By Erica Harmon

Video may have killed the radio star at one point, but then along came the podcast to remind us of the power of audio storytelling. Now, as the digital landscape continually becomes increasingly crowded and cluttered, print marketing is providing savvy marketers an opportunity to cut through the noise and foster deeper connections with target audiences. Here’s why you need to integrate print back into your marketing strategy — and how to do it in a way that bolsters your brand.

Print Is a Novelty

As a medium, print naturally lends a more aspirational air to marketing communications, and it encourages people to indulge in the ultimate luxury: A precious few moments of distraction-free entertainment. We all get mountains of emails. But how often do you get a beautifully designed piece of actual mail?

Unlike digital communications, printed marketing materials reach consumers in a moment they have set aside for reading, while direct mail accesses people’s homes and lives to deliver a targeted sales message. Even for the digitally native Millennial, print is a proven way to connect, with 75% of them reporting that receiving personal mail makes them feel special. Compared with Gen X and Baby Boomer generations, Millennials are the most likely to take action on marketing mail.

Putting it into practice: While a full-scale print campaign may be beyond the limits of your budget, that doesn’t mean you can’t take advantage of the medium. Consider targeting a smaller subset of your audience with printed materials — show appreciation to longtime supporters with complimentary copies of your publication or leave a lasting impression on potential new customers with mailers to high-income ZIP codes.

Print Is Tangible

Screen fatigue is a very real by-product of increased digitization, and the desire for physical brand experiences is only accelerating. As people fill their phone’s photo library with screenshots that they’ll never come back to, the postcard stuck to the fridge begins to carry a bit more weight. The very nature of tactile objects like magazines, letters and brochures commands the user’s attention, and serves to increase long-term ROI and brand equity.

Putting it into practice: Try not to think of print and digital marketing efforts as an either/or proposition. In fact, campaigns are most effective when print is used as one element of an integrated approach. Use QR codes, near field communication (NFC) or augmented reality (AR) to link your printed pieces back to your website or social media. For segmented campaigns, consider driving back to unique, trackable landing pages that speak to each audience.

Print Is Effective

A study from the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General and Temple University’s Center for Neural Decision Making found that participants processed digital ad content quicker, but ultimately spent more time with physical ads. When viewing physical ads, participants had a stronger emotional response and remembered them better. And perhaps most notably, physical ads triggered activity in the area of the brain (ventral striatum) that is responsible for value and desirability for featured products, which can signal a greater intent to purchase.

Putting it into practice: Avoid the temptation to create a siloed print campaign, opting instead to integrate it into your overall marketing strategy. This ensures that your messaging is aligned across all channels and provides opportunities for deeper engagement with calls-to-action that drive print readers back online.