Print media. I’m not just talking about those fancy, glossy magazines you see in the grocery aisle, or the New York Times, I’m talking about EVERYTHING PRINT. It’s not always top of mind, but the print media we encounter on a daily basis really is more than just newspapers or magazines. Let me share with you how print media affects my life.
I love when I get up in the morning, open my front door to go out and grab the paper(can’t teach the cat to retrieve it), and pick up one of those little doorknob flyers as it falls to the ground beneath my feet. I immediately stop what I’m doing and sit down and read it, because I’m sure that it must be something I’m going to end up needing! After I’ve filed it away in my “maybe someday” metal filing cabinet, I head back outside, making sure to pick up the random neighborhood newspaper (bonus! - don’t even subscribe but they send it to me for free!) that’s lying wet on my front lawn. My wife complains about the mess, but I say who cares about the newspaper print that’s stained all over my wooden kitchen table - I can’t wait to see what’s inside!
Monday’s are extra special for me, because that’s when ALL the so-called “junk” mail(maybe it’s your trash, but it’s my treasure), coupon clippers, and credit card mileage applications show up. I’m truly humbled to know that of the 120 million or so households in the US, only myself and a select other few were chosen to get first notice of such great deals - because Safeway(my local chain grocer) knows me so well. And they send it to me every week! Thank goodness I signed up for that Safeway Rewards card - can you imagine what a waste of paper (and likely $) it would be on their part if they sent those to everyone in my town, much less my state(CA)? But alas, they have no better way to reach me! Gosh, I’m glad they understand their customers so well.
Time for a treat - let’s open the credit card applications! Oh, I know I’m not going to apply for any of them, but I have to take the time to shred the sheet of paper with my personal info on it and separate it from the envelope with the plastic window before I throw it away! Toss those in the garbage (oh cmon, recycling’s like social media - just a passing fad) and 10 minutes later, I’m headed over to Starbucks. As I approach the Starbuck’s front door, something catches my eye - is it, could it be….yes it is! I quickly hustle over to the 3 tiered metal rack next to Walgreens, and grab as many Auto Trader, Senior Citizen’s Weekly, and (gulp) apartment rental magazines as I can get my hands on. These things are awesome - they’re so thick, convenient, and good for the environment, and since they’re updated hourly(how does the printing press keep up with that volume?) I know that everything listed in there is still available. Perfect - now I have a stack of magazines to read for months to come - for free! No, I’m not in the market for a used car, age 65, or moving anytime soon - I’m just a sucker for good, free reading material.
I grab my coffee, head back to the car, and what do I see? Yep, it’s a flyer stuck in my window crack! How did they know that I was looking for a hyphy rap/ crunk party to go to 20 miles away in Oakland this friday night? And look at this - I’m already a VIP! Is this being put on as some kind of promotion for the carpet cleaning company that threw the 8 1/2” x 11” blue sheet of printer paper under my windshield wiper? Crazy cross-promotion!
Finally, I’m back home, 10 pounds of non-recyclable paper heavier. It’s about 10am, and I open my computer to get to work(hey it’s startup life, ok?). Hit the NYT tab on Firefox. Read about 5 stories that appeal to me, notice an Apple ad, a Prius ad, and a zappos.com ad. Hmm, I noticed those brands and I didn’t even have to click on the ad to remember them. Next tab. Open my email - everything that’s really important or pending is in there. Bevmo weekly email specials - sorry, we just did our shopping yesterday. Some quick replies, some drafts, some put offs, now I’m moving on. Amex.com - pay my bill - do I want to join a rewards promo? Nope. Logout, moving on. Facebook. My friend @onemikefitz is promoting a party at Vessel on Friday - 5 of my other friends are going - I think I just made plans. Next tab. Twitter - wow, there’s some cool stuff out there today - follow some interesting people, see what the ones I already follow have to say, bookmark some links to cool webpages/products they introduce me to. I’ll come back to those later.
It’s now 10:15. There’s no doubt that the last 15 minutes were the most productive of my day thus far, and they were all spent in front of my laptop. Now, think about how much time, money, and overall human energy was spent compiling, printing, and distributing the “junk” that I encountered over the first 3 hours of my day. When you make the argument that print isn’t dying, ask yourself - can you see things still being done this way when your children are 30? I don’t know about you, but it’s just not a practice I see as being sustainable over the medium-to-long term. It has to evolve.
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No, print isn’t dead, yet. It’s going to be around for awhile, and it shouldn’t be completely abandoned. In fact, it can still play a key part in many companies integrated marketing strategy. My point is just that print, as we all know it, is far more than just the newspapers and magazine guides that shoulder most of the blame for what’s wrong in the industry. I’d argue that they represent the portion of the print industry that’s closest to getting it right, when you consider all of the other “spam” print that we encounter on a daily basis. So when thought of in its’ full context, can you still make the argument that print media, as a whole, isn’t slowly dying?
There’s no doubt, I’m laying the sarcasm on pretty thick in the story above, but I bet most of you can relate to some part of it. So, going forward, when you argue whether or not print is a dying medium, remember to consider it in its’ full context. The newspaper industry is slumping, but it still represents the best of what print has to offer. And if they can’t make it, what does it say for the rest of the “junk” that’s out there?
Times change. Do you resist change or embrace it? I’d love to hear your thoughts.
