Despite the dire situation we often hear about in the news, major economic indicators are strong. Unemployment is historically low and consumer spending is historically high. This combination, along with other strong economic indicators, increases the need for advertising and marketing, which in turn increases output on the shop floor. Heidi Tolliver-Walker explains how fewer printers can handle this volume and there can be a false sense of security among printers that marketing is not necessary. Masu.
Every printer knows that marketing is important. Many people invest in marketing tools like blogs, print and email newsletters, and social media, but then quickly cancel subscriptions, pause freelancers, and stop marketing.
One reason is that many printers are so busy that they think they don't need one. They read articles and attend seminars to get motivated to work on marketing. However, the printing press is not working properly and there is “no time” to take care of it. So they let it drop. After all, they're busy, busy, busy. That's very short-term thinking. The economy is strong right now, but what happens if something disrupts that atmosphere?
Indeed, it may be difficult to imagine it. Despite the dire situation we often hear about in the news, major economic indicators are strong. Unemployment is historically low and consumer spending is historically high. This combination, along with other strong economic indicators, increases the need for advertising and marketing, which in turn increases output on the shop floor. With fewer printers handling this volume, there can be a false sense of security among printers that marketing is not necessary.
Let's look at the numbers.
Employment is almost at an all-time low
Excluding the spike caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the unemployment rate has been steadily declining since 2010 and currently stands at 3.7%. Full employment is considered between 4% and 6%. The US unemployment rate has been at “full employment” since December 2021.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor
GDP is at an all-time high
This “full employment” workforce has long made the United States one of the most productive countries in the world. GDP tracks the health of a country's economy, and the United States' GDP is currently at an all-time high.
Source: Fred
Dow Jones is growing rapidly
The Dow Jones also hit new highs a few months ago. It has remained very close to that high ever since. This contributes to consumer confidence and, as a result, spending.
Source: Macro Trends
Disposable income and consumer confidence top the charts
Another measure of economic health is inflation, and although inflation remains high due to international developments such as Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas war, consumers' disposable income has also increased. There is. Disposable income is also at an all-time high, excluding a temporary spike in 2020-2021.
Source: Fred
Do you think consumers are saving that much money? No! Consumer spending is also at an all-time high. Check out parking at local restaurants. They tell stories!
Source: Macro Trends
Impact on the printing industry – more work!
These strong economic indicators, including consumer spending, are supporting strong advertising spending. In fact, as you might expect, advertising spending is also at an all-time high.
Source: Bureau of Statistics
Do more with fewer printers
Even though consumer spending continues to be strong, the number of printing companies continues to shrink. According to KeyPoint Intelligence, in 2010 there were a total of 29,118 commercial printing establishments in the United States, but that number decreased to 23,393 by 2020, a 20% decrease. The decline was even greater for commercial printing companies, where the number of establishments decreased by 26%, from 22,048 to 16,283.
Smithers estimates that the industry contracted an additional 11.9% between 2018 and 2022 as a result of the pandemic.
That means the economy is strong, advertising spending is increasing, and the number of printing companies that can handle all your business is decreasing. Many printers are so busy right now that they think they don't need to do any marketing. . . Until that happens.
Don't be treated unfairly
Printers have a lot of reasons to be confident right now. But as these historical graphs show, the factors keeping printing companies busy – strong economic numbers and a declining number of competitors – have nothing to do with their own competitive position.
So what happens when a surprise comes our way? A global pandemic or a major international event (war or natural disaster)? Or is it something local, such as the closure of a manufacturing plant important to the local economy or the emergence of a new, stronger-than-expected competitor?
When something like that happens (and it's likely something will happen at some point), the lack of consistent marketing will suffer. We understand that you need a strong brand reputation, brand trust, and brand awareness, but these cannot be built in weeks or even months. Change can happen unexpectedly and quickly, but brand building does not. Printers that don't invest in marketing are likely to fail. The window for responding to a crisis may close faster than we can build something like this.
So what is the industry's biggest marketing problem? False security – specifically, false security that leads to a lack of consistency and a lack of long-term marketing commitment. Therefore, try not to get caught up in any unexpected events. Create a long-term marketing strategy and stick to it. Then, when the unexpected happens, watch your competitors fight while you are in position to pick up a piece.
