Print Dead?
Not yet. How B2B marketers are striking gold.
by AICPA Custom Media Solutions

So you think print is dead. Not quite, especially if you saw how a quick-thinking eBay account-holder sold a much-wanted copy of The New York Times of Senator Obama winning the election for $100! Yes, there is still room for print. You can’t exactly hold onto digital memories and leaf through it or hang it on the wall and brag to people that you witnessed an event of a lifetime. But, you can do that, when it’s in print. And while the baby boomers already know this, it looks like Gen Y is finally seeing the light. And as this new generation takes print to a different level, B2B marketers are following their lead.

A new study conducted by Marketing Evolution, a market research firm, found magazines to be the most efficient medium at key stages of the purchase funnel, delivering a superior cost per impact (CPI) than either TV or online for brand familiarity and purchase intent. Highlighted below are the top findings of the study:

• For brand familiarity and purchase intent, magazines generate a superior cost per impact (CPI) than either TV or online;
   
• For brand awareness TV leads in cost efficiency, and the efficiency of magazines is a close second to that of TV;
   
• Magazines most consistently generate a favorable ROI throughout the purchase funnel, followed by TV; and
   
• While each category that Marketing Evolution examined (auto, entertainment, electronics, and pharmaceuticals) showed a unique profile, the overall pattern held across the individual categories.

“This study provides another proof point for marketers who care about accountability,” said Rex Briggs, CEO, Marketing Evolution, to Magazine Publishers of America. “Our findings show that to optimize results, advertisers should allocate media based on the ROI of media impact instead of using traditional exposure metrics. More often than not, when they change their approach, advertisers will find that magazines should play a larger role in their overall media mix.”