Why Print Still Matters - 3 Reasons Why Successful Businesses STILL Rely On Print Materials

While we’ve seen some truly amazing business card, flyer, and poster designs from our customers over the years, one can’t help but wonder why so many small businesses don’t bother to have any printed marketing materials at all. And they’re missing out.

The idea of a “paperless” office is still far from being a reality. We’re a printing company, so it’s not like we’d like that dream to come true any sooner. But why is it so hard to let go of print? The answer might be different depending on your industry. But most of the time it comes back to these three things:

1.) It’s (practically) PERMANENT – Let’s get this out of the way -we’ve ALL suffered data loss on our computers and networks. If you say you haven’t, you’re either lying or don’t know what data loss means. Whether through hardware failure or simply forgetting or not knowing where your files are – or how to get to them. It’s happened to all of us! With today’s more reliable systems and technology, catastrophic data loss is less likely. But it’s still a very real possibility. Paper and card stock aren’t exactly permanent. But once you have something in print, short of a fire or a natural disaster, you’d have to really mess things up to lose your data. The fact that the data exists tangibly in space can be reassuring – which brings us to our next point

2.) Paper offers a tangible (and olfactory!) experience no other technology can reasonably match. Yet. Tablet computers and phones with touchscreen capability aren’t nearly as pleasant for most people to touch as paper or cardstock. Computer shops aren’t as well known for their scents as libraries or book stores. The additional stimuli paper and cardstock provide us speak to us in a way that no commercially available alternate technology can. Print just plain feels better.

3) Our brains process information on print far better than they do on screen – especially when you handle the printed material. Studies have been made that strongly suggest we retain information better when we get it from traditional print. The implications for businesses are obvious. In a very compelling study, researchers tested how well readers could focus when reading e-books against other readers reading the same book in print. Print readers were far better able to retain what they’ve read and were also far able to focus on what they were reading and as a result, get through the material faster. The same seems to hold true for comparative advertisements on print and online. You might be able to reach more people for a lot less money online- but the quality of your interactions will be far different. What does this all mean?

Print is not dead. We’ll need much less of it- and that’s a good thing. But for many applications –it’s still the technology to beat.

The Art of Small Business is part of UPrinting.com. UPrinting.com offers a wide variety of print products all easily customizable down to the quarter-inch with a unique, industry-acclaimed design tool. Get instant quotes with our one-of-a-kind online calculator. All orders are manually proofed by living, breathing, human beings (remarkable really)! Order your FREE stock sample kit today!

About the Author

Arthur Piccio Author Bio Arthur Piccio manages The Art of Small Business. When not passive-aggressively chucking UPrinting’s own high-quality business cards and custom yard signs at his coworkers, he enjoys…y’know. Other stuff.