Print for weddings still hold strong.
Our customers rely on printed schematics, installation instructions, quick start guides, etc. They request print as opposed to online materials.
My clients who work in industries with tangible products find print materials particularly important; especially those that have products aimed toward wealthier clientele. For example, a folder of information for a high-end countertop company.
Business to Business, Corporate, and Image-focused clients in particular are more concerned in including print and collateral material as part of their overall branding efforts.
My last two jobs are actually a great example of each. My current position is with a cybersecurity company and print materials aren’t as common. There are some but the majority is digital. I would say 25/75. My previous position was in higher education and the print materials were far more common. I would say it was more like 75/25 print to digital.
I have found that financial advisors, as a client group, seem to enjoy printed collateral, even when the same content is available digitally on a website.
Quick takes: Print is irrelevant for mass mailings and even targeted mailing lists. More effective for turning good prospects into clients. Bespoke, and/or personalized print communications still make an impression. There’s just too much print ‘noise’ still. It needs to evolve more in this digital-forward age.
With the older generations print will probably be preferred method considering that is how they were ingrained to retain and gather information. They’re also not as tech savvy.
Print is relevant with Not-for-profits. Real estates. Corporate communications. Print is irrelevant in short lived news updates, entertainment, info clutter and opinions. General public informative materials and tech books are too fast-lived and seem outdated as soon as they are printed. However good quality (color) print will always have a market. Educational material is still strong, as I don’t think it is good to have kids online too early and online presence can’t be expected everywhere. Another good print market is packaging which can help selling a product and also informs and fulfills government guidelines, i.e., with nutrition labels. (I just bought a new Pantone fan for color printing on supplement labels.) Packaging for transport is still is strong with paper, brown bags, pouches and wrappers, cartons. Demographics who prefer the print versus online, such as seniors, like clear readable information material in the mail, likewise government communication or fire hazard information … Less used, but still needed: letterheads, envelopes, even calling and appointment cards. Indoor and outdoor signage and environmental label systems and posters are still important. Calendars, on point guidelines, recycling info postcards… Sustainable furniture made from carton material is tested as alternative to plastic and veneer. Printing on that furniture would be a new market.
Printed brochures may still be picked up, but are less relevant as single information sources. We do information posters for the trade booths which also have a QR code… whole wall or poster video screens that replace poster walls are already seen, however are rare as they are still expensive and confusing, less good for type heavy information, and the impression is short lived. I also order decorative (poster) prints from the nature photographs I take.
CPGs rely heavily on print in the overall expression of a product. Invitations can still be print dependent, although they seem to be going digital.
In my experience, some form of print collateral can be used effectively in almost every marketing/advertising solution.
We see a lot of activity in the real estate industry. Direct mail and signs are still highly effective. We also see a lot of sales in manufacturing and healthcare.
I can no longer speak for this since we basically fired all our commercial clients, but for our non-profit clients and our own personal work, print is very effective.
Using both print and digital is a great combination. As stated before, print tends to tingle more senses and stay with reader longer if it is something they WANT to hold on to.
I think it is effective when trying to get the word out about something important and helps increase the odds that someone gets the memo. Print is also more effective when you want a luxe experience.
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