Print Media Cover

10 Reasons Print Media is Alive and Well

Over the past couple of years, there has been many claims that print media is on its way out. Digital is the new best thing, and print media is dead. Well, we’re here to tell you that’s one big lie.

Digital media is definitely on the rise, that’s true; but print media is still very much alive and well. Despite the industry’s struggles over the past half a decade, print is still finding a way to stay strong. You might be nervous about investing in print advertising in 2017, but here are 12 facts that will make you want to start a print campaign right now.

1. 56 percent of consumers find print marketing to be the most trustworthy form of marketing. 

You obviously want consumers to trust your business. People don’t buy products from businesses they don’t trust. So why not use print media to show your customers how trustworthy your business really is?

2. New York Magazine experienced a 44 percent growth in single copy sales in 2015. 

An industry that is dead and gone doesn’t experience that kind of growth. While it’s true that some magazines and newspapers have struggled more than others, certain print outlets have actually grown over the past couple of years. Along with New York Magazine, The Nation has also experienced significant growth in single copy sales (up 65 percent). You don’t need to be afraid of print media. Just take the time to do a little research before booking space in a particular publication.

3. Subscriptions remain strong.

Many magazines have experienced a drop in single copy sales over the past years, but subscription sales remain high.

4. 80 percent of traditional mail is opened whereas 80 percent of emails are disregarded. 

Digital advertising is great, but it has pros and cons just like anything else. One of those cons is that digital is incredibly easy to ignore. It’s much easier to delete an email than throw away a magazine or packet you receive in the mail. Think about how many times you delete emails without even looking at them. Then think about how many times you do the same with mail you receive in your physical mailbox. You’re probably a lot more likely to at least page through that magazine you found in your stack of mail, right?

5. The Atlantic saw a two percent increase in circulation. 

That might not sound like a huge increase, but it’s a pretty big deal. As mentioned above, before starting a campaign, don’t be afraid of print advertising. There’s still plenty of publications that are growing and succeeding despite digital’s influence.

6. Readers retain more information when reading print. 

Our brains are built to understand holding and reading something physical better than something digital. We can see the text in its entirety when we hold it in our hands. We can look at the pictures, feel the pages, and comprehend more information. Flipping through a magazine and finding an ad that catches your eye is a much different experience than scrolling past a digital ad on a website.

7. Print media helps you establish a brand. 

The senior vice president of finance and advertising for Time Inc., Andy Blau, says it best:

“It’s really for establishing brand worthiness in the marketplace, for establishing the value of the brand, for communicating very broadly, with broad reach, to the right target audience. It’s really pure brand advertising. And digital tries to do some of that, but it’s still much more of a direct response. People still measure digital with click-throughs and conversion rates, and you can’t necessarily maintain marketing of a brand through digital alone. Print advertising is a very efficient way of establishing a brand identity and for communicating that to the target market,” Andy Blau via The American Marketing Association.

Your business needs to create a solid brand to grow. Print advertising can help it do just that.

8. Print is eternal. 

I don’t know about you, but I have a stack of magazines dating back to at least 2010 on my coffee table at home. They might not have the most current information or research, but sometimes it’s nice to just page through a magazine instead of staring at a screen for a change.

When consumers save magazines, and page through them again and again, they’re seeing your advertisement repeatedly. This doesn’t happen with digital. Magazines and print media is forever. Think about magazines that cover historic events, or feature a beloved celebrity. Readers will save those magazines, pass them around and share them with friends who will read (and see your advertisement) again and again.

9. Print readers have a different mindset. 

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Reading a magazine requires a much different mindset that searching online.

When a consumer opens up a magazine, he is likely doing so to relax and is reading for pleasure. However when a consumer searches for something online, he is likely looking for something in particular. He is on a mission, searching for an answer, a business or a product. He doesn’t necessarily care about the advertisements that pop up while he searches. If he’s retargeted during later searches, the digital advertising might catch his eye, but nonetheless, he is much more likely to actually look at the advertisements while paging through a pages versus searching on a website.

Have you ever flipped through Vogue or Elle? The advertisements are some of the best parts!

10. Print is art. 

Print media can be truly beautiful. It can be artistic, creative and engaging. Digital advertising, on the other hand, is effective and has the ability to grab consumers’ attention, but when was the last time you marveled at a beautiful digital advertisement?

Print advertising has had its fair share of struggles over the past couple of years, but it’s still alive and well. Digital might be king in 2017, but mixing print into your advertising campaign can do wonders for your brand.