Here’s a good example of multi-channel marketing. I just found an online article referencing an online Minuteman Press franchise advertisement that contains an infographic showing all the places you’ll find printed products on your travels through your business day.
The infographic is called, “Print Is Everywhere.”
“In Your Kitchen”
The Minuteman Press infographic begins in the kitchen and includes such printed products as a calendar, school stickers and schedules, birthday cards, menus, branded sports bottles, branded ceramic mugs, screen-printed t-shirts, promotional bags, and wine bottle labels.
Minuteman Press also includes statistics reflecting the ubiquity of offset and digital custom printing:
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- “Americans buy approximately 6 billion greeting cards per year.”
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- “53 percent of U.S. consumers own promotional drinkware.”
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- “Promotianal bags generate more impressions (5,700+) than any other promotional item.”
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- “Digital label printing accounts for approximately 33% of all labels.”
- “58 percent of U.S. consumers own promotional T-Shirts alone.”
What We Can Learn from the Infographic
Here are some thoughts:
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- Even though we’re on the computer a huge portion of the day, we still have to dress, eat, drink, and carry stuff to our jobs. All of these activities involve potentially branded items (i.e., they require commercial printing services).
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- Since we use our branded bags, cups, and t-shirts on a daily basis, we are exposed to their messages a remarkable number of times. In contrast, much of what we see online, I think, becomes background noise competing with other background noise since there’s so much of it.
- Digital commercial printing has captured a sizable portion of the label-making market. I personally hadn’t realized it was this high a percentage.
“On Your Way to Work”
The Minuteman Press infographic includes store signage, flyers, posters, and stickers in this portion of the day, and also includes these statistics:
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- “50% of customers learn about a local store through on-site signage.”
- “Consumers get 11 hours of exposure daily to outdoor advertising.”
What We Can Learn from the Infographic
The take-away is that people buy brands they recognize. Granted, most people spend a lot of time surfing the web and reading peer reviews, but you need to actively search for brands on the Internet. In contrast, as you are driving around, or walking, or taking the bus, you are exposed to a huge amount of signage. In many cases this, along with what you see in the store windows, will interest you in a new store, product, or brand, and influence your buying decisions.
“In Your Office”
The Minuteman Press infographic includes printed checks, brochures, stationery, and USB promotional drives in this portion of the day, and notes these statistics:
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- “The market for stationery products is projected to exceed $226 billion by 2020.”
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- “18.3 billion checks were written in the U.S. in 2012.”
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- “79% of brochure recipients either read, keep, or pass along to friends.”
- “45% of U.S. consumers own promotional USB drives.”
What We Can Learn from the Infographic
The take-away is that people do not just communicate over the Internet. A surprisingly large number of people still write paper checks, send physical letters in addition to email, and read and keep physical brochures. There is something permanent and perhaps more weighty about a print version of a letter or brochure. And regarding the USB drive noted in the infographic, any promotional product you use daily will put someone’s logo before your eyes again and again and again.
“When You’re at Lunch”
The Minuteman Press infographic includes printed menus, branded corporate wear such as uniforms worn by food service workers, table tents, and food packaging, noting the following statistics:
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- “In 2015 corporate workwear was projected to be a $4.4 billion industry.”
- “52% of consumers are likely to make repeat purchases from a merchant that delivers premium branded packaging.”
What We Can Learn from the Infographic
Certain kinds of products cannot be duplicated online. As long as there are retail stores and food service workers, there will be branded uniforms, and this will involve commercial printing. In addition, anything purchased will need to be packaged in something (particularly food and pharmaceuticals), again involving commercial printing.
“On Your Way Home”
In this part of your day, the Minuteman Press infographic includes promotional writing instruments, branded sunglasses, printed drinkwear, and even branded power banks (to charge cell phones) and printed air fresheners (to hang from the car’s rear-view mirror). The infographic notes the following statistics:
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- “The car air fresheners market in North America is projected to be $952 million by 2020.”
- “26% of U.S. consumers own mobile power banks.”
What We Can Learn from the Infographic
Between custom screen printing and pad printing, you can pretty much print on anything. So if you are a marketer, all you need to do is observe people’s habits. Watch what they do and what tools they use repeatedly, and then print your company logo on the product, whether it be an air freshener or a back-up charger for a cell phone.
“When You Get Home”
The Minuteman Press infographic includes catalogs and direct mail in this category, noting that:
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- “In 2015, advertisers spent $46.8 billion on direct mail, compared to just $2.3 billion on email.”
- “90% of consumers use catalogs to learn and get ideas about things that interest them.”
What We Can Learn from the Infographic
Consumers are not just learning about products online. In fact, many people want to research potential purchases both online and in a catalog. Perhaps they like the luxury of paging through a physical book, something more tangible than a web page.
I’ve seen modern catalogs referred to as “look books,” and they may not always include order forms, but they are print products, and they inform potential buyers before they purchase an item they want.
The dramatic difference between the amount of money still spent on physical direct mail vs. online email shows just how important it is considered to be in the consumer’s buying decision (i.e., it may cost more to print something than to create an online ad campaign, but marketers are willing to pay the extra expense).
The Take Away
Even if you never want to become a Minuteman Press franchise owner, you can still benefit from seeing their infographic. Here is a link: http://bit.ly/print-is-everywhere. It will show you through thought-provoking statistics just how alive print really is. (The infographic also includes all sources for the statistics I’ve included.)
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on Monday, January 16th, 2017 at 4:46 pm and is filed under Infographics.
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