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Newest Trends in the Printing Industry
Promotional printing has acted as a staple form of communication since the early 1600’s. Over the centuries, we have grown and evolved our methods for interactions, reaching quicker and more efficient message delivery. The advent of the internet, and similar technology, has created an extensive arena for instantaneous communication. As thoughts, feelings, ideas, and words are mass-marketed on the screen, at the world’s disposal, the printing industry is alternately rivaled. The boom of the Slashdot effect has printers on their toes trying to keep afloat with their target markets.
Prior to the web, newspapers and magazines provided consumers with a scope into the daily goings-on of the world. Due to the popularity of these mediums, advertisers and marketers geared their budgets towards print. Nowadays, many see print as unnecessarily timely and costly. Why purchase a newspaper or magazine and take time out of your day to read it? Instead you can read news on the internet which you’re already paying for, in the middle of shopping, checking e-mail, conversing with others, etc.
If the audiences are flocking to their computers, then advertisers must follow suit in order to get their ads seen by the masses. But, what does this mean for the printing industry?
While online advertising does give print a run for its money, one is not replacing the other. Instead, promotional printing and corporate identity printing are driving to push harder in order to reach more creative and effective solutions. Previously, custom promotional printing pieces, such as business card printing for example, attempted to squeeze in every fact and detail about a company. Nowadays, print advertising should be used to direct a consumer to the company’s website, where he or she can read all about the company at leisure.
Another point to consider is the fact that all demographic age groups still do the majority of their shopping in-store. This gives the print industry a competitive advantage in many ways. Outdoor banner printing and indoor banner printing can be used to provoke the buying devision at a time when consumers are much closer to th point-of-purchase. If you are an in-store shopper who is exposed to an online ad for a clothing store, it is likely that this ad will not have much of an effect on you. However, if you are exposed to an indoor banner printing sign selling a particular clothing store within the mall you’re currently in, you are a lot more likely to act.
Additionally, in-store shopping affords you the opportunity to place your company’s business card printing and brochure printing in locations highly-trafficked by your target market. These promotional printing materials, places on a counter or a windowsill, are a lot less intrusive than a pop-up ad, for example. This type of internet advertising slows down your computer while you’re trying to surf the web.
Finally, print advertising is composed of tangible products that users can have live interaction with. Although virtual life is becoming more popular due to social networking sites and the like, these experiences are still essentially phony, unlike print. For example, if you invest in stationery printing for your business, and give it away as free samples, consumers can immediately get their hands on the product. On the internet, “free samples” are often gimmick promised by pop-ups requiring you to enter a wealth of personal identity information. There is much more validity with promotional printing.
Overall, online advertising has spurred a trend in promotional printing and corporate identity printing. The rule for every type of material – brochure printing, business care printing, banner printing, letterhead printing, envelope printing, pocket folder printing, and stationery printing—is to keep pieces simple, make them stand out, and always direct the consumer to the internet for more information.
One final benefit of the conjoining of print and the internet is the user’s ability to access promotional printing services, quickly and more efficiently, through online custom printing. Overall, the World Wide Web has provided a platform for the re-creation of promotional printing.
Filed under: Uncategorized on January 17th, 2008