Print’s dead...or is it?

Listen to the marketing chatter and you’d think that print died. Now it’s entirely true that you find much less paper in your mailbox these days. The reason’s obvious. It’s much cheaper to send an email than to post a letter or even a postcard. So the vast majority of people who have little of value to say but want to say it to the largest possible audience use email. That’s not you, or your company. At least it shouldn’t be. Even if you are spraying you message to millions of unqualified prospects, there are costs involved in the effort. It makes far more sense to target your audiences with just a little thought and a little luck so that the payoff is much greater.

The principles of direct-mail marketing were thoroughly developed by the beginning of the century...the last century. Back then, people had to use the paper mail system and therefore, they had to make every penny count. The techniques they developed are invaluable no matter what it costs to send out your messages.

 If you’re going to shoot... whether it’s arrows, bullets, or messages...
it makes a lot of sense to aim first.

Now take another look at your paper in-box. It’s pretty empty, isn’t it? Is that a good thing or a bad thing? It’s a good thing because the lack of paper mail means that your message doesn’t have much competition. Put out a strong message with an appealing offer and you won’t need to overcome very much noise to get your prospect’s attention.

Now for the really good news. The same thought you put into a campaign when it costs money pays off just as well when you use “free” communications channels like email. The noise is higher, sure, but your refined communications and appealing offers stand head and shoulders above the competition that didn’t give much thought to their messages because it wasn’t going to cost anything to send those messages.

People still like print

People still like to read things printed on paper. Don’t believe it? Go to your local book store and look at the magazine racks. They’re not empty, are they? In fact, they’re stuffed to overflowing with colorful, informative magazines. If print was dead, those racks would be empty. They’re not. There’s a lot to be learned from magazine racks.

You can get your message across very effectively with the right message delivered in a compelling way. Sometimes, print and direct mail are exactly the right delivery mechanism. I can help you understand when the situation’s right for print, and when it’s not. Wouldn’t this be a good time to call me at (408) 910-5992 or email me at steven.leibson@gmail.com for a free consultation?