Print is relevant, print is personal, print is engaging and print drives action.  Print works without a battery and is just as portable — from a book to a magazine — print is a tangible way to communicate with one another.  As we are introduced to technology such as Variable Data Printing, or VDP, we find print becoming more personalized, more powerful and able to establish a strong connection between the sender and the recipient.

Through database management and variable data printing you can print relevant and personalized messages to your intended recipients.  Because your audience is receiving more relevant messages, each recipient is more likely to spend more time with your message and will ultimately be more likely to retain your brand’s message.

Additionally, print and direct mail are proving to be more effective than email when trying to gain new customers.  Not only do direct mail messages have a substantially higher open rate with over 85 percent of people at least skimming the direct mail message, but according to a printing.org article, 40 percent of consumers have tried a new brand or product as a direct result of a mailing they received.

Finally, unlike digital media, print cannot be easily ignored.  Your recipients cannot simply select the delete button or remove it from your email inbox without reading a single word of the message.  Print is tangible.  Print lands in the hands of your target audience and because of this your brand’s message is read.

Timothy Freeman

President

Print & Graphic Communications Association