It would be very hard to argue with the observation that we are well and truly in a digital age where emails, text messages and tweets are just as commonplace as a phone call, but it would be wrong to think that technology has changed everything we do in business.

Some might think that print is effectively dead in the water and not relevant in their business anymore but they would definitely be wrong to think that and could even be making a bad marketing mistake to discount print media so readily.

Print is very much alive and kicking and here are some good reasons why that is the case.

Think green

It is actually quite plausible to construct an argument that print is a greener option than some other forms of media.

The reason for this line of thinking is that printing something is going to produce a one-time carbon footprint and no therefore is not going to use up any more carbon energy in the future. Compare this to other forms of media which continue to require energy every single time a document or image is viewed from a media device.

Print marketing works

A piece of mail that arrives through a physical letterbox is going to grab someone’s attention much more successfully than if they receive your offer via email, which can easily get lost amongst the hundreds of messages pinging into their inbox all day long.

It is fair to say that the digital age has actually managed to make print marketing more viable and attention-grabbing than it was in the past and helps you to stand out from the competition.

Social media channels definitely have their place in marketing strategies, but it could be a smart move to also remember that print marketing works and your message has potentially a better chance of being read when it is not jostling for attention in a heavily-laden inbox.

Personalised message

Print technology has evolved with the digital age and variable printing is not a new process as such, but it has benefitted from a high-tech makeover which has helped to lower the cost.

Variable printing allows you the freedom to uniquely customise each individual piece of media that you are printing, so that you can change certain elements and take full advantage of the powerful impact that more complex personalisation can achieve.

A good example of how this works would be to run a mailing campaign with a unique coupon that has its own serial number attached to the mailing. This allows you to easily track which customers take up your offer and redeem them.

The response rate to personalised mailings is normally good, due to the fact that the recipient recognises that you have made more of an effort than just sending an email, which is appreciated and conveys a positive message.

Using print with social media

You certainly don’t have to treat print and social media as two different things that probably won’t work well together.

Social networking has become a fundamental part of the way many businesses try to reach out to their customers by is actually not that different from the way we used to network. Giving a potential customer a business card with your details is making a social connection in much the same way and opens up a line of communication just as successfully.

Online social media can also work well when it is combined with a print marketing campaign. Use the respective strengths of both mediums to allow your customers the chance to interact with you via Facebook if they want to, by giving them the contact information on your business cards and mailings.

Excite your audience

As you can see, print marketing is very much alive and kicking and it can put you in the spotlight and excite your audience when it is done right.

That is the key point, you have to work at developing an effective print strategy and make use of all the tools and relevant technology available to make your message stand out. Work on using print materials and designs that are not just the same as everyone else, otherwise you are missing a golden opportunity to gain a marketing edge and you might as well just send a boring email like all the others.

Don’t make a mistake dismiss the printer, embrace it and see what it can do for your business in a digital age.