The effectiveness of print - eight quick takeaways

Because...

1. print is the place for content that is engaging 

Digital is great for anything where you want to measure activity - from clicks to page views to likes. But how much real engagement does it take to double-click your Instagram feed and then scroll to the next post?

Print has its own engagement indicators - and strong ones at that.

Every second reader shares ads they read in magazines with friends and family. Eight out of ten people have bought something or visited a website after reading about it in a magazine.

2. we all make time for magazines

Just because everyone is glued to their smartphones doesn't mean that people no longer take the time to enjoy high-quality, longer content - especially if it is available in printed form.

According to the MNI, Baby Boomers read 9.2 print magazines a month, Generation X 9.1 and Millennials 8.9. The difference between the older and younger generations is very small. Magazines therefore continue to have great appeal, and this appeal is not waning.

3. younger generations want to pull the plug 

According to a survey by Code Computerlove, 16 to 24-year-olds spend an average of three hours and 23 minutes a day on their smartphone.

But Generation Z is very aware of this hard-to-shed behavior, and many are looking for ways to reduce it. Almost two thirds (61%) believe that they and their peers will benefit from going offline more.

The hunger for print is huge - and is just waiting for marketing specialists to exploit its full potential.

4. digital loses out to print in terms of trust

Digital has a clear speed advantage over print - content can be published with just a few clicks. But where it can't keep up is trust.

According to a Kantar survey of 8,000 consumers in the US, France, Brazil and the UK, printed news magazines are the most trusted source of news, followed by 24/7 television news, radio broadcasts and national daily newspapers.

If you want to build trust in your brand, why not do it in a medium that is already trusted?

5. print gains more attention 

Consumers make time for print media - 60 percent of newspaper readers do not consume any other media while reading newspapers.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, people are now spending even more time with print media - magazine reading time has increased from 44 to 56 minutes a day.

6. print offers customers a unique experience

Almost half of all magazine and newspaper readers are of the opinion that these media offer them something that they cannot get elsewhere.

Unsurprisingly, luxury brands in particular are capitalizing on this - using print to complement their digital advertising messages and extend their reach to a more affluent readership.

7 Print as a sustainable option

Today, brands and consumers are equally aware of the impact their decisions have on the environment.

European print media are produced responsibly from sustainably managed forests - and thus make a significant contribution to carbon sequestration. According to the UN, the total area of European forests has grown by 44,000 square kilometers in the ten years up to 2015 - an area larger than Switzerland.

8 Printed messages stay in the mind

As a marketing specialist, one of your goals is to create brand awareness and recognition. To make a lasting impression on the customer - and for your message to be remembered - you should offer them something they can touch and feel.

People appreciate something they can both touch and see 24 percent more than something they can only see. Haptic objects appear more real to the brain in the truest sense of the word - which leads to a more intensive engagement with the corresponding content. With print, we have a multi-sensory reading experience.