Most of us will have received printed communications of various kinds in the last few weeks, be it letters or a magazine. Maybe you've also had a flyer or two dropped in your letterbox, or picked up the latest product catalogue at the electronics store. We encounter print products everywhere in our everyday lives. As many studies have shown, print products have a higher recall rate than emails, for example. Even with a trivial print advertisement, you are more likely to remember the sender or the company than with deleted emails.
Numerous studies show that the average person has a much higher recall of a printed item than a digitally communicated piece of information. People are also more likely to respond to and engage with the print product. A clear advantage of print products.
But why is that? One reason is, first and foremost, the amount of digital communication that flows at us every day. The studies that have been conducted also show that the print product wins even when comparing a single piece of information conveyed. We'll tell you three advantages why print is so much more effective. Let's start with how we take in information.
1. print is a sensual experience
We can touch and even smell the print. That makes a big difference. When we touch something, we use an extra sense. A study commissioned by Martin Lindstrom shows that our engagement increases by around 30% when we use an additional sense.
With digital information it's a bit different, because we can neither touch nor smell it. We merely view it on a screen. This brings us to the next point.
2. we read print differently from digital
We normally behave differently when reading print than when reading information on a screen. Studies published in the Review of Educational Research show that we concentrate more and read far more when we are engaged with a printed product. If you watch someone reading, you can see how their eyes move along each line.
It is rare that the same eye movement occurs when reading on a screen, there are many more saccades here than in a print medium We jump from subheading to subheading looking for keywords. In addition, we do not necessarily read in paragraph order. As a result, we understand and remember less.
3. a print stays in the house longer
According to the DMA, a typical piece of print is kept in a consumer household for between 17 and 38 days. The advantage of this is that it is likely to be seen by a number of people during this time and you will also come across the printed piece more often. This reinforces the initial engagement.
In contrast, a large proportion of our emails are deleted before we have even read them. The consequence of the flood of information is that the recipient is much less likely to engage with his or her e-mails in the same way as with the printed product. After all, the latter lies on the desk at home or hangs on our fridge and is within reach. It lies on the desk or hangs on the fridge.
Want to leave a lasting impression? Use print!
Print products are not as expensive to source and use as you might think.
We explain the basics of print products that are convincing and, above all, memorable. Each product can be individually designed, personalised and ordered in one piece! You want to be remembered and convince with print?