Keeping up with marketing trends each year is no easy feat. Strategies and technologies can rapidly change from one January to another, forcing your marketing team to think on its feet and switch up tactics to appeal to the right audiences. Print marketing is no stranger to this.

When considering strategies and tactics for upcoming trends, it’s important to focus on the specific medium with which you’re working. Digital and print media may experience some of the same trends, but they can also differ quite a bit.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed as the new year approaches, we’ve got your back. Here a few of the upcoming 2020 print marketing trends and some tips to get started with implementing them into next year’s marketing strategy.

Highlighting Customer Stories

It’s been a while since the idea of highlighting value as a marketing tactic came to be, and it’s only becoming more popular. Businesses are using self-promoting ideas less frequently, as these strategies are antiquated and ineffective. Customers want to know what you are going to do for them, not how great you are.

Adding customer success stories to your print marketing materials is a recent trend that’s gaining traction, and for good reason: It provides your prospects with a real-life example of your work and can usually bring a smile to their face. The happier someone is looking at your materials and services, the more likely they are to associate that joy with your brand.

Use this new trend as an opportunity to launch a campaign specific to customer success. Consider your target industries and use customer success stories that are relevant to that audience. Use postcard or pamphlet campaigns to show people the true value you provide your customers—the products and services they need, plus a little extra joy.

Use Subscription Data for Personalized Content

Ever used a form on your website or at a convention to collect personal information? It’s time to think a little bigger. We know that not everyone is eager to provide you with their personal information, but a few extra questions may not hurt and will usually get answered. For example, you can ask for their birthday (to send special birthday print marketing materials), their industry (for targeted messaging), and specific products or services they’re interested in. Just a few extra details beyond their name and email gives you some firepower to send the right print marketing that has a higher chance of converting.

Direct mail marketing is more effective the more it’s personalized. People are drawn to personalization, especially in print marketing materials. You do want to be careful not to bombard prospects or customers with too much print material because they may very well get tired and lose interest. But with the right timing and volume, personalized print content in the mail can be much more effective than personalized digital advertising.

We are sent so many emails in a day, it’s easy to overlook one or simply delete all the ones that look like promotions. But receiving a piece of personalized print marketing will have a much higher chance of being looked at simply because it’s a refreshing change from inbox spam.

Get Creative with Paper and Texture

Don’t shoot yourself in the foot by limiting yourself to a small selection of generic print marketing materials, especially when it comes to the paper you use. You’ll be amazed at how many different options there are! With embossing, glossy, matte, different card stock sizes, velvet texture, and more, you can stand out from your competitors with unique paper and texture styles.

This is a great opportunity to let your brand shine. Would your business prefer a stiff card stock with a boldly embossed, personalized name or a softer velvet touch with a calm color scheme? This helps your prospects and customers to associate certain styles with your brand, which creates consistency across all of the print marketing materials you send over time.

There are plenty of technologies that can help you make the most of direct mail marketing. Talk with a print vendor to see what new types of paper and textures they’re creating and what will be available to you in 2020 to build a more unique and brand-focused print strategy.

Personalize and Target Publications

Have you caught onto the theme yet? Yes, it’s personalization! Whether it’s how you produce the image of your brand or direct customers and prospects, narrowing down your marketing strategy to a target audience is a proven strategy for converting prospects.

Personalized publications don’t have to include the name of the recipient. Rather, you should be personalizing the content and information they receive. You don’t want to produce just one publication with dozens of topics that cover a wide range of people. If someone flips through and doesn’t find what they want right away, they’ll probably toss it aside, even if there may be something useful to them further in the publication.

It’s more effective to produce smaller publications with smaller runs and find the right target audience to send them to. The recipient will appreciate your thoughtfulness when you limit the content to just what they want, and your business will see the benefit in new and returning customers.

Getting Started

Ready to implement some of these trends into your upcoming strategy, or just looking for some advice on where to start? At Advertisers Printing, we’re not just happy with being a commercial printer—we can help you every step of the way. From idea conception to printing, we make sure you achieve your business goals. Contact us today to speak with one of our print marketing material experts on beginning your next direct mail or print marketing project.