These days, “going green” is everyone’s top priority. Did you know that going digital and one-to-one with printing is a simple solution? Print marketing can be done more sustainably when digital presses are used to create papers that are both specific and customizable on demand.
Although more people than ever are using digital media, it can be extremely difficult to cut through the clutter and captivate your audience due to the sheer volume of information they are exposed to on a daily basis (through email and online ads).
Mail, like digital media, can be customized to the recipient’s specific interests. You can choose precise demographics to ensure your marketing materials reach the intended audience. Additionally, there is much less mail in someone’s mailbox than in their inbox, so you have a better chance of getting their attention using this method.
It’s more powerful because it makes the audience feel something on a more visceral level.
According to studies conducted in 2015 and 2019 by the United States Postal Service and Temple University, printed advertisements left a more significant impression on consumers than their digital counterparts. Brain activity suggested more subconscious value and desire for products or services advertised in a physical format, and people remembered the commercials more vividly a week after seeing them than they did the digital ones.
To begin, there is a direct correlation between print-on-demand and a less carbon footprint. You don’t just lose money, and the natural resources (materials, chemicals, and power to run the press) used to make obsolete or out-of-date stock when you toss it away.
Books and other printed materials are printed, packaged, and stored. The use of fossil fuel and other environmental resources is inevitable when it comes to transportation (shipping, postal service). Warehouses, where records are kept during storage, are climate-controlled. You may lessen your influence on the environment by converting to POD because it cuts down on the need for storage and transportation, both of which use a lot of energy.
Second, your print advertising can also benefit from the eco-friendly outcomes of targeting and personalization. When compared to traditional mailing lists, the databases utilized in 1:1 printing are typically more accurate and up-to-date, thus minimizing waste. Both the recipient and the message in the mailing are likely to be unique.
By simply sending materials to a subset of the list and, in the case of booklets or kits, by excluding extraneous pages, print runs can be shortened through personalization. This not only speeds up delivery but also has the potential to save money on postage.
Conventional wisdom tells us to evaluate digital and 1:1 printing based on their financial impact. However, many of these applications also have a sustainability focus. You can reduce your financial and ecological impact by using just-in-time manufacturing, precise targeting, and individualized service.
Call to Action!
You need to have a strong call to action on all of your marketing products, whether they are physical or virtual. However, traditional methods of advertising, such as print ads, can complement your digital efforts and increase engagement. If you want more people to visit your website, you may do things like making the address prominently displayed on all of your printed marketing materials, giving it a memorable and easily typed-in URL, or including a QR code on all of your products. Including a promo code for a price cut on their digital purchase is a great way to get people to go through to your website.
It’s equally important to ensure that consumers have a consistent impression of the brand throughout both print and digital mediums. The two platforms must share a consistent brand identity, including the same colors, typefaces, tone, and graphics. The transition from perusing a printed brochure to making a purchase on your website or opening an email to browsing your physical store should be as painless as possible.
Finally, it’s important to assess how effective your CTA was. Print collateral’s impact can be tracked just as easily as digital CTAs. You can easily monitor the response rate to your printed materials by including actionable tracking information such as a custom URL, a phone number, a discount code for online purchases, or a QR code.