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Will Print Marketing Be Effective in 2025?

Written by SG Marketing | Jan 20, 2025 6:00:08 PM

Contrary to what you may have heard, print marketing is alive and well. Print marketing is one of the oldest, most effective methods of advertising that is still being used to this day. But with a world that has gone digital, many wonder whether it’s still relevant right now and how to make it relevant in a modern marketing strategy. You might be wondering if investing in print marketing is even worth it anymore. After all, digital marketing is so much easier to create and publish since it doesn’t come with print material costs. Which brings us to the question: Will print marketing be effective in 2025? We’ll answer the question by defining what print marketing is, explore its benefits and challenges and discuss the best marketing strategies you can apply for the highest return on investment (ROI).


What Is Print Marketing?


Print marketing includes any kind of print advertising and tangible materials promoting a brand or service to increase customers and sales. For this article’s purpose, we’re referencing a specific niche of print marketing: direct mail. Falling under the general print marketing umbrella, direct mail is a more specific variation of print marketing that involves sending promotional materials directly to consumer homes. 


Benefits of Print Marketing


To determine if print marketing will still be effective in 2025, we’re going to look at the benefits. Print marketing and direct mail have numerous advantages including:

  • Better brand recognition and recall
  • Enhanced engagement
  • Increased ROI
  • Higher open rates than email marketing
  • Reaching generations burnt out on social media
  • And more


Using print and digital marketing in tandem is a powerful combination. Where digital can open the sale, print closes it. Print marketing creates an experience not achievable online. Together, these two strategies can address a more diversified audience to expand your reach.


Challenges of Print Marketing


While there are numerous benefits to print marketing and direct mail, those saying print is dead often cite a few challenges to the approach. However, many companies feel that the extensive benefits of print marketing often outweigh the negatives.


Lower Print Media Audience


Many people assume that print marketing doesn’t have a large audience with the assumption that digital marketing is dominating the industry. However, this doesn’t accurately represent the reality of the situation of print mail. Since it’s delivered straight to the consumer’s door, the open rate is significantly higher than an email or newsletter that gets lost in someone’s inbox. 


Decreased Attention Span


Another challenge that people usually cite is that print mail is irrelevant because attention spans are decreasing, so they don’t have a strong effect on people. To counter this argument, a Forbes article cited a study showing that direct mail requires less effort to process, is easier to remember and increases brand recognition.


Perceived Higher Cost


While the cost of materials for print is indeed higher than the cost of digital marketing, most people are surprised to discover that direct mail has a higher ROI than paid search and online display ads. Print marketing is a great tool to use to expand brand reach for the emotional benefits in combination with digital ads for the emotional connection of print and surprisingly low cost when considering the ROI that comes out of it.


Why Print Marketing Will Still Be Effective in 2025


With the overwhelming advantages of print marketing, it’s not going anywhere in 2025. While digital marketing is trending, print marketing has numerous benefits that offer enhanced brand visibility and customer loyalty that won’t ever go away. Print marketing and direct mail will still be effective in the future for these reasons and more:


Physical Marketing Leaves a Lasting Impression


Print marketing offers a unique emotional appeal to consumers and improves brand recognition. Having a tangible marketing version in their hand creates a stronger impact on their memory and improves recall later.


Print Marketing Offers a Reprieve for Digital Overload


So many mediums are found online these days, and print marketing offers a reprieve for many. Most consumers are getting flooded with information and need a break, so when direct mail comes, it creates a more meaningful connection. At the same time, it switches things up and stands out in comparison to the hundreds of digital ads they see.


Print Marketing Complements Digital Marketing


Print marketing is the perfect touch for digital marketing because it expands audience reach and offers more meaning behind the message. There’s still part of the population that doesn’t use social media, so direct mail appeals to that portion of the population. On top of that, print marketing enhances ROI in a way that not all digital marketing mediums can.


Where to Find a Print Marketing Partner


Despite rumors milling about that print is dead, print marketing will always be effective — and print marketing will still be effective in 2025. With a combination of print and digital marketing, you can amplify your brand reach and get an even greater return on your investment with the help of direct mail.

Our team at Signature Graphics has years of experience in the marketing industry and can help you get started creating a print marketing campaign for your company. With our expert assistance, you’ll be able to see how print marketing can improve your profitability at your business and so much more.

Get signature print marketing benefits today.