The way brands market to their customers has shifted dramatically to digital. With the option to utilise Social Media and Search Engine Marketing enables your latest campaign to reach your target audience a lot faster. However, on the ball companies are now realising there must be a cohesive brand experience delivered to their customers, so the merging of print and digital campaigns is super important.
Many companies don’t combine their online and offline efforts because they don’t know how or where to start. Often the decision on where to focus efforts is purely down to budget. Many also think there is no place for print now that so much advertising is placed online. But this is where print can be used to your advantage. With digital aspects encompassing every inch of our lives, print can be an opportunity for people to switch off. We are all realising the need to unplug and disconnect, or have a digital detox. The nostalgia of picking up a freshly printed magazine or leaflet may just be the ticket for half an hour of escapism.
So, the question is how you combine digital and print. A lot of it will hinge on your individual business aims and goals, but here are 5 examples of how you can make your digital and printed marketing work together.
- Promote social media via print. It seems pretty simple, and it is! Include your social media links on your printed materials to make it easy for an offline reader to connect with you.
- Grab the audience’s attention. Print is attention grabbing and it stands out from the hundreds of emails we receive each day. Print is different and its direct to the contact you want. It won’t get lost in a long screen of emails. Try sending out some creative direct mail, it will set you apart from the digital crowds.
- Get a #hashtag on your print. Using a relevant hashtag on your printed media will generate a buzz around your brand. How about including a postcard or leaflet in deliveries with a hashtag and with instructions to customers to take a picture of their received item and share it on social media.
- Create an experience. We feel print, we pick it up, unfold it, flick through, rotate it. It is a much more personal experience then clicking on an email that we are likely to glance over then delete. We perceive print to be more important. Someone has spent time and money for it to be produced, therefore we are more likely to pay attention to it.
- Focus groups. Create a focus group on social media to provide you with their opinions on your next print project. Not only are you gaining valuable customer point of view, your followers appreciate being asked.
As always, get creative! You can even go beyond paper. There is so much more print can offer than leaflets or brochures: pens, coasters and merchandise are items people are more likely to hold onto. Getting imaginative with the print you send will improve brand awareness, make a lasting impression and compliment your online marketing efforts.
