Dove Direct Print and Marketing Blog, “Why Eliminating Print Is a Dangerous Proposition”

Welcome to the Dove Direct Print and Marketing Blog. Today's post, "Why Eliminating Print Is a Dangerous Proposition" is a short but potent read regarding two influential brands that removed print from their marketing strategy and the disastrous earning results that followed.

For the record, there are plenty of reports, surveys, and analyses pointing to the resurgence of print as a variable consideration in the marketing sphere. However, today's post uncovers real-life analyses depicting how two significant brands, Nordstrom and J. Jill, lost millions in revenue as a result of nixing print from each brand's marketing mix.

Executional misses are ripe in the history of marketing and advertising, and to that end, there are several missteps worth referencing. Take, for example, The GAP. In 2000, before the rise of the Internet and social media, the GAP decided to drop television advertising. At the time, television was king. It was a significant driver for any brand that wanted to reach consumers, and with a decent TV budget and placement, brands were able to turn viewers into buyers.

The Gap's Big Bust!

On August 11, 2000, Evelyn Nussenbaum wrote an article for the New York Post entitled, "Gap's Tuning Out TV Ads." The report states that the Gap was moving away from television in an effort to reconnect and appeal to an older demographic, noting that television "is largely a young person's medium." Quotes from the article confirm that the Gap, along with others, was struggling to sell clothing merchandise. While TV had been a "buzz-generating" driver for the retailer, to boost sales, the Gap chose to abandon TV in favor of $20 gift cards for every $100 spent.

Gap spokesman Alan Marks saw the move as "part of an ongoing effort to look at our marketing mix." A review of the dismal sales also led to the dismissal of several of the store's marketing personnel. The takeaway from the GAP experience is pretty simple; brands should never abandon a top-performing marketing medium.

In the GAP example, the retailer chose to substitute television advertising for $20 gift cards. Although recent studies confirm that most gift cards are never redeemed, the initial lesson here is that maybe the retailer would have faired much better if they offered a gift card in conjunction with continuing their television advertising.

We'll never know how that would have panned out; however, effective marketing does consist of a mix of mediums. Which leads us to an object lesson regarding strategy; marketers and brands need to consider mediums that compliment, and collectively better serve the overall goals.

Things Go Better With Print.

Remember the old Coca-Cola ad, "Things Go Better with Coke?" That campaign had a musical component with songs written by artists thus tapping into the music world. In a sense, Coke channeled a theme that Coca-Cola and music go hand in hand. Likewise, with print. Things go better with print! We can back this claim with facts. Troves of data point to print and its ability to increase response rates, engagement, and sales for online and offline concerns.

Nordstrom and J.Jill Nixed Print and Lost Millions!

According to multiple articles, including one on Mindfire, Nordstrom and J. Jill lost $120 million as a consequence of eliminating direct mail marketing. These stores concluded that their marketing strategy could do better without print. In other words, "Things Will Go Better Without Print." However, that was not the case.

Indeed, every effective marketing decision is most likely a culmination of multiple factors, including both external and internal factors. It's also true that the retail sector is under oppressive competitive forces led by Amazon and other online retail brands. However, all industry sectors are under pressure to maintain a decent growth rate, particularly when it comes to managing online purchases, customer experiences, trustworthiness, and brand expectations.

Attention Print Sales People!

All printing houses are looking to sell more print products and in some cases are considering expanding their print offering catalogs. Print sales executives have not been privy to any concrete brand experiences that demonstrate the value of print and the impact it can have on sales if eliminated from the marketing strategy, until now.

In short, the sales pitch could go like this: Mr. Marketing Director, are you aware of the Nordstrom/J. Jill massive revenue loss? It was so large that it made the news. Why? When companies lose $100 million+, analysts and industry insiders want to know. Mr. Marketing Director, do you know the reason behind those considerable losses? Well, the answer was chilling. It is because these retailers decided to eliminate print from the marketing mix.

When making such a pitch, it's a good idea to have the documentation to back up the facts that you reference in your sales pitch. In this case, we contend that information from folks like Bill Farquharson, (author and sales trainer at AspireFor.com, in conjunction to listening to the "Short Attention Span Sales Podcast" will shed the needed data to sufficiently arm any print sales representative to make the pitch from a position of strength.

The real question behind the Nordstrom/J. Jill debacle is "how many other clients or prospects are making the same mistake?" Print salespeople are mostly concerned with presenting the benefits of print while focusing on positive results. To that end, one can quickly point to Google, Direct TV, Comcast, and other native online digital organizations that reserve a proper budget for direct mail marketing products. However, when a print salesperson can reference stories like Nordstrom and J. Jill, iconic retail brands that eliminated print and lost millions, that should cause any organization to rethink how they reach their customer base.

The Net-Net

Your fourth-quarter plans should be well underway, and while you're finalizing them, it would be a great idea to budget for print, namely direct mail marketing collateral. After all, who among us can stand to lose dollars by eliminating, or for that matter, failing to consider print as part of the marketing mix? Thanks for reading "Why Eliminating Print Is a Dangerous Proposition."

Let's have a conversation about catalog direct mail marketing strategies, printing, transactional documents, variable digital printing, brand equity and unified marketing collateral during our next Open House. We invite you to join us on Thursday, Aug 29th, 2019, for an hour or two, anytime between 10:30 am to 4:30 pm. Let us show you how to improve your document processes to optimize your workflow, reduce your costs, and maximize your organization's printing, letter shop, and mailing capabilities. Dove Direct has an official USPS certified bureau located within our offices that will save you time and money. Moreover, if you bring us your files, we will create a demo file for you. For more information, call Carla Eubanks at 404-629-0122 or email Carla at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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