Dove Direct Print and Marketing Blog, “Why the World Needs Print”

Welcome to the Dove Direct Print and Marketing Blog. Today's post, "Why the World Needs Print," re-examines why marketing strategies need print to better engage online and offline consumer participation. Print opens the opportunity for more touch points for true multi/omnichannel delivery. Online marketing in all its various forms, including social media, personalized landing pages, blogs, videos, email campaigns, and other tactics, fare much better when an accompanying direct mail marketing campaign is part of the strategic advertising mix.

Savvy brands and marketers continue to realize that adding a print element to their marketing campaign greatly enhances the probability for increasing consumer participation, thus leading to higher sales numbers.

In previous posts, we've given examples of how iconic digital brands use direct mail marketing in conjunction with their online marketing efforts. One might think that a digital concern would stick to and own the digital space, and as a result, there wouldn't be a need to market or advertise outside of the online universe. However, that is not the case. The online world continues to be fraught with challenges for brands to reach their targeted audiences in numbers that justify an exclusive digital ad spend.

In the early days of the internet, brands and marketers enjoyed the novelty of being able to target consumers at an entry-level price point in comparison to other outlets. One could place a single banner ad, or a CTA (call-to-action) message to run all day or even for a 24/7 week of runs. Today, it takes several ad placements a day on a single social media platform, and even then, many consumer targets may not see those ad placements.

Today, brands compete with an average of 10,000 ads per day targeting consumers, with most of that number devoted to social media and online marketing campaigns. Question? How many online ads are reasonable for a brand to invest? For the sake of argument, let's take 1% of 10,000, or 100. Therefore, 100 online ad placements per day covering a two-week campaign equates to 1,400 ads. We also contend that the CPC (cost-per-click) model also weighs into this equation, along with market conditions, along with too many other variables to address in this post. However, this alone is an indicator of the degree of online saturation challenges marketers must overcome to succeed.

Moreover, getting back to the reality that many iconic digital brands add direct marketing mail pieces, including Google, Direct TV, Hulu, Xfinity, AT&T, GoDaddy, Amazon, and a host of others, such as Burger King, Mead Johnson, Tylenol, and Botanic Choice. If the market leaders are investing in direct mail marketing, then it would likely be a feather in your cap to observe and implement what the market leaders are doing, even if the scale is smaller than those of the iconic brands.

eBay Australia Goes Print

eBay Australia has taken the plunge for the first time to invest in printed marketing collateral in the form of a physical catalog. The retailer will mail two million copies to its Australian consumers.

eBay Australia is not stopping there. They will release a digital version of the mailer on May 21, 2019. The online retailer stresses the need to engage with 90% of the goods sold by some 40,000 outlets on the site, which are new products, which is a similar strategy mirroring that of traditional "brick and mortar" retailers.

Print Marketing is a Powerful Tool

eBay Australia head of brand Rebecca Newton states, "This is our first catalog, so we're interested to see the results before making any long term decisions. We'll be looking at the engagement from our buyers and the value we drive for our sellers. A mix of existing customers and those new to eBay will be the first to receive one of the catalogs. Our digital catalog will also be available on ebay.com.au/winter on May 21 and distributed via digital channels."

Print Collateral Cuts through the Clutter

Question. On average, how many direct mail pieces are delivered daily to consumers mailboxes? If you guessed that on average, it's a single digit range, in most instances, you would be correct! While it is unclear as to the exact number, you can rest assured that it is not 5k, 8k, or 10k.

Besides, 75% of households usually check, scan, or read some of their direct mail advertising materials. (Source: The Household Diary Study 2016, USPS®.) In a MarketingCharts study, direct mail was found to be the top purchase influencer among Baby Boomers. It even beat out recommendations from friends and family. (Source: Direct Mail A Top Purchase Influencer For Baby Boomers).

More Direct Mail Stats

Direct mail requires 21% less cognitive effort to process than digital media and elicits a much higher brand recall. In other words, it's easier to understand and more memorable. (Source: "A Bias for Action," Canada Post).

Direct mail is more persuasive and delivers a motivation response that is 20% higher than digital media's. (Source: "A Bias for Action," Canada Post).

The physical aspect of direct mail leaves "a deeper footprint in the brain." (Source: "Using Neuroscience to Understand the Role of Direct Mail," Millward Brown and Bangor University).

These are but a few compelling reasons why the world needs print. Brands that are opting to incorporate direct mail marketing into their strategies are elevating their engagement, response, and purchase rates above those that limit their marketing initiatives to the digital domain.

Print delivers better brand recall than its digital counterparts. Effective advertising and marketing campaigns whose end goals are sales purchases, also share another vital aspect in the marketing game, and that is to cement mindshare for the brand over the course of the ad campaign. Mindshare is often associated with brand recall. How many times have you seen a video ad or TV commercial that left you wondering who that brand was, and moreover, what they were selling? Brand recall matters, and to that end, print is a leader in establishing brand recall.

The Net-Net

Bottom line. The world needs print, and with all the digital considerations, including the lack of trustworthiness, the use of a printed direct mail marketing piece should be an integral part of any marketing mix, particularly that of digital. Thanks for reading, "Why the World Needs Print."

Let's have a conversation about direct mail strategies, printing, print software, transactional documents, variable digital printing, brand equity and unified marketing collateral during our next Open House. We invite you to join us onThursday, May 30, 2019, for an hour or two, anytime between 10:30 am to 3:30 pm. Let us show you how to improve your document processes to optimize your workflow, reduce your costs, and maximize your organization's printing, letter shop, and mailing capabilities. Dove Direct does have an official USPS certified bureau located within our offices that will save you time and money. And, if you bring us your files, we will create a demo file for you. For more information call Carla Eubanks at 404-629-0122 or email Carla at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Atlanta based print and mail solutions provider offers organizations end-to-end data, printing and mailing solutions: Data Management, Variable Digital Printing, LetterShop and Fulfillment, Fully Automated MLOCR Presort Bureau, Marketing and Production Management Support and Secure Data Life Cycle Management.

If you don't want to wait for the Open House, you can reach Dove Direct today by calling 404-629-0122 or use the contact form for Dove Direct.​​