One of the greatest debates among marketing agencies and marketers everywhere has always been print vs. digital advertising. Which is better? Which is the most cost-effective? Which is best suited for the people you’re trying to reach? As marketing becomes more digital, it can be easy to ditch print and call it a day. But this may not be the answer to all of your problems. When deciding on which advertising medium is the best for your brand, budget, and business, be sure to take these three tips into consideration:
Weigh the pros and cons of each
Ultimately, the decision will come down to which makes the most sense for both your brand and your target audience. Although it may seem obvious, when deciding to take the print route vs. digital route, evaluate the pros and cons of each.
A pro for print advertising is its ability to give marketers access to specific customer bases. For example, a company that sells fishing gear can appeal to its customer base easily by choosing to advertise in a fishing magazine. With that being said, print also carries multiple cons including a large decline in readership for both magazines and newspapers, as well as the larger cost.
Digital advertising is on a steep rise in popularity with no intention of slowing down. As expected, with digital advertising comes multiple pros, such as the cost-effectiveness, its ability to be measured, and the ever-increasing opportunity to go viral. Although print is great, digital marketing in the 21st century is crucial and can be a great addition to any marketing strategy. However, digital advertising does have certain cons of its own, such as increased competition and consumer ad fatigue.
Take demographics and psychographics into account
Think about your target audience and use it to mold your advertising efforts. How old are they? How much money do they earn per year and are they spending any of that money on a magazine from the local bookstore? What is their gender? Religion? Education level? These are questions relating to demographics and they are essential in figuring out whether to invest your advertising dollars into a print or digital medium. Demographics allow you to better understand the person or group of people that you’re trying to reach. These concrete characteristics have a hand in forming a branch of each person’s identity, and when you, as a marketer, understand this, then you’ll have a better and more clear vision for your advertising objectives.
Another important concept to take into consideration is your target customer’s psychographics. These are basically studies and research based on consumers’ activities, interests, and opinions. Is your target customer concerned with eating healthy? Do they enjoy buying luxury goods and shopping at boutique stores? Are they easily found on every social media platform? What are their values? Taking the time to construct consumer profiles based on demographics and psychographics will hands-down help in your decision of choosing print vs. digital advertising.
Don’t stray from your goal
The number one most important part of successfully executing a marketing campaign is establishing goals. Essentially, this means that you can’t have a successful advertisement without setting forth clear, defined goals. So, think about what your goals really are by putting dollars behind an advertisement. Thinking about the answer to this question will aid in your decision to invest in print or digital advertising.
As stated earlier, digital advertising is a lot more cost effective than print advertising. A Facebook ad of a few dollars can surprisingly grant good results. But print is completely different— picture spending hundreds to thousands of dollars on a print advertisement that isn’t in line with your goals. Remember, advertising generally fits into three primary objectives: to inform, to persuade, and to remind. It’s no secret that whether your goal swings toward brand awareness or an increase in sales, laying down the goals and using it to mold your ad strategy is the most important piece of the puzzle.
While it may seem that the choice is clear on whether to invest your dollars in print vs. digital advertising, take the time to see the full picture. Weigh the pros and cons of each, take consumer personas into account, and keep your goals at the forefront of all decisions. With these tips, you’ll be unstoppable in creating your next print or digital advertising campaign. If you’d rather an expert take care of these decisions, then contact us today so that we can get your brand’s advertising efforts executed with ease.