Print brands need to actively sell the medium

The print medium is undoubtedly in a bit of trouble at the moment. Although data has been released showing that the industry, although in decline, is relatively secure in the near future, print brands need to begin actively selling the medium if they are to try and counter this slow-burning, negative impact on the industry.

In an article on the Marketing Week website we came across the other day it is stated that the number of national newspapers sold in the UK every day fell from an average 7.6 million in March 2014, to just over 7 million by March this year. This is a decline of 7.6% and is representative of the decreases being recorded across the print industry – not just in newspapers.

Those dependent on print need to advertise it better; Style magazine, provided in the Sunday Times, has seen its number of advertisers increase by 9% compared to last year and the number of ad pages increase by 4% – all thanks to the savvy marketing of print as a medium and better quality content.
Print can be “pure escapism”, Karin Seymour – the sales director for News UK – states; if brands are able to explain this to clients and also iterate the fact that print is still a lucrative medium, then the industry will flourish again.
Seymour adds: “We absolutely need to start selling the medium by having a proper conversation about its value.”
She concluded that “the printed product gets quite bad press but if you get the environment and content right, there’s a hugely important place in readers’ hearts and advertisers’ schedules.”

Do you think that by becoming print advocates professionals and businesses in the industry will be able to reverse print’s fate?