1. Print gets delivered where you want.
Everyone has a mailing address. Whether your target list is for current customers only, or for
warm prospects, or you’re purchasing or renting a new list, you know where your printed pieces are going. The mail has to be delivered. Compare that with an email campaign. No matter how clever the content, how valuable the offer, how cool the HTML design, your email to prospects has a good chance of being caught in a spam filter, deleted or just overlooked.
2. You know what it will cost you before you start.
Direct marketing campaigns are a tried-and-true science. It’s easy to establish your costs ahead of time: list acquisition, creative, print, and mail. You’ll know what the cost is for reaching X number of people. Try that with a web campaign, which is still a hit-or-miss endeavor. It may cost you less to create and distribute a web campaign, but there are too many variables affecting your costs, as well as the effectiveness of a campaign. Costs are much easier to calculate with print.
3. People get emotional about print.
Even in 2013, print has the power to evoke strong emotions. People feel attached to print. They save memorable materials. If your campaign speaks to them – let’s say it’s personalized using variable data printing – they’re more likely to hold onto it, even putting it up on their bulletin board for display. Great printed pieces get shared. The very tactile nature of print renders it more personal than a digital message.
4. Print gets attention.
Over the din of hundreds of daily emails, random text messages, web page visits, e-newsletters, and Facebook posts, an exquisitely printed and cleverly conceived direct marketing piece stands out. It’s quiet, and today that spells welcome relief.
5. Print is tactile – and glorious!
You can make magic happen with a printed campaign these days. Maybe your brochure has a fine, textured finish – such as a sandpaper coating, blind embossing, or a raised rubbery UV coating. Maybe you’re sending a poster that’s printed with scented ink. You may produce a brochure that shows off an especially cool fold. Perhaps your piece uses other special effects, like holographic foil stamps or even something close to lenticular, which you can achieve using 3D software. The special effects you can add to a printed piece are nothing short of spectacular. Try that with a digital campaign.
Take a break from the eye strain of digital marketing. Create and send a captivating printed piece for your next marketing push. Good printing is memorable. It makes a lasting impression that doesn’t disappear from view when you click, save to a file, or log off for the night.
