We could go all warm and fuzzy about the print reading experience, but just for a minute let’s get down to the true facts of the matter.
I’m a print geek. I love the feel of a printed book or magazine in my hands, and I’m incredibly lucky to be able to make my living knee deep in ink.
Still, warm fuzzies do not a marketing strategy make. So we always like to pass around the hard truths about print and what it can do for your business.
Lisa Lickert of EMI gives us three to chew on in her LinkedIn article “3 Reasons Why Print Still Matters.” For starters, print influences the influencers.
“According to AS Advertising, the MRI Survey of the American Consumer found that “influentials”—those consumers who influence other consumers—are themselves influenced by print. In fact,61% of influencers say they are influenced by magazines, while 53% cite newspapers as influential to them,” Lickert writes.
It also creates a sense of trust, with 56% of consumers saying they trust print materials over other forms. And it requires true focus, something that digital content rarely gets in this age of constant multi-tasking.
“A Ball State University study found that when consumers read magazines, the periodicals are the primary or exclusive medium 85% of the time. In other words, more print reading means less multitasking—and that means advertisers’ messages have less clutter to penetrate,” she notes.
Science backs this up, with several studies cited by Evan Tarantino in AdWeek.
“There’s been a lot of scientific research on the print vs. digital debate. For example, Temple University neuroscientists used brain mapping to discover that people were more likely to remember an ad and its context if they saw it in print as opposed to on a screen,” Tarantino notes.
He cites other studies that show print increases a campaign’s effectiveness across platforms, with consumers more likely to recall ad messaging if they’ve seen it in print. In fact, the industry is so convinced of the truth behind these claims that the Association of Magazine Media introduced the Print Magazine Sales guarantee last fall, Tarantino notes.
“This guarantee assures that print advertisers will see increased brand sales and positive ROI for qualified print campaigns, or their money/space back,” he writes.
We still love print for all the warm and fuzzy reasons. Now you have some pretty effective proof that your love of the medium is well-placed from a strategic marketing perspective.