Quality over quantity
It's the quality of marketing campaigns that is key, not necessarily the quantity of channels we use
Self-service checkouts. Chatbots. Self-driving cars. That helpful new member of your household who goes by the name ‘Alexa’… Technology has almost become a synonym for change these days, and there’s seemingly no area of life that’s immune to digital innovation. This includes the communications world. Just sixty seconds on the internet averages around 448,000 tweets, 149,000 emails, 500 hours of YouTube video and 3.3 million Facebook posts*. The internet has enabled us to distribute a dizzying volume of content to the world – but what we want to focus on is the quality of that content.
According to these numbers you’d think we had an infinite capacity to absorb information. Obviously, that’s not the case – most people don’t think twice about dismissing those pesky sales emails that tend to clog up our inboxes. It sounds laughable now but 20 years ago people might have felt obliged to draft, print and sign a letter back to say ‘Thanks, but no thanks’. The old days of carpet bombing direct mail campaigns have slowed considerably but fundamentally people, and what catches their eye, has not changed much at all. Technology might have created a state of flux, but quality communications that can cut through the noise will always impress. No matter the channel. This is especially true in B2B sales and marketing.
When we send something thoughtful, creative and relevant to a carefully selected individual, we do so in the hope that they’re impressed. Or, even better, they show it to their colleagues, they keep it and it becomes a reference item for when they might need it, or us, in the future. This is something that volume, no matter how cleverly distributed, simply can’t achieve.
The more successful people we speak to and the more creative marketing campaigns get, we see that quality is clearly winning over quantity. Scott Manson, Director of Content at OgilvyOne UK says,
‘Having worked across digital and print channels, the main advantage print has within the media mix is that it feels personal.’
Once the mass-market channel of choice, today print seems to cut through the noise of digital and gives us something somehow easier to relate to. Perhaps a matter for a future blog.
Brand giants like Coca-Cola know this. Just take a look at their ‘Share a Coke’ campaign which saw 1000 different sorts of labels on Coke bottles and unlimited variations being available through the Share a Coke online store. A striking use of digital print (and the fact that it allows single digital print runs without breaking the bank). How much more personal can you get?
We’re definitely not bashing technology here. We just want to point out that it’s not always the best way of making an impact. Of course, we all use the internet and this post will appear there. But if we can, we’ll be printing it because we think people appreciate the value of something they can keep and refer to. The same goes for if we’re doing a business pitch – you can be sure there’ll be a printed copy available alongside our presentation to keep the message in front of our audience for as long as possible. And whatever you do, make sure it’s well designed because that will carry credibility on whatever platform it ever appears on.
If you’re looking for advice and ideas for products to carry your message, why not ask our experts.
*http://www.smartinsights.com/internet-marketing-statistics/happens-online-60-seconds