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Printing on the rise for SME businesses

By 26/06/2015February 25th, 2016Full Fat Blog, Printing Buzz

Despite the trend for digital and social media marketing, the physical print industry is still alive and kicking in the UK, and we our outperforming our European counterparts in all aspects of print delivery.

We are experiencing a rise in confidence in our printing and imaging markets, and we are seeing a steady year-on-year rise in shipments. The main growth has been driven by the business sector, but consumer markets have also shown some gains, meaning that confidence in printed material is filtering through to home users as well as sole traders, entrepreneurs, and businesses of all sizes.

Traditional print is not dead

Printed material has always been used to deliver content and carry marketing and advertising messages, and recent technological improvements within the printing industry now means that everyone can benefit from physical print products at cost-effective prices and at such high-quality that it can be seen as being more impactful than digital alternatives.

Printing companies are now becoming wise to the fact that they can now adopt a role as an expert in their field, and can benefit their customers by showing them how to use printed materials to their advantage rather than putting all their focus into the printing process.

With the rise in popularity of social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter, printed materials such as brochures, flyers, headed paper, stickers, banners, window decal, and business cards can provide a cut through for businesses. Tying in social media campaigns with printed material gives companies a brand in their hand, and can redouble their response through print and direct mail.

Traditional print is not dead

Printed material has always been used to deliver content and carry marketing and advertising messages, and recent technological improvements within the printing industry now means that everyone can benefit from physical print products at cost-effective prices and at such high-quality that it can be seen as being more impactful than digital alternatives.

Printing companies are now becoming wise to the fact that they can now adopt a role as an expert in their field, and can benefit their customers by showing them how to use printed materials to their advantage rather than putting all their focus into the printing process.

With the rise in popularity of social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter, printed materials such as brochures, flyers, headed paper, stickers, banners, window decal, and business cards can provide a cut through for businesses. Tying in social media campaigns with printed material gives companies a brand in their hand, and can redouble their response through print and direct mail.

Print can be better than email

As more people are migrating away from email and towards social media online, printed media provides a perfect antidote to failing email campaigns, and can bridge the gap between the physical and digital world of business marketing.

If social media has taught us anything, it is that we now need to focus more on the single customer view. Print companies are now thinking about each customer as an individual and are striving hard to meet their specific requirements. The printing industry is now far more focussed about how they can help their customers to deliver their message, accurately and effectively.

With strong links between social media and print now coming to the forefront of business marketing, the printing industry are now in a very good position to engage, inform and influence their customers by using social media analytic tools to enable them to personalise and target their particular niche market.

Value for money option

The marketing opportunities that print medium offer are limitless, and in a world that is already saturated with digital marketing, physically printed material is going to be the value option of the future. We have seen a lot of people rush out of print to go online, but we are now seeing a steady stream of businesses rushing back to print because there is still a lot of money to be made out of it.

For any company that is willing to innovate in print, there will always be a demand. There is something tangible in handling a printed brochure or reading a printed newsletter that makes it far more real and believable than a virtual alternative. With websites, you simply read and dispose of it, quite often forgetting all about it shortly after you have finished reading. We tend to hold onto printed matter for far longer than anything in digital form, and after we have finished reading it, we can think about it and revisit it easily to re-read by simply picking it up.

Building a reputation through print

When new start-up businesses are striving to establish themselves and build a solid, trustworthy reputation, the way to physically cement that message into their prospective clients minds, they often create a smart website and seek to attract attention via social media.  A lot of interest can be generated through digital marketing, but what really goes a long way to truly ground a new business in the world is through quality physical printed products.

Many business contacts may be made online, but a reassuring relationship can be solidly established once a prospective client or customer receives something tangible through the post, such as a brochure, company press-pack, printed magazine or newsletter, information leaflets or printed guide.

If you are seeking to partner up with others in your industry, or want to be able to leave a lasting impression at networking events, then the importance of business cards cannot be underestimated.  Networking is still an important part of establishing any new business, and also just as important to an already established business that wants to expand their circle of useful contacts. This is most effectively done by handing out business cards, leaflets, stickers and flyers that help your new contacts to remember you, and have an easy way to follow up with you.