After what seems like an eternity, life is returning to some kind of normality. Well, a new mask-wearing, talking from a distance normality. We understand the hard-times both personally and from a business perspective that many have had, and now we can’t wait to see businesses rising like a phoenix from the ashes of COVID-19. The question arises, ‘is now the time to start hard-copy advertising again?’ In this blog, we will look at the benefits and detriments of rolling out your posters, redesigning your graphics and returning to high-street marketing.
Hunger 🍲
The footfall on the high-streets and shopping centres is back on the rise, and right now we are all looking for a connection again. Could now be the time to champion your potential customers and build new relationships? We believe so! As people scamper to talk to others and find that much-needed release of pent-up loneliness, your product could be the pick-me-up they need!
Visibility 👓
Visibility right now is at an all-time high. We’ve missed the smells of the city, the happiness that walking in and out of other people’s lives as you pass in the street. With street corner billboards and bus stop posters sitting empty and lifeless why not get your posters out there? With hard-copy advertising, we advise doing your research. Highlight not only the cities that your product is successful in but also the areas of the city which your demographic most commonly populate. Market there!
Post-COVID design work 🖊️
Due to people having that overwhelming sense of needing to see and feel something new, revamp your marketing before you roll them out. Your potential customers have a new set of norms, and as of yet, we don’t really know them! So be vivid in colour, be recognisable, and be you. Do something you like with your marketing, and we are pretty confident your potential customers will like it too.
Uniformity 👔
If you are going to reignite the marketing flame, it’s important that your company does so across all platforms. Meaning if your hard copy marketing is being redesigned, do the little bits and pieces online too. Everything from your Facebook header, Instagram posts etc. Uniformity creates brand recognition, and we wouldn’t want that witty poster or eye-catching billboard going to waste when a customer looks you up online and doesn’t recognise the brand they saw on the poster. Find your new shiny suit of armour and roll it out across everything.
Tactical 💡
When it comes to the tactics behind deploying your hard-copy advertising campaign, you may need to look a little further than meets the eye. For example, the post-COVID-19 life we are living revolves around several questions. Most of them being geared towards when normality will actually return. So, here’s a thought about public transport, looking at each bus that passes wondering how many people will be travelling on it and whether they all have masks on. Would it not be a good time to brand that bus with your marketing? Sometimes, unusual situations and current trends offer marketing opportunities that didn’t exist or were more sought after previously.
Downside 👎
As with any situation, there are negatives to hard-copy advertising and out-of-home marketing. You don’t want to upset people and be seen as the company making the most of global pandemic by selling to us throughout. In our opinion, this time has passed. If you’re willing to offer something refreshing, we think people would positively respond to it.
Secondly, we would suggest heading into the city-centre you are targeting and looking at the placement of other advertisements surrounding your own. For example, would you want to place your advert on a street where all the others are charity-based ones? Are they all out of date and no longer relevant, giving the impression to passers-by that your poster is also out of date. Find areas that suit you, not only for demographic but also in terms of brand recognition.
At Create8, we specialise in branding, digital marketing and graphic design projects. With poster design and hard-copy advertising, we have worked on numerous jobs. You can take a look at various projects on ‘Our Work‘ page.
We love a project that allows us to break the norms of design and offer something entirely different to the consumer. If you would be interested in collaborating with our design agency in Manchester, simply send a message or give us a call and we will do all we can to help you with your hard-copy advertising campaign.
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