Print vs digital marketing for small to medium businesses

I’m sure the younger generation on your job sites will be all over TikTok, and believe this platform is the best for marketing in the 21st century. However, our recent digital audit of the New Zealand Certified Builders (NZCB) homeowner audience paints a different picture.

While there is a need for digital marketing specialists, there’s also still room for a marketing generalist – someone who can do more than just digital marketing. Because if you ask yourself: are you influenced by digital marketing alone? Most likely the answer will be no – because it’s often a mix of digital and print that impacts our decision making.

How print marketing can help generate leads and sales

Print, such as flyers, magazine adverts, or direct mail can help generate leads and sales by reaching potential customers already interested in your product or service. For example, print can help reach people who have visited your website but haven’t booked a job with you yet. Print can also help attract new customers who have never heard of your business.

The latest RMC Industry insights report on brand equity and market share shows that 74 per cent of market share growth can occur from running a print and digital marketing strategy. This means you should only throw some of your marketing budget into digital. I know I take notice of something posted to me that doesn’t look like a bill.

NZCB uses both a digital and print marketing approach and both generate leads.

Why print marketing still works

Print mediums such as magazines still play a vital role in marketing. NZCB Revere magazine continues to grow in popularity. The female homeowner target audience, in particular, likes to research ideas from print. The latest research from HomeStyle magazine showed that 71% of their readers are female. So, don’t discount print advertising. Direct mail still has a place in building your brand and getting your name in front of your potential clients too.

I’m sure you are all getting immune to online advertising. It’s like the piles of junk mail you used to get in your letterbox 10+ years ago, but now you’re inundated with digital adverts in your social feeds.

Printed marketing material has a longer shelf life than other forms of digital media. Printed marketing can reach a wider audience over a longer period of time.

My recommendation is to put only some of your hard-earned marketing spend on digital, because it is now so cluttered and the speed at which people scroll is only getting faster.

Ideas for adding print to your marketing strategy

Think quality over quantity!

1. Ask your existing clients for referrals: you can do this via email and follow up with a printed letter in a colourful envelope (so it doesn’t look like a bill). You could include your business card/ flyer for your clients to hand out to friends and family.

2. Test and measure small directory adverts in your local newspaper: your older clients still read these! The ‘no junk mail’ signs are still up, but many local newspapers still get delivered to local shops for distribution.

3. Send a ‘We’re in your neighbourhood’ postcard/flyer. Not everyone has the ‘no junk mail’ signs, so again, it is worth testing this method because digital printing is very cost-effective.

Which one is better?

If you want to reach a particular group of people, wherever they may be, while keeping costs low, go with digital marketing. Doing so will also allow you to collect valuable information on your audience immediately to create even more effective marketing campaigns. However, there is still a place for print marketing. If you want to reach an older audience or a local audience, print marketing methods may be more productive and stand out more than digital marketing. Print still works!

Karla Farrar

NZCB General Manager –Marketing and Services