A recent study from Nielsen finds that about 80 per cent of U.S. households still use flyers/circulars and other traditional, printed sources for product information (home and in-store), despite the growing use of digital touchpoints.
According to Gary Meo, Senior Vice President and Sales Director, Newspaper Media at Nielsen Scarborough, “even as digital channels for retail marketing continue to grow, print advertising is still very effective and doesn’t show signs of going away any time soon.
In the Nielsen Homescan study, almost half of U.S. households said they use at least eight different sources — across print and digital — for information about products and sales.”
In an article for the INMA Media Research Blog, Meo asks: “what does this all mean for retail marketers and news media companies?”
“First, it means printed advertising is alive and well, and it is the leading source of product information for consumers. Retailers who shift a disproportionate amount of their ad spend from print to digital do so at their peril,” he said.
“Secondly, it means that, to be successful, retailers must utilize multiple touchpoints across print and digital channels to reach their best shoppers and attract new customers. They should continue to utilize traditional print advertising since print will continue to be shoppers’ main source of product and sales information, at least for now.”
