Paper Trails

Go where no social media influencer has gone before! Print media offers access to untapped audiences, a tactile experience and unparalleled street cred.

Advertising

"Online, everyone does all they can to avoid ads. ... In 2020, an estimated 42.7% of all internet users had an ad block plugin installed." —Stephen Emrich, entrepreneur.com

Not only are users avoiding ads, but they're also constantly bombarded by them. Ad tracking innovations and targeting have made the barrage almost endless, whereas print media has fewer competitors and allows you to blanket a specific sector or area (not demographics) with ads that will hang around longer — I'm looking at you, 3-year-old magazine in the dentist office. According to studies by Scientific American, printed messages linger in the audience's memory bank for extended periods versus their digital counterparts.

Emrich's pros & cons to consider:

Pros:

Sensory experience
Builds credibility
High exposure
Less competitive
Longevity

Cons:

High buy-in prices
Can take weeks to appear in publications
Can't make changes after print
No fine-tuned audience targeting

Branding

From business cards to flyers and stickers, getting your name in front of faces may require more legwork in the print realm but your efforts will last longer (no getting lost in the feed), make a bigger impact (just keep scrolling ... NOT), feel real (hello, holding it in your hand) and have less competition. According to Emrich, "Even just having business cards to hand out to people increases the chances of them engaging with your brand or services. I follow a lot of people on social media, and I won't be looking through my following list after a networking event to find someone I just met, but I am much more likely to remember and engage with someone's brand if I have a physical business card."

Outreach

Educational and reference materials offer your brand exposure and credibility. Authoring articles for publications such as newspapers and magazines gives readers the information they seek and a source for learning more: you. A long-standing practice among tenured professors and scientific professionals, articles are an excellent means of reaching audiences in a though-provoking way while simultaneously marketing your brand and offerings. It shouldn't be a sales pitch — provide the information you know others want and they will seek you out for more. The same applies to writing books, though that is a much more intensive endeavor. If this is your first foray into print, consider starting small to get a feel for the editorial process.