{"id":58795,"date":"2020-03-12T12:45:56","date_gmt":"2020-03-12T09:45:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newblog.creatopy.com\/blog\/?p=58795"},"modified":"2023-07-24T14:15:55","modified_gmt":"2023-07-24T11:15:55","slug":"print-advertisement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/creatopydevelopmentblog.kinsta.cloud\/blog\/print-advertisement\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Clever Tips to Inspire Your Next Print Advertisement Campaign"},"content":{"rendered":"

In this digital age<\/a>, when new online advertising types<\/a> and promotional channels surface more often than ever before, it’s easy to forget about the power of <\/span>print advertising<\/span><\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n

And we shouldn’t really. <\/span>Here’s why.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

On one hand, print is one of the primary mediums that have stood the test of time. Almost as soon as Gutenberg invented the printing press in the early 15th century, the western world grabbed print advertisements and ran with them. <\/span><\/p>\n

Moreover, block printing was known in China long before that. Archaeologists found<\/a> <\/span>printed paper<\/span> package ads that were dated over 700 years ago, and<\/span> resemble some of the ad copy structures that are still in use today.<\/span><\/p>\n

On the other hand, despite being stigmatized as tech-addicts, in reality, <\/span>the millennial generation prefers print<\/span><\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n

Call it a testament to the versatility and impact of print advertisement, or just a generational whim, but it doesn’t change the facts. <\/span><\/p>\n

Print ads not only have a rich heritage, having proven their worth over centuries and centuries, but they are also clearly here to stay for a long time to come.<\/span><\/p>\n

Since we mentioned the history of print advertisement, before diving into what makes today’s best print ads work, it’s only fair to pay homage to their rich past and see where today’s print media advertising stems from.<\/span><\/p>\n

Ye Olde Print Ads<\/strong><\/h2>\n

One of the first English printed advertisements was a handbill created in 1477 by an English merchant, diplomat, and writer, named William Caxton. <\/span><\/p>\n

This small broadside was intended to be displayed in the neighborhood outside his shop in Westminster Abbey.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"first<\/p>\n

Image source<\/a><\/p>\n

It’s quite clear that for today’s reader, it’s nearly indecipherable because of the archaic spelling. The overly ornamented typeface doesn’t help either. <\/span><\/p>\n

You’ll have to take my word for this\u2014<\/span>it advertised Caxton’s edition of the Sarum Ordinal or “Pye”. It was the priest’s manual of variations in the office during the year.<\/span><\/p>\n

So why is this relevant today? Because it doesn’t work anymore. Bear with me, it will make sense in a minute.<\/span><\/p>\n

From Text-Only Print Ads to Images That Tell an Entire Story\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

You see, back in its time, Caxton’s<\/span> handbill was probably very effective for a number of reasons. <\/span><\/p>\n

For one thing, it must have been viewed as a novelty simply because most people hadn’t previously seen fancy printed text, at least not on the streets.<\/span><\/p>\n

Literacy was also the privilege of a select few, so the simple fact that it was printed text appealed directly to the relatively small audience <\/span>Caxton was targeting<\/span>. <\/span><\/p>\n

Having no other eye-grabbing visual element other than the roughly six lines of uninterrupted text itself\u2014which would be unacceptable in a modern magazine ad design\u2014was no problem back at the dawn of print advertisements.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"enciclopedia<\/p>\n

Image source<\/a><\/p>\n

It wasn’t long, though, until printers started using xylographs and other line-work to add imagery to the ads. But for the image to break the text’s dominance in print advertisement took much longer.<\/span><\/p>\n

Up until the late 20th century, it was common practice to have enormous amounts of text in a print ad. In most cases, the image was just an illustration, something to grab the eye and lead it to the text, which then did the heavy lifting.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"McDonald'sImage source<\/a><\/p>\n

\"theImage source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

\"americanImage source<\/a><\/p>\n

It took more than 500 years to reach this point, but a text-only ad containing that many words or even the much more recent print ad examples above would be ignored today.<\/p>\n

Ironically, in a time when reading a couple of words shouldn’t be a problem, some of the most creative print ads are those that have little to no copy.<\/p>\n

So fast-forward half a century from Gutenberg and you get this.<\/p>\n

\"sensodyne<\/p>\n

Image source<\/a><\/p>\n

What’s Changed?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The average consumer is exposed to thousands of ads every single day. As a result, <\/span>our attention span<\/a> is now a fraction of what it used to be.<\/p>\n

Time has become a luxury, which means that your audience’s attention turned into a commodity that has to be earned. <\/span><\/p>\n

Although understanding the written text is no longer a problem for most people, we barely have enough time to catch up with the news, let alone read magazine ads.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The competition for this small amount of attention is fierce, so today’s marketers have their work cut out for them.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Technology resolved the problem of reaching masses, but grabbing attention is only possible through creativity.<\/span><\/p>\n

How to Tell a Story Through a Print Advertisement<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Let’s start with a quick disclaimer. <\/span><\/p>\n

If the answer would fit into a blog post, the world’s greatest marketing gurus could start looking for a new job.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But you know what Picasso said: good artists copy, great artists steal. Though he may have taken the quote from someone.<\/span><\/p>\n

What we can do instead of searching for the holy grail of print ads is to look at some excellent print advertisement examples and see what makes them so effective.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

1. Combine familiar shapes<\/h3>\n

Instantly recognizing shapes guaranteed the survival of early humans. It’s so profoundly encoded in everyone’s DNA regardless of culture that it would be a shame not to use it to our advantage and reach audiences worldwide.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

By combining two shapes, you can give your message a whole new meaning. Of course, adding a few lines of copy can provide some context to make a greater impact.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Portuguese newspaper Expresso did this masterfully in one of its latest campaigns. <\/span><\/p>\n

They kept it simple: rudimentary shapes, a couple of clever tweaks in the negative space, and well-chosen topics that are sometimes conflicting or controversial to create that all-important sense of pressure.<\/span><\/p>\n