Survey results: Print isn't dead...yet

For the past few years, everybody's been telling us that print is dead. And while our latest survey results certainly confirm that print is on its way out, you shouldn't eliminate it from your collateral mix quite yet.

Yes, purchasers prefer to interact with your collateral and content on the desktop: 79% of our respondents told us that they preferred to consume content in digital form. Electronic content is easy to forward to other influencers and decision makers, greatly increasing its viral capacity. You should take further advantage of purchasers’ online reading habits by inserting hyperlinks or other HTML content into digital versions. This allows the reader to rapidly access relevant Web pages, request additional information, and even link to other materials within your collateral library, greatly extending the reach of any one document.

However, print isn’t dead yet: Recognize that print versions of your collateral may still be a preferred format for some of your audience—particularly decision makers from smaller firms. According to our survey, a significant number still find value in a leavebehind or in print collateral, especially brochures and data sheets. Plan a content strategy that takes both these print and electronic preferences into account.

We have a lot more tips and best practices to share in our 2009 B2B Technology Collateral Survey Report—get your free download right here.

Comments

[Lorraine]

Hi:

This survey is terrific. I read, refer and link to it in a post series and ebrochure I wrote on print collateral.

I wanted to email you the post links--but can't find contact info on your blog.

Sorry to put all this in your comment section--but can't find another way to contact you!

[Chris Jensen]

Hi, Lorraine -- thanks for the kind words. We're glad you're finding the survey useful. And thank you for letting us know that we don't have contact info on the blog -- we've put some contact info on the "About Us" page, and of course you can always find us on our website (www.eccolomedia.com).