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Archived in Some marketers have been sounding the death knell of print for years. After all, why waste money printing out 1000s of catalogues and leaflets when people can get all the info they need from your website?
The idea that print is dying is particularly convenient now we’re in the midst of a recession. Many companies are desperately bailing for survival and jettisoning costs wherever they can, with glossy brochures among the first to be shown the plank.
However, what companies need to be aware of, before binning their printed brochures and catalogues altogether, is the ‘flick and click’ effect.
What’s the ‘flick and click’ effect?
The rapid growth of e-commerce, with sales increasing year on year, would suggest that printed catalogues are an archaic waste of trees. But what this view fails to recognise is that print often plays a key role in the process that ends in a customer buying online.
Never shy of praising the value of the printed word, the Royal Mail recently released the findings of their survey of 30 online retailers on the effectiveness of printed catalogues.
From 1800 responses it found a number of interesting conclusions on the influence of printed catalogues on buying behaviour:
- Buy more often – shoppers who received a printed catalogue spent 76% more than those who didn’t
- Spend more – on average they spent £110 more than catalogue-less shoppers
- Driven to websites – over 70% of respondents said it was more likely that they’d visit a website after receiving a catalogue
- On average retailers who included a flyer with their catalogue increased their online sales 30%
These figures conveniently show print’s effectiveness, whether it’s a catalogue, brochure or sales letter, at building loyalty and driving customers to websites.
When you add to the equation the results of a Pitney Bowes survey, which found 73% of consumers prefer to receive offers in the mail, it’s clear that print offers unique marketing advantages.
On its own, digital relies on people finding their way to your website, whether via email or online ads, and then being happy to spend time browsing and building trust before buying.
Printed catalogues and brochures, on the other hand, can be browsed at leisure and they land directly at customers’ feet. The decision to buy is then made offline before reaching for the mouse and taking advantage of the convenience of online shopping.
Integration is no longer just a pipe dream
With print and digital offering unique strengths, an effective marketing strategy lies in being able to use both mediums together, rather than putting one on a drip feed of funding so the other can survive.
Until recently, the idea of integrating print and digital was still a pipe dream and the unattainable Holy Grail of marketing.
However, as we know only too well at bda, marketing is evolving at a rapid pace.
Modern tools, such as personalised URLs, website tracking and digital printing, enable marketers to deliver integrated one-to-one campaigns that are more targeted and personalised than ever. The trick is simply being able to capture data and then knowing how to use it.
So, although times are tough, try and keep your print budget away from the finance director’s guillotine, and don’t get caught in the rush to make all marketing digital. Because as the Royal Mail’s survey shows, there are plenty of online retailers who know how effective print can be at growing your online business.
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BDA (Buckingham Design Associates) blog – real people giving real opinions, and a complete lack of agency waffle. BDA deliver an exciting blend of design and creative marketing for the Oxford, Milton Keynes, Northampton and London region.
July 22nd, 2009 at 8:06 pm
[...] The print industry is not dying – it is simply adapting to the new world of marketing. In today’s economy, it is important to maximize your reach by using the most effective method of marketing and advertising. This is done by using the powerful combination of print and Internet. Research from iProspect and Jupiter Research found that 67% of the online search population is driven to search by offline channels. Of that percentage, 30% come from print ads. Even more impressive is the fact that print advertising topped the list of offline media sources that led to a purchase, with 30% of search users who opened their wallet and bought online coming from a print medium. Marketers worldwide agree! Take a look at this article found by Lisa Trosien, a nationally recognized apartment marketing expert, called, ‘Why Cutting Print Budgets Means Cutting Online Sales’. [...]
October 30th, 2009 at 6:54 am
Thanks for writing this great blog I really enjoyed.
Greetings from Tim.