of sheer volume. But print marketing is both more popular and more effective than digital: 56 percent of customers find print to be the most trustworthy type of marketing, and a recent study found that people are more likely to remember print ads than digital ones because they make a stronger first impression.
Traditional print media is therefore essential to a good customer outreach campaign. And there are several ways that businesses can reach their target audience via print marketing.
Why Use Print Marketing for Customer Outreach?
It’s no secret that online advertising plays an important role in customer outreach. However, print marketing remains a valuable tool for generating sales, with the ROI of direct mail advertising almost double that of online display advertising.
With browser-based ad blockers and anti-spam email filters making it harder to conduct online marketing, print marketing offers a reliable and direct route to customers. Response rates are higher for direct mail than email, and print allows for a broad range of formats.
While we are obviously biased towards print here at Printing for Less, we do acknowledge that it is a new era. Regardless of the statistics, there isn’t a need for competition between print and digital. Rather, we want our customers to take advantage of the modern digital avenues and create a partnership between their digital and print campaigns. With that said the following tips are focused for reaching customers exclusively via print media. And with options like standard flyers and trifolds to unique die-cut brochures, they are sure to catch the recipient’s eye.
Best Print Practices
Print marketing is an effective means of customer outreach—but only when it is done in a thoughtful, goal-oriented manner.
Clarity is key. When creating paper-based marketing materials, ensure that your messaging is easy to read quickly, as people won’t spend a lot of time on it. And have a clear call to action so your customer knows what to do next, ideally in a larger or more distinctive typeface than the rest of the piece.
When planning a direct mail campaign, it is important to identify your audience and delivery strategy. Do you need to reach everyone in a specific location—using Every Door Direct Mail (EDDM), for example—or do you need to identify potential customers based on information such as their age, gender, or lifestyle?
Print Marketing Merch & Why It’s Useful
Printed marketing media comes in several formats. Some of these, such as personalized mailers, are intended for direct mail marketing, while items like business cards may be distributed in various ways: in stores, at conferences, or during one-on-one interactions.
The humble business card does a lot of heavy lifting when it comes to customer outreach. Functioning as a mini billboard for your business, a business card should convey only the most essential information while still securing the interest of the customer.
According to Katie Young, Printing for Less’s Director of Sales, these snappy pieces of literature get prioritized above virtually any other form of print marketing. “Business cards are one of our most popular items because if someone is only going to have one print piece for their business, it’s typically a business card.”
2. Brochures
While business cards are most effective in their classic, wallet-friendly format, brochures are available in a broader range of sizes and styles. Brochures include items like single-sided flyers, trifolds, and gatefolds, all of which can be customized with techniques like holographic foil stamping, spot UV coating, and die cutting.
Along with business cards, brochures are the most in-demand products at Printing for Less. They are a great way to convey larger amounts of information along with images and eye-catching details, and they can be either mailed or distributed in person.
Mailers can be personalized for an individual recipient. A retail study found that 86 percent of consumers say personalized marketing leads to a buying decision.
At a basic level, personalization involves printing the recipient’s name somewhere on the mailer, but it can also include more advanced information such as the recipient’s age, hair color, or profession. Specific images, text, and color schemes can be added based on any field from the mailing list data set.
“There’s really no limit to how many things you can personalize on a mailer,” Young says. “For example, you can personalize a certain address to be matched with a certain message.”
Brainstorming Your Customer Outreach Campaign
A successful customer outreach campaign requires both practical and creative planning. First off, a business needs to have a clear idea of their budget for the campaign. Only once the budget has been established can it decide what it needs and in what quantities.
And then comes the merchandise itself. What format should the print media take? What will it look like? What message will it convey?
Nathan Gardner, National Account Executive at Printing for Less, suggests that individuality should be encouraged in virtually all cases. “It’s really important to make your marketing stand out. You have to make your campaign personalized or different from everyone else’s to really see results.”
Some Examples We Love
Successful customer outreach can take many forms. Sometimes, simplicity is key: one business just enjoyed their most successful campaign by offering customers a free pillow if they visited the business’ store. Who could resist?
Another company used print marketing to serve a more long-term strategy, using dynamic QR codes to gather data about where people were engaging with the media, thus identifying potential hotspots for business.
Tyler Diebold, National Account Executive at Printing for Less, gives a third example, citing a health technology company that offered customer incentives and included a clear call to action. “Sempre Health ran a ‘good driver discount’ campaign that partnered with health insurance companies to offer large discounts to customers who refilled their prescriptions on time. The business sent a mailer to their customers asking them to enroll in the program to be eligible for discounts.”
Reach Out with Printing for Less
Business cards, brochures, and personalized mailers are all great tools for reaching new and existing customers. Need assistance putting together your next customer outreach campaign? Give us a call at 800-930-7978!