Print and Web Advertising Strengths and Weaknesses
Posted on February 2, 2007
People involved with advertising often wonder if print advertising going to become obsolete. Have you ever wondered why print advertising in print media can deliver such poor results? The answer to this is doing a little homework on demo graphics. For example, when your company decides to do a targeted mailing advertisement, make sure it is exactly that “Targeted”. Go to your local post office or look it up online. Find out who lives in your targeted area. Where are the highest income groups living? What ethnic culture are they? What are you trying to sell them? Prepare yourself as best as you can! Try to get to know your groups much the same as you get to know your peers. When you find a formula that works, remember exposure and repetition!
Once upon a time Yellow Page Advertising was the most effective form of advertising. This was because logically, when someone picked up the yellow pages they were ready to make a purchase. Today, more and more folks are turning to the internet to find reliable suppliers. In today’s business climate one must think multi dimensional and explore the possibilities of integrating print and web media advertising. There are some2 basic differences between the 2 forms of advertising.
- Print Advertising- Once printed is etched in stone and cannot be changed. It remains the most portable, highest quality method to transport and communicate to others. Typical examples of print advertisements include flyers, newspaper ads, brochures, reports, business cards, stationery, instructions, etc. In print media, space is limited by the budgetary cost of production and circulation.
- Web Advertising- Advertising can be placed immediately via PPC websites like Google, permission email campaigns, listing, directories, and guides. Unlike print advertising nothing is etched in stone. Today you can be offering marbles for 25 cents and tomorrow you can be offering marbles for 79 cents. Depending on how you advertise your reach potential is virtually unlimited, especially if you really have a truly amazing offer.
We will not get into the finer point but keep this general.
When advertising with print media you can print a web address that is a location to a landing page. This is a great way to integrate the 2 forms and gauge your response. Make sure you have a special tailor made for those that are responding to your print ad. Now that we have lightly touched upon online websites using print ads, and why you would want to do it, why not start today? Add these two forms of advertising cleverly into your marketing mix.
Here is a list of the the coolest Arts and Entertainment websites in 2005, according to Time
- Aardman Animations
www.aardman.com - Books
The Complete Review
www.complete-review.com - Classical Music
Opus 1 Classical
opus1classical.com - Collections
New York Public Library’s Digital Gallery
digitalgallery.nypl.org - Galleries
The Museum of Online Museums
www.coudal.com/moom.php - Games
Original
www.orisinal.com - Humor
McSweeney’s Internet Tendency
www.mcsweeneys.net - More Funny Stuff
Ze’s Page
www.zefrank.com - Podcasting
Podcast Bunker
www.podcastbunker.com - Radio
Mercora
www.mercora.com - Television
TV.com
www.tv.com
I have chosen these sites because they don’t really try to sell goods but rather provide entertainment value with a great design or idea. In each case these sites can be seen as unique and innovative. You will also note that they visitor that lands on the site has been planned out. By planning what your visitor is going to do based on their interest your can magnify the worthiness of each visitor.
Some other forms of popular advertising are outdoor advertising, signs on buses, transit systems and billboard advertising. Try to imagine for a minute, www.yourwebsite.com printed on a billboard in one of the highest traffic areas. Would that be effective? Again, how we will answer that question is by monitoring the statistics and conversion rates to the website. After a set period of time we will sit at the table and review the results. The monetary results are not as important as building a list of subscribers which will build trust over time and make for a long term relationship. Use this two-fold approach to help earn the business and trust of your future prospects, it will go along way!
The strength of web advertising is its flexibility. On the other hand, print’s media’s draw back is also its strength and permanence. I personally like to use print advertising for launching my great idea and web advertising to propel it. I have no doubt in my mind that combining the 2 will optimize any advertising campaign’s bottom line. Once I have my visitor on my website I like to show them more on my great idea and lots more on several good related ideas. Remember, when initiating your print advertisement to include your website address in order to promote your business, products or services in an optimum fashion.
The Difference Between Ads for the Web and Print
Designing within the constraints of html is far more restricted then print ads. When you layout a print ad, you can design without limitation of resolution or placement of objects and text. With html the language in color is different, everybody’s monitor is different, browser settings vary and so on. These, and many other factors will influence the way your web advertisement is viewed. With print, the only interpretation is the human eye. Your finished ads are always seen exactly as printed. Most advertising campaigns today will include both forms of advertising; working with a graphic designer that has a high level of comprehension of both is highly recommended in order to keep consistency in your style. With many of the ads I receive everyday; the problem is they lack focus and a defined message. It is no secret to keep your ad simple and to the point, but we also need to know when to reveal the fine details when requested. There is no better way then to program your website to respond to this need when called upon. So take a close look at your company’s advertising and give your readers a reason to do something by having a call to action on your website.
Related Links: How to Write Adverts that Forces People to Respond! - Two kinds of Advertising for a Marketing Strategy- How to Qualify for Google Adsense Contextual Advertising
Approved by GoaTranceX- Create Online BusinessTags: advertising sales, advertise web, outdoor advertising, advertising communications, advertising web, advertising media
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Print advertising will never die. More over, many experts predicted printing in general would die with the coming of the digital age. In fact paper consumption has increased and continues to increase every year. One thing the experts did not take into account was the amount of paper consumed by electronic printers on desktops. This is a major driving force in the paper industry today.
Regards,
John
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