5 Reasons Print Is Not Dead in This Digital Age

Cyber-Security, Misc / May 27, 2022 May 27, 2022 / 5 minutes of reading
5 Reasons Print Is Not Dead In This Digital Age
Post Menu and Details.

Words: 1000

Reading time: ~4 minutes

Did you know that 86% of survey respondents prefer the print medium over TV, text, and SMS?

You’re accustomed to getting information from e-books, digital newspapers, and social media in this digital age. But despite the overwhelming popularity of digital materials, print is still alive.

It doesn’t seem like all that long ago that some pundits predicted that print books would give way to e-books. But print hasn’t gone out of style. Here are 5 reasons print is very much alive.

  1. Trust Factor

The trust factor is one reason there’s still a demand for print. Many studies have demonstrated that people trust what they see in print more than what they see online. In this digital age, fake news closely resembles real news, and news is posted quickly around the clock and shared online. So, many people are justifiably wary about anything they see online these days.

  1. Seeing and Feeling Is Believing

Another reason print has the staying power that it does is that many readers like actually holding a book and even smelling the ink. For such people, reading on a tablet doesn’t offer the same level of satisfaction. They want to hold a book in their hands and turn the pages with their fingers. Some experts suggest that reading something printed in a physical book boosts recall.

Do you need to create marketing materials for your business? You’ll want to maximize the time and the funds put into these efforts. If you need to produce a brochure, you can go with a digital brochure or a print brochure. The latter will have a more lasting impact. But it doesn’t mean you can do both since there’ll undoubtedly be some people who want the option to choose.

  1. It’s About Familiarity

People tend to stick with what they’re familiar with. So, suppose they’re accustomed to consuming news through physical newspapers, magazines, or trade publications. In that case, they may be less likely to switch entirely to digital. For instance, they’ll turn to newspapers, TV, or radio for news on what’s going on in the world.

  1. Digital Fatigue

Digital Fatigue

Have you ever heard the term Zoom fatigue? Many people worked at home during the pandemic and had to use Zoom for meetings with management and co-workers. But it wasn’t just for work. Church services, doctor’s appointments, and other events were held online via Zoom and other video teleconferencing tools. This led to burnout for many people. In addition to the Zoom effect, some people spend a lot of time online, whether on social media or streaming. Some people regard reading a physical magazine as a well-needed break. They can unplug and enjoy doing something away from a computer screen.

  1. Digital Divide

While access to the internet is high throughout the U.S., there are still north of 21 million people in the country who lack regular internet access. That works out to nearly 3 in 10 people or 27% of Americans. The same source says four in 10 schools lack broadband access. If people lack access to the internet, they’re more likely than not to get the information they need via print resources.

You don’t have to choose between print and digital. When you consider the benefits of print and the benefits of digital, you can appreciate that both have their merits. It’s not a case of having to select one over another. If you’re launching an advertising campaign at your company, you’ll be able to employ print and digital advertising to target different demographics within your target market. Some people prefer print materials that they can hold, cut out, and store. And some people prefer digital materials they can access via their big screen and small screen devices. There’s no right and wrong. It’s about reaching consumers and turning them into customers.

Another benefit of print is that it reaches many people over time. For instance, an ad in a magazine will continue to be seen by people weeks and months after it was initially published. Have you ever waited for an appointment in a doctor’s office? The chances are that you have. While sitting in the waiting room and flipping through magazines, you’ve seen many ads. The same applies if you’re waiting at the mechanic’s shop or the dentist’s office. You’ll encounter print ads in magazines that are months–and sometimes even years–old. Print ads can reach dozen, hundreds, and even thousands of people over time. That means a significant impact. Digital ads don’t have the same staying power. In fact, digital ads are of the here-today-gone-tomorrow variety. You’ll see it today, and then it’ll get lost in cyberspace. So, if you give up on print, you’ll lose out on the sort of staying power that can impact the masses.

When you go with print, you’ll also get more visibility than you will with digital. You can choose a specific publication for an ad, for instance. This can give your print ad a high degree of visibility. Meanwhile, the online environment is saturated with advertisements–so much so that it can be annoying to some consumers. You can appreciate the drawbacks if you’ve ever been on a website and had ads pop up out of nowhere–covering up what you were reading. Because of things like pop-up ads, some people ignore most digital ads they encounter. Digital advertising, done right, has many benefits. It just has to be done correctly.

For these and other reasons, print isn’t going anywhere soon. That’s not to say that digital hasn’t gained massive traction – it most certainly has. But experts suggesting that the digital age would quickly result in print’s demise have been proven wrong. While digital content will continue to grow in popularity, there’ll always be a demand for print. People may use both–if print and digital options are available–but it’s unlikely they’ll do away with their print publications completely. So, a strategy that includes digital and print will likely be the best way to go at this point.

Thank you for reading!

Tags: , , ,

If you liked this post, check out these too: