Covid-19 created some disruptions in several industries; Manufacturing, Hospitality, Education,...
Background
The increase in the use of the Internet and mobile applications has changed how buyers react to brands or companies. Mobile, in particular, is used in every facet of life. In 2020, mobile phone users increased to 4.88 billion, representing, 62.07% of the world's population. And 42% of this number, in 2020, used social media channels for product and service research.
They research who could provide products and services to solve a business problem.
In this post, we are going to focus on 5 interesting facts about why, where and how printers and other brands should market their printing services. Marketing your printing services would demonstrate your competence to provide the needed solution and where and how to market your printing services.
Buyers and Statistics
Marketing your print services is also critical for every brand and printing company. Statista.com says Smartphone users are 3.80 billion, representing 48.33% of the world's population. Mobile phone users are 4.88 billion, representing, 62.07% Buyers have changed their behaviour and brands and companies must step up their printing marketing services. Considering the depth of mobile phone users, print service providers should consider using mobile phones for many of their marketing communications. Mobile can be used effectively on enabled-mobile websites for electronic messaging, texting, blogging, E-Books downloads, social networking and taking pictures. These marketing activities can be more targeted and specific to the individual user, and can, therefore, be more effective for the company doing the marketing.
Marketing Printing Services Online To Increase Lead Generation
About ten (10) to twenty (20) years ago, most print works or services were walk-ins, contracted by customers, with their specifications and delivery times. Printers did very little marketing. However, in the last few years, outbound marketing seems to be waning, content marketing (Online Marketing) through Social media is generating 54% more leads than traditional marketing. (Source: Hubspot) And it costs 64% more per lead with traditional outbound marketing. (Source: Makebe)
The impact of these channels is disrupting the way people engage with companies. Every business activity done offline can also be done on the Internet. Therefore, print service providers (PSP) need to consider not waiting to be tasked to deliver print services offline, but also providing Strategic Marketing Services (SMS) online. In that instance, printers could combine print, email, social media and mobile apps in their marketing campaigns to attract, engage and convert. Studies show that such efforts yield a 9.5 % response against print-only campaigns, which generates a 7.4 response. Such a move will radically change the dynamics with your customers. You will also move upstream in the communication process and become a more valuable contributor and partner to your customers.
Marketing printing services through inbound marketing brings a steady flow of targeted traffic when prospects are engaged with the right content. This strategy informs the target and creates awareness, and options to consider solutions and acceptance.
How Mobile Usage Helps In Marketing Printing Services
According to Brafton.com, 94% of B2B buyers research online for purchase decisions. Oberlo.com also postulates that 69% of researchers prefer to use mobile phones for reviews. Most interestingly is the number of hours spent on mobile phones by adults - 2.55 hours daily on average. Mobile marketing can reach customers anywhere, any time — on public transport, at work, in their homes, and even in their beds. While it’s still important as part of an integrated marketing strategy, traditional marketing is waning, and mobile marketing should move to the vanguard of a company’s marketing efforts. It sounds to reason that most of the print buyers' demographics and that of brands and companies could be found on their social media platforms. Marketers should therefore use effective lead magnets to target this audience. And provide marketing tactics to attract, engage, and delight them with insights and solutions that align with their pains, challenges and goals. Take a look at these images below:
Targeting Provides Strong Growth And Opportunities
According to a survey by print impressions and SGIA (2020). "Defining sales success factors in today’s printshops". It was reported that firms showing strong sales and growth targeted vertical markets.
"Tailoring an organisational sales, products and marketing efforts to specific industries is an important practice for driving sales and using resources more efficiently”.
Download Now: Defining Sales Success Factors In Today's Print Shops
Targeting is the most effective way to compete in crowded markets. When you break a market into segments, you can then concentrate your marketing efforts on one or a few key segments where you have the expertise and can compete favourably. By doing so you can impact the audience with your expertise and look for graphic communication opportunities. Such efforts in the survey yielded great returns with 2/3 of the respondents among 500 companies surveyed posting sales growth of 60%.
Marketing Services Is Critical For Company's Existence
Marketing services include:
- Setting up and optimizing your website
- Creating content strategies to provide education on how-to-do things, solve problems for prospects, clients etc
- Lead generation and conversion-to-attract prospects, engage them and convert them to become customers
- Mobiles service - design mobile responsive messages to attract more prospects; many buyers, prospects, and customers (62.09%) can be found on their mobile phones.
- Promoting your brand on Social Media
- Utilizing effective paid advertising
- SMS/MMS marketing
- QR codes
- Email marketing
- Marketing and Sales Enablement
The benefits of marketing services for your business can be huge, as was indicated earlier in the post. When you move away from relatively low-margin commodity print services to high-margin solution-based marketing services.
Top challenges printers face when transforming into marketing service providers
Info Trends Statistics - 2015
- Printers with sales challenges 51%
- Lack of the right skills 39%
- Don’t have vision/strategy 32%
- Don’t know where to begin 8%
However, with the right marketing and sales tools, many print service providers (PSP) can make the transition to marketing service providers. (MSP)
