Swift Blog

Paper is more than just a surface for printing. It has its own character. It can evoke warmth or coolness, brightness or subtlety, and feel earthy or extravagant. Let’s explore some essential elements that give each paper its own personality.

1. Brightness Levels: Brightness indicates how much light reflects off the paper, rated on a scale from 1 to 100. A higher brightness (closer to 100) means your colors will stand out more vividly. Papers with lower brightness, particularly uncoated ones, tend to soften colors.

Sure, the volume of direct mail may be declining, but its importance is not. Direct mail plays a unique role in the marketing world and is something digital channels cannot replicate. Let’s look at five reasons why.

1. Print retains authority. Digital marketing is often perceived as low-cost, which diminishes its impact in the eyes of consumers. In contrast, handing someone a brochure, a physical coupon, or a direct mail piece creates a sense of value and credibility.

As concerns about synthetic materials, excessive packaging, and carbon emissions rise, consumers seek sustainably produced and packaged products. But does this growing awareness lead to changes in purchasing habits? A recent survey reveals that it does.

Here are three key insights from the “U.S. Retail Sustainability Perceptions Benchmark” survey (eMarketer/Insider Intelligence) that can inform your marketing strategies:

Content marketing is one of the most effective methods for driving revenue, engaging customers, and enhancing client retention. However, like any marketing approach, it requires a well-defined strategy. Where do some of the most significant challenges lie? How can you overcome them? Let’s look at three main areas: delivering value, establishing routines, and creating processes.

1. Delivering Value: Many marketers are stuck in a cycle of mundane tasks and repetitive content distribution rather than finding innovative ways to provide unique value to their customers. Don’t be one of them! Whether you’re creating content for direct mail, email, or social media, customize your content for each channel. Each channel has distinct advantages and limitations, so tailor your message for each audience.

When designing your next print project, achieving the best results requires attention to detail and understanding how to prepare your designs for print. Whether you're working on a business card, a brochure, or a poster, following these nine tips will help ensure that your print project turns out its best.

1. Use CMYK Color Mode: Design in CMYK color mode rather than RGB. Printing presses create colors using blends of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black (CMYK) inks, so designing in this mode ensures that your colors will look as intended in print.

Nowadays, everyone wants to stretch their marketing dollars, but we all want the best results, too. The good news is, you can do both! Here are five tips for budget-conscious marketers that will save you money and boost your results simultaneously!

1. Use targeted mailing lists.

Marketers intuitively understand what surveys have told us for years: Direct mail ROI rises dramatically when direct mail is part of an integrated, multichannel marketing strategy.

According to NAPCO Research, response rates from direct mail campaigns increase by 41% when used as part of an integrated marketing campaign compared to mailings not integrated with other channels. ROI rise nearly 63%.

One way to make a strong impression with printed material is by incorporating embellishments like specialized coatings, textured finishes, and custom die cuts. While these enhancements are not new, many businesses are unaware that they are both accessible and affordable, whether you are printing offset or digital.

Which of these popular enhancements might capture the attention of your target audience?

Hand on packaging plans

If you manufacture food or beverages, you know how difficult it is to stand out on the retail shelf. But what if you could do something simple: turn heads and win new customers without changing the primary product? You can—it’s limited edition labels and packaging.

Let’s say you produce craft beer, and there is a jazz festival in your local area every year. So, for the festival, you create a “pick your favorite” limited edition line of labels featuring different instruments, such as saxophones, trumpets, and trombones. You can also design labels featuring jazz greats such as Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, or Dizzy Gillespie. Add the name of the festival and the year, and you will have a powerful marketing tool that every craft beer enthusiast at the festival will want to buy.

In today's saturated market, consumers are bombarded with countless options, making it easy for your brand to get lost in the noise. However, implementing the right strategies ensures that your brand remains at the forefront of your customers' minds.

1. Promote Your Unique Selling Proposition (USP).

As the summer sun blazes and your competitors take time off, you should be gearing up. Summer is the perfect time to review and prepare your content strategy for your fall marketing blitz. Here's how to turn the summer lull into a productive season for your business.

1. Think Ahead with Fall Themes

Are you selling into the B2B market? Then you know that an increasing number of stakeholders are involved in the purchase process, and sellers face a more complex buyer's journey than ever before. How do you break through? Content marketing (and lots of it)!

Printed materials such as direct mail, newsletters, and multi-piece kits are well suited to selling into the B2B market. Once delivered, these pieces often remain visible for days, weeks, or even months during the various stages of the research and decision-making process. Printed pieces can also be easily shared between team members.

When creating successful direct mail campaigns, the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) is the ultimate expert. Here are five of its most helpful tips for creating foolproof direct mail campaigns:

1. Choose Your Format Carefully.

Increasingly, brands are jumping on the bandwagon of environmental sustainability. Consumers want to do business with brands that are kind to the earth, and brands are giving consumers what they want. However, just making sustainability claims isn't enough. You have to back them up.

Among the recent studies showing a growing preference for sustainably produced products is the "Business of Sustainability Index" from GreenPrint, which helps businesses reach and promote their sustainability goals. In its study, GreenPrint found the following:

One often overlooked aspect of maintaining a solid brand presence is regularly refreshing your marketing collateral. From direct mail to marketing emails, here are five ways to update your design and keep it fresh.

1. Update your colors.

How do you stand out when so many companies compete for the same customers? One way is through dimensional print. These innovative print pieces go beyond the traditional flat surface, offering tactile and interactive experiences that captivate audiences and drive engagement. From pop-up designs to textured finishes, dimensional print can take your marketing efforts to the next level.

Let's look at some examples:

Using recycled paper is essential in moving toward more sustainable printing, but it’s not the only one! For those who want to be friendly to the earth, here are five other ways to incorporate sustainability when designing and ordering print materials.

In today's digital age, it's easy to overlook the enduring impact of print media. While digital marketing offers unparalleled reach and flexibility, there are certain situations where print simply outshines its digital counterparts. Here are five scenarios where print comes out on top.

Whether you're creating an advertisement, a direct mail piece, or website content, compelling marketing copy can capture attention, evoke emotion, and, ultimately, drive sales. To achieve this, marketers often tap into six primary motivators that resonate with consumers deeply and personally. Let's take a look.

"Our challenge is that we hate change and love it at the same time; what we really want is for things to remain the same but get better." - Sydney Harris

We think this is a profound quote and so very true. When things remain the same they rarely get better yet the challenges of changing is difficult - even when you know in your heart of hearts those challenges will be well worth the effort.