Thursday, November 10, 2005
Offline Media
Dr. Joe blogged about a new term he's heard lately to refer to the graphic communications industry: Offline Media Industry.
I can see how some "witty" internet marketer came up with the phrase, but I think having the print industry referred to as an offline media provider is really really bad; and should be considered harmful. A lot of printers have realized that they can no longer remain profitable by just transferring ink to paper and have invested in high tech digital, electronic media and publishing systems and infrastructure. These investments allow printers to handle all the communication requirements (including email, internet, and print marketing) of their clients. Now we have a group of internet marketers referring to printers as offline media providers, thus creating a negative sense of what types of services printers can provide. I can only see this hampering the efforts of printers trying to diversify their service offerings.
Print-marketers need to squash this phrase fast.
Print: A Communication Industry
Dr. Joe also brings up some valid points on how some in the print industry has to embrace the fact that the industry is being redefined by electronic media and needs to transform into a full-service communication industry (or as Joe put it: communication logistics industry).
Joe outlines 3 simple facts that printers must accept:
Dr Joe: Offline Media Industry
Electronic media have undeniable and pre-emptive advantages in the marketplace, such as timeliness, richer information (motion, sound, etc.), freedom from geography: anytime, anywhere, many devices
Print enhances new media, making new media better, ensuring its use, increasing its frequency and its depth
New media is hard to manage and deploy well; just like print. Our industry has the skills to effectively and efficiently manage multichannel communications logistics that clients need to reach the fragmented lifestyles and "I want it now" attention span of their marketplaces.
Prints Not Dead!
I imagine someday walking through a graffiti laden underpass and see scrawled on the wall: PRINTS NOT DEAD! in the true fashion of a 80's punk rock anthem. This quasi-political vandalism will be the result of a print industry CEO ignoring the fact that ink-on-paper just doesn't cut it anymore. There is a need for printers to transform themselves into communication providers offering both print and electronic media services that enable their clients to effectively communicate their message.
Posted in: Printing Industry
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