Why Local Newspaper Advertising is Important in 2021

Man sitting on a bus smiling and wearing sunglasses while reading the newspaper

Advertising is an important factor in any type of business. A good advertisement can mean the difference between making a profit or experiencing losses. Many business owners understand that one of the most difficult parts of starting a new business is making your product known to the public.

Today, advertising is done in different media. It can be on online websites, social media applications, television and radio commercials, and many more mediums. Due to the latest technological advancements, most companies are looking to various forms of digital media for their advertising projects. Still, some invest in printed advertisements.

When the newspapers were still the main news source about current events, businesses took advantage of this and printed their advertisements in newspapers.

Today, this is still a relevant medium for advertising as newspapers can sell up to a million copies in a single day! It may be an unconventional advertising method in this era. Still, without the big companies hogging all the prints’ space, it gives new and small business owners a chance to advertise their products.

 

The Advantages of Advertising Through Local Newspapers

There are many benefits to using local newspaper advertising in 2021. Let’s go over them here. 

 

Cost

First, it is relatively cheaper than other forms of advertising, such as making a television commercial.

Local newspaper advertising will only cost you the charge the publishing company will require. There would be only a design cost if you had it made by an illustrator, which can be waived if you can make the design yourself.

 

Easy Retention

In 2021 when there is more “noise” than ever online, print advertising becomes even more useful. By noise, we mean the several links, calls to action, pop-ups, etc., that can bombard the average internet user.

In a sense, a physical newspaper or magazine can provide a sort of quiet refuge while satiating the reader’s appetite for knowledge or entertainment. Furthermore, as people must move physically through your ads in the paper, they’ll more easily recall your ad later on.

Also, you are assured that the readers who will see your advertisement will be attentive people who are really looking for information. Most people scrolling on social media are less attentive to ads since this is not what they were looking for online.

 

Your Print Ad Will Last Longer

Your ad will stay with the prospect for as long as the magazine or newspaper stays on their desk. Whereas with digital ads, they will only stay with the prospect as long as they’re remaining on that particular web page.

Also, when someone puts a digital advertisement in their recycle bin (pdfs, images, etc.), it won’t be seen by anyone. But with a physical ad, there’s the chance that it can be passed along to someone else’s desk, and the audience reach for your ad can end up being greater (likely at least two weeks).

 

Purchasing Power

People who purchase and read newspapers may be serious buyers or investors looking for products in the advertisement section. The age group of people buying newspapers is also mostly adults, so it will be easier to reach people who have spending money.

 

Authoritative Source

According to a Marketing Sherpa survey of 1200 Americans in 2016, it was found that consumers trust print ads more than any other advertising medium.

Another factor that makes local newspaper advertising better than digital advertising is that readers are more likely to trust advertisements printed in the newspapers. Sketchy pop-up ads randomly appearing on websites, on the other hand, garner far less trust. The pop-up ads usually lead to scam offers and other websites of a similar nature.

Also, online advertisements are mostly considered noise these days, so they will be more likely to be ignored.

The lesson should be this: placing your ad in a newspaper or magazine will more than likely add credibility to your service offering. At the same time, putting pop-up ads online will possibly reduce your credibility.

 

Form New Business Relationships

Newspaper advertisements serve as a great avenue for business partnership among business people in a similar field. The advertisements can help them find businesses that are just starting out or going out of business. They can form partnerships that can help both parties elevate their positions. Some advertisements are also very helpful when making such deals. Contact numbers and persons to contact are usually listed in the advertisements.

While there are many advantages of newspaper advertising in 2021, is it really worth your money compared to the other advertising options out there?

 

Man reading newspaper and woman reading news on smartphone at table

How Effective is Newspaper Advertising in 2021?

When your brand is exploring the various options for spending money on advertising, the question of whether print advertising in 2021 is worth it will inevitably come up. After all, why should we continue to invest in print ads when there are so many excellent digital options these days?

While it’s true that digital advertising has some irrefutable strengths, print ads still come with other huge advantages.

Yes, digital ad campaigns can be easily measured. You can see the exact number of people who viewed your ad, clicked it, and converted. Print ads can’t give you that kind of information.

However, advertising in a reputable magazine with an established audience carries massive benefits, which we will discuss here.

 

Print Engagement vs Digital Engagement

In print media, ads are not an interruption; ads are part of the experience. For most people to read magazines or newspapers, they must be subscribed. This means that they are willing to accept the entire experience, including the ads.

Therefore, most print media subscribers don’t mind ads, and some of them actually want to read the ads.

On the other hand, digital ads are often intrusive because they aren’t relevant to what a person is pursuing at that moment. You might have been searching for pet food on Amazon, which will pop up later as an ad on a computer gaming website. Probably not what you’d be interested in seeing at that moment.

 

Is Newspaper Advertising Worth Your Money?

Investing in printed advertising may be old-fashioned, but many small businesses get a lot of push from this. Other big companies still maintain some form of printed advertising, showing that this form of media can still connect with their customers. It is cheap, shows credibility, and directly targets specific consumers. Printed advertising is definitely worth your time and money, so start thinking about it if you are just starting your own business.

 

Conclusion

As you can see, print advertising in 2021 still holds several significant advantages over digital advertising. Digital ads can work great if you’re just looking for quick results with lots of data. However, if you want to crack open the shell of your target market, then there’s no better way to do it than with print advertising.